Knowing, Being, and Doing: One Systematic Theologian’s Pedagogical Reflections

The Greatest Thing in Life

Amidst settling into my then new role as a first-time full-time teacher of systematic theology at China Evangelical Seminary (CES) in Taiwan, my seasoned colleague—Professor of Old Testament, Timothy Wu (吳獻章)—shared with me in passing that we as teachers ought to treat each class session as an opportunity to worship God. Along such lines, in the first lesson for most of my introductory theology courses while teaching at CES (2019–2024), I began by leading students in the singing of this “classic” 1977 song by Mark Pendergrass where the key lyrics sing as follows:
“The greatest thing in all my life is knowing you… “The greatest thing in all my life is loving you… “The greatest thing in all my life is serving you…”¹

The song not only allowed for me to establish the idea that “theology is for doxology” (a thought I gleaned from the late J. I. Packer [1926–2020] which I want all of my theology courses to be framed by), but also the notion that, truly, “the greatest thing” in all our lives is not just knowing “facts” about God, but is instead knowing God in a deep way that causes us to love God and, even more than that, to serve God.

In this regard, upon moving from CES to join the core faculty of McMaster Divinity College (MDC) in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada last year (2024–Present), I have been greatly encouraged by MDC’s pedagogical emphasis upon knowing, being, and doing, as such maps perfectly with the very values and priorities that I have all along sought to instill in my own students through my courses and through my scholarship.² As a professor of theology, I want my teaching to reflect these priorities. I want my research and writing to also bring about knowing, being, and doing—both in myself and in others, lest my scholarship be pridefully reduced to a mere sort of self-serving “academic exercise.”

After all, theology is not just for doxology. In the words of Stanley J. Grenz, it is also “for the community of God”—i.e., for the edification of the Church—a Church that is for sake of the world.³ As such, theology is for Christians at all levels and from all walks of life. Theology is for Christian leaders who have been called to serve the Church, the academy, and the society at large.

Theology is for doxology and for the community of God, that is for the world. MDC’s paradigm of knowing, being, and doing specifies that the object of our knowing is God’s Word, that the object of our being is that of transformation into the image of Christ, and that the object of doing is works of ministry.⁴ These are helpful nuances that help make knowing, being, and doing more concrete for both instructors and their students to aspire to, especially as we together explore and affirm the central Christian doctrines surrounding God, Jesus Christ, Scripture, and the Church.

Along such lines, I think it is most healthy when the way in which Evangelical theological essentials are affirmed is not painstakingly overbearing but signals an openness and generosity that promotes honest reflection and thought about God and the things of God.

In this regard, important to the knowing, being, and doing progression at least as such has been put forward by MDC is the way in which knowing comes first.

Do We Still Need Theology?

What, then, is the purpose of theological education?

When it comes to the study of theology, it is not always assumed by Christians that such is necessary or even beneficial. Unfortunately, many students in Christian colleges and seminaries who are training for ministry share in this attitude.

After all, so the logic goes, why do we need theology if we have the Bible? What good do abstract theological thoughts do for our congregations in the face of their practical “real-life” concerns like marriage and raising a family, or their secular jobs that have seemingly nothing to do with their Christian faith? Instead of learning theology, what feels much more “helpful” are tips and techniques about time management, how to preach without notes and with rhetorical style, things you can draw on a napkin to go about the task of evangelism, what to say and not to say to people in the midst of pastoral care and counseling, and leadership strategies that can be employed to cast vision (and revival!) as well as to run effective meetings with volunteers. Above all, if we can somehow just make sure that our people do their daily devotions and “stay close to God” (in feeling if not in actuality) while holding approved views on certain issues (whatever the “approved views” and “certain issues” might be in our varied church and socio-cultural contexts), then theology is irrelevant.

That sounds quite reasonable, doesn’t it?

Of course, the preceding paragraph represents a completely overblown caricature of the pragmatic mindset that has infiltrated many evangelical churches in the contemporary modern world we live in (and my exaggerated description here is in no way suggesting that evangelical colleges and seminaries are pandering to this—or, at least, not the respectable ones). Even so, one of the most crucial tasks of teaching theology, especially in seminary contexts in which our studies are not meant to be “just academic,” is to do so in way that definitively demonstrates that theology matters; that clarity of thought and proper distinctions about God and the things of God (or lack thereof!) have made a difference in the history of Christianity and continue to make a difference in our own times, in our own churches, and in our own lives (all of which are part of the overall flow of that same history, whether such a fact is acknowledged or not); and that for better as well as for worse, the theological views we hold onto (whether we see ourselves as having theologies or not) come with implications and consequences, some more far-reaching than others.

Not every student needs to be convinced that theology matters—and by this, what I mean is that some already are convinced that it does. A problem arises, however, when such students place so much confidence in their own untested theological outlooks that they are unable to give an honest listen to those who might offer an alternative worthy of adaptively learning from or perhaps even adopting. The study of theology should lead to the holding of strong convictions, but it should also cultivate a spirit of humility in light of the provisionality of all knowledge prior to the eschaton (cf. 1 Cor. 13:12).⁵

As a professor of theology, the fact that I have convictions will uphold the importance and significance of theology while the way that I hold my convictions ought to model an embodied humility for students to emulate.

Knowing Shapes Being and Doing

How my courses are structured will seek to mediate the ideals that I have thus far described, if not explicitly then by osmosis. For introductory or entry-level courses, I believe it is necessary for students to have a consistent voice (ideally, a singular voice or, if more than one voice is absolutely necessary, then a very limited number of consistent voices) to help give students a coherent system for which to work with, critique, and build upon.

In keeping with the kind of consistency that I am advocating for, such lower-level courses will lean heavier upon lectures and secondary sources that seek to provide students with “the trunk of the tree” for a subject matter—faithfully describing, not without critique, the different positions that have appeared in the Christian tradition with appeal to the teacher’s own views when appropriate (but not in a way that imposes the teacher’s views upon students). While exams have some value in assessing the breadth of what is to be minimally learned in such courses, research papers and in-class presentations are assignments that call for students to dig as deep as they can—the process indirectly training them how to find needed information on their own (a skill that will be sorely needed in leadership and/or ministry, not to mention life in general).

For this reason, more advanced courses ought to lean heavily on research assignments about theology or research-based reflections on ministry experiences (or other personal experiences, when applicable). With one’s foundation already in place through the consistency offered by lower-level coursework, advanced coursework can now turn more towards a seminar format increasingly incorporating primary source materials, presentations, and group discussions over direct engagement with long sections of readings from Early Church Fathers like Augustine and Maximus the Confessor; or medieval theologians like Thomas Aquinas, Teresa of Avila, Catherine of Sienna, and Gregory Palamas; or Protestant Reformers like Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Ulrich Zwingli; or modern and contemporary theologians like Karl Barth, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Liu Xiaofeng, ... etc.).⁶

Because of the confessional context of a Christian college or seminary, questions regarding truth ought not to be deferred, and descriptive treatments of topics and texts ought to turn towards debate and discussion with regard to prescription, yet again, structurally affirming not only the notion that theology matters as we stand upon, thinking with and after, the theological and spiritual giants who have gone before us—but also that our convictions are to be formed compellingly, in the midst of “communion with the saints” (past and present!), in humility and grace towards faith, hope and love.

The description above hopefully gives you a small yet savory taste the journey of Christian systematic and historical theological studies—and it is one that I hope many will take up as part of their journey of discipleship in Christ, by the Spirit, to the Father.

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1.  “The Greatest Thing in Life,” by Mark D. Pendergrass, from "To the Chief Musician, Chapter II".
2. For more about McMaster Divinity College’s emphasis on “knowing, being, and doing,” please refer to the website https://mcmasterdivinity.ca/about/.
3. Please refer to "Theology for the Community of God" by Grenz.
4. See Note 3.
5. Please refer to Wolfhart Pannenberg’s "Systematic Theology" (vols. 1–3). This is grounded in the concept of temporariness drawn from 1 Corinthians 13:12, a theme that runs throughout the entire work.
6. The reading scope also includes other theologians such as Jürgen Moltmann, Wolfhart Pannenberg, Katherine Sonderegger, Kathryn Tanner, and Paul Tillich.

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Rev. Dr. Clement Yung Wen is currently Assistant Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology at McMaster Divinity College in Canada, and holds the Howard and Shirley Bentall Chair in Evangelical Thought.