We Compromise the Gospel When We Settle for Truth: How \u2018Right\u2019 Interpretations Lead to \u2018Wrong\u2019 Contextualization<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\nComment from John<\/b>:<\/p>\n
Honor-shame\u2014I like your take on Romans here, particularly related to our dishonoring God as the root problem. \u00a0I would like to see more developed on emphasizing both legal righteousness and honor\/shame. \u00a0I think that there has been a radical emphasis on one or the other. \u00a0Reading through Romans 5, I see both. \u00a0Even in China, I don\u2019t think we can simply share the Gospel from one angle while neglecting the other. \u00a0I love what you said here:\u00a0\u201cRather than setting law and honor in tension, those engaged in contextualization and theological study do better to find how they are interrelated. More has been said on this topic elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
JW<\/b>:<\/span><\/p>\nMy dissertation has a rather rigorous section of exegesis on Romans, esp. Rom 2\u20134. My last main chapter deals with soteriology, in which I address the atonement and justification. One of my main goals in the justification section is to show the relationship between righteousness-justification and honor-shame. Your dichotomy is standard, separating \u201clegal righteousness\u201d with honor-shame. I argue that this divide is a fundamental flaw of traditional theology. I\u2019ll state things broadly here and let the dissertation demonstrate the exegesis and theology.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nLaw is a subset of honor-shame such that law is the socio-political expression of a people\u2019s basic honor-shame standards. Righteousness is fundamentally an honor-shame concept, one sphere of which is the legal sphere. This claim does not contradict traditional theology but rather refines it with greater precision. Honor-shame is a holistic concept concerning collective identity, not simply pride and hurt feelings (as some people oversimplify it). So, yes, \u201crighteousness\u201d is a legal concept, but not only legal. It is fundamentally relational. Its \u201clegal\u201d context is actually a royal<\/i><\/b>\u00a0context. We should not overly reduce the meaning of \u201claw\u201d or \u201clegal.\u201d For example, legislation is a legal concept but that which is legal is not necessarily legislation. Western theology has treated \u201claw\u201d as if it were merely judicial, thus losing sight of the fact that a \u201croyal\u201d context is far more broad. In the contextualization packet (this refers to another document I wrote which John has<\/i>), you will notice I listed a range of honor-shame passages in Romans. When I started noticing \u00a0honor-shame features in Scripture, I met\u00a0resistance\u00a0from people. I decided to take on these objections squarely by diving in on traditional theologies \u201chome turf\u201d\u2013\u2013Romans. If I \u201cwin\u201d the argument with Romans, the whole debate is settled. In short, there is a legal dimension to justification but it is comparable to the \u201cbecause she\u2019s a woman\u201d answer. The traditional view is true enough, but it\u2019s not Paul\u2019s main idea; rather, it\u2019s an application of Paul\u2019s main emphases.<\/span><\/p>\nComment from John<\/b>:<\/p>\n
The knowledge\/reality is helpful, especially for sharing the Gospel and teaching. \u00a0One example is\u00a0always\u00a0the normal greetings, \u201cHave you eaten yet?\u201d \u00a0My friend of three years, finally said, why do you ask me \u201cWhat\u2019s going on lately? (\u6700\u8fd1\u600e\u4e48\u6837\u5462\uff1f\uff09He said, \u201cI\u00a0don\u2019t know how to answer you.\u201d \u00a0:-) \u00a0The danger\u00a0I\u00a0see in China is the prosperity Gospel. \u00a0They want to know what will benefit them or serve as practical. \u00a0What are you suggestions on practical engagement here without compromising?<\/p>\n
JW<\/b>:<\/span><\/p>\nRegarding this question, I think the point is to show them why it matters that they be a Christian besides \u201cgoing to heaven\u201d in the next life (whatever someone means by that). Since we are to be disciples, not merely converts, this should not be as hard as it may sound at times. For example, if Jesus defeats death, then what should we fear? Nothing. Therefore, what would it look like to live a life without fear of other people? How would our loyalties be changed? When our theologies are so centered on \u201cgetting to heaven,\u201d then we don\u2019t make disciples, church life is not a priority, and obedience is optional. In addition, my point was to highlight the value of practical wisdom and the whole<\/i>\u00a0canon. Conservatives have made a canon within a canon. This does not honor God\u2019s word. For example, I think Ecclesiastes would be a great place to dwell with Chinese people, especially for \u201cseeker\u201d studies. It\u2019s meaty in terms of real life.<\/span><\/p>\nIn the next post, John asks about my comments on absolute\/relative truth, how to explain sin, and the implications of linear\/cyclical history for theolog<\/strong>y.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As I announced previously, my newest article was published in Global Missiology. Someone read it and sent me a lot of good questions. I know from experience that others have similar questions. He said I could post our interaction. For the sake of his privacy, I\u2019ll just call this person \u201cJohn.\u201d I hope you find […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2368,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,22,15,16],"tags":[71,2117],"class_list":["post-1070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-contextualization","category-gospel","category-theological-contextualization","category-theology","tag-compromise-the-gospel","tag-contextualization"],"yoast_head":"\n
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