Experience with Theology Essay
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School
Liberty University *
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Course
THEO104_C2
Subject
Philosophy
Date
Feb 20, 2024
Type
docx
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4
Uploaded by ChancellorFish4030
Experience with Theology
Nathan J Smith
Liberty University
THEO104: Introduction to Theology Survey (D37)
Professor Richard McGee
The word, “theology” is a confounding word for many people. Many, both inside and outside of religious circles, would not even consider diving deeper into a theological discussion, let alone study theology. For many years, I heard the word theology, and would immediately associate the
word with a pastor or professor who was writing a sermon, studying religious cultures or researching the history of the Bible. The word would often invoke fear in my mind as it seemed much deeper than it actually is. Theology, to me, has always been an extensive and in depth study of the Bible, its origins, languages and the Person of God, and I believed that these studies were reserved for preachers, evangelists and professors. Pondering the word theology, there was also a profound mental image that presented itself when considering who a theologian was or is. The mental image that comes to my mind is someone who is cloaked in Biblical knowledge, terminology and history. A good word-picture would be the men debating and translating the Authorized King James Bible of 1611. They, to me, would be the picture-perfect description of what theology would be if it were put into a picture frame.
My experiences with theology have been constant throughout my life. Having been raised in a Bible-believing church, growing up with Christian parents and attending private, Christian school, I have been surrounded by Biblical principles and Christian education since childhood. I chose to attend Liberty University because the lessons are interwoven with Biblical principles and Christian teachings, which is a study of who God is. While attending Heritage Christian School, I took a Bible class that gave me a much better perspective of who God is. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the person of Jesus Christ, His relationship and work with God the Father
and the person and work of the Holy Ghost. These teachings gave me a better understanding of God’s work within my own life.
During my early, professional career as a police officer, I had the opportunity to work with a very devout Christian. He and I would have Bible study together, and our time was spent digging deeper into what God wants from us, and how to personally interact with God through Jesus Christ. All of these aspects were directly related to the study of God, who He is and our relationship with Him. These truths were God revealing Himself to me, and they were an extensive study into who God is. While attending LU, in my New Testament Survey class, I absolutely loved the personal study of
who Christ is. This study deepened my love, knowledge and understanding of who God is – as God is one with Christ. I believe the more that I read and understand the Bible, the more I know who God is and what His desire is for me in my personal life. I believe that this all ties into my personal study of theology.
I am looking forward to navigating through this course as I want to increase my knowledge of Christ and His teachings. I believe the text book readings offer many different perspectives of how to study the Bible, and I believe that these different perspectives shed new light on old truths as they are presented in different ways. I always love reading different perspectives and reading how those different perspectives revealed truths that may not have been seen before. I look at this in the same light as watching a documentary multiple times. Each time I believe that one can pull out a something they did not realize or see in the prior time.
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I am looking forward to spending the next seven-weeks in an in-depth study of the person of God, and having an open mind and open heart to receive the truths that He has for me to learn throughout this journey. I believe that walking into this course with an open mind and heart, God can use this course and our interaction to further my relationship with Him.