whether Paul thought Jesus was God himself. Referring to the historical Jesus and (just like the writer of the Fourth Gospel did) seeing his exemplary life as worthy of imitation, the historical could by applied to the present. I think it’s better to let the biblical writers speak for themselves. 4. Chris Tilling Review essay of Paul and the Faithfulness of God 55 letters (xviii, 55-56, 1359), but in the followi ng few points, I will suggest that he has not Where do you find any exegetical evidence in Hebrews that Philo had any influence on the author or the content of the letter? LOGOS was always used by the writer of the 4th Gospel simply to mean a “spoken saying or message”. "Paul and the Faithfulness of God" is a brilliant book, that will absolutely give you insights on Paul, and perhaps insights on God and God's work in the church, that you have never had before. Seeing Jesus meant seeing his Father. Wright. Considering that the book itself is about 1,600 pages, Gathercole has done a remarkable job of distilling Wright’s main ideas in relatively little space. Hi Rivers. ). Even though we agree as biblical unitarians, I don’t think the “image” or “shiliach” argumentation is very strong. Thus, when the writer of the 4th Gospel speaks of “glory” related to Jesus Christ, I think he’s alluding to the fact that Jesus had the power of holy spirit (John 1:30-31) which enabled him to do miraculous signs and works (John 2:11; John 11:40) in anticipation of his glorification after the resurrection (John 7:39; John 1:14; John 17:24). It is true that the account of Paul’s conversion involved his meeting Jesus while in ecstasy. I understand what you’re getting at. Paul and the Faithfulness of God (PFG) encompasses a massive two-volume study of Paul, itself part of Wright's larger (now) five volume project on Christian Origins. Those endorsing it on back cover are Richard Bauckham, Joel B. Life-giving Spirit is what the Second Adam became. In Paul’s view, did Christians—Jews and gentiles alike—join Israel, replace Israel, or form a second elect beside Israel? With these things in mind, I think you are trying to force things that were said about Jesus Christ in the post-resurrection context back into the time of Jesus’ public ministry. Would the apostle recognize it? There is no vagueness re. I don’t see the connection you are trying to make. Book Review – NT Wright, Paul and the Faithfulness of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God) 2015-08-05 2017-11-10 Josh 1 Comment Share on facebook Tweet on twitter According to this narrative, says Wright, Paul invites first-century Jews and gentiles to understand themselves as the single family promised to Abraham, whose identity is properly understood as “Israel restored.”. As such, people encountered God when they encountered the historical man. Paul also indicated that Jesus had a “glorified body” after he ascended into heaven (Philippians 3:21). Indeed, at key moments Paul seems to read Israel’s scripture in the direction of inclusion of the whole creation under divine mercy, not exclusively through Israel, but in a universal gesture both including and transcending covenant identity. – Part 1, podcast 304 – The Absolute Basics of the Christian Faith. Because you’re too busy to read the book, here is Dr. John M.G. He thinks if you just come out and say that Jesus is God, this is most likely to be misunderstood as it would have been in Paul’s time. For that reason we have ancient traditions of Moses’ face glowing, the high-priest re-enacting creation in temple ceremony, Adam be considered as the divine glory-bearer and rulers being called “gods” (Ps. According to acclaimed New Testament scholar Wright (The Resurrection of the Son of God), most works on Paul focus on his ideas of salvation and justification as the centerpiece of Pauline theology. Considering that the book itself is about 1,600 pages, Gathercole has done a remarkable job of distilling Wright’s main ideas in relatively little space. 1. I’ve listened to others, like the one on Photinus of Ancyra probably 12 - 15 times). Like many in my profession, NT Wright is one of my favorite writers. If Adam was the origin of natural life, wouldn’t Jesus be the “second Adam” in the sense that he is the one who gives “life from the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:43-45; Romans 11:15)? I think you are also overlooking that the “glory” of Jesus Christ was ultimately related to his resurrection appearance (Philippians 3:21; Colossians 1:15) and the immortality (Romans 1:23; 2 Corinthians 4:4) that he received from God (Acts 2:29-36; Acts 13:33-34). Article Paul and the Faithfulness of God a Review Essay (Part 1) was published on 01 Mar 2015 in the journal ANVIL (Volume 31, Issue 1). – See more at: http://www.reformation21.org/shelf-life/paul-in-fresh-perspective.php#sthash.cSvkNNGO.dpuf. In Philippians 2:6, why would the Present Active Participle (“existing” in the form of God) need to be taken as a past tense? Wright’s aim, simply put, is to show how Paul’s story of the crucified and risen Messiah is at the same time the story of Israel rescued from extended exile. 4, Christian Origins and the Question of God, by N. T. Wright.With this section, the chapters get even longer so I am going to divide each chapter discussion into two or three posts, but what you are getting here is still a very brief summary of this very important book (Read it! "Only once in every other generation or so does a project approaching the size, scope, and significance of Paul and the Faithfulness of God appear. I’m not big on taking the “world view” approach to interpreting scripture (as has been the trend in biblical scholarship during the past generation). In this massive study (to my knowledge, the largest single-author work on Paul in print, perhaps the largest ever published), we surely have Wright’s magnum opus on the apostle. Rivers, I hear you. Also refer Heb. Is anyone out there aware of any good secondary literature on Wright’s theology, on his views on Jesus and God? Its neglect of the “single-flow narrative” is in his view at best ahistorical—a term frequently connected in the book to the Enlightenment and to American imperialism—and at worst “anti-Jewish,” a charge Wright makes explicit in the final chapter. The fourth Gospel in particular accomplishes this legitimation theme by retrospectively applying Jesus’ post-resurrection vindication to his historical existence. From a forensic and logical standpoint, it’s more reasonable to allow a writer to speak for himself than to impose uncorroborated external influences. Acts 25:8, 11-12; Acts 28:19). While he claims that Paul is both apocalyptic and covenantal—a claim I acknowledge in my review—his negative characterizations of others’ “apocalyptic” readings (scare quotes his) of Paul either neglect (exegetically) or dismiss (rhetorically) strands of Paul’s apocalyptic vocabulary that fit less neatly within Wright’s own particular reading of covenant. And what they see is someone who successfully achieved being God in the reflective/representative/imitative sense. podcast 118 - The Son of God 2 - Mr. Danny Andre Dixon's "Arian" view of Jesus, what "pants" teaches us about "elohim" ("God"), podcast 53 - John Locke's The Reasonableness of Christianity, Part 2, The Incarnation of God's Logos (John 1:1-18), How Trinity theories conflict with the New Testament, podcast 119 – The Son of God 3 – Dr. Dustin Smith's "Socinian" view of Jesus, podcast 75 – Justin Martyr’s Dialogue with Trypho – Part 2, http://www.reformation21.org/shelf-life/paul-in-fresh-perspective.php, http://www.reformation21.org/shelf-life/paul-in-fresh-perspective.php#sthash.cSvkNNGO.dpuf, A letter from the Lord Jesus: About God and Me (Revised), UCA podcast – working at the Colson Center, podcast 313 – Weighing Channing Unitarianism, podcast 312 – Channing’s “Likeness to God”, podcast 311 – Channing’s “The Evidences of Revealed Religion”. Or a pdf: Paul and the Faithfulness of God, Reviewed by Shawn Wilhite * * … If what Jesus achieved is limited to his resurrected state only, then we as humans now are just as disadvantaged in our reflecting God as we would be, had Jesus been God-in-the-flesh. I have gone through the first five chapters of Paul: In Fresh Perspective, have you seen it? I’ve been listening now about 3 years consistently, and am always looking forward to the next episode. It can only be deduced from Paul himself – or from an imposition of Wright’s schema onto Paul. 1) and God’s deliverance of all from futility (Rom. What is at stake and for whom? What is your main contribution to Pauline studies in this book? Second Temple Jews, N. T. Wright avers, thought of themselves as in continuing exile, and they awaited God’s return to Zion. My question to you is, how do you distinguish between the resurrected Jesus as reflector of God’s glory on the one hand and the resurrected Jesus whose resurrection is a vindication of the historical figure about whom glorious things can be said retrospectively? “The Trinity” – Whatever it is, smart guys believe it. One of my central arguments is that Paul is both an apocalyptic and a covenant theologian, and that these two define and support one another, as they do in ancient Jewish “apocalypses.” I should be sorry if the false antithesis between these two were perpetuated (perhaps, despite my best efforts, by a misunderstanding of covenant as somehow restrictive); sorrier still if anyone supposed that I was backing one against the other. Rabbinical traditions, targumic references, and historical echoes are all presupposed at various places in the Gospel. Where do you see the “second Adam” language being applicable to Jesus Christ before the resurrection? 3. Just as seeing the angelic messenger in 4 Ezra meant seeing God, or Moses ruling meant God ruling (Ex. Wright’s book is a dense, well-documented work that needs more attention than it’s getting. No one can deny the industry behind this endeavor. Wright’s magnum opus, Paul and the Faithfulness of God. That’s my understanding of it. Read honest and unbiased product reviews from our users. The Philippian hymn alludes to it, as well as the whole Fourth Gospel. These people stood for Someone else, namely Yahweh. Likewise, it is through the Spirit that God dwells with believers, and the Spirit causes even idolatrous pagans to believe this “strange” gospel of the one God revealed in a crucified Jew. Last summer I read N.T. So no, the present tense refers to point of reference the subject of the sentence is referring to, not in reference to the author of the sentence. Dr. Adam Johnson reviews N. T. Wright's book, "Paul and the Faithfulness of God" and bemoans that it is just not long enough. Jesus would be the ancestor of a new human creation, yes. The exact same pattern is seen with Jesus. He is indeed the glory-of-our-God-and-Saviour (Tit. Paul and the Faithfulness of God is volume 4 in the Christian Origins and the Question of God series. And is Paul whispering in the background, “But I can”? Book review: Paul and the Faithfulness of God , written by N.T. Biblical texts, Church history, and Christian philosophy relevant to Christian theology, are the general areas of discussion. Search for … Consequently, because of his faithfulness we can trust Paul's writings as coming from the Lord. So as to maintain God’s transcendence, memra (logos) was used in circumlocution, while being fully aware that the reference was to God, the real Origin of the glory memra/logos is reflecting. , by N. T. Wright. Hi John B, I don’t agree. To wit, Peter’s confession in the Gospel of Matthew: “You are the Christ, the son of the living God.” “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you.” Could that mean that Peter’s Jewish heritage would not sustain that claim? Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Paul and the Faithfulness of God: Two Book Set (Christian Origins and the Question of God 4) at Amazon.com. Dale is an expert on church history and it is truly fascinating listening to things that you were never taught in church! Wright’s single-flow story is nothing if not comprehensive. I can safely say that it was the longest book I have ever read, cover to cover, by far: a whopping 1,519 pages of text. BOOK REVIEWS 387 n. t. wright, Paul and the Faithfulness of God (2 vols. The doctrine of justification really occurs only in Romans and Galatians. I see your point about the historical usage of the Present Participles in Acts 2:30 and Galatians 1:14. Pp. The writer of Hebrews explicitly said that he received his information from “the Lord” and the apostles (Hebrews 2:3-4). Article Paul and the Faithfulness of God a Review Essay (Part 1) was published on 01 Mar 2015 in the journal ANVIL (Volume 31, Issue 1). I don’t understand why you would think Philippians has anything to do with any earthly glory when Paul’s point is that Jesus had no glory during his public ministry (Philippians 2:7-8) but received it after he died and was exalted (Philippians 2:9-11). If the clear expressions in Hebrews are not taken from Philo, then even vaguer allusions to the OT would disappear. Pp. And the breadth of early 1:18). It has recently been posted at Durham Research Online and is due to be published in the Scottish Journal of Theology. 9). Wright, Paul and the Faithfulness of God: Two Book Set