Perhaps something strange was said in a sermon. Maybe a curious question was raised by a friend over a coffee or at school. Maybe sinful nature and doubt will simply get the better of them some days when things seem too hard to handle. Whatever the situation husband, your family will be subjected to dialog, doubts, and deceptions that will often run contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ with near-daily frequency.
If you’re a Christian, I’m sure you’ve met people in church (perhaps even in your own church) who hold firmly to the “I don’t ‘do’ theology, I just love Jesus” line. These are the type of people who will look down their noses at the “thinkers” of the Myers-Briggs personality type; claiming that theology is unnecessary and clouds issues, some going so far as to say that theology in itself is in fact a tool of Satan and has been used to undermine and divide the church (in fact, it is the very reason for the creation of so many denominations and splits throughout Church history). What these people may not realise is that in holding that position they too have a theology; and a dangerously poor one at that. It’s a total turning away from this kind of biblical illiteracy that is so desperately needed in our churches and our families today.
In a recent article (check it out here) Ronni Kurtz of the ERLC hypothesized about how the story of Genesis 3 might have gone down, had Adam stepped in with greater theological understanding. He writes of the serpent tempting Eve to take the fruit:
Imagine Adam standing up at the beginning of the dialogue and saying, “Eve, no. We know that God, who gave us each other and the garden, is our satisfaction and delight. We lack nothing when we have him.” While we’ll never know if this hypothetical situation would have changed the outcome, the moral of the story remains: husbands should seek theological awareness—and obedience to that knowledge—for the good of their marriages.
As the God-ordained head of your own local congregation; whether that be your wife and you alone or children too, you have a responsibility to lead your family in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Lead your family by leading them to the Word and leading them in prayer. Show your family that diligent study of God leads to a greater love of God. Theology isn’t dull or dry, and it certainly isn’t irrelevant or unnecessary. On the contrary, if the history of the Church has shown us anything it’s that we are being bombarded with lies every day; lies about who we are, what we ought to be, and what we should say, or wear, or seek after. The Church has sought to respond to these lies by forming doctrines – statements of belief – and husbands would be wise to learn them and teach them to their families if they want to better discern when these deceptions would seek to destroy the souls that God has entrusted to their protection and care.
Husbands, let’s not be those who would be “tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” (Ephesians 4:14) but rather, decide to take the time to study God; never being content to simply “love him” without the faintest clue who he is or what he’s like. When it comes to marriage, husbands are called to love their wives like Christ loves the Church (Ephesians 5:25). Imagine what it would be like to see someone get married, then after a year ask them some particular detail about their wife only to have them reply “Oh, I don’t really spend time getting to know her, I just love her”. I wonder how long you think that marriage would last. Be honest about your need to grow in knowledge about God, and to equip those God has given to you.
In a world of so many false religions, nominal Christianity, and those who would seek to lead genuine believers astray, I’m convinced that knowledge about God is absolutely essential, and husbands have a weighty responsibility to own a faith which is always seeking understanding.
Husbands, your family needs your theology.
