The Bible: The Importance of Doctrine
“I’m tired of doctrine,” one person said. “I want sermons to be short and inspiring — I don’t want them to be doctrinal.”
Discussions about doctrine can be tiring, and some people might not like them. But we still need to learn about doctrine — not to argue, but to understand our faith better. A “doctrine” means a “teaching,” and the important teachings of the church are about the truth of God.
Sermons should inspire us, but the real inspiration comes from the truth about God, not just from how well the speaker talks. For example, we can feel hopeful about the future because of what God has done through Jesus Christ. We can stay positive even when things are tough because we have learned about Jesus. Our beliefs about Jesus are doctrines, which are truths about God, and they are the foundation of everything we do.
A strong Christian faith isn’t based on short moments of feeling close to God. Good feelings and inspiration are great, but they alone can’t help us live a life that is united with God, which comes from knowing and believing in Jesus Christ. We need a strong faith, and that comes from understanding truth about God.
Learning about doctrine is important, and Christians need more than a 10-minute sermon each week. We are talking about important truths and realities, as well as the everyday issues we face. Sometimes a big idea can be shared in 10 minutes, but understanding who God is and what he has done requires more time and commitment.
What Jesus has done for us, and how that affects our lives, needs to be explained over and over, week after week, from many different perspectives. We need to look at the many lessons, instructions, and stories in the Bible that teach us about it. If most sermons are only 10 minutes long, it could take 20 years to cover all the important topics. But Christians need more than that.
It’s easy to oversimplify things in 10 minutes and show only one side of the story. But a Christian life involves many things. People don’t automatically understand how Jesus’ sacrifice should change how we treat others, and they don’t just believe everything they hear. Many parts of Christianity take longer than 10 minutes to explain. The sermon needs to be for new people and for long-time members.
Need for teaching
“Teaching” is part of the Great Commission Jesus gave his disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). Ideally, churches would have classes for doctrine as well as sermons. The classes would focus more on teaching and explaining, with chances for questions and discussions. They would be aimed at specific groups, like new Christians, teenagers, and pre-teens.
Then, the sermons could be shorter and more motivational, based on a small part of the Bible. Motivation shouldn’t come from a speaking style — it should come from the truth about what God has done for us through Jesus Christ. If the church doesn’t have classes, or if most members don’t attend them, then the sermon needs to include some solid teaching, not just clever sayings and nice ideas.
Inspiration and encouragement should be connected to truth and learning. Studying the Bible and doctrine is a way to worship and praise God for his wisdom, and it can happen during a worship service. The sermon should be used for teaching and encouragement. Doctrinal topics can be included in biblical sermons.
A well-prepared doctrinal sermon or Bible study takes more mental effort, both for the speaker and the listeners, than a quick 10-minute thought. But Christians want to understand their faith, and leaders should help them in that. Faith in Christ is much deeper than just good feelings and inspirational quotes, and we need to learn all the good things the Bible has to offer.
However, there’s no point in talking longer than people can pay attention. Some speakers can keep attention better than others, but even the best can’t keep everyone focused all the time. Speakers should try their best to explain the Word of God, show its importance, and connect it to faith in Christ, as well as to real-life issues. This will take time and effort from both the audience and the speaker.
How long should a sermon be?
The length of a sermon depends partly on the culture and what the audience is used to. Many university classes are 50 minutes long, but they aren’t just lectures. The classes are interactive, with chances for questions and discussions. A good length for a sermon might be about 30 minutes, but it can change depending on the situation. Some speakers might be more effective with shorter sermons, allowing time for others to share stories or insights related to the sermon topic.
The ideal length also depends on how much spiritual nourishment people are getting during the week. Are they opening themselves to God’s teaching through prayer, Bible study, and small group fellowship? Sometimes, it seems like the people who study the Bible the most are also the most interested and excited about listening to sermons. They have a hunger for God. Christ is the most important part of our lives and our future.
Doctrine is important, but not all doctrines are equally important. For some people, it seems like earthquakes in far-off places are just as important as the resurrection of Christ. Maybe disasters feel more relevant to life today, but really, Jesus’ resurrection is always more important to us, even during an earthquake. The resurrection is always relevant — especially when death is a real possibility! It’s crucial that all sermons and Bible studies are based on Jesus Christ.
How to avoid heresy
Christians need a strong foundation in doctrine to help them tell the difference between important teachings and less important ideas. Some Christians might be drawn to the teachings of cults because they lack a solid understanding of doctrine. We need to teach doctrine because it will help defend people against false teachings that are presented with excitement and confidence.
The early church needed doctrine. The New Testament is full of doctrine — information about Jesus Christ and how he changes our lives. But not all teachings in the Bible are equally important. For example, the fact that there were 12 apostles is not as important as the teaching that Jesus was raised from the dead.
The early church made a short list of doctrines that they thought were essential for new believers to know and accept. Churches in different areas had slightly different lists, and over time, these lists became more standardized. They are now called creeds, which comes from the Latin word for “I believe.” These creeds were simple statements of belief.
Grace Communion International also has a Statement of Beliefs, which lists basic teachings and supporting scriptures. You can find it at https://www.gci.org/articles/the-gci-statement-of-beliefs/. This statement has been expanded into a series of questions and answers called “We Believe.” You can find that at https://resources.gci.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/We_Believe_Adult_Edition.pdf.[1]
The GCI Statement of Beliefs starts with a summary of our core doctrines. These provide a strong foundation for our beliefs:
- There is one God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- God the Father made all things through the Son, sent the Son for our salvation, and gives us the Holy Spirit.
- The Son of God, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, was born of the virgin Mary, fully God and fully human, and is the perfect revelation of the Father and the perfect representative of humanity. He suffered and died on the cross for all human sin, was raised bodily on the third day, and ascended to heaven. Standing in for all humanity before the Father, Jesus Christ provides the perfect human response to God. Since he died for all, all died in him, and all will be made alive in him.
- The Holy Spirit brings sinners to repentance and faith, assures believers of their forgiveness and acceptance as God’s dearly loved children, and works in them to conform them to the image of Jesus Christ.
- The Bible is the inspired and infallible Word of God that testifies to Jesus Christ. The Bible is fully authoritative for all matters of faith and salvation.
- Salvation comes only by God’s grace and not by works, and it is experienced through faith in Jesus Christ. Christians respond to the joy of salvation when they gather in regular fellowship and live godly lives in Jesus Christ.
- We look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the age to come.
We hope that these doctrines never become boring or seem unimportant. Sometimes speakers can make them sound dull, but the doctrines themselves are vital for all of us. These are short and inspiring teachings. We are thankful that God has given us truths that are worth teaching over and over as we follow the Teacher, Jesus Christ.
[1] There also is a Youth edition, a workbook, and translations into French and Spanish. See https://resources.gci.org/we-believe. The lessons you are now reading cover most of the same doctrines in a different way – different approaches will work better for different people.
Author: Joseph Tkach; edited by Michael Morrison in 2026
