Welcome to Theology First!
Theology is the foundation of our faith, which is why I’ve chosen “Theology First” as the name for this website. For a great explanation of why theology must be “first,” I invite you to read the following article by gotquestions.com: “What is the Definition of Theology?”
Not everything taught in the Christian community is accurate. Some of it is outright false teaching. Sound teaching must begin with the Lord Jesus Christ, who said “I am the way, and the truth, and the life….” (John 14:6). Jesus is central in Scripture, central in theology. Therefore, in order to interpret Scripture accurately, we must have a Christocentric hermeneutic. Accordingly, a proper understanding of the New Testament is necessary in order to understand the Old Testament, for it’s the New Testament that reveals (identifies) Christ and His people.
A proper hermeneutic always begins and ends with Christ and the New Testament. If we don’t start there, mass confusion will be the result when trying to understand the Old Testament. From Genesis to Revelation, Christ and His Church are always in view. Therefore, that must always be kept in mind when studying God’s Word. In that context, I talk a lot about Dispensationalism, particularly, Dispensational Premillennialism (DP). As a former proponent of that theology — and now an Amillennialist, as well as a proponent of Baptist Covenant Theology — a comparison must be made and the shortcomings of DP must be pointed out. Otherwise, you’re not getting the whole picture. Keep in mind when reading that it’s the theology of Dispensationalism I have an issue with, not my brothers and sisters in Christ who follow it. I was a DP for most of my long Christian life, so I understand. I’ve been there.
However, I sincerely believe DP is leading the Church astray, because the idea of a millennial kingdom (where Christ reigns over it) and a completed plan for the nation of Israel upon the return of Christ is no small matter. This is a major teaching that needs to be addressed. I do that at length on this website. I get the idea that most Christians consider this a secondary issue, but we’re talking about the return of Christ, the most major event to come in God’s plan for His people. So how can this be a secondary issue? Therefore, Theology First is primarily devoted to the theology of eschatology (end time prophecy). I believe the study of, and the theology behind eschatology, leads to or reveals an amillennial position. Therefore, the primary focus here on Theology First is on the theology of Amillennialism.”
I’ve written a verse by verse commentary on the book of Revelation, which I’ve made available here. I highlight this because it’s the primary draw of readers to this site. This commentary (and prophecy in general) by far gets more hits than any of my other studies. In writing it, I left no stone unturned. Central in my mind as I was working my way through this book, was to make sure that the interpretation of all the events are consistent and in harmony with one another, that all the pieces fit together as one. Through much painstaking study and comparison, by God’s grace, I believe I accomplished that. In order to understand the book of Revelation, in order to even know how to approach this book, we must begin with a proper understanding of Israel and the Church. That’s where the theology of eschatology comes in. In other words, “theology first” in order to understand eschatology. More specifically, “theology first” in order to understand the amillennial position. That’s where I began my study, and you’ll find all that here. I recommend that’s where you begin too. By starting there you’ll see that there’s a solid basis for the amillennial position.
Since end time prophecy is the primary draw to this site, I’ve decided to remove most of my other studies—except for a few select articles. The doctrines of election and the atonement of Christ were a secondary, but major focus of this site, and I have a multitude of studies pertaining to that. However, at least for now, I’ve decided to remove all of those from viewing, as well. What’s most important is that we’re faithful to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, and leave the details to God about how He goes about bringing sinners to faith in His Son.
In regard to Baptist Covenant Theology, the study of the covenants is a fascinating subject, and is a key to understanding the Bible as a whole. This is something I would love to write about, and was actually planning on doing. However, this website may be complete now, as I’m not sure if I’ll be doing anymore writing. Therefore, I encourage you to study this on your own. You’ll find an introduction to it here. I provide links for further reading there too.
Grab yourself a cup of coffee and enjoy your reading.