ChinaSource Podcast on Contextualization and Chinese Culture

Last updated on: November 7, 2016 at 4:15 pm By Brad Vaughn

ChinaSource recently posted an interview between Joann Pittman, Sam Chan and I. I am grateful for the invitation as we had a great conversation. ChinaSource gives the following introduction. Their discussion examines the process of interpreting, communicating and applying the Bible in a particular cultural context. Effective contextualization communicates the gospel message in a way that is faithful to how God has revealed it through scripture but also in a way that hearers can understand in their own cultural setting.... Read more

How Christ saves God’s face . . . and ours (new article)

Last updated on: November 2, 2016 at 9:45 am By Brad Vaughn

I’ll excited to let you know that Missiology published my newest article this month and it appears they’ve it available for free (for now). I’m thankful for allowing people access to it. Here is the abstract: Honor and shame are critical aspects of a biblical soteriology. In order to demonstrate the point, this article surveys three key doctrines—sin, atonement, and justification by faith. Shame is a subjective and objective reality. It is both the consequence and defining feature of sin. Within the... Read more

Must Chinese elders have believing children?

Last updated on: September 28, 2016 at 9:48 am By Brad Vaughn

What qualifies a person to be a pastor? Are you aware of a controversial translation in Titus 3 that influences how many Chinese church leaders think about this question? How we interpret the text has important implications (or consequences) for the church. I refer to Titus 1:6. I’ll quote the ESV in context followed by the translation of v. 6 in the CUV (和合本). This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into... Read more

My most useful contextualization tool (Part 2)

Last updated on: October 25, 2016 at 1:18 pm By Brad Vaughn

In my last post, I showed one way to apply the most important tool (in my opinion) discussed in One Gospel for All Nations. We used a biblical model of contextualization to interpret the biblical text through the lens of our cultural context. Now we will move the other direction: from the biblical text to cultural context. Having a broader understanding of the Bible, how do we discern key applications and ways of communicating the biblical truth in a meaningful... Read more

“White privilege” in missions. Really?

Last updated on: October 21, 2016 at 10:00 pm By Brad Vaughn

My aunt is attracted black men. That means I now have two black cousins related by blood. During middle school, my dad, one of my cousins and I went to the store. I kept my distance from them, at least 20 yards. It was not until adulthood that I found out my actions were grossly misunderstood. Apparently, my father supposed I was embarrassed to have a black cousin. I was appalled at the suggestion. I love my cousin deeply. We... Read more

My most useful contextualization tool (Part 1)

Last updated on: September 28, 2016 at 9:47 am By Brad Vaughn

I recently realized that I have never shared on this blog what is probably the most important tool included in One Gospel for All Nations (OGFAN). It is what enables us to contextualize the Bible in a faithful and meaningful way regardless of our cultural context. Therefore, this post demonstrates how to apply the model of contextualization presented in OGFAN. In order to fully grasp the background that informs each stage of the model, you will need to check out the... Read more

China is serious this time

Last updated on: October 16, 2016 at 7:23 pm By Brad Vaughn

The Chinese government is serious about implementing their recently announced religious guidelines. This past week, Chinese authorities mass issued forms for citizens to report their participation in all religious activities. See the form below. So far, I’m only aware of two groups receiving the forms–– college professors and the parents of school children. I presume all teachers will be required to fill out forms. Professors are told to fill them out or else find new jobs. I suspect that consequences... Read more

Ministering in Honor-Shame Cultures (book notice)

Last updated on: October 12, 2016 at 8:43 am By Brad Vaughn

Here is a must read for anyone ministering in honor-shame contexts. Jayson Georges and Mark Baker have written Ministering in Honor-Shame Cultures (IVP). I have a formal review of the book coming out soon (I loved it!) but want to let you know about it now. You can find a much fuller introduction over at honorshame.com. Here is the publisher’s description: Many a Westerner has had a cross-cultural experience of honor and shame. First there are those stuttering moments in... Read more

Study Guides to Training Videos

Last updated on: September 28, 2016 at 9:47 am By Brad Vaughn

Over the past few months, I posted 4 short training videos (available on my media page). Explaining Contextualization How Do We Contextualize the Gospel for All Nations? Understanding Honor and Shame Honor and Shame in the Bible Per reader request, I’ve created study guides to to go along with the videos. I’ve also written a document “How to Use Study Guides for Training Videos.” The study guides are best used within a group discussion. Each is divided into 3... Read more

What LGBT Teaches the Church about Shame (Part 3)

Last updated on: October 6, 2016 at 6:26 am By Brad Vaughn

This post concludes the series by giving three suggestions to apply the observations made in Part 1 & Part 2 concerning the use of honor-shame in social issues. Jesus said those of this world are more shrewd than people of the light (cf. Luke 16:8). The church’s response to the LBGT movement might be a modern case-in-point. Here are three initial suggestions for the church to move forward with greater shrewdness. Morality is Bigger than Law First, the church should... Read more