Theology is the systematic study of God's revelation and human faith, with the goal of discerning God's will for a particular context so that people can live faithfully according to it. It involves interpreting divine revelation from the Bible in a way that is God-focused, Christ-centered, historically-informed, context-sensitive, and practically applied. The various theological sub-disciplines each contribute valuable perspectives to develop a holistic understanding of God's will, rather than representing fragmented areas of study. Theology is done through hermeneutical, critical, dialogical, and correlational methods of reasoning and discussing revelation and faith.

1. By Kevin G. Smith
Introduction to Theology
Theological Research Methodology

2. THE NATURE OF THEOLOGY
What is theology?

3. What is theology?
• In its most basic form, the word theology would
mean the study of God.
• We do theology when we reason and discourse
about the nature, will, and purposes of God.
• However, we cannot study God. God cannot be the
direct object of human research.

4. What is theology?
If we cannot study God, how can we discern his
nature, will, and purposes?
• We can know the Lord indirectly through two
sources: (a) God’s revelation and (b) people’s faith.
• Theology, then, is the systematic study of divine
revelation and human faith.

5. The Roman Catholic
theologian Anselm
defined theology as faith
seeking understanding.
We reason and discourse
about God because we
believe in him, and we
want to discover more
about his nature and
purposes so that we can
live according his will.
Faith seeking understanding

6. THE GOAL OF THEOLOGY
What is the goal of theology?

7. The goal of theology is discern
the will of God in our
generation and context, so
that we might live and act in
ways that are faithful to his
nature and purposes. This is
the goal across the sub-
disciplines.
Theology is the systematic
study of God’s revelation and
of people’s faith. Its goal is to
restate the implications of
God’s revelation for our
context so that we might
believe and live in a way that is
faithful to God’s will.
What is the goal of theology?

8. THE TASK OF THEOLOGY
How must theology go about its task to achieve its goal?

9. What are the tasks of theology?
If the goal of theology is
discern the will of God in our
context, so that we might live
and act in ways that are
faithful to him, then it has
many implications for the way
we approach the task. Here
are some non-negotiables:
1. God-focused
2. Bible-based
3. Christ-centred
4. Spirit-led
5. Mission-minded

10. What are the tasks of theology?
If the goal of theology is
discern the will of God in our
context, so that we might live
and act in ways that are
faithful to him, then it has
many implications for the way
we approach the task. Here
are some non-negotiables:
6. Historically-informed
7. Context-sensitive
8. Practically-applied
9. Scientifically-plausible

11. THE BRANCHES OF THEOLOGY
What is the relationship between the theological sub-
disciplines?

12. How is theology sub-divided?
• Theology is fundamentally a single discipline! The various
sub-disciplines contribute important perspectives on the
whole of theology.
• Each theological sub-discipline contributes towards a holistic
understanding of the will of God for our context. Theology is a
single discipline tasked with discerning and restating God’s
will for our context. It can only do so by taking into account
the perspective that each sub-discipline contributes.

13. This is an inadequate way to
view the relationship between
the sub-disciplines. It implies
that each subdiscipline is
essentially separate from the
others, and that theology is
fragmented into its sub-
disciplines.
How is theology sub-divided?

14. This is a better way to view
the relationship between
the sub-disciplines. It
shows that theology is a
single, holistic field of
study. Each sub-discipline
contributes valuable
perspective to the whole.
How is theology sub-divided?

15. THE METHODS OF THEOLOGY
What are the attitudes and techniques by which we do
theology?

16. Theology can mean
‘reasoning and discoursing
about God’. We do
theology by thinking and
speaking about God’s
word and our faith.
• Hermeneutical:
we interpret
• Critical:
we re-evaluate
• Dialogical:
we discuss
• Correlational:
we compare
The Methods

17. CONCLUSION
How are we doing?

18. • We can only do theology to the extent that we have
a clear vision of what theology is and, flowing from
that vision, a clear commitment regarding how it
should be done.
• Theology is faith seeking understanding through
reasoning and discoursing about God. We seek to
know God’s nature, will, and purposes through a
Bible-based, Christ-centred, and Spirit-led approach.
Conclusion

19. THE END