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Symbolism and interpretation
Symbolism and interpretation
Symbolism and interpretation
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- Is the form of the text identifiable as narrative/non-narrative, saga, myth, legend, historical narrative, scholastic writing, dialogue, parable, etc.?
The form of the text is historical or story/narrative, because it is sequential.
- How does the form influence your reading of the text?
The form of the text made it easier for me to read, and understand.
- Are there specific bridge words that move the message of the text? How and where do they lead you in your engagement of the text?
The idea of “Moses coming down from Mount Sinai, after forty days,” creates curiosity and expectation in me as it did on they original crowd. I wanted to know what news he had for us.
- Which words have history that bears examination or have greatest (and least) relevance for the present reality? Why?
The phrase “tablets of the covenant” have the greatest relevance for me. If I place myself in their situation, I really want to know now, what it is about that we missed the first time.
6. Connect text and context:
- What topics or themes arise or could be developed from the text in light of the preaching context?
Topics possible to develop for the sermon are, forgiveness, transformation, and eternal hope.
- Are there parallels to be made between the context of the text and the current situation of the congregation?
Yes, people in their life journey many times get away from the Lord, then complain and make “idols,” this is a human mistake, that could happen to any of us. The key is always to go back to the Lord, repent and ask for forgiveness. The Lord is always willing to forgive the one who sincerely looks for him.
- How much of the historical atmosphere and feeling does the congregation need to experience imaginatively for the text to op...
... middle of paper ...
...s we noted before, the people are conservative.
- What are the demographics and the congregational context in which the sermon will be preached?
50-100 members predominantly white, and very traditional worship services
- What current issues in the life of the congregation need to be addressed?
The issues are that English is a barrier for the immigrant people to be involved in the church, and their style of worship is much different.
- Identify broader social, cultural and economic issues beyond the immediate congregation that need to be addressed.
I notice two problems to be addressed: 1) Serious unemployment in the area, and 2) Drug and alcohol use among the young in the community.
- What are the societal, political, world or other issues that need to be considered in the development of the sermon?
The world today is idolatrous and wants to live without rules.
LaHaye, Tim, and Ed Hindson. The Popular Encyclopedia of Bible Prophecy. Eugene, OR.: Harvest House Publishers, 2004.
The church has a problem. The eternally relevant message with which she has been entrusted no longer readily finds a willing ear. According to Henderson, the solution lies in first understanding how our world thinks and then, beginning where people are at, bring them to see "the functional relevance for their lives of the actual relevance of our message". In high school speech classes, we were taught to "know your audience." As a careless high schooler, I didn't really care what she meant, but it eventually made sense (once I actually decided to think about it). You wouldn't use sock puppets to explain math to accountants; you wouldn't use in-depth power-point presentations to explain math to first graders. With this in mind, why do many Americans still try to talk about Jesus using the methods used thirty years ago? Why do we use Christian "jargon" to explain Christianity to those outside the faith? Henderson contends that modern American Christians must change their approach to sharing the faith in order to fit modern America. The pattern of Henderson's book is straightforward: he examines a particular aspect/mindset/value of modern Americans; he then gives ideas about how a Christian might share Words of Eternal Life with such an American. Henderson's writing is both straightforward and enjoyable. He gets right to the heart of the American mindset, then illustrates it with descriptions from scenes from popular movies, personal anecdotes, jokes, etc. In all, Henderson does the modern Christian a great service in writing "Culture Shift." Jesus told Christians to tell others about him ("Go, therefore, and baptize all nations...") and Henderson can help us along the way through this book
Lee includes Scripture, Gospel, Hymns, Prayers and concludes the sermon in an “Amen” (37) by switching the posture to the audience. Perelman examined, “Every technique promoting the communion of the speaker with his audience will decrease the opposition between them” (79). Since Lee’s meaningful sermon consisted of the most essential techniques, her audience recognized her authority and capability to preach. She not only knew about the role of a minister, but also knew how to carry out her responsibilities as a minister, which enforced the appeal to ethos from the audience’s point of view. Lee compelled the audience to reconceive their discrimination of women
The message of Zechariah was to give hope to God’s people by revealing God’s future delivering through the Messiah. The exiles had made their way from Babylon to rebuild the temple, but the work had been ...
There have been many passages in the bible that are appealing to different people. What one person may find inspiring, another may view it as just another message in the bible. One of the passages in the bible that I found inspiring was that of one of the prophets, Jeremiah. The one particular passage that I would like to focus on in this paper would be that of Jeremiah's views on the subject of sin. I found that his thought on this subject made me look at how people act in a different way than I had before.
However, both groups consciously reshaped the organizing framework of religion to diminish its ordering of their lives within the public and private sphere. Prothero posits that while “The Bible remained authoritative [. . .] Americans insisted on interpreting it for themselves” (47), especially women who lived under its patriarchal construction. “In that effort,” Prothero continues “they were assisted by a new culture hero: the populist preacher, who combined evangelicalism and egalitarianism in daring new ways” (47). Prothero maintains that it was “the rise of pulpit storytelling” (51) that allowed such reimagining of religious ideology. Prothero goes on to argue that the “story sermon” (51) as a rhetorical style “did not catch on as fast in New England as it did in the South and the West (51),” a point ...
1. Carter’s book focuses on the diverse ways the Early Christians dealt with their world, where imperial politics, economics, culture, and religion were mixed together (x). Furthermore, the author organized his book around important imperial realities that New Testament writings negotiate (x). The audience for Carter’s book includes high school or college students, Bible study groups, Sunday school students, clergy, and scholars interested in insights about passages in the New Testament to study.
In an age when culture continues to lower standards of intellect, Marva Dawn makes compelling observations and suggestions for the Church to rethink its strategy on impacting society. How do we evangelize without weakening the message of what we are communicating? The majority of her text focuses on the worship environment generally, but later she focuses on music, preaching, and liturgy specifically. According to Dawn, a gathering of believers should emphasize God as the subject and object of worship, challenge each individual to grow in godly character, and accentuate the community of believers (not only in the room, but throughout history as well). Through this grid, she encourages leaders and participants to evaluate each worship element.
Stefanovic, Ranko. “The Sermon on the Mount.” NTST 617: Theology of Matthew. Class lecture, Andrews University, Berrien Springs, MI, October 8, 2013.
The New Interpreter's Study Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha. Nashville: Abingdon Press, ©2003.
Lloyd-Jones, David M. Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. Grand Rapids, Mich: Eerdmans, 1976. Print
William McLaughlin notes in his book Revivals, Awakenings and Reform that there have been several “Awakenings” in American religious history ,and that not all of these moments of renewal resembled the fiery preaching frenzies of the famed eighteenth century. Each “Awakening” had at its core a specific issue it was addressing. The issues in question could be spiritual declension (first Great Awakening), national back-sliding (second Great Awakening), biblical interpretation and liberalism (third Great Awakening), or American identity and progressivism (fourth Great Awakening). Thus, it is perhaps my own limitations that bristle at the idea of preaching the n...
Love Yourself as Hearers. Above all, the preachers should consider first the audience or “hearers” when preparing a sermon. As stated in this book, “we need to learn how to introduce, develop, and conclude our subjects in a way that interests hearers” (Galli and Larson, 1994, p. 16). In other words, we need to learn how to modify our words, sentences, paragraphs, stories and illustrations to deliver the message and impact the lives of our audience.
Ritchie, M. (1999). Community bible chapel. The story of the church – Part 4, Topic 5. The Protestant
Using this method, he successfully engages the congregation through descriptive narratives and relating ideas to current times. As part of the narratives he includes descriptive biblical stories beginning with the story in his text, claiming it as a “scary story”. He further re-enforces this scary story concept by sharing two more biblical passages where a scary story exists. These biblical narratives are the beginning of what Wilson would call the second page of the sermon where the trouble in the text is given. This of course was preceded by his first page that discussed the idea of having scary stories in our lives today (trouble in the world) by using a vivid personal illustration. He continues to use vivid illustrations to hammer in his focus on the church needing to be friends to the downtrodden because God responds that way. He designs the third page to share the Gospel in the text reminding us that God responds to continual injustice by sending his son to be the friend that everyone needs. The one who stands up for injustice and never leaves your side. Finally, he concludes with the fourth page by demonstrating how churches can live the gospel in the world today. They do this through friendships with people in their surrounding community whose stories might be