The Gospel is subversive fulfilment of idol stories

Idol stories are counterfeit gospels that can’t fulfil. Seeing the Gospel as “subversive fulfillment”¹ keeps us from Syncretism or Irrelevance.

Confront and connect

The Gospel is subversive, it confronts the values of the culture or individual, and it fulfills, it connects to the hopes of the cultur or individual.

There is always going to be confrontation by the Gospel in some sense. Because the gospel offends each culture in some way: 23.

The Gospel also connects. 22: Paul mentiones what each culture values. Jews don’t look for wisdom and Greeks don’t look for power. 24: Paul connects Christ crucified to the people he preaches to. Christ crucified can both be understood in terms of power and wisdom.

In practice: Aeropagus

Acts 17:

1. Paul commends religiosity: Connect.
2. Paul calls out their “ignorance”: Confont.
3. There needs to be a call for repentance: 30.

Footnotes

1. Coined by Daniel Strange ↩