ENCA SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY
THEO 101 · INTRODUCTION TO THEOLOGY
Student Manual
Introduction to Theology
What We Believe
A chapter-by-chapter companion to the sixteen-week course. Read before class. Write in the margins. Pray the doctrines you study.
Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect. — 1 Peter 3:15 |
Companion to the THEO 101 Course Syllabus
How to Use This Manual
This manual is not a substitute for Holy Scripture or for the assigned textbook. It is a guided path through the sixteen weeks of THEO 101. Each chapter matches one week of the syllabus and is meant to be worked before that week’s class.
For every chapter, follow this rhythm:
· Read the “What We Believe” statement aloud. Can you say it with a clear conscience?
· Study the key terms. Write a one-line definition in your own words in the margin.
· Read the teaching notes with an open Bible. Look up every reference.
· Work the discussion questions in writing or with a classmate.
· Complete the application and the week’s assigned work from the syllabus.
· Pray the closing prayer, then add one sentence of your own.
A student of theology is first a disciple. Knowledge that does not lead to worship is not yet Christian knowledge. “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” (1 Cor. 8:1).
How the Chapters Map to the Course
Term | Meaning in this course |
Chs. 1–3 | Prolegomena, revelation, and the doctrine of Scripture |
Chs. 4–6 | God, the Trinity, creation, providence, and the unseen realm |
Chs. 7–8 | Humanity and sin (midterm after Chapter 8) |
Chs. 9–12 | Christ, the Spirit, and salvation |
Chs. 13–14 | The church and the last things |
Chs. 15–16 | Theological triage, your statement of faith, and integration |
Required Alongside This Manual
· The Holy Bible (ESV, NASB, or KJV recommended).
· Wayne Grudem, Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know, Revised Edition (Zondervan, 2022).
· THEO 101 Course Syllabus (for due dates, grade weights, and memory verses).
CHAPTER 1 · WEEK 1 What Theology Is and Why It Matters Prolegomena — beginning to think about God, on purpose |
WHAT WE BELIEVE Theology is the disciplined study of God and of all things in relation to God, drawn first from Holy Scripture, for the sake of worship, obedience, and the good of the church. Every Christian already has a theology. The question is whether it is true. |
Learning Aims for This Week
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
· Define theology, doctrine, and worldview in plain language.
· Explain why loving God with the mind is an act of discipleship, not a hobby.
· Name the main branches of theology and how they serve one another.
· Adopt an irenic (peaceable) posture toward fellow believers while remaining firm on the gospel.
Key Terms
Term | Meaning in this course |
Theology | From theos (God) + logos (word, study). The study of God and of all things as they relate to Him. |
Doctrine | A teaching of Scripture organized so it can be confessed, taught, and lived. |
Dogma | Doctrine formally confessed by the church as binding (used carefully in Protestant settings). |
Prolegomena | The “first words”: method, sources, and why theology is done at all. |
Worldview | The set of beliefs through which a person interprets reality. |
Irenic | Peaceable. Firm on truth, gentle toward persons (from eirēnē, peace). |
Orthodoxy | Right belief — teaching that accords with apostolic Scripture. |
Heresy | A teaching that denies a gospel-essential truth and, if held, places one outside the faith. |
Teaching Notes
1. You are already a theologian
The moment you answer the question “Who is God?” you are doing theology. The same is true when you decide what prayer is for, whether Jesus rose, how a person is saved, or what happens when someone dies. Informal theology is unavoidable. Careless theology is dangerous. The church’s task is not to invent a theology for people who have none; it is to form the theology they already have so that it matches the Word of God.
Jesus named the mind as part of the first commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37). To refuse theology is not humility. It is often a decision to keep yesterday’s assumptions unexamined.
2. What theology is — and is not
Theology is faith seeking understanding (Anselm’s phrase). It begins with trust in the God who has spoken, and it uses the mind God gave to trace what He has said. It is not speculation about a silent deity. It is not the private property of professors. And it is not a substitute for prayer, holiness, or love. Rightly done, theology serves all three.
A useful working definition: theology is the church’s attempt to state, from Scripture, who God is, what He has done, and what that means for everything else — creation, humanity, sin, Christ, the Spirit, salvation, the church, and the last things.
3. Five Major Branches of Theology
· Exegetical theology asks, “What does this text say?”
· Biblical theology asks, “How does this theme unfold across the story of Scripture?”
· Historical theology asks, “How has the church understood this across the centuries?”
· Systematic theology asks, “What does the whole Bible teach about this topic, as a coherent whole?”
· Practical (pastoral) theology asks, “How does this truth form worship, counsel, mission, and life?”
This course is an introduction to systematic theology, always standing on exegesis and always aiming at practice. We will listen to the church’s history so we do not repeat old errors as if they were new insights.
4. How we will work
Scripture is the supreme source and final judge of Christian belief. Tradition, reason, and experience are real gifts, but they are servants, not masters. Where a cherished tradition, a sharp argument, or a powerful experience collides with the plain teaching of Scripture, Scripture wins.
We will practice an irenic method: present positions fairly, distinguish essentials from secondary matters, and refuse contempt. Firmness without charity is not faithfulness. Charity without firmness is not love.
Watch for “tabloid theology.” Tabloid theology believes whatever is vivid, viral, or emotionally satisfying. It treats a preacher’s story, a dream, a slogan, or a social-media thread as if it were a text of Scripture. This course trains a different habit: test everything by the Word (Acts 17:11; 1 Thess. 5:21). |
Key Scriptures
Read these passages slowly before class. Mark what they teach about this week’s doctrine.
· Matthew 22:37–40 — The first commandment includes the mind.
· 2 Timothy 2:15 — Handle the word of truth accurately.
· Acts 17:11 — The Bereans examined the Scriptures daily.
· Romans 12:1–2 — Renewed minds; worship that is reasonable.
· Jude 3 — Contend for the faith once for all delivered.
· 1 Corinthians 8:1–3 — Knowledge without love inflates; love builds.
For Discussion
· What theology did you inherit (from family, church, or culture) before you ever opened a textbook?
· Where have you seen “tabloid theology” in your own life or in the church?
· Why might some sincere Christians distrust the word theology? How would you answer them?
· What would change in your discipleship if you treated thinking as an act of worship?
Personal Application
· Write a five-sentence answer to “What is theology, and why should a disciple care?” Keep it.
· Confess one area where your beliefs have been formed more by habit than by Scripture. Plan one step of study.
· Ask a mature believer how a particular doctrine has actually helped them suffer or obey.
This Week’s Work
· Read the course syllabus in full. Write every due date in your calendar.
· Read Grudem, Christian Beliefs, introduction (and any assigned opening pages).
· Begin Scripture memory: 2 Timothy 3:16–17 (you will finish it in the bibliology weeks).
· Bring one honest question about God to class — written, not just in your head.
A Prayer to Carry into the Week
Lord, You have commanded me to love You with my mind. Forgive the ways I have treated thought as optional, or used it to win rather than to worship. Give me a humble heart, a clear mind, and a love that builds up. Teach me from Your Word. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Created by Rev Rolando E Santiago, ThD DPM
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