Foundational Knowledge for Better Bible Reading and Study

Doctrine: Pulling the Bible’s Teachings Together

Welcome to Part 5 of The Bible at a Glance!

In Part 1, we looked at all the things we need to know before we even open the Bible including its purpose, outcomes, and a framework for reading.

In Part 2, we took a 30,000 foot view of the Bible, and looked at its structure, authors, key people, and geography.

In Part 3, we zoomed in to look at the story of the Bible, its eras, and a few key themes.

In Part 4, we examined the ways to study, memorize, and meditate on Scripture.

Now, we are going to examine a way to understand the Bible’s core teachings, also called doctrine. The best way to do this is not to reinvent the wheel. Christians and theologians have gathered and organized the Bible’s core doctrines into 10 key categories called Systematic Theology. Knowing these categories and growing in your understanding of them will help you assemble a proper Christian worldview and be able to articulate and defend what you believe.

What is Systematic Theology? Why does it matter?

Systematic theology takes information from the whole Bible about key topics and assembles it together. Wayne Grudem says it this way: “Systematic Theology means answering the question, ‘What does the whole Bible say to us about any given topic?’” Below you will find the ten broad categories of Systematic Theology (although different theology books will organize, categorize, or number them slightly differently, they all touch on these ten things):

1. Theology proper: Doctrine of God
2. Christology: Doctrine of Christ
3. Pneumatology: Doctrine of the Holy Spirit
4. Bibliology: Doctrine of the Bible
5. Angelology: Doctrine of Angels and Demons
6. Anthropology: Doctrine of Man
7. Hamartiology: Doctrine of Sin
8. Soteriology: Doctrine of Salvation
9. Ecclesiology: Doctrine of the Church
10. Eschatology: Doctrine of the End Times

Why study Systematic Theology? What’s it for?

You are a theologian whether you like it or not. You have beliefs about God, Jesus, the Bible, heaven, etc. And you act upon those beliefs. So, we need to make sure those beliefs are true. 

Therefore, I believe learning systematic theology–assembling a comprehensive, biblical understanding of our core beliefs—is the most helpful and necessary thing a Christian can do. 

Systematic Theology gives us a foundation to build our lives on and it gives us guardrails so we don’t wander off into error.

I love the four reasons Dr. Allen gives for studying systematic theology in this article (read the article over watching the video). I can’t say it any better.

How to make the most of it:

Theology shouldn’t keep us in libraries, though. It is not knowledge for knowledge’s sake. We don’t study it to just gain information or memorize facts–it’s about learning God’s truth so we know how to live well. 

So, it is always immensely practical. But we have to approach it correctly–with the right mindset and a heart. We have to be ready to change and grow. 

This short article lists 7 ways to study systematic theology and shows us why it is so helpful for the Christian life.

Still trying to wrap your mind around Systematic Theology? 

Here are two great little articles that summarize the topic well:

This is a (short!) summary by none other than Dr. Wayne Grudem.

And here’s another good one.

Series Conclusion:

And that’s a wrap on The Bible at a Glance! Maybe you’re laughing because this five part series seemed longer or more complicated than a “glance.” But hopefully you saw the Bible’s breadth and are now inspired to dive in! 

It is my prayer that this little series helped you in some way, and that you have learned to read the Bible differently somehow –hopefully with more intention, purpose, and clarity! I will be turning this whole 5-part series into a downloadable PDF soon–so be on the lookout and pray about who you might share it with! 

For Further Reading:

All of the systematic theology resources listed below fall within orthodox beliefs, but you will notice differences in how different theologians understand and articulate certain theological subjects. The Moody Handbook of Theology (also listed below) does a great job of helping students understand the differences between denominations and schools of thought. But if you just want to get to the basics and not worry about all the different theological schools of thought, The Gospel Way Catechism is a great way to understand Christian beliefs without getting into the “nitty gritty” differences.

Here are some of my favorite systematic theology resources:

Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem

Systematic Theology by Louis Berkhoff

Essentials of Reformed Systematic Theology by Beeke and Smalley

Daily Doctrine by Kevin DeYoung

Moody Handbook of Theology 

The Gospel Way Catechism