The Gospel in secular and sacred settings

(Continuing from the previous blog…)

And going on to look at Paul in Corinth and Ephesus adds more fascinating detail on his preaching. He preached in both sacred (synagogues) and secular buildings (the lecture hall of Tyrannus).

He argued (dialegomai) and persuaded (peitho). Both these verbs are used several times. Of course, argument and persuasion are useless without trusting in the Holy Spirit but trusting in the Holy Spirit is no substitute for a good argument and persuasive reasoned facts.

The text says he used the lecture hall of Tyrannus for 2 years. The Bezan text gives us more details. It was “from the fifth hour to the tenth” each day. That is from 10 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon. I think we can suppose that Paul didn’t preach on the Sabbath, but still comes to 3,120 hours of ministry! What a commitment!

There is a church I know in a town not far from me – that backs onto the High Street and they have a cafe there. What a fantastic arrangement – they have a sacred and secular site in one building. I think most churches long for such a situation. I hope they use it well.