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Rooted in Orthodoxy (Part 2) Having provided a basic and general definition of the term theology in the previous insert, the conclusion reached was that bad theology is heresy. However, I did not tie in the relationship between theology and orthodox. The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines orthodox as “conforming to established doctrine especially in religion.” A careful examination of this definition reveals that sound theology is at the core of good orthodoxy and supports the earlier statement that all bad theology is heresy. In this regards, William Hordern comments that “some people hate the thought of being unorthodox…for them orthodoxy, whether in politics, religion, or table manners, is the first necessity of life. To others it is the most deplorable state into which a man can fall. It is equivalent to being stale, unoriginal, or just plain dull.” In a sense the one common thread (besides the Holy Spirit) that unites the Universal Church is that we are orthodox. The creeds and confessions of the early Church is especially expressive of this. Questions may be asked about the relevance of the current topic and its link to “Baptist Distinctives” and why we are Baptists. While on the surface, it may appear unimportant, the fact remains that Denominations did not exist in the early Church. All Christians saw themselves as being one united body or catholic (universal) in nature. Like all Protestants, our beginning is traceable to our understanding of what the word of God says. This is a key point and somehow must be regained, as there is much teaching in our own denomination that borders on heresy. The only reason for this is the rapid jettison or outright rejection of good orthodoxy from much of what we teach and preach. However, we are not the first to face this particular problem, it crept into the Church almost as soon as it was born in the form of salvation by works and not grace (cf. Gal. 1:7; 2:4; 3:1-5). The first century Church had the apostles to keep them on course and combat heresy. However, after they had died off, heretics sprang up from everywhere. How did the Church Fathers handle them? Not by philosophy, but laboring in God’s Word to hammer out good orthodoxy that became the planks of much of what we believe today. I need to pause at this point to stress that I am in no way saying that doctrine developed by men supersede the Bible. This can and must never be. This was at the heart of the Reformation as we will discover in the coming Sundays. Since God inspired holy men to write and speak His Word, orthodoxy or theology must never be regarded as being synonymous with it. Instead, what theology (the essence of orthodoxy) does for us is to take God’s revealed Word and explain it in our own understanding. The obvious question at this point is “How do we know when we’re hearing good theology?” The answer to this question is found in Luke’s characterization of the Bereans who “received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11). God has given all Christians His Spirit to help us in detecting error (cf. Jn. 16:13; I Cor. 2:10-16; Eph. 1:17,18). This Sunday and last Sunday’s insert on Baptist Distinctives were designed to give a summary on the importance of orthodoxy in our faith. All of us (Christians) are different. We look different, think differently, talk different and so forth, yet we serve the same God. This was even more so in the early Church where you had the Greek or Hellenistic culture merging with the Jewish to form a new sect. Both cultures brought not just a difference in language but an extreme difference in their idea and understanding of God. To the Jewish convert, the belief in a personal God, Who is One in essence was easy to understand and grasp. They looked for the coming Messiah and saw their hope fulfilled in Jesus Christ of Nazareth. The Greek’s submission to the LORD God as One and Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord was just as real; but how was he to understand His God apart from trying to do so through philosophical means. The only way was through developing doctrine by men gifted and illuminated by God—this is orthodoxy.
In Christ, Minister John Cobb
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