The Rc Sproul Systematic Theology
The RC Sproul Method is a novel approach to religion. Beliefs change over time, as do people's actions, so that an understanding of human history and evolution is needed to apply the teachings of the Bible to current situations. If you read this book with an open mind, you will no doubt discover its value for teaching the beliefs and attitudes necessary to navigate life today. The book has many lessons to offer but the most important among them is the one on how belief can change. This is a book about faith, but it is also a book about how to live a life of faith.
Dr. Sproul maintains that our current understanding of God's Word does not adequately answer questions about the relationship between faith and knowledge, love and faith, and power and love. In particular he focuses on how history and our present beliefs can be examined to reveal hidden truths. Through careful examination of this most important premise in religious history, Dr. Sproul offers insights that will help us come to better understand our own beliefs.
I liked that the author starts by emphasizing the need for a systematic theology of belief. I have two thoughts on this. One is that a systematic understanding of religious belief is much more valuable than a quick look at one aspect of it. And another is that one can easily become abstracted in a dry intellectual way if we only concentrate on one facet of this subject. That said, however, in order to understand what Sproul teaches in his book, one must examine all the facets and discover their meanings and nuances.
I think one of the most valuable things this text offers is an explanation of how this particular set of beliefs developed out of earlier ones. This gives an interesting glimpse into how religion developed in different cultures throughout history. It also provides an important insight into how our current understanding of God differs from that of previous civilizations. It is always good to take a second or even a third glance at previous history in order to see how this has affected our current understanding.
The book divides religions into three main categories and then explores each in turn. Each of these themes has at least one chapter devoted to it, as there are plenty of topical issues covered. These chapters cover ancient monasticism, early Islam, Hinduism, and medieval Catholicism, with some relevance to today's issues regarding religious toleration and freedom of conscience.
Sproul does a great job of providing footnotes to explain various points. I especially appreciated the notes he included about Richard W. Corddry's work on Early Christianity. I also really enjoyed reading about Origen and his teachings on the three major councils. Origen and other bishops of the Roman Catholic Church were outspoken critics of Origen and his teachings. It is interesting to read how some of their works are compared today to how they were received during those times.
Finally, I found the treatment of Augustine's teachings to be a little short. Still, this is only a small gripe. The entire volume is well-written, highly relevant, and rich in illustrations that make the pages dance and flow.
I think this might be a perfect gift for a Catholic friend who has been struggling with their faith and knowledge. This book provides an excellent summary of recent developments in systematic theology. It is written in an engaging, easy to read style. I recommend that everyone buy this book and give it a go.
The contents of the book are divided into chapters focusing on Origen, Arianism and the Fourth Century, Philology, Theology, Economy and Spirituality. There is also one chapter that goes into detail about Sproul's comments on Aquinas' ethics. As someone who has studied Aquinas and worked at a PhD level in Theology and Semiotics, I found this to be a good introduction to systematic thinking.
I think most people will find many ideas in this text useful. There are several discussions of Origen's idea that knowledge comes from God. John Locke defends this idea and while not totally against it, but challenges Sproul's view that knowledge is independent of God. This is an interesting debate. Locke shows how claiming to know is sometimes just an act of blind faith.
In conclusion, I think Sproul makes a good contribution to the field of systematic theology. His book will most likely have further influence on scholars of religion as a model of religious learning and experience. However, for those interested in applying theology to different fields and issues, I would recommend other books by Sproul. One other book that might interest you is his Theologus.RC Sproul is a new book in the world of systematic Theology. The RC Sproul system is a unique synthesis of traditional Reformed and synergistic faith. It is designed for both the beginner and experienced church participant who desires to advance toward full membership in the prophetic. Much of the content is available online.
Thematic study is the focus of this book. RC Sproul distinguishes five categories of systematic theology. These are mission, revelation, faith, works, and love. He then systematically presents each category's teaching and methodology. This book contains eight lessons. I will break these down below.
The first lesson focuses on the work of the person of faith. The concept is that the work of the believer includes his obedience to God's Word. In addition, it involves submission to the works of the Holy Spirit. This subject is further examined with a biblical example and application to current situations.
The second lesson explores the idea of structuralism. Structuralism divides systems of thought into smaller ones, each of which is based on a scriptural source. Within the system of religious systems, there are “fundamentalisms,” which adhere to a set of beliefs or practices and “postmodernisms,” which are fluid in nature and do not have a fixed set of beliefs or practices. Some fundamentalisms are rigidly sanctioned while others are less so.
The third lesson explores the idea that all scripture can be interpreted literally. It does this by utilizing a diverse range of exegetical and contextual methods. It also looks at the implications of Calvinism, the essentials of reformed orthodoxy, and other biblical statements. Finally, it examines how scripture can be applied to ecologically relevant situations.
I believe that systematic theology can be useful for those who are looking for a more literal and systematic understanding of scripture. However, as a reformed Christian, I am very leery of any concept that tries to restrict God to a simple doctrine of grace. God is omniscient in His ways and He never changes. I also believe that God does not reveal His doctrine in order to justify some kind of activity on the part of men. This book presents a very broad view of scripture, and as someone who has worked within a reformed context (Reformed theological studies include Reformed theology and reformed church planning), I found that Sproul did not do a very good job of developing a unified argument.
I also felt that Sproul did a poor job of presenting his case for reformed orthodoxy. The book presents reformed theology as being contradictory to Aquarianism. To borrow a famous line from James Harrington's Reformed religion, “What the world cannot see, the body cannot conceive.” The problem with this line is that it is a self-defeating argument. If all ideas can be seen, then the body cannot conceive of them, and therefore cannot perceive them!
I found that the book did not offer many applications or application to my own life as a reformed believer. In fact, much of the book was very focused on how we can apply our beliefs to our lives and apply them to theologies of other believers. I agree that Sproul is an excellent teacher and has done a wonderful job of developing his teaching into a systematic exposition of scripture. However, I do not think that this system needs to be applied to our lives. It is too simplistic.
It is important to remember that the concept of systematic theology is not at all exclusive to the Reformed churches. Armine Davidson, Johniscopalanism, and many other conservative churches have also produced exegetical works that are exegetical. Asking these other conservative churches what they take from systematic theology does not prove that it is limited to Reformed denominations alone. Sproul makes some strong arguments for why it is limited to Reformed denominations, but without using the analysis found in this book to show that it is exclusive to Reformed theology.
I also think that one of the weaker points of this book is its use of the term “systematic theology”. While Sproul does present an exegetical work that is exegetical in nature, he does not necessarily bring this work into its systemic form. He does say that it is exegetical, but I thought that he could have used the language of methodological fideism more effectively to describe his approach. He seems to prefer to use the language of systematic theology to describe his methodology, but I would like to see him use the language of fideism to describe his theological conclusions.
Overall, this is a good book that has many good insights. I do not feel that it reaches its goal of developing a system of theology. I also think that it takes a bit of a “duck diving” approach to exegetical works within the Reformed tradition. However, if you are a reformed person, this may be a helpful work to you!
Dr. Sproul maintains that our current understanding of God's Word does not adequately answer questions about the relationship between faith and knowledge, love and faith, and power and love. In particular he focuses on how history and our present beliefs can be examined to reveal hidden truths. Through careful examination of this most important premise in religious history, Dr. Sproul offers insights that will help us come to better understand our own beliefs.
I liked that the author starts by emphasizing the need for a systematic theology of belief. I have two thoughts on this. One is that a systematic understanding of religious belief is much more valuable than a quick look at one aspect of it. And another is that one can easily become abstracted in a dry intellectual way if we only concentrate on one facet of this subject. That said, however, in order to understand what Sproul teaches in his book, one must examine all the facets and discover their meanings and nuances.
I think one of the most valuable things this text offers is an explanation of how this particular set of beliefs developed out of earlier ones. This gives an interesting glimpse into how religion developed in different cultures throughout history. It also provides an important insight into how our current understanding of God differs from that of previous civilizations. It is always good to take a second or even a third glance at previous history in order to see how this has affected our current understanding.
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| The Rc Sproul Systematic Theology |
Sproul does a great job of providing footnotes to explain various points. I especially appreciated the notes he included about Richard W. Corddry's work on Early Christianity. I also really enjoyed reading about Origen and his teachings on the three major councils. Origen and other bishops of the Roman Catholic Church were outspoken critics of Origen and his teachings. It is interesting to read how some of their works are compared today to how they were received during those times.
Finally, I found the treatment of Augustine's teachings to be a little short. Still, this is only a small gripe. The entire volume is well-written, highly relevant, and rich in illustrations that make the pages dance and flow.
I think this might be a perfect gift for a Catholic friend who has been struggling with their faith and knowledge. This book provides an excellent summary of recent developments in systematic theology. It is written in an engaging, easy to read style. I recommend that everyone buy this book and give it a go.
The contents of the book are divided into chapters focusing on Origen, Arianism and the Fourth Century, Philology, Theology, Economy and Spirituality. There is also one chapter that goes into detail about Sproul's comments on Aquinas' ethics. As someone who has studied Aquinas and worked at a PhD level in Theology and Semiotics, I found this to be a good introduction to systematic thinking.
I think most people will find many ideas in this text useful. There are several discussions of Origen's idea that knowledge comes from God. John Locke defends this idea and while not totally against it, but challenges Sproul's view that knowledge is independent of God. This is an interesting debate. Locke shows how claiming to know is sometimes just an act of blind faith.
In conclusion, I think Sproul makes a good contribution to the field of systematic theology. His book will most likely have further influence on scholars of religion as a model of religious learning and experience. However, for those interested in applying theology to different fields and issues, I would recommend other books by Sproul. One other book that might interest you is his Theologus.RC Sproul is a new book in the world of systematic Theology. The RC Sproul system is a unique synthesis of traditional Reformed and synergistic faith. It is designed for both the beginner and experienced church participant who desires to advance toward full membership in the prophetic. Much of the content is available online.
Thematic study is the focus of this book. RC Sproul distinguishes five categories of systematic theology. These are mission, revelation, faith, works, and love. He then systematically presents each category's teaching and methodology. This book contains eight lessons. I will break these down below.
The first lesson focuses on the work of the person of faith. The concept is that the work of the believer includes his obedience to God's Word. In addition, it involves submission to the works of the Holy Spirit. This subject is further examined with a biblical example and application to current situations.
The second lesson explores the idea of structuralism. Structuralism divides systems of thought into smaller ones, each of which is based on a scriptural source. Within the system of religious systems, there are “fundamentalisms,” which adhere to a set of beliefs or practices and “postmodernisms,” which are fluid in nature and do not have a fixed set of beliefs or practices. Some fundamentalisms are rigidly sanctioned while others are less so.
The third lesson explores the idea that all scripture can be interpreted literally. It does this by utilizing a diverse range of exegetical and contextual methods. It also looks at the implications of Calvinism, the essentials of reformed orthodoxy, and other biblical statements. Finally, it examines how scripture can be applied to ecologically relevant situations.
I believe that systematic theology can be useful for those who are looking for a more literal and systematic understanding of scripture. However, as a reformed Christian, I am very leery of any concept that tries to restrict God to a simple doctrine of grace. God is omniscient in His ways and He never changes. I also believe that God does not reveal His doctrine in order to justify some kind of activity on the part of men. This book presents a very broad view of scripture, and as someone who has worked within a reformed context (Reformed theological studies include Reformed theology and reformed church planning), I found that Sproul did not do a very good job of developing a unified argument.
I also felt that Sproul did a poor job of presenting his case for reformed orthodoxy. The book presents reformed theology as being contradictory to Aquarianism. To borrow a famous line from James Harrington's Reformed religion, “What the world cannot see, the body cannot conceive.” The problem with this line is that it is a self-defeating argument. If all ideas can be seen, then the body cannot conceive of them, and therefore cannot perceive them!
I found that the book did not offer many applications or application to my own life as a reformed believer. In fact, much of the book was very focused on how we can apply our beliefs to our lives and apply them to theologies of other believers. I agree that Sproul is an excellent teacher and has done a wonderful job of developing his teaching into a systematic exposition of scripture. However, I do not think that this system needs to be applied to our lives. It is too simplistic.
It is important to remember that the concept of systematic theology is not at all exclusive to the Reformed churches. Armine Davidson, Johniscopalanism, and many other conservative churches have also produced exegetical works that are exegetical. Asking these other conservative churches what they take from systematic theology does not prove that it is limited to Reformed denominations alone. Sproul makes some strong arguments for why it is limited to Reformed denominations, but without using the analysis found in this book to show that it is exclusive to Reformed theology.
I also think that one of the weaker points of this book is its use of the term “systematic theology”. While Sproul does present an exegetical work that is exegetical in nature, he does not necessarily bring this work into its systemic form. He does say that it is exegetical, but I thought that he could have used the language of methodological fideism more effectively to describe his approach. He seems to prefer to use the language of systematic theology to describe his methodology, but I would like to see him use the language of fideism to describe his theological conclusions.
Overall, this is a good book that has many good insights. I do not feel that it reaches its goal of developing a system of theology. I also think that it takes a bit of a “duck diving” approach to exegetical works within the Reformed tradition. However, if you are a reformed person, this may be a helpful work to you!
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