Scattered Thoughts on Theology and Ministry…
Paul’s New Perspective is Paul’s old perspective. That’s the Garwood Anderson’s thesis in Paul’s New Perspective. In this long (+400 page) but very readable book Anderson argues against those advocates of The New Perspective on Paul and those of the Traditional Protestant Perspective (sometimes called the Lutheran view) showing that neither camp really gets PaulContinue reading “Paul’s New Perspective”
The atonement is the subject of intense interest among not only theologians, but Christians in general. This may be due to the fact that for most of Christianity atonement stands at the center. In some stands of Christianity, atonement itself is the gospel. However some people want to argue that the atonement is not onlyContinue reading “Sacrifice and Atonement”
The argument of Paul’s Theology of Preaching can be broken up into two steps: 1)Begin by showing the distinctives of Greco-Roman rhetoric. 2)Show How Paul’s first four chapters in 1 Corinthians is meant to address preaching done in view of Greco-Roman Rhetoric. The fundamental assumption behind Greco-Roman Rhetoric is that the audience + the speaker’sContinue reading “Paul’s Theology of Preaching”
Creation care or environmentalism is a hot topic among evangelical Christians (the fact that it is saddens me, honestly, whether we should care for God’s creation or not should not even be a question). Nevertheless, many Christians tend to err on one side or another: either they overemphasize the care of creation over and aboveContinue reading “How Green Was Paul?”
To see the practical implications Paul’s apocalyptic gospel in Galatians it is helpful to begin by looking at chapter 1 verse 6 which says that the Galatians are abandoning the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel. We should note that verse 1:3 begins with the “grace” that the Father and ChristContinue reading “Getting Practical with Paul’s Apocalyptic Gospel”
When Paul first came to the churches in Galatia the gospel he preached was received with much enthusiasm. However, after Paul left Galatia other itinerant missionaries arrived and began to advocate a different message. Although it is obvious that this message was not in line with Paul’s message, the nature of this message as wellContinue reading “Who are Paul’s Opponents in Galatians?”
The answer to the question of “what is Paul’s gospel?” must have some continuity with Jesus’ proclamation of the gospel. Although some will claim that there is not much, if any, continuity between Paul and Jesus and their messages I believe that there is. The continuity between their message is found at the very beginningContinue reading “What is Paul’s Gospel? (Paul’s Apocalyptic Gospel)”
A short while ago I began to address the question whether Paul was called or converted. It’s a question that has preoccupied a lot of scholars – especially in our post-holocaust world. It seems to many (including E.P. Sanders) that if you say that Paul converted away from Judaism and towards Christianity you are beingContinue reading “Called or Converted? (Pt. 2)”
Apocalyptic or redemptive-historical? That is the main question most people are debating nowadays when it comes to the shape of Paul’s theology. Certain places – like Galatians (especially the opening chapter) have a sort of apocalyptic feel. But other places like Romans – certainly has a redemptive-historical feel. So what is the primary motif undergirdingContinue reading “The Shape of Paul’s Theology”
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. – Paul in his Letter to the Galatians At Soma (the college group I lead) we are currently in a series on Relationships – Where’s Your Heart. It’sContinue reading “Two Concepts of Freedom in Galatians”
CWoznicki Think Out Loud 