The apostle Paul contextualized the gospel – meaning he fit the message to the audience he engaged at the time – but he did not dumb down the gospel to make it more palatable. So when he spoke to the Jews in the synagogue it was like evangelism in the church. When he spoke of Jesus and the resurrection in the marketplace it was like having conversations at the mall or at the corner of 4th and Cherry St. downtown. Paul also spoke to the Areopagus, which was like speaking in the lecture hall filled with professors at the local university. I want you to hear from John Stott about this:
Neither church evangelism nor street evangelism would be appropriate for them. Instead, we should develop home evangelism in which there is free discussion, “Agnostic Anonymous” groups in which no holds are barred, and lecture evangelism, which contains a strong apologetic content. There is an urgent need for more Christian thinkers who will dedicate their minds to Christ, not only as lecturers, but also as authors, journalists, dramatists and broadcasters, as television scriptwriters, producers and personalities, and as artists and actors who use a variety of art forms in which to communicate the gospel. All these can do battle with contemporary non-Christian philosophies and ideologies in a way which resonates with thoughtful, modern men and women, and so at least gain a hearing for the gospel by the reasonableness of its presentation. Christ calls human beings to humble, but not to stifle, their intellect.1
We are all in ministry with various skill sets, gifts, and contexts. Your workplace and FRAN are your unique place to live the gospel and plant seeds of truth. Steward the resources and relationships God has entrusted to you to share the love and the light of Christ.
For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all,
that I might win more of them.
1 Corinthians 9:19
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1John R. W. Stott, The Message of Acts, p.281
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