If somehow you were to be teleported to a McDonald’s, opening your eyes in this particular one, in the Bukit Bintang district of Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia, one of the largest tourist areas in all of KL, you’d be hard pressed to know where in the world you were. The McDonald’s would be familiar enough. Modern decor with hints of yellow and red here and there. The Golden Arches. And a stunning mix of people representing any number of ethnicities and nationalities.
Closer inspection would lead you to think you weren’t in the US. The menu features fried chicken and rice as well as the more traditional Big Mac. And you might detect a higher percentage of Asian ethnicities than you might expect to see at any given moment in a typical US McDonald’s. Looking out the windows on the second floor of seating you might think you were in Times Square with the mass of people like swarms of ants moving up and down the sidewalks and back and forth across busy intersections.
Not the place you’d typically pick for theological conversation. But the location of this McDonald’s is ideal for the two young men I’m meeting with. James, who has been an ongoing friend and catechumen over the last nearly two years, and his friend D, whom I met at James’ baptism back in January. D is a second year seminary student in Malaysia. He asked if we could meet to talk about theology. Specifically homiletics – preaching.
D is Anglican and studying at a seminary run by several Christian groups including the Anglicans. As such, his coursework has a variety of flavors mixed in from different denominational perspectives. And in the area of homiletics what this means is he’s being trained in expository preaching. Exclusively.
Expository preaching basically means preaching a particular Biblical text with an eye towards drawing out the contextual meaning of the passage rather than imposing an outside meaning the passage likely didn’t have for it’s original hearers and readers. It may also imply preaching through entire books of the Bible over several years. It’s a popular style in many Evangelical circles. And D is being trained as this kind of preacher. He wanted to get an outside perspective and since he’s partial to Lutheran theology and traditional liturgical practice, he hit me up for a conversation on my visit to KL this past Saturday.
It’s not that expository preaching is bad. Stylistically – like any preaching model or style – it has pros and cons, positives and negatives. And any good sermon should have a bit of expository preaching in it. Alongside topical preaching and lectionary-based preaching it’s a fine option. But it’s one option of several. So we chatted a bit about some of the pros and cons of that style of preaching and the importance of making sure Christ is preached regardless of what style you find comfortable or opt to use on a given Sunday.
Despite the noise of the crowded McDonald’s the three of us enjoyed nearly a two-hour conversation. About preaching and about how to do ministry in KL and Malaysia. It’s not a simple thing to do. But we talked about ways to infuse Lutheran theology and liturgical practice into the local Christian milieu. All of James’ friends are engaged in other denominational circles but all recognize a uniqueness about Lutheran theology and practice they haven’t encountered elsewhere, and are curious to learn more. Where will all that lead? That’s the Holy Spirit’s job, and He certainly hasn’t clued me in to any details yet.
In the meantime, I’ll continue to meet with James and various of his friends at least once a month if not twice, in addition to online Bible studies. Please pray the Holy Spirit’s wisdom and guidance for this group of young Christians and my time and work with them!
The Nelson Family Indonesia 