Christian doctrine is of paramount importance to the Christian faith so much so that it is a major area of study in Theology. But what is it exactly? To answer this question, we will explore what Christian Doctrine is within Theology as a discipline and in relation to sources of Theology that help shape it. We will also look at a brief survey of major doctrines that all Christians who hold to the historical and apostolic Christian faith believe.
In simple terms, Christian Doctrine is the body of Bible-based teachings that the followers of Jesus-Christ believe, hold to and endeavour to live out. It sits within Systematic Theology which is one of 4 areas of studies in Theology – the study of the one true God of the Bible. These 4 areas of Theology – Systematic Theology, Biblical Theology, Historical Theology and Practical Theology – help us to study and answer questions about who God is (& consequently who we are), what the Bible teaches, what we should believe and how we should put it in practice.
As Christian Doctrine is a major area study within Systematic Theology, it’s essential to understand what Systematic Theology is. According to Bible scholar, Wayne Grudem, one way to do this is to look at the main question it seeks to answer, and it is this: ‘What does the whole Bible teach us about X?’ The task of Systematic Theology is to answer this question by studying and interpreting all the passages from Genesis to Revelation that deals with any given topic through the lens of Jesus-Christ’s finished work on the cross. Once all the passages on the topic of interest have been thoroughly studied and interpreted in that lens, they are systematically organized as comprehensive teachings that frame what Christians believe. The result is Christian Doctrine– the body of Bible-based teachings of what Christians believe, hold to and endeavour to live out.
In Theology, there are 5 sources that help shape what Christians believe. The first four –Scripture, Tradition, Experience & Reason– are referred to as the Wesleyan Quadrilateral. The 5th one –Creation– is usually added to this list as Scriptures make a strong case that it is indeed a source of Theology.
Whilst each source shapes our beliefs about God, Scripture (or the Bible) is considered to be the primary source of Theology and is foundational to Christian Doctrine because it is the divinely inspired and fully authoritative Word of God. Tradition is a strong second because historically, the Church–the community of followers of Jesus– has relied on Jesus’s Apostles’ teachings who laboured to study the Scriptures in order to teach the first communities of believers what to believe and how to live life in light of these beliefs.
16All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16
Given that Christian Doctrine is the body of Bible-based teachings of what Christians believe, the Bible is therefore an essential and primary source of Theology in general, and for Systematic Theology and Christian Doctrine. The Bible shapes Christian Doctrine. Because this is the case, it is important to understand:
The Bible is the written Word of God. As our primary source of Theology, it is inspired by God and fully authoritative in revealing to us who God is, what His story is and His message to humanity. It also reveals His past, present and future acts in the world. Christian Doctrine operates on the basis that the Bible is true, accurate and fully reliable.
What is the story of the Bible?
The Story of the Bible is often summarized in 5 easy to remember words: Creation – the Fall – Redemption – Restoration – Consummation
The Bible tells us the story of the one true God who created all things and made us in His image (Genesis 1:26-27)- Creation. But we turned away from Him and sinned against Him (Genesis 3)- the Fall. We therefore became dead in our sins and in need of His salvation (Romans 3:23). The Bible also tells us that in Jesus-Christ, God became one of us to save us and restore us into a right relationship with Him and to give us eternal life (John 3:16-17) – Redemption. The Bible also looks forward to a glorious future where God will make all things new and unperishable, and He will dwell with those who put their faith in Him forever on Earth (Revelation 21:3-5)- Restoration & Consummation.
Tradition as a source of theology for Christian Doctrine is Bible-based in the sense that we find its origins in the pages of the Bible. Tradition is also historical because church history bears witness to it.
18And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20
This passage is what is often called the Great Commission. After Jesus was raised from the dead He appeared to His Apostles and commissioned them to go into the world and make more disciples, and to teach these new disciples to follow His teaching. As promised, He also sent them the Holy Spirit who would dwell in them and open their minds to understand the Scriptures (at the time the Old Testament). The Holy Spirit would also empower them fulfil the Great Commission. In the early days of Christianity, the teachings of the Apostles became foundational in establishing the Church – the new community of believers in Christ. With the help of the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:44-49), they laboured to understand the Old Testament and teach it in light of Jesus’ finished work at the cross.
The Apostles (or disciples close to them) also became authors of the New Testament books which were organically recognized as the Word of God by the Church in between 1 AD & 4 AD. In many ways, we could say that the Apostles were the first systematic theologians who were instrumental in framing and articulating sound doctrine for the Church of all times.
Church history tells us that the Church has held on to the Bible-based tradition of the Apostles’ teachings or what was later coined the apostolic teachings.
Whenever heresies (false teachings) arose, the church contented for a return to the apostolic teachings which were the gold standard for Christian Doctrine. This has led over the course of time to the development creeds which were short Bible-based doctrinal statements about what Christians believe. The Apostles’ Creed (2 AD -3 AD) was one of the earliest of ones to summarize the apostolic teachings of the Christian faith. And later on, the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed (4 AD) was produced and became one of the most well-known doctrinal creeds to summarize in succinct statements what Christians believe. It is still recited in many church congregations as a declaration of faith to this very day.
As Christians, we are so privileged to live in a time where we’ve got about 2000 years’ worth of Church History behind us. Historical Creeds, notably the Nicene Creed-Constantinople Creed, have provided us with concise statements of Christian beliefs that make up major doctrines that all Christians who hold to the historical and apostolic faith believe. And they are the following:
God & the Trinity– the teaching that our eternal God is one in essence and three in the Persons of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
Jesus & Salvation– the teaching that Jesus-Christ is the Son of God, fully man and fully God, and that He was sent to save mankind from their sins by dying on the cross and being raised from the dead.
The Holy Spirit (& by implication Sanctification) – the teaching that the Holy Spirit is God, sent by the Father to dwell in every believer.
The Church – the teaching that the Church is body or community of believers in Christ.
End Times – the teaching that there are series of events kickstarted by the Second Coming of Jesus-Christ at the end of this age that usher us into an eternal era where God’s purposes for the world will be fulfilled.
At Access Theology, we hold to the historical and apostolic Christian Doctrine which we have summarized here in our statement of faith. Our mission is to make Theology, and therefore Christian Doctrine, accessible to every believer in all walks of live through our resources.