At the Crossroads

He comes to make his blessings flow
far as the curse is found.
- Isaac Watts

All that is gold does not glitter.
Not all those who wander are lost.
The old that is strong does not wither.
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
- J.R.R. Tolkein

Behold, I am making all things new
- Jesus the Christ, from Revelation 21.5

Augustine recognized that something drives the human toward God and religious expression and he identified that something as God’s very own presence. We inevitably ask theological questions because God created us to do so and ever calls us to relationship. Thus, the foundation and possibility of theology derive from the reality that God has already sought and called us into relationship. Being engaged in theology, therefore, is something for which God created us. Christian theology in particular fulfills its purpose when it finds and proclaims the redemptive message of the Gospel in a way that speaks to the present church and world. Theology is a question of discipleship because it asks and seeks to answer questions such as: (1) What does it mean to follow Jesus Christ in the cultural circumstances in which we/I live? (2) What is the Spirit of God saying to the Church of Jesus Christ today? and (3) How do we bring to authentic and credible expression the redemption revealed in Jesus Christ? Theology is a discipline of thought that seeks to discern appropriate answers to such concerns. When we engage in theology we are responding to God’s call to enter into relationship and live out the implications of that relationship in our world.
- Steve Studebaker