Doctrine vs. Practice

What's the balance between doctrine and practice?  Paul seemed to balance the two in all of his epistles.  All of his writings were split up into two parts.  Doctrine then Application - and the order is everything.

You see, we can never apply what we do not know, we can never know what we don't learn, and we can never learn what we don't take the time and effort to study.  At the bottom of everything is knowing truth by taking it in.

The next step is just as crucial because to amass doctrine and not apply it is like looking in the mirror, seeing a giant bugar on your lip, then walking away like nothing is wrong then going to work, school, church, etc.

On that note, Bible college is cool.  Seminary is cool.  Bible conferences are cool.  Youth conventions are cool.  There are so many cool ways to spend our time Christians.  But the question I'm trying to ask is this, what are we doing with the stuff we learn? Are we accumulating "doctrine" and "theology" like baseball cards that will never be used? 

I discipled a young man named Aaron about 10 years ago.  I was in the mist of my hard core "doctrinal" phase and he asked me, "Ryan, what about the Holy Spirit?"  I chuckled and basically told him, "don't worry about that.  It's all about doctrine." Aaron, your question has rung in my head for a decade.

And then it eventually hit me!  I was using "doctrine" and "theology" as a way to protect myself from being vulnerable or transparent with people.  I rarely embraced true community or life in the body because I was too immersed in ethereal/doctrine to make room for confession, repentance, and just "doing life" with other people.

And its a sad, sad, sad, day when the Church accumulates seminars, conventions, and a bunch of teaching yet maintains a few secrets that they don't feel the need to share because "its nobody's business" or an attitude of "why does it matter???" All of that is tantamount to the evils of defensiveness.

It matters.  It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.  Why are we scared, oh Bible College or Seminary grad or pastor or church worker?  Why are we so scared to let people in and show them who we really are and how we really struggle when nobody is looking?  Who knows us?

Tony Evans said it on repeat: "give me something real.  Don't give me something so ethereal I can't grab it. I want something practical!" (Paraphrase mine).

I pastored in the "doctrinal movement" for years. Now I'm stepping back and realizing what "my boy" Aaron was trying to tell me all along; namely, where is the Holy Spirit? Well, I had no room for him and I didn't know how to pray. I was all "academic."

Now, God has busted out of the box that I put him in and is speaking to me through many ways that reaffirm what his word says.  I can actually receive a word of wisdom from my wife!I can also listen to Beth Moore, Priscilla Shrier, and any other woman who had truth to share.good saved me from my sexism.

I'm here today to encourage the balance between doctrine and application.I'm here to encourage the bible college and seminary people to not put God in their theological and dogmatic theology box.good is to big for your pretty box to be open to however he wants to speak truth to you.

God is speaking to us all day.  The times we can't hear him are the times his voice is being drowned out by the voice of the enemy.