What’s really interesting is to see how Paul uses the customs, language and circumstances of his audience as opportunities to teach.
***Although I am free in regard to all, I have made myself a slave to all so as to win over as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew ***to win over Jews; to those under the law I became like one under the law—though I myself am not under the law—to win over those under the law. To those outside the law I became like one outside the law—though I am not outside God’s law but within the law of Christ—to win over those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, to win over the weak. I have become all things to all, to save at least some.All this I do for the sake of the gospel, so that I too may have a share in it. (1 Corinthians 9:19-23)
It is fascinating to see this in action. Paul meets each audience right where they are, becoming part of that audience and teaching from the perspective of that audience. A perfect example is his letter to the Phillipians.
Phillipi was a city named after Phillip the Great, father of Alexander the Great. Both were great military leaders, and the city was named after the elder because it was basically a Roman military retirement community. The people there, many of whom had a career in the Roman military, carried the skills and virtues they leaned in the Roman army into their civilian lives. They were orderly, loyal, obedient, fearless in the face of obstacles, worked as a team for the common good and endured hardship when it was for a worthy cause.
The Christians in the city of Phillipi Christianized these virtues, and Paul loved them. Paul visited Phillipi on all three of his missionary journeys. Knowing the military background, see if these passages don’t make sense:
…you who are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. (Phillipians 1:7)
My eager expectation and hope is that I shall not be put to shame in any way, but that with all boldness, now as always, Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. (Phillipians 1:20)
***Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy ***of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear news of you, that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind struggling together for the faith of the gospel, not intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is proof to them of destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing. (Phillipians 1:27-28)
Paul speaks in military language here. He speak of a partnership of defense. He speaks of boldness in battle, stating that it does not matter if he lives or dies as long as the goal is accomplished, that of spreading the Gospel. Paul tells them to stand firm, to struggle together, to have one purpose and one mind, and not to be intimidated by opponents.Again, this is clear military language, something that those in a Roman military community would have understood and took to readily. These passages are only the first chapter! It goes on from there.
Paul does become all things to all people. He even tries to become a Greek, and begins speaking to the Greeks as if he was a philosopher in Acts 17. The Greeks loved to debate and hear of new ideas and such…
***They took him and led him to the Areopagus and said, “May we learn what this new teaching is that you speak of? For you bring some strange notions to our ears; we should like to know what these things mean.” Now all the Athenians as well as the foreigners residing there used their time for nothing else but telling or hearing something new. Then Paul stood up at the Areopagus and said: “You Athenians, I see that in every respect you are very religious.” ***(Acts 17:19-22)
Paul goes on to talk about God saying, 'In him we live and move and have our being," (cf Acts 17:28). They listen to him, hear what he has to say, but then he blows it.
When they heard about resurrection of the dead, some began to scoff, but others said, "We should like to hear you on this some other time." (Acts 17:32)
Paul took it too far. The Greeks were interested in what he had to say but he started talking about the ressurection of the dead and they were not ready for that. They were listening to what he had to say but when he talked about rising from the dead the Greeks were like, “Rising from the dead, huh? Yea… Catch ya tomorrow dude!” and they left. They thought he was crazy. I find this part of the story hilarious. The Greeks were like, “We’re out of here!”
But what we get from it is that Paul learned how to evangelize. He learned to “Become all things to all people” and to not take it too far. He leaned how to meet people right where they were, to speak to Jews as a Jew, to Romans as Romans, to Greeks as Greeks and to soldiers as a fellow soldier.
That’s why we have to always look at the audience to which Paul was writing, and know the context, who they were and how they lived and some of the background. That’s part of the literal sense of scripture. We have to get the literal sense of scripture first - what do the words on the page say - and part of getting the literal sense of scripture is knowing the context. Then we can go on the spiritual sense of scripture.
-Tim-
