David C. Steinmetz - "For the Sake of the Gospel" (February 7, 1988)

The act of communicating the Gospel to the world, like all acts of teaching, requires an act of cultural translation that is unique to each particular situation (to the Jews, Paul became a Jew; to the weak, he became weak). However, this must never be mistaken to mean that we must conform the message of the Gospel to the pattern of the world in order that it be palletable to our audience. As Paul sees it, we are obliged to accomodate but forbidden to conform. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)

Sermon start time: (Part 1) 23:58. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 49:06.

Key quotation: “The task remains for us as for Saint Paul to adjust to the world without conforming to it, to speak every vernacular without losing our native tongue, to see from alien perspectives without blurring our own vision, to become everything in turn to men and women of every sort without abandoning our identity.”