Preaching to a Postmodern World

A Guide to reaching twenty-first century listeners
by Graham Johnston, InterVarsity 2001

This is an excellent book on contemporary communication. It sets out to answer the question how we can adapt our methods to be more effective at reaching people today, without watering down our message to suit the convenience of postmodern listeners. Although the title suggests that it is mainly for ministers, it will be invaluable to anyone who is involved in communicating the Bible's message on a regular basis - preachers, junior church leaders, home group leaders, Christian union leaders, teachers, and writers.

From the cover blurb:

The first two chapters give a very helpful overview of postmodern culture and how the issues involved in communication have changed. Johnston then moves in to four chapters dealing with a series of general issues for Christian communicators. The last chapter provides specific advice on preaching in a postmodern context

Buy this book for yourself - and buy another copy to give to your minister.

Ray Ciervo writes:

Johnston's book hits the mark as far as a concise definition of postmodernism and the church's job of reaching those affected by it. The two shortcomings I found with the book are his statement that 'modernism has collapsed'and his reliance on secondary sources. The latter would disqualify this book from being truly scholarly. In every other aspect this is a fine book.

Johnston's view that postmodernism is a parasite that feeds off the carcass of modernism is an apt one. Postmodernism is an offshoot of deconstructionism and a relative of feminism. Anyone who was around for the hippie movement in the Sixties will recognize the similarities. Postmodernism is coming of age in this century, but my prediction is that it will be as short-lived as the hippies.

What can be recognized is that postmodernism depends much more on subjectivity than objectivity, more on experience than facts. This may be helpful in rounding out one's life but not as the foundation or major premise to live by. Postmodernism is a house of cards. No one actually lives that way all the time. No one wants a postmodern brain surgeon. Modernism is alive and well in many places, especially the college campus, where postmodernism also thrives. However, modernism thrives also in the science lab. The dependence on objectivity in experiments will never be replaced by someone feeling like there's more to life.

The shortcoming of modernism is the lack of acknowledging there is more to life than what is physically seen. However, Christians should never have agreed with that. Christians have always known there is more to life than what is here and now. Objectivity is crucial in understanding the unique claims of Christ. Mistaking those claims with modern methods of proof is detrimental.

Johnston is strong on maintaining strict allegiance to the infallibility of the Bible. He doesn't encourage accommodation in any sense. That part is clear. Engaging the culture is the key to reaching people. Some new methods may need to be adopted in order to wrestle wrong thinking away from individuals.

Apologetics is removing the obstacles that keep people from seeing the Christ of the Bible. Preaching to postmodernists must employ this method.

Contents:

Introduction
'Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore'
Postmodernity: animal, vegetable, or mineral?
Rules for engagement
Challenging listeners
Obstacles
Inroads
Practices for engagement

Introduction

• Risk your life
• Think like a missionary
• Weigh style, skill and spirit

1. "Toto, We're Not in Kansas Any more"

• Expect differing worldviews from the pew
• See the opportunities and the unprecedented
• What worked then may not now
• Practicing the principles: two burdens

2. Postmodernity: animal, vegetable, or mineral

• What's modern verses postmodern?
• Reacting to modernity
• Rejecting objective truth
• Skeptics suspecting authority
• Living in the missing persons era
• Managing the blur of morality
• Postmodernity and the search for the transcendent
• It's a media-mad world
• Facing the knowing smirk
• Questing for community
• Living in the material world

3. Rules for engagement

• Don't engage at the expense of the message
• Communication takes two - and time
• Risk involvement
• Address where you live

4. Challenging listeners

• Become more relational
• Tune in to the secular
• Be more apologetic
• Encourage accountability

5. Obstacles

• Preaching to the biblically clueless
• Deal with the exclusive uniqueness of Christ
• The "Whatever" age
• Handling resistance to the master plan
• The ultimate hot potato

6. Inroads

• Spirituality is hot, religion is not
• You want to go where everybody knows your name
• Creation and connectedness to the world
• Sense over sensibility

7. Practices for engagement

• Take a dialogical approach
• Use inductive preaching
• Use storytelling
• Use audiovisuals, drama, and art
• Use humor
• Become a good listener
• Make your delivery crisp and clear

At the end of the book, Johnston says:

Graham Johnston is senior pastor of Subiaco Church of Christ, Western Australia, and an adjunct lecturer in homiletics at Perth Bible College.

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