InREVIEW: Book Look
By Michael J. Breznau | 2021
Tim Muehlhoff and Rick Langer, Winsome Persuasion: Christian Influence in a Post-Christian World (IVP, 2017)
Angry, fear-mongering Facebook video-posts go viral. Tweets echo like the “shot heard ‘round the world.” A mob of social media activists cancel a popular celebrity for a string of ill-spoken words. Politicians scream at each other on national television. A pastor’s moral ineptitude laces the news headlines. Christian pundits slam opposing political parties.
All the while, we ought to wonder: Is this the way of Christ? In an era of political vitriol, social media outrage, and societal division, how can we – as followers of Jesus – communicate His grace and truth without slinging proverbial mud (or having it slung upon us)? Can we carry forward a political or social ethics discourse amid an angry, divided culture? Tim Muehlhoff and Rick Langer warn us, “Failed discourse is the starting point of a failed society” (p. 4). As the people of God seeking the “shalom of the city” in which we are sent (see Jeremiah 29:7ff), the requisite well-being or failure of our community and nation should concern us.
While Christian service and social justice initiatives are worthy subjects, Muehlhoff and Langer’s book Winsome Persuasion targets our communication: How we as twenty-first century Christians may “use the gift of language to be faithful agents for truth and justice in a broken but still redeemable world” (xii). In this unique guide for Christian engagement in a post-Christian – even anti-Christian – culture, Muehlhoff and Langer frame their discussion around three necessary voices, i.e. approaches to communication of the Christian perspective: “prophetic, pastoral, and persuasive” (p. 6). All three of these verbal postures have a place in our discourse. But we must discern the correct voice to employ for the right time, need, and audience. How do we speak reasonably and respectfully to those who disagree or are even vociferously opposed to our worldview (cf. pg. 7; see also p. 53)? If you are frustrated or disheartened by the lack of constructive public conversation, lean into Winsome Persuasion.
We may radically disagree – on theological and philosophical levels – with the majority leaders or groups in our communities (cf. p. 7). Yet Muehlhoff and Langer offer us a detailed guide for operating in the content and relational levels of communication (mentioned throughout and exemplified on p. 183ff). Our content is the scriptural perspective and distinctly Christian vision we are seeking to convey. The authors advocate for thoughtfully utilizing statistics, stories, and common-ground understanding to ably communicate our vital content. Yet the relational level, they argue, must come first if we desire to winsomely persuade others to ‘hate the things [we] hate, love what [we] cherish, and feel sorrow over issues [we] find disheartening” (p. 128). Credibility, humility, empathy, and the patient work of building friendships within our communities are all part and parcel to the relational component of our communication.
Weaving in delightful narratives about authors and leaders like Harriet Beecher Stowe, Jean Vanier, and William Wilberforce, they model their persuasive approach by bolstering their argument with both statistics and stories (see p. 124-130). Bottomline? The way forward in our divided, angry argument culture is a genuinely loving, faithful verbal witness joined with faithful social action (p. 48-49). Winsome Persuasion helps guide us on this mission.
Strong Points
Muehlhoff and Langer are equal opportunity offenders as they both praise and critique political leaders and ideologues on both sides of the aisle (e.g. p. 1-5, 122, 136-37). They leave few stones unturned with hotly debated issues of our era. Their presentation is highly organized and well-structured so readers can easily assimilate the material in manageable portions (see p. 7-8, 14). As scholars in their own right, Winsome Persuasion shows their extraordinary research and contemporary understanding (p. 20-21).
They dwell not just in communication theory but enter the practical world of pastors, preachers, and authors with great evaluative questions for determining the best tone, content, and method for presenting the Christian vision of life in a post-Christian world (see p. 21, 80). Throughout the book, the authors engage in dialectic conversations to apply their principles in the burgeoning, unwieldly world of social media (e.g. p. 23-25, 57). Overall, readers will find this book entirely relevant to the growing communication crisis (e.g. p. 68-69, 120-22).
Excellent word pictures and illustrations are employed throughout (e.g. 189). Muehlhoff and Langer also demonstrate their ability to accurately exegete and apply the Word of God through providing thorough scriptural discussions on the subject (p. 29-31; 64-65). Winsome Persuasion provides both admonishment and encouragement to those of us who have blown it in our attempts to converse in the post-Christian milieu, as well as those who long for continued improvement.
Weaker Points
The book was written specifically during the 2016 US election cycle. While it remains quite relevant, the book is so timely it’s not timeless (e.g. p. 3-5, 97, 98, 110). References to the Trump / Clinton debates and other political personalities will rapidly run out of date. Both Rob Bell and Jonathan Merritt are no longer respected voices in the evangelical community due to their doctrinal position shifts in the past few years (cf. p. 35, 77). Even more so is Carl Lentz, the former pastor of Hillsong NYC, who the authors favorably quoted, now disgraced by his numerous moral failings and abuse of power (see p. 163). Evangelicals now have zero trust in Lentz, which proves the authors’ point about the necessity of credibility (p. 67-71)
This book is written to the world of religious academia and critically-thinking pastors, but is it accessible to the wider lay-evangelical audience? Probably not. Most would likely recoil with questions like: is it biblically faithful to call him (Bruce/Caitlyn Jenner) a “her” (p. 62-63)? Many will rightly counter with true compassion does not affirm sin (cf. p. 64) and wonder how to apply the rest of the book. Some may stumble over the numerous political statements, too. Should it be ignored by mainstream evangelicalism? Certainly not. But pastors should be careful who they recommend it to so as to avoid reprisal.
When offering a sad string of statistics on what national percentages responded favorably to: “Is religion a force for good?” The authors seemingly flipped the rendering of the percentage to bolster their point: “…France 24%, Great Britain 29%, Sweden 19% . . . the United States, 35% of those surveyed voted no to the claim that religion is a force for good” (p. 76). Instead of using statistical sleight-of-hand, the authors simply should have continued with the United States at 65% responding favorably. When speaking to the need for Christian communicators to “be aware that [their] tweets could erode [their] ethos,” they punted for Trump’s use of Twitter rather than opting for a more relevant example of an evangelical Christian’s failed attempt at Twitter (p. 77). Overall, the book was carefully edited, but two misspelled words should be corrected in future printings (see p. 23, 67).
Lastly, the role of the Holy Spirit in our communication of the truth and the subsequent work of conviction or transformation in the heart of the listener is not developed in this book. Natural communication theories only take us so far. Ultimately, the supernatural power of the Spirit is what must guide our speech and bring fruit in the lives of those who receive our words.
Reflection and Interaction
While many lessons could be gleaned from this practical book, I will summarize three application points: (1) Church as Community Center, (2) Effective Preaching, and (3) Social Media Engagement.
Church as Community Center
The authors argue for a vision of the church as a “colony of heaven embodying God’s vision and values…” (p. 51). While it might be easy to retaliate with an us versus them perspective, we are admonished to “work with, not against” (149). Is the life of the local church an invitation for everyone to experience men, women, and children operating in the love, life, and fruit of the Spirit? In my own place of ministry, we are in the process of remodeling a building donated to us as a center for the entire community – a bridge into an experience of both the mercy of Jesus (tangible-physical needs met, i.e. food, clothing, counseling, support, job-coaching, TESOL, etc.) and the message of Jesus (spiritual-eternal needs met through receiving the gospel). Muehlhoff and Langer remind us that common ground values exists across the community majority as we meet physical needs. All wish to participate in this social good. This action builds the “relational level” of our communication as connections, friendships, and loose partnerships are formed.
In this, we demonstrate genuine compassion and empathy (p. 61-63). Additionally, this book bolsters our vision of building our Thrive Center also as a public square (p. 21-22, 34, 134-135) as the “Welcome” to the entire community for dialoguing in the style of the age-old British coffee shops (p. 38). We may provide faithful verbal witness in an environment that also offers faithful social action. May we continue to think of the church not as an entity outside of the community, but at the very epicenter.
Effective Preaching
For all pastor-preachers, Winsome Persuasion provides much food for thought and praxis. The authors give thought-penetrating developmental questions that aid in crafting persuasive sermons (p. 92-94). But pointing further to the heart, they remind us, “We must remember the humanity and complexity of those who oppose us” (p. 94). Our preaching must not merely be throwing red meat to the faithful for a hearty “Amen!” nor a loud rhetorical cannonball shot over the bow of the opposing ship. The truth of Jesus brings transformation, but it must also be spoken in love (Eph. 4:15) and carried along by the indwelling and outflowing fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23).
Muehlhoff and Langer point out the need for thoughtful, well-timed humor, which is often self-deprecating (p. 110-111). As stated above, accurate statistics and well-crafted story-telling will also serve our purpose (p. 113). Ultimately, we must not lose sight of the ground of effective preaching: “motivating people to ‘hate the things [God] hates, love what [God] cherishes, and feel sorrow over issues [God] finds disheartening [or grieving]” (128).
Social Media Engagement
Rather than retreating from the public square, we should view the present crisis as an opportunity: “public rhetoric seems hollow and self-serving . . . this is a ripe time for forming counterpublics that listen well, speak the truth, and live out what they profess” (p. xiii). Muehlhoff and Langer offer the following essential principles for communicating in a post-Christian context: “cultivating ethos, reading the rhetorical situation, adjusting to constraints, speaking in humility, crafting a third story, [and] forming loose connections with outsiders…” (p. 190). But how do we apply this to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Tik Tok? Social media is, unarguably, a present iteration of the public square. Yet the recent censoring, banning, fact-checking, canceling, and silencing of participants in the Facebook vs. Parler vs. Twitter debacle proved that all these platforms fail at perfectly providing healthy environs for dialogue (p. 21-23, 116-117, 256-257). As followers of Jesus, can we speak from a different and more effective angle? Winsome Persuasion proves we can.
First, we must exercise restraint (p. 33). If only our society would exercise more self-control and compassion on social media! Yet the fault-lines of the culture often invade and even pervade the church. The authors quote Daniel Taylor, “The sad truth is that, in our battle with a hostile culture, we have adopted the culture’s tactics. Fight ugliness with ugliness, distortion with distortion, sarcasm with sarcasm.’ . . . [but] Paul tells us to feed and give drink to the very people that would cause us harm (Rom 12:20)” (p. 65).
Second, we must speak in a way that the public understands and finds credible (p. 20) Are we seeking to understand or merely caricature their talking points (p. 56-57)? Are we providing honest, well-researched argumentation? Are we considering how to frame our vision of life in story form?
Third, we must cultivate relational rapport through integrity and humility. Carefully consider the soul-searching questions provided by Elizabeth Krumei-Mancuso.[1] They will not care what we believe or what we know until they know how much we care for them. They will be deaf to our moral pleas if our integrity is betrayed by our own immorality. Therefore, may we seek to influence our post-Christian world toward the redeeming message of Jesus through a winsome persuasion that is guided by God’s truth and formed by a humility, integrity, and love sourced in the Holy Spirit.
FOOTNOTES
[1] The authors provided these excellent “questions to help discern one’s personal humility: Even when you feel strongly about something, are you still aware you could be wrong? Do you trust that truth has nothing to fear from investigation? Do you reserve the right to change your mind? Or do you feel weak or ashamed to change a strongly held opinion? Do you feel like you need to hide past errors in your thinking? Do you approach others with the idea that you might have something to learn from them?” (p. 73; Elizabeth Krumei-Mancuso “Are You Intellectually Humble? 13 Tough Questions, The Table, September 17, 2014, http://cct.biola.edu/2014/sep/17/cultivating-humility-follow-we-know-part). I might also add, “Do you allow for others to change their opinions?”
