Journal posting

Week 2: Journal Entry (1 Corinthians 2:1-5, 9:19-22)

Prior to his conversion enroute to Damascus, the apostle Paul (then knows as Saul) was, by most standards, a religious elitist. He had the best education, was well-versed in the scriptures and highly regarded fellow religious leaders. In his time, Saul was among the upper class in the social caste system. When revelation came to Saul in the form of Jesus himself, he cast off the pedigree of his former life choosing instead a new beginning with the knowledge of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection—and with it, a new name, Paul, to signify the transformation within.

 

In his first letter to the church in Corinth, Paul writes of his detachment from his previous life. Given his social and religious standing as Saul, he had probably been a resounding orator, speaking and presenting to governing heads and religious leaders. With his newfound revelation, Paul could have argued and justified his point quite substantially. But demonstrating his superior intellect would further confuse and belittle most of the people with whom he was trying to connect.

 

In the verses selected for this week’s journaling, Paul notes his difficult but determined and humble approach to limiting himself to the perspective of his immediate listener, adjusting his frame of reference to theirs. Doing so removed the clout and influence of Paul’s perception to create space for the Holy Spirit. Paul understood that, though he had been given great skill and understanding, it would be those precise gifts which would undermine his efforts to reach out to various people groups.

 

The end of 1 Corinthians 9:22, the crux of this week’s text, is a sticky point between concept and reality. Paul writes, “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some” (NIV). Earlier in the text, Paul suggests that the people groups (Jews, religious leaders, leaders of the law, etc.) are segregated which allows him to tailor his conversation. While the point of meeting the listener within the same context is the goal, I wonder how much more difficult that may be today—particularly from the vantage point of a church pastor.

 

It is difficult for a local church to be all things for all people—given the number of churches in a community and the variety of denominational differences, it would seem that we have conceded that premise. Identifying with the audience is much easier in small groups or individual conversation. Complications increase with group size. Finding common ground is obviously key, though rarely available at first brush.

 

In what ways am I remiss to consider the context of my listener? I find it much easeir to meet on their terms those who have not had like training and experience as me, as compared to those who have learned, but failed to make connections. Sometimes i get too far ahead of myself (and the Spirit) and make unfounded presumptions about the listener–mainly that they share my unspoken frame of mind. I catch myself getting impatient with others who are unable to follow my line of thought. In this week’s text, Paul would suggest that the disconnect lies not with the listener, but with me–failing to fully conisder the context of those who will hear, and to remove myself to create space for the Spirit to intervene.