Seminaries and Bible colleges are institutions of theological learning. But what kind of theological education must we expect? Seminaries play a crucial role in preparing people for service in the church. So it is proper for theological students to devote themselves to the formation of the mind at the seminary and the formation of the heart in the local church.
“Theology is the doctrine of living for God through Christ,” according to Dutch theologian Petrus van Mastricht (1630-1706). It is the study of the Scriptures through various theological disciplines, fostering a deep acquaintance with Christ for the glory of God. Today, our theological education tends to produce two kinds of leaders: pragmatic preachers and theological shepherds.
The Problem of Pragmatic Preachers
A pragmatic preacher mistakes a sermon for a motivational talk with a Christian flavour. He confuses the local church with a self-help group. Our culture conditions such pragmatic preachers and equally pragmatic people to believe that thinking beyond a certain level is not beneficial; and engaging in doctrine beyond a certain point is worse.
To be sure, impractical thinking and monastic engagement with doctrine is not biblical. It undermines the earnest labour of the Protestant Reformers. No doubt, God reveals himself to us through his Word in the challenges of life. However, when our circumstances dictate our engagement with God, we are at risk of holding a truncated view of God.
A pragmatic preacher mistakes a sermon for a motivational talk with a Christian flavour.
A doctrinally minimalistic theological education approaches the divine only insofar as the circumstances of our life demand it—not because God is worthy of such worshipful engagement. Its purpose is limited to alleviating the discomfort or the pain of our circumstances.
So pragmatic preachers speak motivationally with a sprinkling of Christianese to inform people how to improve their circumstances or themselves, through proclamations of faith that simply boil down to more self-effort.
The Need for Theological Shepherds
The kind of theologian our Lord wants for his church devote themselves to the doctrines of the Word of God for the faithful shepherding of the people of God (1 Tim 4:13-16, Titus 2:1). This might be a vocational or bi-vocational pastor whose care for souls flows from knowledge of the Scriptures.
After over 2,000 years of faithful reflection on the Scriptures and the witness of the power of God in people’s lives, what this looks like may vary for different pastors—according to their abilities, available resources, experience, and time.
The church can rightly expect pastors and other leaders to be exemplary Christians.
However, the common denominator is his stewardship of resources to feed the flock whom God has entrusted to his care; to watch over their souls, even as he watches over his own. He wants to apply the gospel to felt needs and actual needs. And he commits himself to give them what they need to know, not tell them what they want to hear.
For instance, dwelling on the doctrine of Christ’s incarnation may feel excessive for some Christians. However, the pastor-theologian has studied and experienced the benefits of a deeper reflection on the mystery of Christ’s incarnation. He knows it offers enormous untapped comfort and encouragement to Christians in their earthly pilgrimage.
So he will serve this actual need of the congregation, whether it’s felt by them or not. Ultimately, his aim is for people to learn to depend on the Holy Spirit, as he transforms them into the image of the immaculate, beautiful Saviour of sinners (2 Cor. 3:18).
Exemplary Christian Lives
The church can rightly expect pastors and other leaders to be exemplary Christians (1 Tim 3:1-7). Notwithstanding the expectation for an elder or pastor to be a male—“the husband of one wife”—all other characteristics provide a vision of what any Christian may strive towards.
A Christian leader or a mature Christian is one whose life is characterised by repentance and faith in Christ. Likewise, the church can expect a seminarian or a would-be Christian leader to devote themselves to inward Christ-formation through God’s power.
A close working relationship between the church and the seminary is essential.
The God-ordained place for such Christlike character formation is the local church. It helps believers weather trials, withstand temptation to sin, pick up stumbling saints, and pray for one another—all of through the power of the resurrection of our Lord, manifest in the preaching and teaching of the gospel from the pulpit.
A theological student is to commit himself or herself fiercely to the life of the local church—to serve and to be served as one of them. So we ought to encourage seminarians to inward Christ-formation through spiritual power in true fellowship with the local church.
Holistic Theological Education
Unfortunately, the bulk of focus in our seminaries today is on one of the qualifications of a Christian leader or elder—being “able to teach” (1 Tim. 3). But a holistic theological education trains the mind with knowledge of the truth (primarily at the seminary) and forges the soul with a love for God and people (primarily in the church). So a close working relationship between the church and the seminary is essential.
Without a principled theological formation in the church, God’s sheep will only receive subpar shepherds. Consequently, our churches will end up malnourished.
The Urgent Need Before Us
I hope you see an urgent need for theological shepherds.
If you are a theological student, labour diligently in your studies and be an active member in the life of your local church. If you are considering theological education for vocational ministry, consider whether you want an evangelical seminary that offers a taste of the breadth of Protestant riches or a confessional seminary that seeks to serve the Protestant church with the riches of the Reformed tradition or another Protestant tradition.
Beyond that consideration, however, consider which seminary can form you best—not only into a well-trained student but also a well-formed student—with intellectual training from the seminary, and real Christ-formation in the trenches of church life.
May Christ, the Chief Shepherd, be pleased to bless us with more churches and may they be full of faithful theological shepherds.
