Overview
Missional evangelist and theologian David Fitch has spent many of his years in ministry resisting the temptation to "accommodate" the gospel message to a culture bent with tendencies towards individualism, consumerism, materialism, and busyness. But now as he contemplates his experience in ministry, he wonders, "Can the gospel be too big– In other words, when communicating the gospel message, have we sacrificed relevance in our attempt to avoid accommodation?
One of our primary callings as Christians is to communicate the gospel in ways that are effective for our given context, but also faithful to the biblical message. Such a task requires us to avoid the extremes of both accommodation and irrelevance in our gospel message. But how are we to achieve such a tenuous balance in the actual practice of ministry?
Table of Contents
SCRIPTURE: John 3:16-21; Acts 17:16-34; 1 Corinthians 15:1-7; Romans 12:1-3; Galatians 1:6-12; 5:13-26
LEADER'S GUIDE
• Identify the Current Issue
• Discover the Eternal Principles
—Teaching point one: In order to avoid the pitfalls of both irrelevance and accommodation in communicating the gospel message, we must first understand what the gospel is.
—Teaching point two: To minimize the risk of making the gospel "too small" (overly accommodating it to the surrounding culture), we must not confuse the simplicity of the gospel with the ease of the gospel.
—Teaching point three: To minimize the risk of making the gospel "too big" (making the gospel seem irrelevant to the surrounding culture), we must continually assess our motives and ensure that our hearts are motivated by love and compassion for a lost, broken, and hurting world.
• Apply Your Findings
• Recommended Resources
ARTICLE FROM CHRISTIANITY TODAY
• "Missional Misstep" by David Fitch
You may also purchase this study as a part of our six-session course Is Our Gospel Too Small?.
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