5. Dwelling with Non-Christians Darrin Patrick

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Conference Schedule 2

Welcome from Hosts 3

Session 1: Pastoral Priorities: Watching your life and ministry 5 -C.J. Mahaney

Session 2: Dwelling in the Kingdom Mission 7 -Ed Stetzer

Session 3: Dwelling Incarnationally 9 -Eric Mason

Session 4: Dwelling in the Text 11 -Mark Driscoll

Session 5: Dwelling with Non-Christians 13 -Darrin Patrick

Session 6: Dwelling in the Gospel 17 -Tim Keller

Session 7: Dwelling through the Text 27 -Mark Driscoll

Session 8: Persuasion 29 -Tim Keller

New York Experiences 35

1 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Tuesday, April 29

Time Event Leader

9:00 AM Worship Tim Smith

9:25 AM 1. Pastoral Priorities: Watching Your Life and Ministry C.J. Mahaney

10:25 AM Break

10:45 AM 2. Dwelling in the Kingdom Mission Ed Stetzer

12:15 PM Lunch

12:30 PM Working Lunch: Acts 29 Overview Scott Thomas

1:10 PM 3. Dwelling Incarnationally Eric Mason

2:00 PM NYC Experience (see Description on page 35)

7:00 PM 4. Dwelling in the Text Mark Driscoll

Wednesday, April 30

Time Event Leader

9:00 AM Worship Tim Smith

9:20 AM 5. Dwelling with Non-Christians Darrin Patrick

10:15 AM Break

10:30 AM 6. Dwelling in the Gospel Tim Keller

Noon Lunch

12:15 PM Working Lunch: Redeemer Church Planting Center Mark Reynolds

1:00 PM 7. Dwelling Through the Text Mark Driscoll

2:15 PM Break

2:30 PM 8. Persuasion Tim Keller

3:30 PM Q & A with Tim Keller and Mark Driscoll

2 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 Welcome to Dwell

Welcome to the inaugural Dwell Conference in New York City co-hosted by Redeemer Church Planting Center and Acts 29 Network. Over the last two years, these organizations have become friends and have had similar visions. This led Scott Thomas, Director of Acts 29 and Pastor of Church Planting at Mars Hill Church and Mark Reynolds, associate director of Redeemer Church Planting Center to envision a collaborative conference that would highlight urban church planting.

The event sold out in a short time with the lineup of world-class speakers in a world- class city. The registrants are from 34 states and 6 foreign countries (Australia, Canada, England, Germany, India and Spain). The goal was to provide a conference that integrated multiple learning experiences. The speakers will present ideas and the participants will discuss the material at the tables by answering set questions. On Tues- day afternoon, we have organized an opportunity to learn about dwelling in an urban city in an incarnational manner. The conference cannot be experienced by downloading messages; it must be experienced live to have the greatest impact.

At the lunches, we are presenting an overview of our church planting centers. Acts 29 will present their vision on Tuesday and Redeemer will present on Wednesday. Please take advantage of these opportunities. Both organizations are seeking to lead aggressive church planting movements that give birth to gospel-centered churches reaching unchurched people.

Thank you for your participation. Please let us know if we can help you in any way.

Your Co-Hosts,

Scott Thomas Mark Reynolds Acts 29 Network Redeemer Church Planting Center

3 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

C.J. MAHANEY C.J. leads Sovereign Grace Ministries in its mission to establish and support local churches. After 27 years of pastoring Covenant Life Church in Gaithersburg, Maryland, C.J. handed the senior pastor role to Joshua Harris, allowing C.J. to devote his full attention to Sovereign Grace. C.J.'s books include Humility: True Greatness; Living the Cross-Centered Life; and Sex, Romance, and the Glory of God: What Every Christian Husband Needs to Know. C.J. and his wife, Carolyn, have three married daughters and one son. They make their home in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

ED STETZER Ed has planted churches in New York, Pennsylvania, and Georgia and transitioned declining churches in Indiana and Georgia. He has trained pastors and church planters on five continents, holds two masters degrees and two doctorates, and has written dozens of articles and books. He is currently the Director of Lifeway Research and Lifeway’s Missiologist in Residence. He is the author of Planting Missional Churches and, most recently, co-author (with Philip Nation) of Compelled by Love: The Most Excellent Way to Missional Living.

ERIC MASON Eric and his wife Yvette parachuted into Philadelphia, PA and launched Epiphany 1 1/2 years ago. Eric is an adjunct Professor at Biblical Theological Seminary and has been doing urban ministry for the last 12 years in multiple capacities. Eric and Yvette have been married since 1997 and have one child, Immanuel (6 years old). Eric received his B.S. from Bowie State University; a Master of Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Ministry (Ministry in Complex Urban Settings) from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in Boston, MA.

DARRIN PATRICK Darrin founded The Journey in 2002 with a desire plant a church in the heart of St. Louis, Missouri. He is Vice President of Acts 29 Network and has a passion to equip the church to live the gospel in the world. His church, The Journey runs four services across three campuses, while continuing to being aggressive in church planting in St Louis and beyond. Darrin is married to his high school sweetheart, Amie, and they have three beautiful children, Glory, Grace and Drew.

MARK DRISCOLL Driscoll founded Mars Hill Church in Seattle in the fall of 1996. The church has grown from a small Bible study to over six thousand people in one of America’s least churched cities. He co-founded and is president of the Acts 29 Church Planting Network, which has planted over one hundred twenty churches in the U.S. and internationally. Most recently he founded the Resurgence Missional Theology Cooperative. His writing includes the books Vintage Jesus, The Radical Reformission: Reaching Out Without Selling Out and Confessions of a Reformission Rev.: Hard Lessons from an Emerging Missional Church. Mark and his high school sweetheart, Grace, enjoy raising their three sons and two daughters.

TIM KELLER Keller is a graduate of Bucknell University (B.A.), Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (M.Div.), and Westminster Theological Seminary, where he received his D.Min. He served as a pastor in Vir- ginia for nine years, while also serving as director of church planting for the PCA. He also served on the faculty of Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and he continues as an adjunct professor of practical theology. Redeemer started a church planting center in 2001 and has helped start over 100 churches in the New York City area and around the world. Keller lives on Roosevelt Island in New York City with his wife, Kathy. They have three sons, David, Michael, and Jonathan.

4 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 1. PASTORAL PRIORITIES

C.J. Mahaney

Notes

______

5 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 TABLE TALK QUESTIONS:

1. Godly character is unquestionably the preeminent qualification for a pastor or church planter, although its cultivation is usually more difficult than learning doctrine, setting strategy, etc. How does a pastor identify and put to death his sinful desires, motives, and patterns? ______

2. What are the Scripture's clear teaching on the deceptiveness of sin and our need for others in the process of sanctification (Heb. 3:12-13; 10:24-25; James 5:16)? What practices in our life reflect that conviction? What concrete steps can a pastor take to involve others in his pursuit of godliness, making them aware of temptations, and inviting their observations? ______

6 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 DWELLING IN THE 2. KINGDOM MISSION Ed Stetzer Introduction

“God’s Kingdom creates the Church and works in the world through the church.” –George Eldon Ladd, The Gospel of the Kingdom: Scriptural Studies in the Kingdom of God (p. 117).

2 Corinthians 5:16-21

A Kingdom View (16-17)

2 Corinthians 5:16-17 From now on, then, we do not know anyone in a purely human way. Even if we have known Christ in a purely human way, yet now we no longer know Him like that. 17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come.

A Mission of Reconciliation (18-19)

2 Corinthians 5:18-19 Now everything is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed the message of reconciliation to us.

“IN CHRIST,” Jesus’ mission is our mission.

To serve: Luke 4:18-19 The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim freedom to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.

To save: Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”

Mark 12:29-34, 29 “This is the most important,” Jesus answered: Listen, Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is One. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. 31 “The second is: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32 Then the scribe said to Him, “You are right, Teacher! You have correctly said that He is One, and there is no one else except Him. 33 And to love Him with all your heart, with all your understanding, and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself, is far more important than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34 When Jesus saw that he answered intelligently, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared to question Him any longer.

7 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 A Kingdom Mission (20)

2 Corinthians 5:20 “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ; certain that God is appealing through us, we plead on Christ’s behalf, ‘Be reconciled to God.’”

Matthew 10:7-10 7 As you go, announce this: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with skin diseases, drive out demons. You have received free of charge; give free of charge. 9 Don’t take along gold, silver, or copper for your money-belts. 10 Don't take a traveling bag for the road, or an extra shirt, sandals, or a walking stick, for the worker is worthy of his food.

Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.

A Cross-Centered Mission for the Kingdom (21)

2 Corinthians 5:21, “He made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Mark 1:14-15 14 After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee, preaching the good news of God: 15 “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe in the good news!”

Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip, as he proclaimed the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized.

Table Talk Question:

How does a Kingdom focus practically work itself out in our church planting? In other words, “How should we plant if the church is the sign and instrument of the Kingdom of God? ______

As a group, generate one question for Ed Stetzer based on the session contents. ______

8 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 3. DWELLING INCARNATIONALLY ERIC MASON

Introduction

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. John 1:18

-1Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faith ful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Heb 2:17-18

Statements about and Definitions of Incarnational Mission

…Christ was not simply a loanword adopted into the vocabulary of humanity; he was fully [incar- nated], taken into the functional system of the language, into the fullest reaches of personality, experience, and social relationship…in Christ’s great act of [Incarnation] Christ added nothing to humanity as made in God’s image…(Andrew Walls, The Missionary Movement in Christian His- tory, 28)

The most difficult step for many missionaries and urban church planters in the United States to take is to rearrange our lives. Jesus rearranged His life for us, and it is imperative that we rearrange our lives for the people he died for. (Harvie Conn & Manuel Ortiz, Urban Ministry, 335)

By incarnational mission, I mean the understanding and practice of Christian witness that is rooted in and shaped by the life, ministry, suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus (Darrell Guder, The Incarnation and the Churches Witness, xii)

Incarnational Practice of the Church as Gospel Ethics

New Testament

…in all things show yourself to be an example of good deeds, with purity in doctrine, dignified Titus 2:7

Remind them to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed Titus 3:1

This is a trustworthy statement; and concerning these things I want you to speak confidently, so that those who have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds. These things are good and profitable for men. Titus 3:8

Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruit- ful. Titus 3:14

9 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 Principles for Dwelling Incarnationally

Comprehensive Incarnation VS. Reductive Incarnation

1. Dwelling as Servants (Diakonia)

It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, Matt 20:26

2. Dwelling as Preachers (Kerygma)

Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. Col 1:28

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 2Cor 4:5

3. Dwelling as Community (Koinonia)

That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.1John 1:3

4. Dwelling as Worshippers (Leitourgia /Proskynetes)

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him…John 4:20-24

5. Dwelling as Teachers (Didaskolia)

About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hear- ing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to dis- tinguish good from evil. Heb 5:11-14

Practices of Incarnational Mission

5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

A Practice of Presence

A Practice Place

A Practice of Prayer

A Practice of Peace

10 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 4. DWELLING IN THE TEXT MARK DRISCOLL

Notes

______

11 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 TABLE TALK QUESTIONS:

Question from Mark Driscollʼs Content: ______

______

As a group, generate one question for Mark Driscoll based on the session contents:

______

12 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 5. DWELLING WITH NON-CHRISTIANS Darrin Patrick Introduction

“The Bible renders to us the story of God’s mission through God’s people in their engagement with God’s world for the sake of the whole of God’s creation.” David Filbeck Yes, the God of the Gentiles Too: The Missionary Message of the Old Testament, pg. 10

As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. 2 Timothy 4:5

Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. 2 Timothy 2:10

The Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many in this city who are my people. Acts 18:9-10

Mission in the Scripture

Old Testament

I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Genesis 12:3

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, of in its welfare you will find your welfare. Jeremiah 29:4-7

New Testament

For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. Luke 19:10

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. Matthew 28:18-20

I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. John 17:14-15

13 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 Principles for Dwelling

Intentional Incarnation

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people—not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you. 1 Corinthians 5:9-13

• Attend community connecting events • Create community connecting ministries • Discern specifics aspects of culture you enjoy

Contexual Communication

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. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. 1 Corinthians 9:19-23

• Presentation – The way you adapt the gospel message to fit the person • Identification – The manner in which you inhabit the world view of the person • Style - The method you use to bring the gospel to a person

Principles for Dwelling

Sacrificial Investment

So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us. 1 Thessalonians 2:8

The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they, “Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!” Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds. Matthew 11:18-19

14 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 • Our friends need time to see how much we are like them

• Our friends need time to see how much we aren’t like them

Gospel Astonishment

"There is no commitment we will make as church planters of greater importance than living close to Jesus. For church planting can become an idol factory; a prostitution ring; a cruel taskmaster; a breeding ground for addictions…we need church planters who will love Jesus with abandon, and who cultivate a lifestyle of growing in His grace and knowledge. Until you know yourself to be slow of heart to believe the gospel, you will never cultivate a burning heart for the gospel. Churches planted with the DNA of the gospel will be led by those who live a life of gospel astonishment." Scotty Smith

But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentle- ness and respect. 1 Peter 3:15

The gospel erodes our self-righteousness

The gospel empowers our evangelism

15 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 TABLE TALK QUESTIONS:

What are the main obstacles in connecting with non-Christians?

______

What hobbies, interests, and activities do I participate in or could I participate in that might enable me to meet and befriend non- Christians? ______

16 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 6. DWELLING IN THE GOSPEL Tim Keller

Introduction

There are two ways in which, I think, one should ‘dwell’ in the gospel. The first way is that you must dwell with the gospel Biblically. That is, you live with--you deeply reflect upon and grasp--what the Bible means by ‘gospel’ and you learn to see the gospel of Jesus every- where in it. That’s what Jesus spent so much time teaching his disciples about after his resurrection (Luke 24.) To them the Bible was a mish-mash of narratives, laws, and directions. They didn’t see the unifying theme of the Bible—salvation by grace through Christ. The second way is that you must dwell with the gospel personally. Colossians 3:16 literally says that—the gospel (the ‘word of Christ’) must ‘dwell in you richly.’ This means you must have your inner being and character shaped by the gospel. Everything you do must be ‘in line with the truth of the gospel’ (Gal 2:14.)

It is impossible to cover both of these topics today. But since the second kind of dwelling depends on the first kind (and since there are a lot of resources in Redeemer for the second kind—e.g. the Galatians curriculum) I’m going to look at the first. Even so, I can’t even cover this topic fully. To dwell with the gospel Biblically not only means I have to understand what the New Testament says the gospel is, but how every part of the Old Testament points us to fulfillment in Jesus. I won’t go into this latter subject.

Part 1 – Getting the gospel

There is only one gospel.

A generation ago, it would have been hard to imagine evangelicals unable to agree on what the simple gospel is: 1) God made you and you must have a relationship with him, 2) but your sin separates you from God. 3) Jesus, God’s Son took the punishment your sins deserved. 4)If you repent for your sins and trust in his work for your salvation, you will be for- given, justified and accepted freely by grace, and indwelled with his Spirit until you die and go to heaven.

But many today challenge this way of expressing the gospel. In A New Kind of Christian Brian McLaren’s character Neo says he doesn’t “think most Christians have any idea of what the gospel really is.” When his interlocutor responds that he thought the gospel was “ac- cepting Christ as your personal savior and justification by faith not works based on the fin- ished work of Christ on the cross” Neo responds, “Yes, that’s exactly what most modern Christians would say….reduc[ing] the gospel to modern dimensions—laws, steps, simple diagrams, complete with a sales close.” When pressed on what the gospel is, Neo insists that it can’t be reduced to a formula, other than the one Jesus used, “The Kingdom of God is at hand.” He then quickly adds that we shouldn’t use that short hand either, since ‘every-

17 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 thing is contextual’ and the term ‘kingdom’ would be opaque to many people today. (A New Kind of Christian p.105-106.)

If Neo’s views coincide with McLaren’s, he is standing in a stream of thought that began in the 19th century in the Tubingen school of German Biblical scholarship, which saw Paul’s gospel of atonement and justification as quite different than Jesus’ gospel of the kingdom found in the Synoptic gospels. In the mid-20th century, C.H. Dodd opposed Tubingen, pro- posing there was one consensus gospel message (or kerygma) in the Bible which could be outlined. Though the Synoptics emphasized the ‘kingdom,’ John ‘eternal life,’ Acts the resurrection, and Paul ‘justification and atonement’, these were ways of saying basically the same thing. Countering Dodd, James Dunn in Unity and Diversity in the New Testament (1977) argued that the various gospel formulations in the Bible are so different we can’t come up with a single formulation. Dunn and McLaren are not saying that these various gospels in the New Testament are directly contradictory to each other, but that they are so remarkably diverse in their perspective that it is impossible to make a list or outline and point to it and say: ‘there is the simple gospel.’

I believe we must side with Dodd over Dunn if we are to be true to first century Christians’ own understanding of the gospel. Paul in Galatians 1:8 condemns anyone who preaches ‘another gospel’ than the one he declares. Then in 1 Corinthians 15:10-11 Paul takes pains to show that the gospel he declares is the same as that preached by Peter, John, and the others. “Whether it was I or they, “ Paul says, referring to them, “so we preached and so you believed.” It would be impossible for Paul to condemn a ‘false gospel’ and affirm the preaching of Peter as ‘the gospel’ without assuming a single, consensus body of gospel- content.

But surely there is a big difference between the gospel of Paul and the way Jesus declared the kingdom in the gospels? There are thousands of websites by young emerging Christian leaders who complain that the older evangelical church has been in ‘Pauline captivity,’ fo- cusing entirely on the individualistic gospel of justification and atonement, rather than on Jesus’ sweeping declaration that ‘the Kingdom of God is at hand.’ But the differences between Paul and the Synoptic gospels are basically superficial. A helpful recent article on this is Simon Gathercole’s “The Gospel of Paul and the Gospel of the Kingdom” in God’s Power to Save ed. Chris Green (Apollos/Inter-Varsity Press, UK, 2006.) (See below.) There is one Biblical gospel.

There are different forms of the one gospel.

So there must be one simple gospel, yet there are clearly different forms in which that one gospel can be expressed. Someone might complain: “Isn’t that the same as saying that there are different gospels?” The answer is—to say there is one gospel in different forms is the Bible’s own way of speaking of it, and we should stick with it. Martin Hengel’s The Four Gospels and the One Gospel of Jesus Christ, makes an excellent case that the early church did not speak of the ‘Four Gospels’ but of the gospel according to Matthew, according to Mark, and so on.

Paul is an example. After insisting there is only one gospel (Gal 1:8) in Galatians 2:7 he speaks of being entrusted with ‘the gospel of the uncircumcised’ as opposed to the ‘gospel of the circumcised.’ In 1 Cor 1:22-25 Paul says that when he spoke to Greeks, he confronted their culture’s idol of speculation and philosophy with the ‘foolishness’ of the cross, and then presented Christ’s salvation as true wisdom. However, when he spoke to Jews he confronted their culture’s idol of power and accomplishment with the ‘weakness’ of the

18 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 cross, and then presented the gospel as true power. One of Paul’s gospel forms was tai- lored to Bible-believing people who thought they would be justified by works on judgment day, and the other to pagans. These two approaches of Paul can be discerned in his speeches in the book of Acts, some to Jews and some to pagans.

There are other forms of the gospel. Readers have always noticed that the kingdom language of the Synoptic gospels is virtually missing in the gospel of John, which usually talks instead about receiving eternal life. However, when we compare Mark 10:17, 23-34; Mat- thew 25:34,46, and John (3:5,6 and 17) we see that ‘entering the kingdom of God’ and ‘receiving eternal life’ are virtually the same thing. Reading Matthew 18:3, Mark 10:15 and John 3:3,5 together reveal that conversion, the new birth, and receiving the kingdom of God ‘as a child’ are the same move.

Why, then, the difference in vocabulary between the Synoptics and John? As many scholars have pointed out, John seems to emphasize the individual and inward spiritual aspects of being in the kingdom of God. He is at pains to show that it is not basically an earthly social-political order (John 18:36.) On the other hand, when the Synoptics talk of the kingdom, they lay out the real social and behavioral changes that the gospel brings. The kingdom of God does take corporate shape, and it does have major implications for how we live. It is a new order of things, in which money is not made an idol (Mark 10), in which the hungry, the naked, and the homeless are cared for (Matthew 25). We see in John and the Synoptics two more forms of the gospel—one that stresses the individual and the other the corporate aspect to our salvation.

What is the one gospel?

What, then, is the one, simple gospel? Simon Gathercole distills a three-point gospel outline that both Paul and the Synoptic writers held in common. He writes that Paul’s good news was first, that Jesus was the promised Messianic King and Son of God come to earth as a servant, in human form. (Romans 1:3-4; Phil 2:4ff.) Second, by his death and resurrection Jesus atoned for our sin and secured our justification by grace, not our works (1 Corinthians 15:3ff.) Third, on the cross Jesus broke the dominion of sin and evil over us (Col 2:13-15) and at his return he will complete what he began by the renewal of the entire material creation and the resurrection of our bodies (Rom 8:18ff.) Gathercole then traces out these same three aspects in the Synoptics’ teaching that Jesus, the Messiah, is the divine Son of God (Mark 1:1) who died as a substitutionary ransom for the many (Mark 10:45), who has conquered the demonic present age with its sin and evil (Mark 1:14-2:10) and will return to regenerate the material world (Matthew 19:28.)

If I had to put this outline in a single statement, I might do it like this: 1) In the person of Jesus God emptied himself of his glory and became human. 2) Through the work of Jesus God substituted himself for us and atoned for our sin, by grace bringing us into fellowship with him in the church. 3) At the return of Jesus God will restore creation and make a new world in which we can enjoy our new life together with him forever.

The second of these elements was at the heart of the older gospel messages, namely, salvation is by grace not works. It was the last of the three elements that was usually missing, namely that grace restores nature, as the Dutch theologian Herman Bavinck put it. When the third, ‘eschatological’ element is left out, Christians get the impression that nothing much about this world matters. Theoretically, a grasp of this 3-point outline should make Christians interested in both evangelism and conversions as well as service to our neighbor and working for peace and justice in the world.

19 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 Feeling the Tension

However, it’s my experience that these individual and corporate aspects of the gospel do not live in easy harmony with one another in our preaching and church bodies. In fact, many communicators today deliberately pit them against each other.

Those pushing the kingdom-corporate versions of the gospel define sin in almost exclusively corporate terms, such as racism, materialism, and militarism, as violations of God’s shalom or peace. This often obscures how offensive sin is to God himself, and it usually mutes any emphasis on God’s wrath. Also, the impression can be given that the gospel is ‘God is working for justice and peace in the world, and you can too.’ While it is true that the coming new social order is ‘good news’ to all sufferers, to speak about the gospel in terms of doing justice blurs the fact of salvation being all of grace, not works. And that is not the way the word ‘gospel’ is used in the New Testament. Recently I did a word study of all the places in the Greek Bible where forms of the word ‘gospel’ were used, and I was overwhelmed at how often it is used to denote not a way of life--not what to do--but a verbal proclamation of what Jesus has done and how an individual gets right with God. Often people who talk about the good news as mainly doing peace and justice refer to it as ‘the gospel of the kingdom.’ But to receive the kingdom as a little child (Matt 18:3) and to believe in Christ’s name and be born of God (Jn 1:12-13) is the same thing—it’s the way one becomes a Christian (Jn 3:3,5.)

Having said this, I must admit that so many of us who revel in the classic gospel of grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone largely ignore the eschatological implications of the gospel. Texts like Luke 4:18 and Luke 6:20-35 show the imperative of the gospel is that the broken-hearted, unrecognized, and oppressed now have a central place in the economy of the Christian community, while the powerful and successful are humbled. In Galatians 2:14 Paul tells Peter that attitudes of racial and cultural superiority are ‘not in line’ with the gospel of grace (Gal 2:14.) Generosity to the poor will flow from those who are holding fast to the gospel as their profession (2 Cor 9:13.) In Romans 2:16 Paul says that Christ’s return to judge the earth was part of his gospel, and if you read Psalm 96:10ff you’ll know why. The earth will be renewed and even the trees will be singing for joy. And if the trees will be able to dance and sing under the cosmos-renewing power of his Kingship—what will we be able to do? If this final renewal of the material world was part of Paul’s good news, we should not be surprised to see that Jesus healed and fed while preaching the gospel as signs and foretastes of this coming kingdom (Matt 9:35).

When we realize that Jesus is going to some day destroy hunger, disease, poverty, injustice, and death itself, it makes Christianity what C.S. Lewis called a ‘fighting religion’ when we are confronted with a city-slum or a cancer ward. This full version of the gospel reminds us that God created both the material and the spiritual, and is going to redeem both the material and the spiritual. The things that are now wrong with the material world he wants put right. Some avoid the importance of working for justice and peace by pointing to 2 Peter 3:10-12 which seems to say that this material world is going to be completely burned up at the final resurrection. But that is not what happened to Jesus’ body, which retained its nail prints, and Doug Moo makes a case for the world’s transformation, not replacement, in his essay on “Nature and the New Creation: NT Eschatology and the Environment” available on line at www.wheaton.edu/CACE/resources/onlinearticles/MooNature.pdf.

20 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 TABLE TALK QUESTIONS:

How balanced is your own church in its stress of these three aspects of the gospel —incarnation, cross, and new creation? ______

Do you sense a tension between people pushing an individual conversion agenda versus a corporate community/justice agenda? Is the tension present within your church? Is the tension present within your own thinking?

______

As a group, craft one question for Tim to be answered at the end of Part 2:

______

21 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 Part 2 – Communicating the gospel

The gospel and the kingdom

The gospel. 1) In the person of Jesus--God emptied himself of his glory. Jesus, the promised Messianic King and the divine Son of God was born into the world in a stable, as a poor, humble, and mortal man. He took upon himself a human nature and the life of a servant. He spent his entire life serving others—feeding the hungry, healing the sick, raising the dead, preaching and teaching. 2) Through the work of Jesus--God substituted himself for us. Sin is we human be- ings substituting ourselves for God, serving as our own Saviors and Lords, putting ourselves were only God deserved to be. In Jesus, God substituted himself for us. He made full atonement and absorbed the punishment our sins deserve, putting himself where we deserved to be. This secured justification and acceptance freely by grace. 3) At the return of Jesus--God will make a new world. At the beginning the Triune God created the world to be a place of community, peace and joy. Sin brought evil and suffering into the world. But at the end of history, God will restore this material creation, destroying death, disease, injustice, and suffering of all kinds. It will be a world in which we can enjoy our new life together with him forever.

Sometime in the Bible the good news of Jesus is called the ‘gospel of the kingdom.’ A new ‘kingdom’ is an administration, a new order of things. And indeed, the three aspects of the gospel enumerated above brings ‘God’s new order of things’ in three ways:

1) It’s an ‘upside-down’ kingdom. Many kingdom texts talk the reversal of values in Je- sus’ kingdom (Luke 6:20ff.) in which the poor, the sorrowful, and the persecuted are above the rich, recognized, and satisfied. Why would this be? It is because Jesus emptied himself of his glory. Though he was rich, he became poor. Though he was a king, he served. Though he was the greatest, he made himself the servant of all. He triumphed over sin not by taking up power but by sacrificial service. He ‘won’ through losing everything. This is a complete reversal of the world’s way of thinking, which values power, recognition, wealth, and status. The gospel, then, creates a new kind of servant- community, with people who live out people with a whole alternate way of being human. Racial and class superiority, accrual of money and power at the expense of others, yearning for popularity and recognition--all these things are marks of living in the world, and are the opposite of the mindset of the kingdom. 2) It’s an ‘inside-out’ kingdom. Many kingdom texts speak of the inner spiritual nature of the kingdom. The Pharisees put all the emphasis on externals, rather than on a re- generated heart (Luke 11:39-41.) It is not a matter of meat or drink but of peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom 14:17.) Why would this be? Jesus took our place on the cross and accomplished salvation for us, which we receive freely as a gift. Traditional religion teaches that if we do good deeds and follow the moral rules in our behavior on the outside, God will come into our hearts, bless us and give us salvation. In other words—if I obey, God will come into my life and love and accept me. But the gospel is the reverse of this—if I know in my heart God has accepted me and loved me freely, by grace, then I can begin to obey, out of inner joy and gratitude. We are justified by grace alone, not by works; we are beautiful and righteous in God’s sight. Once we get this understanding on the inside, it revolutionizes how we relate to God, ourselves, and others on the outside. 3) It’s a ‘forward-back’ kingdom. The coming of the Messianic King is in two stages. At his first coming, he saved us from the penalty of sin, and gave us the presence of the Holy Spirit. But at the end of time he will come to complete what he began at the first

22 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 coming, saving us from the dominion and very presence of sin and evil. He will bring a new creation, a material world cleansed of all brokenness. Christians now live in light of that future reality. We evangelize, telling people about the gospel and preparing them for the judgment. We also help the poor and work for justice, because we know that is God’s will and eventually all oppression will be put down. And we teach Christians to integrate their faith and their work, so they can be ‘culture makers,’ working for the common good and human flourishing. The ‘already’ but ‘not yet’ of the kingdom keeps us either from utopian, triumphalistic visions of ‘cultural takeover’ or pessimism and with- drawal from society.

Embodying the gospel in the church

A church that truly dwells in the Biblical gospel will look quite unusual. Because of the ‘inside-out’ kingdom/substitutionary atonement aspect, the church will put great emphasis on personal conversion, experiential grace renewal, evangelism, outreach, and church planting. This makes it look like an evangelical-charismatic church. Because of the ‘upside- down’ kingdom/incarnation aspect, the church will put great emphasis on deep community, cell groups or house churches, and will emphasize radical giving and sharing of resources, spiritual disciplines, racial reconciliation, and living with the poor. This makes it look like an Anabaptist ‘peace’ church. Because of the ‘forward-back kingdom/restoration aspect, the church will put great emphasis on seeking the welfare of the city, neighborhood and civic involvement, cultural engagement, and training people to work in ‘secular’ vocations out of a Christian world-view. This makes it look like mainline church or perhaps a Kuyperian Re- formed church. Very few church movements are able to integrate and inter-relate these ministries and emphases because of a comprehensive view of the Biblical gospel.

Preaching the gospel in all its forms

You would expect the author of this article at this point now to explain how he has perfectly integrated the various aspects of the simple gospel in his preaching. I can’t because I haven’t. But here’s how I try.

1. I don’t put all the gospel points into any one gospel presentation. I find it instruc- tive that the New Testament writers themselves seldom if ever pack all of the aspects of the gospel equally in any one gospel address. When studying Paul’s gospel speeches in the book of Acts it is striking how much is always left out. He always leads with some points rather than others in an effort to connect with the baseline cultural narratives of his listeners. It is almost impossible to cover all the bases of the gospel with a non- believing listener without that person’s eyes glazing over. Some parts simply engage her more than others, and, to begin with, a communicator should go with those. Eventually, of course, you have to get to all the aspects of the full gospel in any process of evangelism and discipleship. But you don’t have to say everything everytime. 2. I use both a gospel for the ‘circumcised’ and for the ‘uncircumcised.’ Just as Paul spoke about a gospel for the more religious (the ‘circumcised’) and for the pagan, so I’ve found that my audience in Manhattan contains both people with moralist, religious backgrounds as well as those with ‘post-modern,’ pluralistic world-views. There are people from other religions (Judaism, Islam,) and people with strong Catholic backgrounds as well as those raised in conservative Protestant churches. People with a more traditional upbringing can grasp the idea of sin as the violation of God’s moral law. That law can then be expounded in such a way that they realize they fall short of it. In that context, the idea of the wrath of a holy God against sin makes sense. Then Christ and his salva-

23 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 tion can be presented as the only hope of pardon for guilt. This, the traditional evangelical gospel of the last generation, is a ‘gospel for the circumcised.’ 3. I use both a ‘kingdom’ and an ‘eternal life’ gospel. I find that many of my younger listeners are struggling to make choices in a world of endless consumer options, and are confused about their own identities in a culture of self-creation and self-promotion. These are the people who are engaged well by the more individually-focused presentation on the gospel as free grace not works. This is a lot like the ‘eternal life gospel’ of John. However, I have found many highly secular people over the age of 40 are not reached very well with any emphasis on personal problems. Many of them think they are doing very well, thank you. They are much more concerned about the problems of the world— war, racism, poverty, and injustice. And they respond well to a synoptic-like ‘kingdom gospel.’Instead of going into, say, one of the epistles and speaking of the gospel in terms of God, sin, Christ, and faith, I point out the story-arc of the whole Bible and so speak of the gospel in terms of creation, fall, redemption,, and restoration. We once had the world we all wanted—a world of peace and justice, without death, disease, or conflict. But by turning from God we lost that world. Our sin unleashed forces of evil and destruction so that now ‘things fall apart’ and everything is characterized by physical, social, and personal disintegration. Jesus Christ, however, came into the world, died as a victim of injustice and as our substitute, bearing the penalty of our evil and sin on himself. This will enable him to some day judge the world and destroy all death and evil without destroying us.

However, Manhattan is also filled with ‘post-modern’ listeners who consider all moral statements to be culturally relative and socially constructed. If you try to convict them of guilt for sexual lust, they will simply say, “you have your stan- dards and I have mine.” If you respond with a diatribe on the dangers of rela- tivism, your listeners will simply feel scolded. Of course, postmodern people must at some point be challenged about their mushy views of truth, but there is a way to make a credible and convicting gospel presentation to them even be- fore you get into such apologetic issues.

I take a page from Kierkegaard’s The Sickness Unto Death and define sin as building your identity—your self-worth and happiness—on anything other than God. That is, I use the Biblical definition of sin as idolatry. That puts the emphasis not as much on ‘doing bad things’ but on ‘making good things into ultimate things.’ Instead of telling them they are sinning because they are sleeping with their girlfriends or boyfriends, I tell them that they are sinning because they are looking to their romances to justify and save them, to give them everything that they should be looking for from God. This idolatry leads to anxiety, obsessive- ness, envy, and resentment. I have found that when you describe their lives in terms of idolatry, postmodern people do not give much resistance. Then Christ and his salvation can be presented not (at this point) so much as their only hope for forgiveness, but as their only hope for freedom. This is my ‘gospel for the uncircumcised.’

4. I use them all and let each group overhear me preaching to the others. No one form of the gospel gives all the various aspects of the full gospel the same emphasis. If , then, you only ever preach one form, you are in great danger of giving your people an unbalanced diet of gospel-truth. What is the alternative? Don’t use just one gospel form in your preaching. That’s not true to the various texts of the Bible anyway. If you are preaching expositionally, different passages will convey different forms of the one gospel.

24 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 Follow the lead of the texts and vary the form, and then your people will hear all the points.

Won’t this confuse people? No, it will stretch them. When one group—say the ‘postmodern’--hears a penetrating presentation of sin as idolatry, it opens them up to the concept of sin as grieving and offending God. Sin as a personal affront to a perfect, holy God begins to make more sense, and when they hear this presented in another gospel form, it has credibility. When more traditional people with a developed understanding of moral guilt learn about the substitutionary atonement and forensic justification, they are comforted. But these classic doctrines have profound implications for race relations and love for the poor, since they destroy all pride and self-justification. When more liberal people hear about the kingdom of God for the restoration of the world, it opens them up to Christ’s kingship demanding obedience from them in their personal lives. In short, every gospel form, once it hits home in the hearts of its ‘target’ audience, opens them to the other points of the gospel made more vividly in other forms.

When you preach several different gospel forms with some regularity, you are more true to the Bible, you make your own listeners more balanced and mature in their understanding, and you make your own church more diverse. Instead of having a homogeneous group taken from just one slice of our pluralistic society, you have a mixed body of people from across our cultural spectrum.

Today there are many who doubt that there is just one gospel. That gives them the warrant to ignore Paul’s gospel of atonement and justification. There are others who don’t like to admit that there are different forms to that one gospel. That smacks too much of ‘contextu- alization,’ a term they dislike. They cling to a single presentation that is often too one-dimensional. Neither of these approaches are as true to the Biblical material, nor as effective in actual ministry, as that which understands that there is one gospel in several forms in the Bible.

25 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 KELLER Q&A NOTES:

______

26 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 7. DWELLING THROUGH THE TEXT Mark Driscoll Notes

______

27 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 TABLE TALK QUESTIONS:

Question from Mark Driscollʼs Content: ______

______

As a group, generate one question for Mark Driscoll based on the session contents:

______

28 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 8. PERSUASION Tim Keller Introduction

1 Corinthians 2:1 When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power. (NIV)

1. Paul on persuasion and the cross.

1 Corinthians 2:1-5 is a very controversial and important passage. It is the main place in the Bible that Paul deals with the question of how he persuades people when he communi- cates the gospel. A superficial reading of the text seems to indicate that Paul did not use logic, argument, or learning, but he simply told the simple gospel and expected the Holy Spirit to convict—or not. However, while Paul says here he does not use ‘persuasive’ words, in 2 Corinthians 5:11 he says that he does! So Paul cannot be saying that he makes no ar- guments, that he has no strategies for changing people’s minds. The fullest treatment of the meaning of the words ‘eloquence’ and ‘superior wisdom’ and ‘wise and persuasive words’ is in Anthony Thistleton’s enormous commentary on 1 Corinthians.

In sum, Paul is rejecting a) verbal bullying (using force of personality, witty and cutting dis- dain, super-confident demagoguery to beat the listeners into wanting to be on the speaker’s side) vs a spirit of humility, b) (the opposite) applause-generating, consumer-oriented rhetoric (playing to a crowd’s prejudices, pride, and fears) vs making sound, careful argu- ments) or c) manipulative stories, or overwhelming the crowd with shows of verbal dexter- ity, wit or erudition vs exposition of what the text says.

2. A basic model for persuasion.

a. Listeners (‘receptors’) automatically interpret communication from the perspective of their own context. It is an extremely tiring and difficult process for a receptor to comprehend communication which is not provided within his or her frame of reference. Can you imagine reading a technical computer journal if you have no back- ground at all in the field. The technical journal makes no effort to begin with a begin- ner's frame of reference. Soon you, the receptor, "tune out" and become numb. By a "frame of reference" we mean a person's culture, beliefs, language, vocabulary, life situation, perceived needs, and so on. b. There are two basic approaches to communication: sender-oriented and receptor-oriented. When the communicator designates his frame of reference as the one in which communication takes place, the receptor must make most or all the adjustments. As we have seen, this is quite tiring, difficult, and often unsuccessful. The receptor in this case is in a dependent position. He must ask many questions, listen, deal with many strange and uncomfortable concepts and conditions, look up many

29 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 words, ask for a great deal of help, and constantly check and re-check meanings. In short, the receptor is forced into a vulnerable position.However, when the communicator designates the receptor's frame of reference as that in which the communication will take place, the roles are reversed! Now, the communicator is in a dependent position. He must ask the questions, he must listen, he must deal with many strange and uncomfortable concepts and conditions, look up many words, ask for a great deal of help, and constantly check and re-check meanings. He has become vulnerable. "Sender-oriented" communication is "1-way" communication for the sender, but "2-way" for the receptor. But "receptor-oriented" communication is "2-way" communication throughout. The latter is much harder and more complex for the sender, but far more comfortable for the receptor and far more successful. c. God's communication approach: receptor-oriented. In the Bible we see that God adapts his message without changing it. In Deut.18:15-19, we see that God sends his message through the medium of a human prophet when the people complain that they cannot listen to his voice directly. He does not simply maintain the same communication channel and form. In Phil.2:6-7, we see that incarnation is a form of communication. Jesus entered into our framework. We could not see God's glory face to face (Ex.33) but now we behold his glory in Christ (John 1:14).

In I Cor. 9:19-22, we see the principle of communication that Paul practiced throughout the book of Acts. There we can see significant adaptations in his preaching from audience to audience. He varied his use of emotion and reason, his citation of authorities, his vocabulary, his choice of points of contention (avoiding unnecessary issues), and his identification of the hearers' concerns, hopes, and needs.

In countless ways, God adopts familiar conventions, literary genres, and terms that the hearers could relate to. For example, when God entered into a relationship with Israel, he adopted a cultural form, the specific format of the Near Eastern suzerain-vassal treaties of the second millennium B.C. John the apostle takes over the Logos concept from modern Greek philosophy. The very concept of Biblical theology shows us that God unfolds revelation in a history, in stages, with each stage adapted to the ability of the people to whom he speaks. d. We must nevertheless be "message-centered" not "context-centered". Many people get quite nervous when they hear a call to being "receptor oriented", because they believe being "sender- oriented" is to be "message-centered". Many authors, in the name of being receptor-oriented or "contextualized", very obviously have sought to change rather than adapt the Biblical message. We here the Bultmannians saying, "modern man can no longer accept the miraculous element in Scripture." Thus the final authority in communication is the context, not the message.

No wonder many evangelicals get nervous about audience adaptation. In reaction to this kind of distortion, many evangelicals and Reformed pastors are quite adverse to any talk of being "receptor oriented", of adapting our communication to the perceived needs and frame of reference of non-believers. But this is to misunderstand the options. We do not have 2 possible methods in communication ("Word" or "God" centered vs. "receptor-oriented" or "man-centered"). If that were so, we would have the following positions:

Message-centered------or------Audience-centered

30 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 But this is an inadequate framework. How can we explain the difference between two communicators, both of whom are true to the infallible Word of God, yet one of which is clear and persuasive and the other obscure and boring? They are both "message centered", are they not?

I think it is better to think of four possibilities:

Sender Oriented Sender Oriented Message Centered Context Centered A B TRADITIONALIST MANIPULATOR

Receptor Oriented Receptor Oriented Message Centered Context Centered C D PREACHER ACCOMMODATOR

A. is a "traditionalist", concerned for truth but only with his own needs and perspectives in view. B. is a manipulator, thinking only of his own goals and using any message to achieve his ends. D. is an accommodator, doing nothing but re-enforcing the audience and telling them what they want to hear. But C. is a preacher. He is concerned with truth, but he enters the non-believer's frame of reference to change both the frame of reference and the receptor, not to accommodate him, to simply reinforce the frame of reference. Be- cause the preacher believes in truth, he can change the frame of reference, but because he is a servant, he can enter it.

We, of course, are promoting option C! We have an absolute standard, an unchanging body of truth--the Word of God. But we also have a job, namely, to communicate it to change- able people who live in time, and thus our communication of that truth must be changing constantly. The C approach equally stresses formulation of a message from the Bible and communicating that message in an understandable form.

But, in my opinion, the C approach is definitely a minority position. Generally, we have "Conservatives" operating on A principles and "Liberals" operating on D principles. The B option is in some ways the most insidious. In this approach the communicator simply tells the audience what it wants to hear in order to get them to follow his purposes. This inevi- tably leads to lies and misrepresentations.

But most evangelicals must be concerned about becoming mired in the "A" approach. It makes us wooden. We are lost if receptors begin to ask us questions which relate to their own perceptions and agendas rather than ours. It disrupts us and we have to simply repeat ourselves or must start over. We cannot really answer questions! A terrible consequence of the "A" method is that preaching becomes a spectator sport. The stated goals are life- change, but the actual goals is a performance which reinforces and wins the applause of the congregation who then reward the preacher through compliments, attendance, and at- tracting other attenders (who are unhappy with their own preacher's performance). No one is changed.

31 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 3. Practice a. Listen to feedback. Receptor-oriented communication means the communicator becomes vulnerable, listens, adapts and adopts foreign vehicles. How can a preacher "listen" to his audience? a) By processing the small amount of feedback the audience gives you (interest level, for example, tells you about length, emphases, etc.) b) By knowing the audience beforehand, c) by following up the audience afterwards (calling for response/visitation), d) by anticipating internal, silent personal dialogues going on within the listeners. Do so by anticipating objections and questions, talking very directly and personally to the person. The best preachers have always done this. b. Recognize three basic kinds of vehicles ("codes") for communication: Language is the most important, but it not precise Words mean different things to people based on experience. Feedback is necessary (see above). This is the aspect of persuasion which Aristotle called "LOGOS".

Non-verbal communication is far more complex yet critical. Non-verbal codes can be broken down into a (depressingly) complex outline. They include: space, timing, gestures, facial expression, posture, tone of voice, pitch, rhythm, stress, etc. Innumerable complex relationships show emotion and opinion. Dif- ferent audiences have different sets of codes. No preacher can analyze for himself whether he is expressing emotion appropriately without feedback from lay people. This is the aspect of persuasion which Aristotle called "PATHOS".

Person-as-communication. The preacher himself--his model or example--is a major part of the communication, because words do not contain meanings, people do. In a large group setting this means a speaker's reputation can be helpful. Most audiences spend a long time deciding what they think of the speaker! If there is already personal knowledge of the speaker outside of the setting the credibility on non- is set! It is very difficult to change this credibility (or its lack) by a poor or great communication. But personal transparency, an evident knowledge of people's hearts--this can bring about credibility even with a strange audience. This is the aspect of persuasion which Aristotle called "ETHOS". Adaptation in this form is subtle. For example, in more secular cities, ‘irony’ is valued--a very hard thing to create in yourself! c. Identify their frame of reference by discerning strong, weak, and anti-commitments. On a scale of 1-10, 1-3 are beliefs your audience holds very, very strongly, 4-7 are beliefs they hold, but not very strongly, and 8-10 are beliefs they reject very strongly. d. Gain credibility by entering the frame of reference. These are the 1,2.3 beliefs. • Speak the language. Receptors will "tune out" a message unless the communicator gets within the receptor's range of tolerance. How do we do that? De- sign code credibility: Obviously, you must speak the receptor's language, by using words and non-verbal cues he can understand. All sorts of verbal or non- verbal codes that are highly inappropriate will be "tuned out". Also, develop personal credibility as we mentioned above. • Identify the all the 1,2,3 beliefs that you can affirm. Choose parts of the belief system of the person that (accidentally or providentially) are similar to the Christian world-view. Do your best to affirm it with integrity. Articulate it better then they can. (For example, talk to secular kids about sex ethics showing Bi- ble's lack of prudishness, open discussion of the magnificence of sexuality. Then challenge their flippancy and licentiousness. [This doesn't mean that their

32 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 lack of prudishness was based on anything good!] But don't take this approach with Muslims or Hindus! Start by talking of the sanctity of sex.) • Perhaps the most basic way to gain credibility is through articulating the aspira- tions, hopes, and anxieties of the listeners that arise from these core beliefs. Since all of these will find fulfillment in Christ, be very vivid it expressing them. Quote references that convey them well. Provide illustrations and make it personal. e. Finally challenge the frame of reference. • First, show them the inconsistency. You do this not usually by immediately taking on the 8-10 beliefs that your listeners feel vehemently about. It is best to take on beliefs 4-7, things they believe but don’t feel as strongly about. The key is to show them that 4-7 are inconsistent with beliefs 1,2,or 3. So for example, the average college student is not an atheist, but a rather squishy agnostic. They don’t think people can know if there is a God (belief 4-7) but they are ve- hement that it is wrong to oppress and starve the poor (belief 1-3.) But if you show them that it is very hard to demand that others respect human rights if there is no God and we just evolved through the strong eating the weak, you now have created a crisis for them. You are de-stabilizing their framework. Or another example. A listener may believe strongly in a God of love (1-3) but believe that the Bible probably has a lot of errors in it and is not totally trustworthy (4-7.) But if you don’t have an authoritative Bible through which God can contradict you, how can you have a real, personal love relationship with God? How could he ever tell you something you don’t want to hear. • Second, since showing them the problem in their framework is de-stabilizing, re-establish equilibrium. When you discuss the cost of the recommended change in the framework, you must always show the more-than-commensurate fruit. When a communicator shows a felt need can be met through a change, he must realize that the receptor is weighing the cost that it will require. You must know the cost the receptor will consider--what others in referent group will say, etc. "Equilibrium" is the effort the receptor makes to minimize the communication for change, which is always threatening. Essentially, the Chris- tian communicator upsets the old equilibrium and replaces it with a new one.

33 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 TABLE TALK QUESTIONS:

Using the model provided, how would you persuade a secular audience that hell is real? (Or, if someone in the group wants to tackle a different item with the model—go ahead!)

______

As a group, generate one question for Tim Keller based on the session contents to be answered at the Panel Session:

______

34 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 NEW YORK EXPERIENCE

8 Options for Tuesday 2 PM

OPTION #1 CAP: 60 Answering the Call: Addressing AIDS in the City Session Location: St. Luke’s Hospital, 440 W 114th Street

HIV/ AIDS is reaching pandemic proportions in the United States and the Church is posi- tioned to step up and help reverse this trend. By mobilizing its people, the Church can as- sist local AIDS Service Organizations (ASO's) in its community to ensure that people are tested, treated and cared for.

OPTION #2 CAP: 50 Leaders of Leaders: Reaching Marketplace Professionals Session Location: American Bible Society, 1865 Broadway

This session will consist of two parts: the first will be an overview of church and para-church ministries across the country in the areas of "faith and work" and "cultural renewal." Part Two will be a focus group with NYC professionals, from a variety of fields, to talk about their relationship with the church: how they think the church could help them and how they think they could help the church. You will benefit from both the input from focus group participants and the approach to conducting an effective focus group.

OPTION #3 CAP: 50 Why Art? The Role of Artists in Society & Faith Communities Session Location: Mako’s studio, 38|39, 38 W. 39th Street www.iamny.org

What is - or what should be - the artist's role in society and in the church? Who are some Biblical example of artists, and what can they teach us today? How should your community of faith engage with and welcome artists as leaders? These and other questions will be ad- dressed by Makoto Fujimura and the International Arts Movement staff at their new creative venue, Space 38|39. Mako will guide workshop participants in how to "see" a piece of art, and the IAM leadership will facilitate a discussion of how to engage artists in the fabric of the faith community.

35 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 OPTION #4 CAP: 50 Fundraising for the Church Planter (Terry Gyger) Session Location: Redeemer Presbyterian Church offices, 1359 Broadway

Many church planters need to raise financial resources for their church planting projects and need guidance in how to raise funds. Come learn from an experienced church planter with lots of experience in financial development. Join Terry Gyger, Executive Director of the Re- deemer Church Planting Center and learn helpful principles and ideas from his personal experience and wisdom.

OPTION #5 CAP: 50 Word & Deed: Bringing Gospel Renewal to Harlem (Dominic Lewis) Session Location: New Song Community Church, 2230 Frederick Douglass Blvd. Harlem, NYC www.newsongharlem.com

New Song Community Church was founded in 1998 with the express purpose of bringing gospel renewal to Harlem. Since its launch New Song has started an after-school learning program, bought a building which provides affordable housing to families in need, founded Summer Time Enrichment Program (STEP) which offers academic training and character- building for grade school students and other job-training initiatives. New Song has become nationally known for its commitment to social, educational, spiritual and economic wellness for its neighbors through carrying out the Gospel mission.

OPTION #6 CAP: 65 Environment, Justice, and the City: Opportunities for Community-building (Rusty Pritchard) Session Location: Central Park & American Bible Society, 1865 Broadway

Loving your neighbors means caring for creation. Find out what urban churches are doing to demonstrate a high regard for God’s handiwork and a heart for social justice. Cities are meant to be good places, and churches are discovering that caring for the common good, and seeking the good of the city, means getting involved in environmental work: engaging in stewardship in their own facility, with their own lifestyles, but also in their outreach and social work. Environmental goods (like parks and greenspace) and environmental bad (like pollution and traffic congestion) are distributed unequally across the city, and churches are taking leadership in issues of neighborhood development, city planning, and sustainability. Find out how your church can help urban singles and families reconnect to nature in and out of the city, in ways that will strengthen your ministry and build community. Topics will include facility management, purchasing, Christian education, urban gardening, new urban- ism, community development, public health, and family activities.

36 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 OPTION #7 CAP: 30 How People Change: A Transforming Community (Lois Kehlenbrink) Session Location: Redeemer Church Planting Center, 1359 Broadway

As a missional church grows and expands, how can each new member get the attention necessary to grow and become more like Christ? Pastors and church leaders just do not have the time and energy to disciple and be available to each person. This break-out session seeks to equip Christians to see their friendships as opportunities for redemption. Friendships are about personal ministry, speaking graciously into each others lives over a coffee date or on the phone, coming along side one another with the goal of personal transformation. This requires a Biblical theology of change. Why do people do what they do & say what they say? How does God change us into His likeness in the midst of a hectic city?

OPTION #8 CAP: 45 Missional Worship (Tim Smith) Session Location: Dwell conference venue, 4th Universalist

As pastors we are constantly faced with the task of articulating the gospel to a particular people in a specific time and place. This is as much the case when we open the bible to preach as it is when we open our mouths to sing. Worship is our response to God's initia- tion and we must discern, with the mind of a missionary, how to respond rightly to God’s movement among our particular people. Join Pastor Tim Smith, worship pastor at Mars Hill Church for the last 8 years, for a discussion on Acts 17 and how to apply the missionary mindset of the Apostle Paul to corporate worship. We will discuss: What is worship? What is a missionary? How do we redeem the objects of worship for the word around us to proclaim the glory of Jesus?

37 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008 Redeemer Church Planting Center Terry Gyger, Director Mark Reynolds, Associate Director John Thomas, Training and Learning Design Melanie Penn, Administrative Assistant www.redeemer.com

Acts 29 Network Scott Thomas, Director Tyler Powell, Church Planting Strategist Adriel Iﬂand, Administrative Assistant Jeannie Thomas, A29 Ministry Assistant www.acts29network.org

38 - Dwell Conference - NYC - April 2008