Scripture Memory: Same Mind.
VERSE : Romans 12:16 "Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits."

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O Worship the LORD in the Beauty of Holiness

3 December 2006
8.00 am Worship Service:
Eld Lim Teck Chye (Don't Go Back - Make A New Start)
10.45 am Worship Service:
Rev Charles Seet (Sardis: The Dead Church), Lord's Supper
6:00 pm Rehoboth Worship Service:
Eld Khoo Peng Kiat (100% Supernatural, With Preservatives)

10 December 2006
8.00 am Worship Service:
Rev Colin Wong (Don't Wander Anymore - Be A Part Of The Community), Lord's Supper
10.45 am Worship Service:
Eld Chin Hoong Chor (Philadelphia: The Faithful Church)
6:00 pm Rehoboth Worship Service:
Rev Jack Sin (He Who Comforts and Strengthens)

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Am I a theologian? Most of us would say NO. We are not qualified to be theologians because we have never been formerly trained in a Bible college. Do you mean to say that only those who have formal training in a Bible college are qualified to be theologians? Which verse in the Bible says it?

Do you ask questions like "Who am I?" "Why am I here?" What’s the purpose of life?" "What is right and wrong?" "If God is in control, why do people suffer and die?" "After death, what’s next?" "Is there a heaven?" "Is there a hell?" "Is there a Satan?" or "How do I know God exist?" If you do, then you are a theologian!

Who is a theologian? By definition, a theologian is an inquisitive Christian. He is a person who asks deep, heart-searching questions. He is an intense seeker of the truth. He wants to know the "whys" behind every command and prohibition of God.

My dear Lifer, every one of us is a theologian in our own right. Some of us may have a different theological understanding and persuasion because of different schools of thought. Some understand the Bible better than others, but we are all theologians. We all need to work at perfecting our theologies by carefully examining the teaching of the Holy Scripture. And I believe the church can play a vital role in this process.

The spiritual health of the church depends upon its pastors or teaching elders functioning as faithful theologians – teaching, preaching, defending, and applying the great doctrines of the faith (1 Timothy 5:17). We thank God for giving us this precious gift – pastors and teachers – to equip us for the work of ministry, for building up the Body of Christ until all of us attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature adulthood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 4:11-16; Acts 20:17-27; 2 Timothy 4:1-8).

What is theology? The word comes from two Greek words, which mean "God" and "word, discourse, thinking or reflection." Together, in simple terms, they mean thinking about and discussing God and related subjects such as the Bible, faith, Jesus, and other big questions about truth and life and reality (Dr Rick Cornish).

"Why study theology?" Most of us would respond, "Can’t I just read my Bible, have faith in God and love Jesus?" Such queries reveal a common misunderstanding about theology, even a bias against it. Do you know Bible reading, faith in God and love for Jesus all require thinking and understanding of theology? Theology explains our Bible reading, builds our faith in God and increases our love for Jesus.

When I was a young Christian, I did not know what Christian theology was. One Lord’s Day, I went to the church library and picked up a thick book on Systematic Theology. I did not know what Systematic Theology was all about. But I began to read it and to my surprise, I found it very informative, instructive and edifying to my soul. As a result, my faith in Christ was strengthened. Since then, I have been reading and studying theologies.

Historically speaking, Christian theology has been known as the "Queen of the Sciences." Theology teaches us what Christianity believes and how to live it. But it is most unfortunate that many Christian people in past centuries and even today think that theology is lifeless, irrelevant, unnecessary and outdated. Is theology only rules and legalism? Does its mere philosophy have nothing to do with everyday life?

A great preacher once said something like this: Theology is akin to a referee at a basketball game. He is hardly seen but controls all that goes on. Like the referee, theology is not often visible but not without actions. Sad to say that theology, which has played so central a role in Christian faith and living through the centuries, is sadly neglected in our day. In our postmodern culture, many of us are more fascinated with our feelings and more energized by our activities than by core Christian truth. Many barely recognize that Christian theology is a foundation without which the structure of our faith collapses.

Some weeks ago I wrote an article in the Weekly entitled "Will Our Faith Fail Us?" In that article, I quoted a saying of a pastor, "We cannot live ‘Christianity’ without knowing Christianity, any more than we can build a bridge without knowing engineering. We can’t apply what we don’t know." Is it possible for a Christian to faithfully attend a Bible-believing church for years and still know next to nothing about the cardinal teachings of Christianity?

My dear Lifer, does the above heart-searching question prick your conscience? Does it cause you to look within like King David who cried out to the Lord to examine him, know him and test him? (Psalm 139:23) If it does, then what are you going to do now to strengthen your Christian faith? This is no small matter. Do you know that it only takes one generation of ignorance for truth to die? If you and I neglect Christian theology, Christianity may be only a memory to our grandchildren.

What is the benefit of reading and studying Christian theology? The end of reading and studying Christian theology is to teach us what Christianity is and how to live it out in our daily lives. The God who has called us to salvation is holy. We who are His children are also called to be holy in all our conduct of life (1 Peter 1:15, 16). We are told in 1 Thessalonians that living a godly life is God’s will for us because God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness (1 Thessalonians 4:3, 7). We are to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:27). We are to walk worthy of the Lord (Colossians 1:10). The way to achieve it is to discipline our own selves for the purpose of godly living (1 Timothy 4:7b), for without such discipline, we shall not see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). We glorify God by godly living. Godly living proceeds from godly thinking. And godly thinking or reflection comes as a result of reading and studying Christian theology.

My dear Lifer, you may not think of yourself as a theologian. But the fact of the matter is YOU ARE. You may not practice theology in a formal setting like a theological institution. But the fact of the matter is that as long as you think and ask deep questions of truth, life and reality, YOU ARE.

And if you are still unconvinced of this fact that you are also a theologian in your own right, I hope this closing thought from Dr J. I. Packer helps. In his classic volume, Knowing God, Dr Packer reasoned that one trend producing such ignorance of God (i.e. ignorance both of His ways and of the practice of communion with Him) and weakness in the church today is that Christian minds have been conformed to the modern spirit: the spirit, that is, that spawns great thoughts of man and leaves room for only small thoughts of God.

This observation still rings true more than three decades later. Ignorance of the ways of God and of communion with Him is rampant in all too many instances. Members of Christian churches continue to think small thoughts of God and great thoughts of man. And this state of affairs reveals that too many Christians have neglected their first great calling, that is, to know their God. Every Christian is meant to be a theologian in the best and most intimate sense of the word. And if churches are to prosper in health, church members must be committed to being "biblical theologians" in whatever capacity they are able. This is one of the marks of a healthy church. Amen. —CW

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General Supt : Elder Sherman Ong
Asst Gen Supt : Dn Lim Ching Wah
Secretary : Jennifer Goh
Treasurer : Winston Chiam
Registrar : Vincent Goh
Primary & Nursery DS : Iris Loe
Junior DS : Timothy Soh
Young Teens DS : Heng Shao Sheng
Senior DS : Dn Roger Lim
Adult DS : Ong Beng Hong
Lively Stone Editors : Julia Koh & Selina Lee

Chairman : Eld Ng Beng Kiong
Secretary : Dn David Tan
Treasurer : Mr Jonathan Tan
Members : Eld Tan Yew Chong
                 Mr Lee Fong Seng
                 Mrs Yeap Song Ching
                 Mr Peter Koy
                 Dr Koh Lip Hoe
Ex-officio : Rev Charles Seet