Contextualization and Category Creation in Preaching

Devotional

Day 1: Contextualization and Category Creation for Spiritual Understanding

Contextualization is crucial for establishing common ground with our audience, but it is not sufficient on its own. We must also engage in category creation to help people develop new mental frameworks for understanding spiritual truths. This dual approach ensures that the gospel is communicated effectively without distortion. [10:13]

"For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law." (1 Corinthians 9:19-20, ESV)

Reflection: Think of a conversation you had recently where you struggled to communicate your faith. How can you better understand the other person's perspective to create a bridge for sharing the gospel effectively?

Day 2: The Transformative Work of the Holy Spirit

The natural mind cannot grasp spiritual truths because they are spiritually discerned. This means that something transformative must occur for a person to understand the gospel. This transformation is a work of the Holy Spirit, but we are called to facilitate this process through prayer and study. [02:14]

"And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corinthians 2:13-14, ESV)

Reflection: Reflect on your prayer life. How can you incorporate more intentional prayers for the Holy Spirit to work in the hearts of those you are trying to reach with the gospel?

Day 3: Reconciling God's Sovereignty and Human Accountability

God's sovereignty and human accountability are often seen as contradictory, but they are both true. We must help people develop a category that reconciles these truths, understanding that God's sovereignty does not negate human responsibility. [06:03]

"For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: 'I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.' Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden." (Romans 9:17-18, ESV)

Reflection: Consider a situation where you felt tension between God's control and your own choices. How can you trust in God's sovereignty while taking responsibility for your actions today?

Day 4: Understanding God's Decree vs. Command

The distinction between God's sovereign decree and His command of what should be is a category that many lack. Understanding this distinction helps us reconcile the apparent paradoxes in Scripture, such as God's will for Jesus' crucifixion and His command against murder. [07:00]

"Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen." (Acts 4:27-28, ESV)

Reflection: Think about a difficult situation in your life. How can understanding the difference between God's decree and His command help you find peace and clarity in this situation?

Day 5: Jesus' Self-Exaltation and Love

Jesus' self-exaltation is often misunderstood as egotism, but it is actually at the heart of His love for us. Helping people develop a category for a self-exalting Savior whose glory is central to His love is essential for a deeper understanding of the gospel. [09:26]

"And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed." (John 17:5, ESV)

Reflection: Reflect on how you perceive Jesus' glory in your life. How can you embrace His self-exaltation as an expression of His love for you today?

Sermon Summary

In this session, I address the critical issue of contextualization in preaching and the necessity of category creation. Contextualization involves adapting the message to fit the cultural and intellectual framework of the audience. However, this alone is insufficient for conveying spiritual truths to those who are unspiritual or have a different mental framework. The natural mind, as described in 1 Corinthians 2:14, cannot grasp spiritual truths because they are spiritually discerned. Therefore, we must not only adapt our message but also help create new categories in the minds of our listeners to understand and receive the gospel.

The wisdom of God has ordained that human wisdom alone cannot comprehend the preaching of Christ. This means that something transformative must occur for a natural person to understand spiritual truths. This transformation is a work of the Holy Spirit, but we are called to labor in prayer and study to facilitate this process. Our role is to help people develop new categories in their minds that can receive Christian truth.

I provide several examples of categories that need to be created. One is the paradox of God's sovereignty over human will and human accountability. Another is the distinction between God's sovereign decree and His command of what should be. Additionally, the idea that God's willing of sin is not the same as sinning itself is a category that many lack. Furthermore, the concept of Jesus' self-exaltation being at the heart of His love for us is often misunderstood. Lastly, the notion of walking by the Spirit is a category that requires development.

In conclusion, while contextualization is essential for establishing common ground, it is not enough. We must also engage in category creation to ensure that the gospel is not distorted. Both contextualization and category creation are necessary for faithfully communicating the gospel.

Key Takeaways

1. Contextualization is crucial for establishing common ground with our audience, but it is not sufficient on its own. We must also engage in category creation to help people develop new mental frameworks for understanding spiritual truths. This dual approach ensures that the gospel is communicated effectively without distortion. [10:13]
2. The natural mind cannot grasp spiritual truths because they are spiritually discerned. This means that something transformative must occur for a person to understand the gospel. This transformation is a work of the Holy Spirit, but we are called to facilitate this process through prayer and study. [02:14]
3. God's sovereignty and human accountability are often seen as contradictory, but they are both true. We must help people develop a category that reconciles these truths, understanding that God's sovereignty does not negate human responsibility. [06:03]
4. The distinction between God's sovereign decree and His command of what should be is a category that many lack. Understanding this distinction helps us reconcile the apparent paradoxes in Scripture, such as God's will for Jesus' crucifixion and His command against murder. [07:00]
5. Jesus' self-exaltation is often misunderstood as egotism, but it is actually at the heart of His love for us. Helping people develop a category for a self-exalting Savior whose glory is central to His love is essential for a deeper understanding of the gospel. [09:26]
** [09:26]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:18] - Introduction to Contextualization
[00:46] - The Need for Category Creation
[01:44] - Spiritual Discernment and the Natural Mind
[02:49] - Human Wisdom vs. Divine Wisdom
[03:22] - The Role of the Holy Spirit
[04:28] - Contextualization in American Culture
[05:08] - Examples of Category Creation
[06:03] - Sovereignty and Accountability
[07:00] - God's Decree vs. Command
[08:16] - God's Will and Human Sin
[09:26] - Jesus' Self-Exaltation and Love
[10:13] - Conclusion: The Dual Approach

Bible Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:

1 Corinthians 2:14 - "The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned."
Ephesians 1:11 - "In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will."
John 17:5 - "And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed."

Observation Questions:

What does 1 Corinthians 2:14 say about the natural person's ability to understand spiritual truths? How does this relate to the need for category creation in preaching? [01:44]
According to Ephesians 1:11, how does God's sovereignty relate to human actions and decisions? [05:22]
In John 17:5, what does Jesus request from the Father, and how does this relate to the concept of Jesus' self-exaltation? [08:46]
How does the sermon describe the relationship between God's sovereign decree and His command of what should be? [06:16]

Interpretation Questions:

How does the concept of category creation help bridge the gap between spiritual truths and the natural mind's understanding? Why is this important for effective preaching? [03:22]
What are the implications of God's sovereignty over human will and accountability for our understanding of free will and responsibility? [06:03]
How can the distinction between God's sovereign decree and His command of what should be help us reconcile difficult passages in Scripture? [07:00]
Why might Jesus' self-exaltation be misunderstood as egotism, and how does understanding this concept deepen our appreciation of His love for us? [09:26]

Application Questions:

Reflect on a time when you struggled to understand a spiritual truth. How might the concept of category creation have helped you in that situation? [01:44]
In what ways can you actively engage in prayer and study to facilitate the work of the Holy Spirit in creating new categories for understanding spiritual truths? [03:53]
How can you reconcile the paradox of God's sovereignty and human accountability in your own life? Are there areas where you struggle with this tension? [06:03]
Consider a command of God that seems to conflict with His sovereign will. How can you seek to understand and accept this paradox in your faith journey? [06:16]
How does understanding Jesus' self-exaltation as an expression of His love for us change the way you view His role in your life? [09:26]
Identify a specific area in your life where you need to walk by the Spirit. What steps can you take to develop this category in your spiritual walk? [09:41]
How can you apply the principles of contextualization and category creation in your conversations with others about faith? What challenges do you anticipate, and how can you overcome them? [10:13]

Sermon Clips

"Contextualization involves adapting the message to fit the cultural and intellectual framework of the audience. However, this alone is insufficient for conveying spiritual truths to those who are unspiritual or have a different mental framework. The natural mind, as described in 1 Corinthians 2:14, cannot grasp spiritual truths because they are spiritually discerned." [00:58:04]

"The natural man does not receive the things of the spirit of God; they are folly to him, and he cannot grasp them because they are spiritually discerned. It says he cannot grasp them, which means if we presume to think that we can speak Christian categories, Christian truths into the mind of a natural person and adapt them to categories that he already has functioning so that he welcomes them, we don't understand fallen human nature." [01:20:24]

"In the wisdom of God, it pleased God that people in their wisdom would not know God and therefore, by the folly of preaching, people are saved. So the very wisdom of God has ordained it that human wisdom will not grasp the preaching of Christ. Now it's a human wisdom in that text is what I mean by native categories in your head as an unbeliever." [02:45:00]

"Something has to happen in order for a natural person, the wisdom of man, apart from the Holy Spirit, something has to happen so that their minds will be open to and able to grasp what you're saying. And that's what I'm calling category creation. Now this is impossible; this is a work of the Spirit, but he uses us to do it." [03:24:48]

"We should labor in prayer and study in order to try to help people awaken to new categories in their head, which can then receive Christian truth. Now when I'm saying this, I'm not mainly from for my purpose thinking about encountering a tribe say in Papua New Guinea or in some a distant out of the way cultural place that has zero contact with Christian history." [03:57:59]

"I think the sovereignty of God over human willing and the fact that human willing will be held accountable at the last day is a paradox that people don't have any categories for usually. Ephesians chapter 1 verse 11, he works all things according to the counsel of his will, and Matthew 12, we will be accountable for every idle word we utter." [05:10:56]

"God's sovereign decree of what will be is often different than his command of what should be. That's a category people don't have usually. And I'm thinking Exodus 20, thou shalt not murder, that's a command, that's God's will, his revealed will, and then you have Isaiah 53:10, it was the will of the Lord to bruise him." [06:18:00]

"Consider the paradox that most people don't have a place for in their minds that God's willing that sin be is not the same as sinning. Remember Genesis 50 verse 20, where Joseph is saying to his brothers, you meant it for evil when they sold him into slavery which was a sin, you meant it for evil, but God meant it for good." [07:15:12]

"God is passionately or Jesus is passionately concerned that his glory be exalted, which sounds to a lot of people like egomaniac. Gospel of John chapter 17 verse 5, he prays to the father, Jesus prays to the father, father restore to me the glory that I had with you before the foundation of the world." [08:26:08]

"His passion to be glorified is in fact at the heart of what it means to love us, and most people don't have a category for a self-exalting savior whose self-exaltation is at the heart of what it means to love people. Last illustration, walk by the spirit, I mean just think of it walk by the spirit." [09:17:19]

"Contextualization is essential because if you don't have some common ground with to talk to people you can't even make any headway in category creation, but be sure that you don't think that taking people where they are, they can be given the whole counsel of God that is essential with the categories they already have." [10:13:68]

"If you insist that people can already by the way their brains are wired as fallen people grasp what the gospel is you will almost for sure distort the gospel to get it into their heads. We must do both not either or both end contextualization and category creation." [10:41:68]

Ask a question about this sermon

Chatbot

Transcript

What was the most surprising thing in this sermon?

Were there any personal stories shared?

Contextualization and Category Creation in Preaching

Devotional

Day 1: Contextualization and Category Creation for Spiritual Understanding

Day 2: The Transformative Work of the Holy Spirit

Day 3: Reconciling God's Sovereignty and Human Accountability

Day 4: Understanding God's Decree vs. Command

Day 5: Jesus' Self-Exaltation and Love

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

Contextualization and Category Creation in Preaching

Share