Holiness or Evangelism?

How should the church relate to culture? There are a number of theories floating around in the church today about how Christians should interact with culture. One theory I have encountered is a separationist model, which advocates a separation from culture so as to escape contamination of sinful habits and practices. Bad company corrupts good morals, and the church has been called to “be holy as I am holy.” Another theory out there is the “all-things-to-all-people” model, which takes the opposite approach. Rather than separate from culture, the church ought to reflect the surrounding culture so as to make the gospel attractive to unbelievers.

How to Hear the Voice of God

The importance of hermeneutics: Hermeneutics is at the heart of all personal relationship (Vanhoozer). Central to personal relationship is communicative action, and communication must be interpreted for interchange and relating to take place. At the heart of the gospel is a relationship between God and man—created by God, broken by us, and restored by Christ—and for that relationship to subsist, there must be communication and interchange. God is a relational, rational, and self-interpreting being, and He has created us in His image, and part of that is that we are also relational, rational, and self-interpreting. Relationship cannot exist without communication, and the quality of relationship is dependent on the quality of communication. Good communication requires clear speech and attentiveness, followed by right interpretation.