Theology and the Local Church

"It used to be, a century or two ago, that theology was primarily done in the church and for the church. It’s not that Christian theologians were uninterested in engaging non-Christians. It’s simply that they understood that the primary audience of theology, and the primary constructors of theology, were Christians gathered in the local assembly. Somewhere along the way, however, that ceased to be the case. David Wells has even made the case that not only is theology not done in the local church, it’s increasingly not welcome there.

Instead, the church has become enamored with business practice and psychological method. Her leaders are expected to be CEO’s, not pastor-theologians. The church’s public gatherings are designed to be events that appeal to the outsider, rather than assemblies that give corporate expression to our identity as the people of God. And our habits of thought tend to be shaped more by polling data, the blogosphere, and the image-driven nature of television than they do the Bible. The thoughts of God and his glory, our nobility and depravity, and this world’s value and transience—thoughts that shaped and characterized the minds of previous generations of Christians—rest lightly, if at all, on the church today." [1]


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1.  Lawrence, M. (2010). Biblical Theology in the Life of the Church: A Guide for Ministry (pp. 109–110). Wheaton, IL: Crossway.