Die belydenis van Jesus Christus in die prediking om eietydse hoorders tot geloof te begelei

Abstract

The problem researched in this thesis is as follows: Too much emphasis is placed on the experience of salvation in today’s preaching, sound exegesis and preaching of the Scriptures is neglected. The problem is thus that faith as knowledge and faith as experience are not handled in an integrated way in preaching, but that currently too much emphasis is placed on faith as experience, while faith as knowledge is neglected. Practical theology is approached as an action science. In this thesis the following approached is followed: Firstly a literature study of sources was done, after which an empirical study was conducted by way of the analysis of sermons, and finally a model was suggested for preaching that helps us in the light of this problem. The steps followed in the thesis were as follows: Firstly a literature study was done to discuss the balance between knowledge and experience of the salvation in Jesus Christ and how preaching can end in a confession of Jesus Christ. Secondly the empirical phase followed, where sermons from preachers from the 10 synods of the Dutch Reformed Church were analysed. The finding of the empirical investigation was the following: faith as experience is currently being emphasised much more in preaching than faith as knowledge, and furthermore it was found that there is currently a low occurrence of confessing Jesus Christ in preaching of the Dutch Reformed Church. A model for preaching as confessing of Jesus Christ is proposed in which the concepts faith as knowledge and faith as experience are seen as functioning in a dialectic tension to each other, and therefore not separated.