Doctrine

Message / Question

why is doctrine important?

Response

Doctrine is simply a set of accepted beliefs or teaching, Biblical doctrine defines the parameters of Christian teaching on a given topic (e.g. God, man, sin, salvation, etc). The Bible says that we must hold on to what we have been taught (Titus 1:9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.). What we are taught is “doctrine”. What you believe (i.e. your doctrine) has a huge impact on who you are and how you live. It determines how to respond to circumstances that you face, you measure your experience against your belief system in order to decide between what is right and what is wrong.

Paul wrote to Titus “Titus 2:1 You must teach what is in accord with sound doctrine”, so it’s clear that doctrine was important to Paul!.

There are areas of disagreement between church groups about some aspects of “doctrine”, but most of those differences are centred on practice. There are some fundamental “doctrines” over which the Christian cannot afford to compromise (the basic set of essential doctrine is found in the Nicene Creed and the Apostles’ Creed). Discerning between “essential” and “peripheral” doctrine is vitally important – it is important to know what YOU believe and WHY you believe it (i.e. understand what the Bible says and why it is important). So the fact that Christ came and paid the price for sin is essential doctrine; determining exactly when and how Christ will return is not.

Doctrine is not simply a dull thing for pastors to debate, it is a vital piece of equipment in the hands of anyone who wants to truly and effectively serve God.