Overview

No one preaches in a cultural vacuum. The message of what God has done in Christ is good news to all, but to have the greatest impact on its hearers--or even to be understood at all--it must be culturally contextualized. Finding Our Voice speaks clearly to an issue that has largely been ignored: preaching to Asian North American (ANA) contexts. In addition to reworking hermeneutics, theology, and homiletics for these overlooked contexts, Kim and Wong include examples of culturally-specific sermons and instructive questions for contextualizing one's own sermons. Finding Our Voice is essential reading for all who preach and teach in ANA contexts. But by examining this kind of contextualization in action, all who preach in their own unique contexts will benefit from this approach.

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9781683593782

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Reviews

Finding Our Voice by Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong is a very helpful and well written book describing a vision for Asian North American preaching. It includes excellent and concise overviews of the Asian North American experience, hermeneutic, theology, and preaching both now and in the future. It is a must-read not only for Asian North American Christians, especially pastors and church leaders, but also for all Christians. -Rev. Dr. Siang-Yang Tan, Professor of Psychology, Fuller Theological Seminary, and Senior Pastor, First Evangelical Church Glendale, California, and author of Counseling and Psychotherapy: A Christian Perspective, and Shepherding God's People This book provides a much needed stepping stone for the further development of the distinctive voices and contributions that Asian North American preachers can be making. While preaching to a generic audience can be edifying, preaching and teaching to a specific Asian American culture can be transformative all the more. -DJ Chuang, Author of MultiAsian.Church A Future for Asian Americans in a Multiethnic World I want to shout, Finally! At last, we have a book that discusses contextualized preaching among Asian North Americans while upholding the authority of Scripture. Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong are eminently qualified to offer a practical and culturally-aware guide to the particularities of Asian North American hermeneutics, theology, and pulpit. This is a much-needed book that should be welcome in both the church and the classroom. -Daniel K. Eng, D.Min., Instructor at Moody Theological Seminary and Affiliated Lecturer at the University of Cambridge Phenotypes matter! If evangelicals might think that focusing on our raciality or ethnicity kowtows to the identity politics of a liberal or progressive agenda, Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong are prophets who call attention to the incarnational character of the gospel manifest historically in and through many cultures and languages. We 1.5, second, and later members of Asian North American communities need to find our voice and in this regard - precisely because we look and sound different - so I hope that Kim and Wong's prophetic proclamation will find a hearing among many of our pastors, leaders, and congregations that live perpetually in foreign spaces. -Amos Yong, Professor of Theology & Mission, and Dean, School of Theology and School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller Theological Seminary Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong jointly captured my attention with Finding Our Voice. Their transparency intrigued me not only with their candor through transparency, but their skillful selection of words that described my feelings. This won my openness to consider their thinking on the implications of a mono-theology that is too quickly assumed by many in our field. I like a book that posits a new way of thinking that is better than the status quo. Suggestions of a hybrid hermeneutic or an incarnational duality left me wondering and pondering. I liked this read and recommend it to you. -Bruce Fong, Professor of Pastoral Ministries at Dallas Theological Seminary Finding Our Voice is a tremendous contribution to the field of homiletics and to the body of Christ. Now that Matthew D. Kim and Daniel L. Wong have found their voices, this exemplary treatise guides us in finding ours. In this didactic, interactive, inspiring and empowering volume, we are trained by two brilliant scholar/ practitioners in how to preach the immutable gospel of a global Jesus through our God-given ethnic identities and cultural narratives. Written for the Asian North American (ANA) context, this work will not only help readers find our voice, it also teaches us how to hear the voices of our beloved neighbors. This is a must read! -Emmett G. Price III, Ph.D., Professor of Worship, Church & Culture, & Executive Director, Institute for the Study of the Black Christian Experience, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong have provided a desperately needed resource in our rapidly emerging Post Christendom and Multi-Cultural world. In our attempts to understand the missional contexts of neighborhoods, we have tended to focus superficially on food, fashion and festival missing the opportunity to move deeper into the inter-culture possibilities possible in this new world of diversity. To preach in this new world requires an understanding and sensitivity which allows the Word to come alive. To do so however, requires a sensitivity to the shades of difference so that the differences come alive to the possibilities of faith and discipleship. Kim and Wong have given us a gift if we want to learn to preach multiculturally. It will however change the way we think about preaching. -Gary V Nelson, President, Tyndale University home of Tyndale Seminary Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong have done a great service to the North American Christian Church, evangelicals in particular, by stepping into the oft-overlooked arena of Asian North American preaching. They have provided us with a resource book that is visionary and thought-provoking. Bible teachers and preachers, new and old, will be helped by the conversations they spark and the questions they raise. They are spot-on in their naming of the common Asian North American experience and narrative, as well as considering core hermeneutics that acknowledge the bicultural/multicultural/both-and background of Asian North American preachers and peoples. I can hardly wait for Matt's and Daniel's book to be published and used by hermeneutical communities within churches, seminaries, and the marketplaces. -Donna Dong, Multi-ethnic/Multi-cultural Ministry Director, InterVarsity Co-written by Matthew D. Kim & Daniel L. Wong, Finding our Voice, hails the significant voices of Asian Americans who seek to live out the gospel and preach as minorities in a Eurocentric society. The book extends far beyond Asian American history, culture, church and theology, with its intricate inclusion of models of prophetic preaching. Finding our Voice is a significant book for spiritual minds and proves itself to be essential for our time. ?Grace Ji-Sun Kim, Associate Professor of Theology at Earlham School of Religion. Kim is the author or editor of 19 books, most recently, Reimagining Spirit and Keeping Hope Alive Who are Asian North American (ANA) preachers? What do sermons shaped by and attuned to ANA stories and values distinctly sound like? Who are ANA congregations? Questions like these are seldom explored systematically or in depth as Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong do in this book. Finding Our Voice is a gift that reminds ANA preachers of the value of our ethnic heritages and multicultural identities in proclaiming the gospel, even if experiences of pain and disorientation color our stories. Regardless of their racial and ethnic background, I recommend this resource to all preachers who sincerely want to understand and reach ANA listeners with the life-giving news of Jesus Christ who loves us for who we are. -Ahmi Lee (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is assistant professor of preaching at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. She has served in congregations in the Chicago area in various capacities, and she is an active preacher and speaker worldwide. Matthew D. Kim and Daniel L. Wong have put together an indispensable resource for all Asian North American preachers and pastors. Finding Our Voice: A Vision for Asian North American Preaching brings together the latest and best resources to help shape a contextualized Asian North American hermeneutic, theology, and preaching presentation. I commend these authors for their invaluable contribution to a present global audience giving us a preview towards a future Revelation 5 and 7 congregation. -Benjamin S. Shin, Associate Professor of Christian Ministry & Leadership, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University What an important contribution Kim and Wong give us to the pastoral and preaching worlds through Finding Our Voice. This book gives an insightful look at our past, seeing what shaped and influenced our Asian North American spirituality, what the current challenges are today, and most importantly, how we can effectively preach to and minister to Asian North Americans in our congregations going forward. This book is not only for Asian pastors or Asian congregations, but for any pastor who has Asians in their church. There is wisdom to be gained through reading this book, and the fruit of it will be effective gospel ministry as we apply it. -Eddie Byun, Associate Professor of Christian Ministry, Talbot School of Theology

Finding Our Voice by Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong is a very helpful and well written book describing a vision for Asian North American preaching. It includes excellent and concise overviews of the Asian North American experience, hermeneutic, theology, and preaching both now and in the future. It is a must-read not only for Asian North American Christians, especially pastors and church leaders, but also for all Christians. --Rev. Dr. Siang-Yang Tan, Professor of Psychology, Fuller Theological Seminary, and Senior Pastor, First Evangelical Church Glendale, California, and author of Counseling and Psychotherapy: A Christian Perspective, and Shepherding God's People This book provides a much needed stepping stone for the further development of the distinctive voices and contributions that Asian North American preachers can be making. While preaching to a generic audience can be edifying, preaching and teaching to a specific Asian American culture can be transformative all the more. --DJ Chuang, Author of MultiAsian.Church A Future for Asian Americans in a Multiethnic World I want to shout, Finally! At last, we have a book that discusses contextualized preaching among Asian North Americans while upholding the authority of Scripture. Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong are eminently qualified to offer a practical and culturally-aware guide to the particularities of Asian North American hermeneutics, theology, and pulpit. This is a much-needed book that should be welcome in both the church and the classroom. --Daniel K. Eng, D.Min., Instructor at Moody Theological Seminary and Affiliated Lecturer at the University of Cambridge Phenotypes matter! If evangelicals might think that focusing on our raciality or ethnicity kowtows to the identity politics of a liberal or progressive agenda, Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong are prophets who call attention to the incarnational character of the gospel manifest historically in and through many cultures and languages. We 1.5, second, and later members of Asian North American communities need to find our voice and in this regard - precisely because we look and sound different - so I hope that Kim and Wong's prophetic proclamation will find a hearing among many of our pastors, leaders, and congregations that live perpetually in foreign spaces. --Amos Yong, Professor of Theology & Mission, and Dean, School of Theology and School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller Theological Seminary Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong jointly captured my attention with Finding Our Voice. Their transparency intrigued me not only with their candor through transparency, but their skillful selection of words that described my feelings. This won my openness to consider their thinking on the implications of a mono-theology that is too quickly assumed by many in our field. I like a book that posits a new way of thinking that is better than the status quo. Suggestions of a hybrid hermeneutic or an incarnational duality left me wondering and pondering. I liked this read and recommend it to you. --Bruce Fong, Professor of Pastoral Ministries at Dallas Theological Seminary Finding Our Voice is a tremendous contribution to the field of homiletics and to the body of Christ. Now that Matthew D. Kim and Daniel L. Wong have found their voices, this exemplary treatise guides us in finding ours. In this didactic, interactive, inspiring and empowering volume, we are trained by two brilliant scholar/ practitioners in how to preach the immutable gospel of a global Jesus through our God-given ethnic identities and cultural narratives. Written for the Asian North American (ANA) context, this work will not only help readers find our voice, it also teaches us how to hear the voices of our beloved neighbors. This is a must read! --Emmett G. Price III, Ph.D., Professor of Worship, Church & Culture, & Executive Director, Institute for the Study of the Black Christian Experience, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong have provided a desperately needed resource in our rapidly emerging Post Christendom and Multi-Cultural world. In our attempts to understand the missional contexts of neighborhoods, we have tended to focus superficially on food, fashion and festival missing the opportunity to move deeper into the inter-culture possibilities possible in this new world of diversity. To preach in this new world requires an understanding and sensitivity which allows the Word to come alive. To do so however, requires a sensitivity to the shades of difference so that the differences come alive to the possibilities of faith and discipleship. Kim and Wong have given us a gift if we want to learn to preach multiculturally. It will however change the way we think about preaching. --Gary V Nelson, President, Tyndale University home of Tyndale Seminary Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong have done a great service to the North American Christian Church, evangelicals in particular, by stepping into the oft-overlooked arena of Asian North American preaching. They have provided us with a resource book that is visionary and thought-provoking. Bible teachers and preachers, new and old, will be helped by the conversations they spark and the questions they raise. They are spot-on in their naming of the common Asian North American experience and narrative, as well as considering core hermeneutics that acknowledge the bicultural/multicultural/both-and background of Asian North American preachers and peoples. I can hardly wait for Matt's and Daniel's book to be published and used by hermeneutical communities within churches, seminaries, and the marketplaces. --Donna Dong, Multi-ethnic/Multi-cultural Ministry Director, InterVarsity Co-written by Matthew D. Kim & Daniel L., Finding our Voice, hails the significant voices of Asian Americans who seek to live out the gospel and preach as minorities in a Eurocentric society. The book extends far beyond Asian American history, culture, church and theology, with its intricate inclusion of models of prophetic preaching. Finding our Voice is a significant book for spiritual minds and proves itself to be essential for our time. --Grace Ji-Sun Kim, Associate Professor of Theology at Earlham School of Religion. Kim is the author or editor of 19 books, most recently, Reimagining Spirit and Keeping Hope Alive Who are Asian North American (ANA) preachers? What do sermons shaped by and attuned to ANA stories and values distinctly sound like? Who are ANA congregations? Questions like these are seldom explored systematically or in depth as Matthew Kim and Daniel Wong do in this book. Finding Our Voice is a gift that reminds ANA preachers of the value of our ethnic heritages and multicultural identities in proclaiming the gospel, even if experiences of pain and disorientation color our stories. Regardless of their racial and ethnic background, I recommend this resource to all preachers who sincerely want to understand and reach ANA listeners with the life-giving news of Jesus Christ who loves us for who we are. --Ahmi Lee (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is assistant professor of preaching at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. She has served in congregations in the Chicago area in various capacities, and she is an active preacher and speaker worldwide. Matthew D. Kim and Daniel L. Wong have put together an indispensable resource for all Asian North American preachers and pastors. Finding Our Voice: A Vision for Asian North American Preaching brings together the latest and best resources to help shape a contextualized Asian North American hermeneutic, theology, and preaching presentation. I commend these authors for their invaluable contribution to a present global audience giving us a preview towards a future Revelation 5 and 7 congregation. --Benjamin S. Shin, Associate Professor of Christian Ministry & Leadership, Talbot School of Theology, Biola University What an important contribution Kim and Wong give us to the pastoral and preaching worlds through Finding Our Voice. This book gives an insightful look at our past, seeing what shaped and influenced our Asian North American spirituality, what the current challenges are today, and most importantly, how we can effectively preach to and minister to Asian North Americans in our congregations going forward. This book is not only for Asian pastors or Asian congregations, but for any pastor who has Asians in their church. There is wisdom to be gained through reading this book, and the fruit of it will be effective gospel ministry as we apply it. --Eddie Byun, Associate Professor of Christian Ministry, Talbot School of Theology

Author Information

Matthew D. Kim (PhD, University of Edinburgh) is Associate Professor of Preaching and Ministry, Director of the Haddon W. Robinson Center for Preaching, and Director of Mentored Ministry at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He is a past president of the Evangelical Homiletics Society. He served as a youth pastor, college pastor, and senior pastor in Asian American congregations. He is the author of several books, including Preaching with Cultural Intelligence. He is married to Sarah and they have three sons. Daniel L. Wong (DMin, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) is Associate Professor of Christian Ministries at Tyndale University College & Seminary, Toronto. He has served for many years in English Ministry in Chinese churches in Toronto. He has spoken at numerous venues in Asian and multicultural churches in Canada and in the United States. Daniel is married to Flora and they have two children and three grandchildren (the fourth is expected in July).

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