Ross Hastings, Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology at Regent College, offers this very helpful list of what it takes to contextualize the gospel in our postmodern culture, not only for the sake of evangelism, but also for the sake of the health of the local church and our teaching.
______
“With respect to the West in particular, what are the contextualizations required in a postmodern context?
- a humble posture of “faith seeking understanding,” which has always been theology at its best
- presenting Christianity as a metanarrative, yet one that is not oppressive
- a story of trinitarian love—presenting a gospel of the God who is in his being most fundamentally love
- a story of the Father heart of God
- a story of the incarnate Son of God—a God who has become one with humanity, who is not distant from our suffering and plight
- a story and a gospel of an incarnation and death that expressed solidarity with the poor
- a story of a servant, crucified Christ, who is truly represented by servant, crucified Christians in churches that serve their communities
- a story told in reliance on the Spirit, who through us and the Word pronounced brings regeneration, not by human coercion or argumentation but by his sovereign and gracious wooing
a story told with fundamental respect for the human person being addressed in nonmanipulative fashion, and that seeks restoration of the full humanity of persons (not just salvation from sin’s judgment) that emphasizes the primal filial (not just the forensic intentions of God)- a story lived out in communal life that is attractive because it is fraught with the love of God and hospitality. Though this community is open for relations with all, it is loving enough to seek the transformation of all within it.”
______
From Missional God, Missional Church: Hope for Re-Evangelizing the West by Ross Hastings (IVP Academic, 2012)
Available at Hearts & Minds Bookstore
Image by gritty-but-pretty. Used with permission. Sourced via Flickr.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In