As the Church, we aim to grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour and to make Him known. But when it comes to the how-to's of sharing our faith, things can get confusing when we try to share it with someone from a different culture. Culture plays a very important role in how we present the gospel in the most effective way, and that is what we want to help with in this event.
The Good News of Jesus' death and resurrection is so simple that it can be translated into every culture, but sometimes the "translation" can be tricky (not necessarily because of language!). Through this iMAP Church Resource Event, we are aiming to equip the church with the appropriate tools to reach the nations, making the message of the gospel relatable to their culture, whether that is in a crowded street in Dublin or in a remote village somewhere in Asia.
We don't pretend to have all the answers, but we do want to acknowledge the expertise that some mission agencies have in how to bring this message of hope to certain cultures. That is why we are inviting different mission partners to share about their experiences. It will be a great opportunity to connect with them, not only if you are interested in overseas mission, but also if you are interested in doing international outreach in your hometown, as in this time and age there are a lot of nations represented in our streets who also need to hear about Jesus.
We are going to learn about the 3 different kinds of culture that we can find in our world and how their worldviews relate to the gospel in their own unique way. Based on the "3D Gospel" book by Jayson Georges, we can find Guilt and Innocence cultures, Shame and Honour cultures, and Power and Fear cultures. The gospel truth can be found and understood in each of them, enriching our view of the gospel and helping us present it to others in a more relevant way.