Paul Han

Theology I
Dr. Jeroncic
September 30, 2013
ADVENTIST THEOLOGY IN DIALOGUE WITH KARL BARTH
The majority of the general public may know that theology is the study of God, but it
would be rare to find someone in that group, as well as someone in the Adventist faith, who
could expand further on the study and its purpose. The first question we need to ask is, What is
theology? Theology can be defined as the study of the nature of God, but it goes so much
deeper than that. Agreeing with Karl Barth's definition, it is the response to the Word of God
(Barth 16). This would mean we all have some form of theology inside of us, as we all have
responses to the Word of God. All of us then having different responses, we technically also all
have different theologies. The goal of Adventist theology isn't to have people interpreting the
Bible in similar ways. It is to encourage people to approach theology for themselves without
undermining but rather upholding the redemptive work of the God of the Gospel, evangelical
theology. It is to emphasize the power of the living God and to remind people to focus solely on
Him when performing theological work to prevent theology turning to a logy. As it is an
undergoing study, it is our role as members of the Advent movement to allow theology to
challenge our faith, to have us seek understanding (Barth 42) as we wait for the second coming
of Jesus.
But theology has been alive for hundreds of years and the only change taking place seems
to be the debates that come and go surrounding how it should be understood. It would be good to
nurture and perform the four works that Barth advocates for us to practice. To study and teach
others the Word of God prayerfully and with love (Barth 160). This is the work of theology and

the mission Christians need to carry out. If our church were to emphasize these four areas more
heavily, who knows what kind of growth we would be able to witness in the near future!
Theological work can be done only in the indissoluble unity of prayer and study.
Prayer without study would be empty. Study without prayer would be blind. (Barth 171)
Barth has the correct idea when it comes to theological work. Without administering the work in
proper fashion, the results will be one that lacks passion and Truth. When the Holy Spirit is
brought into the picture, what we see is a theology that is humble and free. (Barth 55)
There are a lot of challenges that our church faces, including, but not being limited to
how we can best minister to those around the world and how are we to deal with the theologys
of other faiths that all seem to be spreading their ideas of a valid truth. Not saying that mission is
unimportant, but change within the present members, solidifying their faith looks like the better
first step. How else can we spread the Gospel when we ourselves don't understand enough to
spread the Word in an effective and loving manner? What needs to take place is a change that
begins by looking at our own theology, changing what must be changed in order to first get
ourselves out of the lifestyles we are comfortable living in. It would do no harm to fill ourselves
with the wonder we first had when we learned of the Truth, to seek an encounter that would have
us astonished at the enormity of the issue we are dealing with. Without wonder and astonishment
lying at the root of our search, would it be possible to have others interested in what we are
sharing? (Barth 64) Christ is that infinitely wondrous event we are sharing with the world.
(Barth 71) Why is it then that talks of our faith being dead come up so often as a topic in the
church?
Theology is an issue that concerns everyone. A correct theology will leave us disturbed

and have us searching for constant truth. In Barth's words, It met, encountered, and challenged
him...Before he knows anything at all, he finds himself known and consequently aroused and
summoned to knowledge. He is summoned to re-search... (Barth 76) Understanding the demand
theology requires, commitment and balance in one's life will be sure to help lay a solid
foundation in our walk with Christ. The challenges of doubt from within will be consoled by this
walk, as our faith is nurtured continuously. Perhaps this is why Barth questions whether or not
faith is in anyone's domain. The serious question, however, is whether anyone can allow
himself to persist in the dreary assertion. The mature thinker would know that admitting we
have faith isn't the key. Remembering that we know nothing by our own understanding, what we
must do is hope and hope and hope for it as the Israelites hoped afresh every morning. (Barth
104-105)
Returning to the four theological works, we must set our minds on growing closer with
Christ. We must be advocates of prayer and account for its power. With theology having us
respond to God's word, prayer will allow us to speak and listen to God. It is not done for us to
only learn more of ourselves, but for us to recognize God's power better. Each prayer has us
standing at the foot of God, a time for us to feel how small we are in front of the God who stands
before us. The certainty that this petition will be heard is consequently also the certainty in
which theological work may and should be courageously started and performed. (Barth 170)
When we begin to not only think about God, but towards Him, the relationship between God
and us will change.
Having stated the importance of prayer, what is missing in lives of Christians is the
application of studying. Barth's first few pages of introduction on the chapter of Study says it

perfectly. Study must be done by all fervently for those in the church. It is not possible for us to
talk about theology without study as it is in the very definition of the word. Being a student of
theology makes us students for the rest of our lives. It is anything but a temporary

occupation. Also an examination, the final culmination of our studies, is not there for us to just
simply pass as a goal to achieve. Using Barth's analogy on this, an examination is a friendly
conversation of older students of theology with younger ones. (Barth 172) Thinking about
studying under this new light, there is no one who would study for a friendly conversation with a
close friend. You would want a conversation to flow, to be back and forth with sincere love of the
topic being the catalyst for the ongoing conversation. We study not to memorize fact after fact,
but to broaden the horizon of our perspectives on the fascinating subject of God to further our
growth.
As members get closer to Christ, one can't hep but to become more like him. If we admit
to studying God, and go as far to label ourselves theologians and admit to believing in Jesus, it
would make sense to live a live of service. How can one honestly profess their love of Christ and
the subjects surrounding Him when their actions seem to say otherwise? Can someone truly love
God in his entire being without wanting to become more like Him? This may not always be its
primary goal, and often it is the most remote one, but it remains its ultimate and real goal.
(Barth 187) The job of theology is to support the entire proclamation of the Church in its task of
mirroring God's Word as exactly as possible. (Barth 191) When pastors preach and ask the
question, do you love God?, and everyone happily answers, Yes!, it has me wonder what
part of God they truly love. Theology should help us understand that service is a requirement not
only for theologians, but for all who love Christ as in doing so, we are mimicking the

example Jesus set for us when He was here on earth.

Barth ends his book with a chapter on Love and fittingly so. An honest theology should
have love as the driving force behind its works as the God we are studying is a God of love
abundant in knowledge and love. It would be counter intuitive to preach and share the

message of a loving God when we aren't able to practice the same love for others. Despite
not being able to ever have the same amount of love, and especially knowledge as Him who
created us, theology tells us we need to understand what kind of love it is that God loves

us with, and also how much so. Understanding as much as possible on the topic of love, how
much God truly loves us, allows us to trust in Him and to love Him that much more. Let us not
delude ourselves about the fact that this love will constantly be present wherever theological
work is done!...Truly, nothing of small weight is involved when men believe it to be both
necessary and desirous for them to love and know God... (Barth 199)
With so many different answers being given by so many different theologies, it is no
wonder that ideas are clashing so visibly. Seeing the formation of newer movements such as
radical orthodoxy and liberal theology, what does this have to do with our own Adventist
theology? Theology's task for us when we talk about ministry, spirituality, missions, and service
is to help us construct answers that can serve the general public. As mentioned earlier, we don't
want to follow one theology because it sounds right, but we do want to know where our church
stands and what kind of a theology it represents. This general theology will help as the body that
makes up our Adventist theology is made up of members with differing ideas on the same Bible.
Sharing different opinions on a topic is never a bad thing, if anything, it pushes us to seek
knowledge, the Truth. The answers that the Adventist theology give in regards to ministry,

spirituality, missions, and service are right. As times have changed, we have started to return
back to a period where members are encouraged to study the Bible, to ask the questions we were
once told we shouldn't ask. The answers we seek are in the Bible and the Adventist theology
helps us by setting up a good foundation for us to begin our own journey.
Theology is a human business that has us responding to God's Word. It is the very
essence of theology that should have us asking what more can be done with and for the Church.
Barth's theology has four distinct characteristics: It is modest, free, critical, and happy. It is
subject under God's authority and His alone, free because we are given freedom to try and
understand Him, critical because all that we study and say is heard by God, and happy because
the study is of God, our response to our Savior. Barth's theology is sound, and I am unable to
want and disagree with someone who challenges us to live a life Christ-centered. There are
points where I disagree with him, but his conviction is one I respect. The trend we are seeing of
theology is one that accommodates the culture and language of the generation while returning
back to religious traditions, such as postliberalism, and perhaps this shift will allow us to share
the importance returning back to a larger focus on the Bible. As Barth emphasizes through this
book, there are many responsibilities of theology that we must hold and remind ourselves. We
are subject to God's judgment and must tread reverently in our personal theology. Let us attempt
to fill ourselves with a conviction similar to Barth and other great men like Luther and
Schleiermacher as we continue to study the Word of God, prayerfully and happily with
conviction.

On my honor, I hereby affirm that I have read all of the assigned pages from Karl Barths
Evangelical Theology in their entirety, without skipping lines or paragraphs. I have met with the
following students for the duration of 45 min.: Nephtalie Eugene, Ashley Small, Omar Gomez,
and Jason Kim.