Sharing the Gospel as Good News (3)

Well, good morning, team.

Last week, we explored the art of having the gospel heard as good news.

And we particularly looked at Paul in his gospel engagement with the Athenians.

And a central observation was how he connected the gospel to his hearer's world.

Offered Christ as the answer to a question they were asking.

We also noted how the profuse richness of the gospel itself and its abundant themes and variations resource us to do just that.

That is, particularize and personalize the gospel message to each heart at its point of hunger.

Now today, we continue our study by considering six stars to navigate by in our witness-bearing encounters.

That is, beacons which can illuminate our path of engagement.

Principles to bear in mind to help us in our desire to love our neighbor well.

Not simply by seeking to share the good news with them, but how we do so.

And I do hope that a common spirit comes through in these habits offered for our cultivation.

A spirit which I trust is the spirit of Christ.

That said, let's proceed with prayer.

Lord Christ, we thank you that you are our portion and you are indeed the best of portions.

May we enjoy you as such and out of that supreme enjoyment, proclaim you as infinitely enjoyable.

Lord, would you grant us insight and application as we consider these principles together this morning.

And Lord, may we so enjoy the gospel ourselves that it is of great comfort to us, your people,

and great credit to you, our marvelous Savior.

And we ask it in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

So, our first guiding star is proceed with good questions.

Now, I'm probably not capable of overstating the importance of this.

Now, it is a challenge, at least for me, but it is vitally important.

It alone can transform the encounter from a disquisition.

And few can abide being subject to something so one-sided.

From a disquisition to a dialogue.

A dialogue which goes back and forth with the natural sustaining and pleasing rhythm of breathing.

To ask a question is to show interest in the other.

It is to invite their thoughts and feelings.

It is to beckon them to build something together.

And by proceed with questions.

And by proceed with questions, I mean begin and continue with questions.

And last week, we observed the importance of connecting the gospel to the concerns of the other if the gospel is to be heard as good news.

But unless we are content to be heard as good news.

But unless we are content to simply speculate, how are we to discover what their concerns are?

Unless we coax them out with questions.

Apart from such revealing questions, we risk casting Christ as an answer to an issue that they don't have.

Hence, it is pivotal to begin with questions.

But once begun, we also want to continue with questions.

For this is the means by which, among other things, the conversation can continue in the natural sustaining rhythm of give and take.

And by good questions, I mean questions which feel natural and appropriate to ask.

And also seminal or germinal.

That is, questions that can give birth to interesting and enjoyable interaction.

A good question is like a womb in which things come to life and gestate and are born.

In similar metaphor, Socrates, a master asker of questions, spoke of questions as midwives.

Facilitating the birth of something.

A truth.

An insight.

An epiphany.

A realization.

A refinement.

A conviction.

Well, let's look at an example of this in Acts 8 with Philip.

Picking up where we left off previously with Philip on his desert road errand.

And happening upon an Ethiopian reading aloud from his chariot.

That's in verse 30.

Acts chapter 8 verse 30.

Acts 8:30

Which reads,

So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked,

Do you understand what you're reading?

Notice Philip launches the interaction with asking a question.

Do you understand what you're reading?

The question, what are you reading?

Is a good question, especially in the academy, as people are reading all the time.

And typically, what we read reflects what interests us.

Also, Philip's question of the eunuch and those like it have the promise of engaging the other's point of reference.

Where they are coming from.

We don't ask them to attend what we think is important.

Rather, we reflect in our question that we are willing to attend to what they feel is important.

What if we don't start with questions?

What if we simply launch into a disquisition?

What effect will that have on the interaction of our interlocutors' experience?

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, surely they will feel no more than a prop in our own drama.

An object, not a subject.

And notice, as a result of Philip's question,

he is invited by the eunuch to say more.

You see, we want to ask and to respond in a way that results in an invitation to continue.

Not our buttonholing, rather their beckoning,

should be the dynamic that moves the conversation along.

We want to let the other, in virtue of their interest,

keep drawing out our further thoughts and questions.

So let's not assume that they want to hear more.

Let them elicit it.

And again, this is simply what it means to show love in a conversation.

Preferring the other in love.

And not only does Philip begin with a question,

it is the continuing ethos.

It's not, for Philip, simply a formal technique.

It's rather the whole spirit of his interaction.

As the narrative continues,

so verses 30 to 35,

so Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet

and asked,

Do you understand what you're reading?

And he said,

Well, how can I, unless someone guides me?

And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

Now the passage of Scripture that he was reading was this.

Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter,

and like a lamb before his shearers is silent,

so he opens not his mouth.

In his humiliation, justice was denied him.

Who could describe his generation?

For his life is taken away from the earth.

And the eunuch said to Philip,

About whom, I ask you,

does the prophet say this?

About himself?

Or about someone else?

Then Philip opened his mouth,

and beginning with this Scripture,

he told him the good news about Jesus.

So, amazingly,

Philip finds himself in the chariot next to the Ethiopian,

with the passage of Isaiah the prophet opened before him.

I can imagine myself thinking,

What an entree!

I sure know what to say on this topic.

I've thought a lot about this.

Now is my chance.

But Philip does not say in his zeal,

Oh, listen to this.

I know a thing or two about this topic.

Then launch into a disquisition.

Even at the point where he has so many things he could say,

he holds his tongue and lets the eunuch start with his question.

Had I been in Philip's place,

verse 34, I assure you,

would no doubt have recorded my speech.

In fact, I probably would have started talking

before the eunuch finished uttering his last word in Isaiah's text.

But not Philip.

He does not open his mouth yet.

Rather, he lets the eunuch speak and ask his question.

Then, verse 35,

Then, not before,

Philip opened his mouth.

Friends, this is other-centered witness bearing.

It cares for the other as a person.

It doesn't treat them as a project

or merely a prospective proselyte.

Wise witness bearing

is as much about knowing

when to keep our mouths closed

as when to open them.

And making it our determined practice

to proceed with good questions

could help us realize that ambition.

Here are some questions I recently asked

and found helpful toward discovering

what someone cares about.

Remember, we want to start to connect

the gospel with what people care about.

How do we discover what people care about?

Well, we ask good questions.

Here are a couple that I've used recently.

What was some value that got inculcated

when you were young

that has continued to have for you

a significant afterlife?

If you'd love to share,

I'd certainly love to hear.

Or another I asked this week.

If you were to see your life,

till now,

as a several-act drama,

freeze frame a scene or two

that you would say

have been most determinative

for who you are

or aspire to be.

I asked that one

because the guy introduced himself

as an actor.

I thought it would be apropos

to put it in those terms.

Led to a really good conversation.

Found out a lot about the guy.

Here's another.

If you came across Aladdin's lamp

and were given three wishes,

what three things

would you change about your life

or about the world?

See,

coming up with good questions

is seldom a spontaneous attainment.

Typically,

it requires some advanced pondering.

But I find it is so worth the investment.

For if I have some good questions at hand,

good, salty conversations

are far more likely to emerge.

As a witness bearer,

make it your practice

to concoct and collect

good questions

and launch and lard

your conversations with them.

You know,

a great study to do

would be to go through the Gospels

and look at the questions

that Jesus asks.

That'd be a good way

to be tutored in that.

So there's the first.

Proceed with good questions.

The second star

to navigate by

is

frame

the interaction

collaboratively.

You know,

it's often the case

that as witness bearers,

we find ourselves

inhabiting

a very different worldview

from our neighbor

with whom we're engaging.

Our beliefs and behaviors

are often at odds

and our attempts to persuade

can set us in opposition

and we experience the engagement

conflictually.

We kind of face off

as conversational antagonists.

Far more fruitful,

I've found,

is to frame the discussion

collaboratively

such that we range ourselves

shoulder to shoulder

collectively

addressing the question at hand,

each offering

what they have

to contribute.

How might one do this?

Well,

sometimes

I open a conversation

like this.

Do you ever feel

like life

tosses us up

in the midst

of a drama

and we have to

scramble to figure out

what the drama

is about

and what our role

is in the play?

Do you have

a sense

of what the plot

is

and you're part

of it?

Or sometimes

I might use

a different metaphor.

Do you ever

get a sense

that life

feels like a huge

puzzle that we're

trying to put together

with no picture

on the box

to go by?

Do you think

you've found

any corner pieces?

Is a picture

taking shape

for you?

And sometimes

I'll continue

the metaphor

by taking up

some single

puzzle piece

of life.

Perhaps

the phenomenon

of consciousness

or a sense

of being

in a moral world

or a hunger

a hunger

for justice

or beauty

or intimacy.

Some perplexing

feature

and hold it up

and say

hey

what do you

make of this piece?

What picture

might this point to?

Do you think

the blue here

with a bit of white

suggests ocean

with the crest

of a wave

or could it

perhaps be

sky

with a wisp

of cloud?

In other words

what kind

of universe

do you think

we might be in?

A purely

material one?

Or do you feel

these puzzle pieces

point towards

something else?

Some

transcendence?

Do you see

even feel

how such a

framing

makes a difference

as to how

the interaction

is experienced?

You see

it puts us

alongside our

neighbor

laboring together

to understand

our existence

and unravel

together

its mysteries

not above them

decanting

our pronouncements

from on high

and neither

are we locked

in antagonistic

combat

in some

gladiatorial

fight to the

death.

During the

Hundred Years

War

between England

and France

the English

developed

a decisively

effective

weapon

the longbow

and that

was the

winning weapon

in battle

but it was

wielded

not by the

aristocratic

knights

rather by

the common

yeoman

but to win

the battles

the English

gentry

had to get

down off

their high

horses

and stand

shoulder to

shoulder

with their

compatriot

peasant

and protect

him as he

and his

longbow

delivered the

victory

and historians

credit this

simple act

of standing

shoulder to

shoulder

on the same

footing

with sparing

England the

violent class

revolution which

roiled France

in blood

subsequently

1789

and the

witness bearer

will recognize

a similar

potency

to diffuse

antagonistic

spirit

simply by

reframing our

interactions

collaboratively

getting down

off our

high horse

and standing

side by

side

tackling

together

the mysteries

of existence

so

in your

encounters

frame

your

interactions

collaboratively

it's a

star to

navigate by

and here's

a third

star to

navigate by

listen

well

listen

well

and really

in order for

our first two

guiding habits

to have

any integrity

we really

must listen

well

I mean

if we

don't

listen

well

our

asking

questions

is only

formal

if

their

speech

is only

an

irritating

delay

for our

speech

then

our

asking

questions

is just

hypocrisy

if we

frame the

discussion

collaboratively

but don't

attend

to their

contribution

our

so

framing

the

interaction

is merely

an offensive

technique

I find

often

at the

root of

my

own

failure

to

listen

or to

listen

well

is

sometimes

my

disbelief

that

what I

will hear

is going

to be

anything

worthwhile

that I

really have

nothing to

learn from

my

conversation

partner

now

why would

this

attitude

be

almost

certainly

in

every

instance

wrong

well

because

we know

that

every

other

and

no less

non-believing

others

are

yet

image

bearers

and as

such

have

capacity

for the

good

the

true

the

just

and

beautiful

and

indeed

they may

have

a far

greater

giftedness

for

penetrating

the depths

of those

realities

than

we

have

we

have

something

to learn

from

everyone

and we

have much

to learn

from

many

so

let us

listen

well

let us

ask

ourselves

occasionally

what

have I

learned

from

unbelievers

lately

which has

been

consequential

in my

life

perhaps

even

fundamentally

reframing

if I

answer

that question

honestly

I will

have good

reason to

and want

to

listen

well

and if

I answer

it in the

negative

I suspect

I might

just be

an

epistemological

bigot

that is

thinking I

can learn

nothing

from

unbelievers

then I

just have

bad

theology

I've

completely

missed

the

implication

that every

human being

is an

image bearer

and is

capable

of knowing

truth

or perhaps

my problem

is simply

I simply

interact with

brothers and

sisters of

the sanctuary

and I

fail to

get out

much beyond

church potlucks

oh brothers

and sisters

let's not

let that be

the case

we are not

to be of

the world

but we

are to be

in it

we are to

be in it

so a

fourth star

to navigate

by

in our

witness

bearing

is

lead

with

affirmation

and look

for

resonances

lead with

affirmation

and look

for

resonances

we've

observed this

in Paul

with the

Athenians

remember

he led

with

affirmation

chapter

1722

men of

Athens

I perceive

that in

every way

you are

very

religious

and just

as the

apostle

would be

with his

Athenian

hearers

we

will

inevitably

come

to challenge

and critique

it's going

to be

inevitable

there's going

to be

something

that we're

going to

critique

but

Paul

does not

open

with

critique

and we

would be

wise to

follow him

in this

we also

notice

Paul had

found

within

the Athenians

beliefs

notions

which were

consonant

with

biblical

truth

instincts

that they

had

which ran

along the

grain

of the

gospel

he cites

some of

their poets

and philosophers

affirmatively

and he

builds

his case

in part

out of

their

hunches

beliefs

and values

now what

we might

ask

gave the

apostle

confidence

that he

would find

such

common

ground

even

among

his

pagan

hearers

some

resonances

that he

could appeal

to

and work

with

now this

is important

for us to

have this

confidence

in Romans

Romans 1 · chapter mention

chapter 1

Paul relates

that God

has revealed

himself to

humanity

and although

we seek

to smother

the truth

of God

to evade

his claim

upon us

we suppress

this truth

incompletely

and

inconsistently

there

remains

truth

about God

that we

know

notice the

present tense

of verse 32

we know

these things

indeed

our

ongoing

suppression

of these

truths

belies

that it

remains

exerting

counter pressure

and ready

to bob

up to the

surface

of our

consciousness

if we

relax our

efforts

to repress

it

now we

might call

these

vestigial

truths

or echoes

of the

knowledge

of God

and we

through our

rebelliousness

would mute

these echoes

but we

can never

finally

silence

them

we

can never

fully

rid

ourselves

of the

truths

and tokens

that derive

from the

reality of

God

you see

sin

is not

omnipotent

it can

deface

but never

completely

efface

the divine

fingerprints

that are

inscribed

upon

us

image

bearers

neither

the imprint

of the

creator

in

broader

creation

however

much we

try

radically

to

redecorate

our

consciousness

there is

always

furniture

mental

moral

material

that

persists

in

pointing

to

the

divine

presence

!

and so

!

residences

will

always

remain

and when

discovered

we can

affirm

them

it's kind

of like

we need to

hold these

things up

into the

light

and point

out

look

there's a

watermark

here

we didn't

see it

first

point

these

things

out

in

conversations

as

witness

bearers

look

for

opportunities

to

affirm

yes

that

seems

right

to me

yeah

that

instinct

feels

solid

to me

you know

that

strikes

me

as a

critical

thread

in this

matter

let's

pull on

that

together

it

seems

to be

a

promising

lead

so you

want to

look

for

opportunity

to say

such

things

and

lard

your

interaction

with

them

and

even

if we

find

little

to

agree

upon

perhaps

affirm

that

you

share

the

conviction

that

this

is

a

critical

and

consequential

topic

which

deserves

our

best

attention

and

reflection

so

let's

let's

receive

even

as

we

give

so

lead

with

affirmation

and

look

for

resonances

well

here's

another

a fifth

star

to

navigate

by

and

that

is

be

prepared

to

tell

your

story

be

prepared

to

tell

your

story

at

times

the

faith

that

we

commend

is

regarded

by

our

neighbors

as

unimaginable

and

it is

inconceivable

to

them

that

they

could

ever

arrive

at

it

the

conviction

is

like

that

of

the

old

new

england

farmer

who

when

asked

how

do you

get to

a

certain

town

he

responded

!

you

can't

get there

from

here

well

one

helpful

way

of

bridging

that

gap

in

imagination

is

by

telling

the

story

of

how

you

in

fact

managed

to

get

there

you

see

your

story

can

take

the

unimaginable

and

break

it

down

into

small

concrete

steps

I

can't

get

there

from

here

well

sure

you

can

I

did

here's

how

like

Indiana

Jones

in

the

last

crusade

who

remember

that

scene

he

threw

sand

across

on

the

invisible

bridge

across

that

chasm

similarly

our

personal

stories

may

render

visible

a

path

that

as

yet

may

not

be

seen

in

telling

our

story

it

can

be

helpful

to

show

how

where

we

started

out

is

not

that

different

perhaps

from

where

our

hearer

now

stands

and

finds

themselves

so

when

Paul

addressed

Jews

who

found

his

faith

unimaginable

he

emphasized

how

he

had

been

as

he

put

it

just

as

you

are

in

Acts

22

chapter

3

he

says

I

am

a

Jew

he

tells

to

the

crowd

that

he

is

a

Jewish

crowd

that

he

is

conversing

with

I

am

a Jew

born

in

Tarsus

of

Cilicia

but

brought

up

in

this

city

educated

at the

feet

of

Gamaliel

according

to the

strict

manner

of the

law

of

our

fathers

being

zealous

for

God

as

all

of

you

are

this

very

day

he

would

go

on

to

tell

them

that

that

his

initial

reaction

to the

Christian

faith

was

just

as

negative

as

theirs

likely

more

so

verse

four

I

persecuted

this

way

to

the

death

binding

and

delivering

to

prison

both

men

and

women

as

the

high

priest

and

the

whole

council

of

elders

can

bear

me

witness

now

why

is

this

kind

of

identification

so

vital

you

see

Paul's

hearers

and

ours

must

sense

that

we

get

how

indigestible

our

message

may

sound

to

them

they

need

to

sense

that

we

really

comprehend

and

feel

the

reasons

that

compel

them

to

reject

our

message

and

if

we

don't

acknowledge

the

reality

and

intensity

of

the

bones

stuck

in

the

throat

we

really

won't

have

any

personal

credibility

with

them

it

will

reinforce

the

perhaps

presumed

or

at

least

strongly

suspected

alienness

of

us

not

just

our

message

of

us

interestingly

if we

compare

the two

accounts

of Paul's

telling his

story

that occur

in Acts

one

before the

temple mob

that we

just looked

at

and then

one

before

King

Agrippa

that occurs

in Acts

26

we

notice

some

variation

he

is

adapting

his

testimony

to

his

audience

now

remember

that

every

gospel

testimony

presents

Jesus

as the

answer

to

some

question

and

the

fulfillment

of

some

deep

desire

and

in all

likelihood

our

stories

of

God's

saving

dealings

with

us

will

have

all

kinds

of

themes

and

themes

as

intricate

and

multiple

as

the

distributaries

in the

Nile

Delta

but

which

course

should

our

narrative

take

along

which

of the

many

possible

themes

should

we

unfold

our

story

of

faith

well

let

us

select

our

theme

according

to

which

we

think

might

be

most

resonant

to

our

hearers

in

other

words

we

seek

to

contextualize

our

story

within

what

we

know

of

their

story

and

just

as

the

gospel

itself

has

wonderful

adaptability

and

applicability

so

also

does

our

experience

of the

gospel

and

we

adapt

it

and

apply

it

according

to

our

audience

so

it's

well

worth

thinking

through

the

story

of

how

God

brought

you

to

himself

what

are

its

themes

which

of

those

themes

might

resonate

with

your

as yet

unbelieving

neighbors

see

as witness

bearers

we

want

to be

prepared

to

speak

our

story

and

maybe

be

prepared

to be

able

to

speak

it

variously

along

several

themes

depending

upon

the

resonance

of

each

does

that

make

sense

good

good

no I'm

glad

I'm

glad

well

as our

final

guiding

star

keep

fresh

and

vivid

how

the

gospel

is

good

news

for

you

keep

fresh

and

vivid

how

the

gospel

is

good

news

for

you

well

we

we've

emphasized

how

for

the

gospel

to

be

heard

as

good

news

we

need

to

connect

it

to

our

neighbors

cares

well

how

does

the

gospel

bring

good

news

to

those

places

which

absorb

them

whether

places

of

longing

reflecting

the

stirrings

of the

image

of God

or

places

of

languishing

reflecting

the

experience

of the

brokenness

in our

fallen

world

we

are

all

as

fallen

humans

in the

image

of

God

a

melange

of

anguish

and

aspiration

a

composite

nursery

of

insecurities

a

china

cabinet

of

fragility

and

an

orphanage

of

longings

and

it is

to

these

soarings

and

sighings

that we

want to

bring

the hope

of the

gospel

but how

will we

grow

in the

skill

of applying

this

the gospel

pan

pharmacon

or the

universal

healing

bomb

to the

ailments

and the

longings

of our

world

how do

we do

it

how do

we get

good at

doing

that

well

by

applying

the

gospel

to

our

own

ailments

and our

own

longings

does that

make sense

yeah

yeah

yeah

we

we need

to keep

fresh

and vivid

how the

gospel

is good

news

for us

in these

very things

and not

just

generically

but with

all of

its

comprehensive

particularity

and

concreteness

so

when we

ourselves

and we

will

we

ourselves

and we

will

experience

the ache

of longing

then we

need to

ask

of

ourselves

does

does this

not

reflect

the agitation

of a soul