There are people who could easily pass a theology exam but whose lives are unaffected by the saving power of the gospel, said Dr. Paul David Tripp in a recent podcast. It therefore behooves us all to evaluate ourselves to see if we are living lives consistent with what we say we believe.
“Two of the angriest men I ever counseled were two of the best non-seminary-trained theologians,” said Tripp in a conversation with co-host Shelby Abbott on “The Connecting Podcast.” Tripp is a pastor, author, speaker, and biblical counselor, and Abbott is an author, speaker, and campus minister.
“They were guys who just loved the labyrinth and nature of biblical theology and they had studied it and—wow—for that reason they were really hard to counsel,” said Tripp, “because they would throw everything back at you and argue about everything.”
Paul David Tripp: ‘Your True Belief Is Your Functional Theology’
Paul David Tripp and Shelby Abbott began their conversation discussing what it means to live by faith. Human beings were made to live for something more than ourselves, but the universe is broken by sin.
Our own selfishness gets in the way of living in accordance with our Christian faith, and it’s easy even for Christians to live in denial of our sin. The two men talked about how marriage and parenting, or even being a business owner, expose just how sinful we are. Yet God’s salvation is capable of redeeming us despite the depth of our brokenness.
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“One of the commitments I’ve tried to carry is I want to look at no one and treat no one that I come across,” said Tripp, “as being beyond the possibility of redemption because I believe in the power of God’s grace.”
He and Abbott observed that believers can struggle to believe that God’s grace is capable of reaching certain people. On the other hand, we can also be vindictive, wanting vengeance. Yet “mercy triumphs over judgment,” said Tripp, and because God favors mercy over judgment, the world is messy.
“They were guys who just loved the labyrinth and nature of biblical theology and they had studied it and—wow—for that reason they were really hard to counsel,” said Paul Tripp.Click to PostThere are key truths people must believe in order to hold to the actual gospel. “But belief is not just something you do with your brain,” said Tripp. “It’s how you live your life.”
He observed that Paul describes in Ephesians what the gospel is and then proceeds to explain what the gospel looks like lived out in various aspects of our lives. “I think we need to keep clarifying that faith is a lifestyle,” Tripp said. “It’s a lens for looking at everything. But that lens formed for me a lifestyle.”
