Page 22 - A Dissertation for Doctor of Philosophy

preaching in light of selected aspects of the methodology of Jesus’ preaching to obtain inferences

for adaptation.

Following the methodology, this dissertation is divided into four chapters. In

order to appraise the dominant methodology and its problems of contemporary Korean preaching,

the first chapter will attempt to make an historical visit to the Korean church through the lens of

preaching in order to understand the historical context of the contemporary Korean church and

her preaching. The drastic evolution of the cultural matrix of contemporary Korea will be

discussed to justify the claim for the need of changing the dominant methodology of preaching in

the contemporary Korean church in order to ensure that her message is heard. The final section

will articulate the current problems of contemporary Korean preaching.

In the second chapter, the author will discuss Jesus’ methodology of preaching, dividing

it into three section. The centrality of preaching in Jesus’ public ministry as recorded in the

gospels will be discussed. This section will also deal with Jesus’ hermeneutics of the Old

Testament. The following questions will guide this part of the study: What were his ways of

interpretation? What were his distinctive hermeneutical clues to read and apply the Old

Testament differently than his contemporaries? Then, the last section will examine the main roles

of a preacher that appeared in Jesus’ preaching; that are prophet and teacher.

The third chapter will deal with Jesus’ usage of various communicative techniques. The

first section of this chapter will give a detailed examination of Jesus’ authority as a preacher. The

next section will explore Jesus’ adaptation of his message according the nature of his audience.

His use of various literary forms and devices will be investigated and explained such as parables,

aphorisms, and other rhetorical devices. The next section will examine his use of simple and

concrete language, including the use of imaginative language.

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