When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan. (1 Cor. 2:1 NLT)
When I was a new Christian, I read an email in which the writer, a “more mature brother,” said that he was “convicted.”
“Convicted?” I thought. “Of what? Is he in trouble with the law? What exactly does that mean?” I was afraid to ask anyone what “convicted” meant in a Christian context, as I thought I’d look like an ignorant heathen for not being in-the-know.
I’d then read other emails and articles written by Christians and be stumped by more of the language– why did “believers” want to “fellowship” outside of a “seeker-sensitive” gathering? Why was every other email signed off with “in him” or “under the blood” or “for his glory”? What did they mean when they’d say the worship on Sunday was “anointed” and caused them to “lift hands”?
I felt like an idiot.
But over time, I grew savvy to the lingo. It became a second language to me- as a church staffer, I’d regularly write emails about anointed worship, the need for fellowship among believers, and the pros and cons of having seeker-sensitive services. I even picked up fancier terminology such as “dispensational premillennialism,” “ecumenicalism,” “eschatology,” and “propitiation vs. expiation.”
I had mastered Christianese.
And now that I’m preparing to leave my church staff position to become a missionary, I clearly see a need for me to put aside the exclusive language and be able to communicate these very same concepts in much simpler terms, terms that can be easily grasped by people who might not have ever been to a church before (or in Christianese, “the unchurched,” “non-believers,” “seekers,” or “pagans.”)
At a recent conference, veteran film producer Ralph Winter talked about how we Christians often try to share our faith with those who don’t know Jesus yet but do so using our own vernacular, which means little (or nothing) to people outside of the Church. He likened it to making foreign films with bad subtitles: the intended audience doesn’t get what’s going on and the message is lost.
Growing up in the midwest as the son of immigrants, I would speak Indonesian (my parents’ main language) at home but English while out in public, as very few people in Ohio would understand me were I to speak to them in Indonesian. Similarly, using Christian language is fine when we’re in a Church context- it’s like being at home with our siblings, speaking the language of Our Father- but when we venture outside of the house, we could more effectively share the good news of God’s love for the lost if we communicated in ways they could actually understand.
When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ. When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings. (1 Cor. 9:21-23 NLT)
