Did Paul Leverage the Culture? Or Not?
Did Paul Leverage the Culture? Or Not?
– April 3, 2008
Did Paul Leverage the Culture? Or Not?
About the Author
Bill Reichart is a husband, daddy of two daughters and a pastor at Big Creek Church (pca) in North Atlanta. Bill received his Masters of Divinity from Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando. Before pastoring a church, he worked with college students in the northeast for over 16 years. He really enjoys movies, science fiction/fantasy writing (yes he’s been to a Star-Trek convention!), the Simpsons and theology books - not necessarily in that order. He has always been fascinated with the intersection of culture and his faith. 
I listened to MacArthur as he railed against others for contextualizing their message to the particular needs of their audience (he particularly made fun of wearing jeans with holes in them). I listened to him say how, essentially, this was throwing away the gospel for something Else. I listened to him rail against this kind of contextualization while he himself did the exact kind of thing he was so fired up about.
I mean really. Was he wearing a suit and tie because he finds such stifling clothes comfortable? Or maybe was it because his audience would perhaps respond negatively if he showed up in a bathrobe?
And rather than speak to the issue in a sensible manner, he poked fun at others, ranted, and even engaged in a bit of harmless misogyny. Why? Probably because he thought his audience would appreciate those things. And apparently they did.
Conclusion: John MacArthur is a Mister Sillypants.
MacArthur is great…but he does that sort of thing all the time. Just the fact that his people sit in pews, sing hymns, and use sound systems proves that he contextualizes his ministry.
I sometimes think that some of our oustanding, godly, older Christian leaders don’t listen very well to what, exactly, the younger generation says. Of cours sometimes the younger generation doesn’t speak very clearly either. What exactly does this guy mean by “leverage” the culture?