Freedom to differ

TROWEL & SWORD

Freedom to differ

Rev. Andre van Oudtshoorn

One of the characteristics of Reformed theology is that we take the issue of doctrinal purity, or theological truth, very seriously. And this is, of course, right. Because theology is about God, it is deadly serious. Nobody dares to take the name of God, the holy One, lightly. To think about God, to speak on His behalf, to teach others about him is always an awesome responsibility. It is within the power of those who take up this responsibility to malign and blaspheme God or show forth his glory and majesty. Ultimately, we will have to give an account before the living God of what we have taught people about Him and his actions for the salvation of the world. It is no wonder that theology is a serious business!

Unfortunately this insistence of theological purity has often resulted in Reformed Christians becoming arrogant and harsh. Truth is simply seen as a matter of right and wrong. We know that we are right and those who disagree with us must, thus, be wrong. And because we already have the truth, there is no place for re-thinking what we believe. We become defenders of the truth, rather than seekers after it.

Theology, however, is not just serious business. It involves us. And because it involves us we may not take theology too seriously. Our theological ideas do not constitute God. He is who He is despite what we say about Him. In the same way, theology cannot add anything to what God has done for our salvation. Theology is, at most, a descriptive task. Our descriptions of God and His work for us may fall short of who God really is and the fullness of what He has done, but God remains true to his person and work. Our theology does not define God. God defines himself. And therefore, God is, and always remains, more than our theological constructions of Him and we may not hold on too tightly to our own theological ideas and traditions. Our forefathers, from Calvin onwards, were not inspired by the Holy Spirit in the same way that we believe the apostles were inspired. Our forefathers could only offer an interpretation of Scripture from their own perspectives - perspectives that were formed within their unique cultural and personal contexts. In many cases they were able to point out wonderful things to us from the Word, insights for which we should remain truly grateful. In other instances, their own presuppositions, lack of knowledge, even sinfulness clearly got in the way of the gospel message.

It must follow, then, that the development of new perspectives in theology should not be seen as a threat to guard against. Many Reformed Christians operate with such a siege mentality and refuse to contemplate any new perspectives that may challenge the traditions in which they have been brought up. It is, however, part of the ongoing task of theology to provide new insights into the Word of God. This is not because there is anything lacking in the Word of God, but because theology is the result of human interaction with the Word. And, while the Word of God does not change, the people who engage with the Word are changing all the time. The Word of God wants to encounter us right where we are as we live within the world as it is. And while the gospel message remains the same, the questions that each new generation asks of the message are always different and therefore always require new answers in turn. To give an old answer in response to a new and different question, is to provide an answer that is both irrelevant and misleading. And new answers may also lead us to acknowledge that some doctrines which we had always thought were absolutely right, may contain some questionable aspects that need revising.

Because theology interacts with the Word of God, which is absolutely true, it also seeks to speak truthfully. It takes upon itself the task to provide truthful answers to the questions of the world and to question the answers of the world by means of the truth it proclaims. Its answers are authoritative, but provisional, because those who practise it are still embedded in the old broken world. Final truth escapes it, because Biblical truth is ultimately a person, Jesus Christ, and not our ideas about him. Theology thus needs to seek final confirmation of the truth it proclaims in the future, for it is only when Jesus appears that the absolute truth will finally be revealed and our theological truth will be seen for what it is. Until such time, theology stands in need of constant revision. Each new context and each new time demands that theology should be willing to question and even discard some of its old truths for new truths that may do more justice to who God is and what He has done for us. Theology, thus, entails truth which can be improved upon; even truth that can be found to have been wrong.

It follows, therefore, that theology is in her very being, a humble science. The gift of the Holy Spirit to the church and the presence of the Holy Spirit in the church means that God has not given His revelation over to any individual theologian, be it Calvin or Barth. The Holy Spirit uses other people in the church’s understanding of the Word to confront us, convict us and lead us to understand Him more clearly and in fresh and vibrant ways. We must be willing for the Spirit to use other people to challenge our most precious thoughts or insights in the light of His Word. As much as we expect God to use us, we must also expect God to use others, even Roman Catholics or Charismatics. Theology is, thus, the place where God confronts us through someone else’s insight into His revelation. We may engage in a battle with each other within the theological arena, as long as we do it as representatives of the patient, loving and compassionate God. We must, indeed, battle with each other until one or the other is overcome, through the work of the Spirit, to see more of God’s glory, love and majesty. Theology is, however, never a battle about who is finally right, but about whether a particular insight does more, or less, justice to God’s character and his holy love towards us and the world as revealed in his Word. We do not have to get all the doctrines ‘right’ to be saved, we only need to believe in Jesus. And doctrines that do not lead us to humility and love for God and others, are better discarded.

There are, of course, theological limits of what we can accept, lines that need to be drawn to expose heresy. But these lines should only be a few thick ones – (such as described in the Apostles’ Creed), thereby creating the greatest possible freedom for theologians and believers to explore different doctrinal interpretations as they seek to better understand the love of God.

“All men are liars.” The harsh words in Romans forces us to give up our arrogant theological certainties. And yet we can speak about God, because God is gracious. He does not leave his church. He continues to reveal Himself in and through his Word, in and through sinful people’s interpretation of this Word. ‘Sola Gratia – grace alone’, the Reformers said. Our theology is only valid in as much as it is grounded in the Word of God, the Word that insists on confronting us anew. As the Reformed fathers said: ‘Sola Scriptura – the Word alone’. And we know God, not by sight, but by faith. Faith that still awaits his return. Faith is a certainty that is open to be questioned, that will always be questioned until it goes over into knowledge at the return of Christ. ‘Sola Fide – faith alone’, we believe with our reformed fathers. But until that day, let us not be known by our arrogant certainties, but rather by our freedom to be humble and loving as we dare speak to others about our God.

A clarifying article was published in T&S, October 2009
See also a letter to the editor in October 2009

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