No Privacy of Faith For A True Christian
An anonymous reader wrote a comment...
The anonymous asked how to reconcile one’s theology with other Christians. Theology is not a private matter. It has to do with God’s revelation. If Jesus Christ is the head of the Church, then Jesus Christ is the authority over the Church. He is the preserver of unity in belief and practice. There exists an unbroken thread of unity in the Church throughout the centuries. This unity is anchored in the historic events of the life of Christ and preserved in Scripture, and summarized in the great creeds such as The Apostle’s Creed.
The Reformation brought about the translation of the Holy Scriptures into every man’s common language and ensured that the authority of the Church could not reside in a sacred elite or in one man. The Scriptures alone are the final authority to bind one’s conscience. Faith alone is the means of salvation. Christ alone is the true head of the Church, the true object of the Church’s worship, the savior of mankind.
Faith is not private. It is a confession. It is not held individually in secret, but practiced corporately. A true Christian does not exist in isolation. Christianity is for a body of people proclaiming a common faith, and who are living out that faith in common. In essentials, there is unity of faith but diversity in non-essentials.
So, to the anonymous reader: the question of reconciling theology among true Christians is a not an issue at all because among true Christians, there is already a unity. My faith is not a theology concocted in my private library. It is the proclaimed truth of millions of believers throughout the centuries.
"I can accept that you feel very strongly about your beliefs. However, here are some questions to ponder: Perhaps there are true Christians that disagree with your interpretation of the Christian faith: how do you reconcile your theology with theirs?"One of the outcomes of a secularized culture is what Dr. Ravi Zacharias calls “The Privatization of Faith.” People have come to accept the loss of absolutes, and even in matters of faith, hold to a loose interpretation of Scripture. Faith has become a private matter. Relativism has been applied to faith, and the Christian Church has not been immune to the secular culture. Churches have lost their unity over their abandonment of historic Christian truths, selling out to political correctness.
The anonymous asked how to reconcile one’s theology with other Christians. Theology is not a private matter. It has to do with God’s revelation. If Jesus Christ is the head of the Church, then Jesus Christ is the authority over the Church. He is the preserver of unity in belief and practice. There exists an unbroken thread of unity in the Church throughout the centuries. This unity is anchored in the historic events of the life of Christ and preserved in Scripture, and summarized in the great creeds such as The Apostle’s Creed.
The Reformation brought about the translation of the Holy Scriptures into every man’s common language and ensured that the authority of the Church could not reside in a sacred elite or in one man. The Scriptures alone are the final authority to bind one’s conscience. Faith alone is the means of salvation. Christ alone is the true head of the Church, the true object of the Church’s worship, the savior of mankind.
Faith is not private. It is a confession. It is not held individually in secret, but practiced corporately. A true Christian does not exist in isolation. Christianity is for a body of people proclaiming a common faith, and who are living out that faith in common. In essentials, there is unity of faith but diversity in non-essentials.
So, to the anonymous reader: the question of reconciling theology among true Christians is a not an issue at all because among true Christians, there is already a unity. My faith is not a theology concocted in my private library. It is the proclaimed truth of millions of believers throughout the centuries.
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