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Speak Their Language
Tim Savage20When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law.21When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law,I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ.
22When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some.23I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.
1 Corinthians 9
Paul is saying that he will become like those that he is trying to reach for Christ, so that he relates to them, so that they understand him. In that same way, we must learn to speak the language of those that we are trying to reach so that they will understand our message – and the language of our society today is multimedia, social media and the arts.
Pastor Wayne says that people aren’t tired of the Gospel, they’re tired of tired presentations of the Gospel. We must not compromise on the content, but just like Paul said – we will become like, or relate to, those that we are trying to reach. We will learn to tap dance if that’s what it takes, anything short of sin, to share the good news, so whether we use video, dance, music or drama we use it only to tell the story in a way that people understand.
People have asked why we need all of the lights, sound, cameras and smoke at New Hope – it seems like a concert or a Las Vegas show. We want it to be that way because we consider ourselves to be a “seeker-sensitive” church. We try to present the gospel in a way that people who haven’t been to church before will be interested and it feels familiar. Another thing people say about New Hope is that we turn the gospel in to entertainment. Pastor Wayne says, “What is the alternative?” It should be entertaining, it’s not boring! We have the most interesting, exciting and relevant story to tell, we just have to put effort in to telling it in a compelling way.
New Hope Core Value #3 - We believe that a simple presentation of Jesus Christ in creative ways will impact and transform lives.
We want to present the Gospel in a way that reaches both the mind and the heart.
I just went to see the movie, Paul The Apostle last night with my family. I am thankful for Christian films like this that bring the word to life. I picture scenes from the movie when I read the Bible, but I was also reminded that this movie probably won’t draw those who don’t go to church, it doesn’t speak their language, they’re not interested in the story. My hope is to give people something that inspires and entertains them while teaching morality and integrity. We must meet people where they are at in order to share the good news of Jesus Christ with them.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Please grant me opportunities to share You with others. Please also grant me creativity to tell Your story in ways that powerfully speak to people.
In Jesus name,
Amen
