Love Wins (5)

 

So far, chapter 5 (“Dying to Live”) is the best chapter of Rob Bell’s new book, Love Wins. He does an excellent job of keeping the cross and the resurrection at the center of the Christian message.

He demonstrates the real meaning of the cross as opposed to a decorative symbol. It is understood as…

Sacrifice

 Reconciliation

 Justification

 Victory

“What the first Christians did was look around them and put the Jesus story in language their listeners would understand” (Kindle, location 63%).

This is a fascinating and challenging insight. Remember that the Greek New Testament was written in the KOINE dialect. This was sort of the best of the written and spoken language of the common people. A wonderful study is to look at all of the common words that take on “spiritual meaning” when used in the context of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

For example, even the word “gospel” itself was understood as “good news,” or even more specifically the announcement of good news relating to the emperor’s birthday, or victory in battle.

When talking about the cross and the effect of Christ’s sacrifice Bell says, “…These first Christians were using images and metaphors, reading their world, looking for ways to communicate this epic event in ways their listeners could grasp”(Kindle, location 63%).

This raises some very important questions for all of us…

1.  How do we tell the story of Jesus in ways our listeners can grasp?


2.  Do we use the biblical images and metaphors still, and then explain them to our contemporary audience?


3.  Do we find corresponding images and metaphors that communicate the same thing today that the first ones did back then?


4.  Do we allow the sociological context to help us communicate (“reading their world”)?


5.  If we replace some biblical images and metaphors, will we lose anything essential to the Jesus story?

While attempting to answer these questions, I have to admit that I do have a bias. I do not think it has to be an either/or. Here is the bigger question:   “Can we still communicate the Jesus story to a contemporary audience, reading our world at the same time, using biblical images and metaphors?”

I believe that the best thing to do is appropriate the New Testament language, and then explain it, illustrate, and find a parallel contemporary image or metaphor where necessary.

I think if we give up the “Christian vocabulary” of the New Testament we may be giving up some essential aspects of the Jesus story we may not be aware of. And by the time we did realize it, it may be too late!

In Christian love, Curtis