“The resurrection is a way of speaking about what God did to Jesus and it also provides a window into what God intends for humanity. Jesus’ resurrection is far more than proof of life after death or a metaphor for the continuing cause of God; it tells us something about God. The resurrection attests the power of God’s goodness and the goodness of God’s power. Resurrection means that the curse of creation and the nexus of sin and death have been broken and will be swept aside. The vindication of the Messiah is also the vindication of those whom he represents. The resurrection opens up an alternative way of being human wholly different from the crass materialism of secularism. Finally, resurrection means that God’s new creation is launched upon a surprised and unsuspecting world where new hopes are buoyed among oceans of terror and the stories of the Jesus-people are billboards in the global metropolis of things soon to come.“

- Michael Bird & James Crossley, How did Christitanity begin?, pg. 50

(Photographic art by Dean Ayres, piece entitled, “Kensington Resurrection“)

Summary: Chapter 05

The title of this chapter is “The Word of the Cross.” In this chapter Gorman attempts to consider the full breadth of the meaning of the cross in Paul, specifically exploring how Paul’s expounding of the cross corresponded to the life of the believing community. Gorman points out that Paul only uses the verb crucify twice, instead he likes to mention the death of Christ. In order canvass the material Gorman offers three categories that Paul’s statements about Christ death fit into: texts that have Christ as the subject/actor/protagonist; texts that have God the Father as the subject/actor/protagonist; and the few texts that list them both as the subject/actor/protagonist. In his book Gorman quotes these texts in full taking up several pages. I won’t re-quote them here. 

What the great number of texts show is that there are narrative patterns to the cross in Paul;

“Even a cursory reading of these texts reveals that for Paul the death of Christ on the cross is multidimensional, indeed polyvalent. Various interpretations of that death appear, constituting a “dazzling array of colors in the mural of Paul’s theology of the cross,”…” (pg. 82)

What are these narrative patterns in Paul’s theology of the cross? There at least 13 narative patterns: Obedience/Righteousness/Faith(fulness); Love; Grace; Sacrifice; Altruism/Substitution; Self-giving/giving; Voluntary self-humbling/abasement; Culmination of a story that includes “incarnation” and suffering; Paradoxical power and wisdom; Interchange; Apocalyptic victory and liberation for new life and transformation; Reconciliation and justification; Prelude to resurrection/exaltation. The multidimensional reality of the cross for Paul as demonstrated in the different narrative forms it can take up in his writing often coalesces for him in particular passages such as: Rom. 3.21-26, 6.1-11, 8f; 2 Corinth. 5.14-21; Gal. 2.15-21; and Phil. 2.6-11. 

The last passage, Phil. 2.6-11, is what Gorman calls Paul’s master story and I think he’s aptly named it in light of how multidimensional the cross is in Paul’s thought. So many of the narrative forms of the cross that we mentioned above are present in this pre-Pauline hymn that’s its hard not to be reminded of just how central the cross was to Paul’s spiritual theology. Gorman, summarizing this section of Paul’s Master Story, says; 

“For Paul, to be in Christ is to be a living exegesis of this narrative of Christ [Master story of Christ], a new performance of  the original drama of exaltation following humiliation, of humiliation as the voluntary renunciation of rights and selfish gain in order to serve and obey.” (pg. 92)

We’ve noted above that there are 13 narrative patterns of the cross in Paul, from these Gorman has comprised four fundamental patterns of the cross in Paul;

1. The first, taken from the first cross-narrative pattern #1, is cruciformity as faithful obedience, or cruciform faith.
2. The second, synthesizing the next several patterns #2-8, is cruciformity as voluntary self-emptying and self-giving regard for others, or cruciform love.
3. The third, corresponding to patterns #9-12, is cruciformity as – paradoxically – life-giving suffering and transformative potency in weakness, or cruciform power.
4. The fourth, found in the last narrative pattern #13, the pattern of reversal, is cruciformity as requisite prelude to resurrection and exaltation, or cruciform hope.

Gorman closes the chapter summarizing the story of God in the story of Christ cross. You’ll have to purchase the book to find out how he does this: click here. 

Afterthoughts:

So much was surveyed in this chapter its hard to list the afterthoughts its stirred within me. One thing Gorman’s handling did for me was refresh me. Instead of burying himself in the endless debates over atonement he surveyed the cross of Christ as it related to the story Paul himself lived from – deeply refreshing. 

Some questions I’m living with after reading the chapter;

• Is the story Paul lived from, the story of the cross, the master narrative in my life? 
• In my preaching, and in my reading of scripture have I magnified the polyvalent/multi-dimensional nature of the cross or have I flattened it due to a prior agenda of staking a claim in polemical debates within the church today?
• How can I help people see just how majestic the mosaic portrait Christ’s cross casts upon our spirituality is? 
• Does this picture of Christ cross render suspect any division between word and deed in a believers life? Yes.

“Evangelistic work places the Church in a situation in which the stark contrast between Christ and no-Christ is constantly being faced. In such a situation other matters necessarily fall into second place. The reality of what Christians have in common is seen to be of an importance far outweighing everything that divides Christians, one from another. That profoundly important fact, which most Christians accept in theory, in practice drops out of sight when the missionary task drops out of sight.” Lesslie Newbigin, The Household of God: Lectures on the nature of the Church

(Photographic art by Limonada, piece entitled, “Shoes on a line“)

(HT: Dan at City Church Ft. Lauderdale)

See the original post at Public Christianity in a single Vimeo video here, or below;

As the music world farewells the king of pop Michael Jackson, academia mourns the loss of a scholar of truly biblical proportions. Martin Hengel was Professor of New Testament and Early Judaism at Germany’s prestigious University of Tübingen from 1972 until (as Professor Emeritus) his death last Thursday (July 2). The author of dozens of important monographs and literally hundreds of technical articles, Professor Hengel’s influence will be long-lasting. John Dickson had the enormous privilege of conducting what was perhaps Hengel’s last full-scale television interview (for a 2008 historical documentary). The uncut interview is made available here in his honour.

Forgive the time lag. Hopefully someone will reload it latter without the lag.

I interned at New Life Dresher while completing my MDiv at Westminster Theological Seminary. Jerry, Jim, and Alex were friends of ours up there. These guys are both great artists Jim has played at the World Cafe in Phily and Alex has a great art studio with many more pieces. I have one of his pieces that he gave me that I kept in my office in my last church calling, and now carry with me. I think they’ve done an amazing job leading the body in worship. I miss NLD!

(HT: Jerry Fourroux)

Don’t forget to check out his new album coming out soon, “Stockholm Syndrome.” Click below for a quick trailer.

For a limited time (until 7/31/09) you can get a free review copy of this study by signing up at their webpage for here. What is the Gospel-Centered Life study all about and who is it designed for?

The Gospel-Centered Life is a nine lesson small group study intended to help participants understand how the gospel shapes every aspect of life. Each lesson is self-contained, featuring clear teaching from scripture, and requires no extra work outside of the group setting.

Designed for:

•   Pastors and leaders who want to spur Gospel renewal in their churches and ministries.
•  Church-planters who want to form Gospel DNA in the churches they start.
•  Students and campus ministers who are looking to live out the Gospel on campus.
•  Christians who want to be more deeply formed around the Gospel.
•  Small group leaders who are looking for content that “works” with diverse groups of people.
•  Missionaries who are looking for simple material to disciple new Christians.