by Bret Capranica | Aug 23, 2010 | Humor, Pauline Theology
Ah yes, proof that Rap is an art and that some (like me) are better to listen rather than give it a shot. However, Dr. Gagnon does more than I could in trying to catch the book of Romans in a...
by Bret Capranica | Mar 9, 2009 | Biblical Studies, Eschatology, Hermeneutics, Pauline Theology
Romans 15:7 ¶ Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God. 8 For I say that Christ has become a servant to the circumcision on behalf of the truth of God to confirm the promises given to the fathers, 9 and for the Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy; as it is written, “THEREFORE I WILL GIVE PRAISE TO YOU AMONG THE GENTILES, AND I WILL SING TO YOUR NAME.” 10 Again he says, “REJOICE, O GENTILES, WITH HIS PEOPLE.” 11 And again, “PRAISE THE LORD ALL YOU GENTILES, AND LET ALL THE PEOPLES PRAISE HIM.” 12 Again Isaiah says, “THERE SHALL COME THE ROOT OF JESSE, AND HE WHO ARISES TO RULE OVER THE GENTILES, IN HIM SHALL THE GENTILES HOPE.” 13 ¶ Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Last Sunday I preached on this passage. The following is simply a note for further on an issue in the text I did not address in my sermon. Does this passage teach that the church is the new Israel? Does this passage indicate that the church fulfills prophecies made specifically to the nation of Israel? Jason Robertson, recently wrote of this passage: “In Romans 15:8-12, Paul notes that the conversion of the Gentiles is a ‘confirming of the promises to the fathers.’ And at least one of the verses brought forth as proof speaks of Christ’s Messianic kingdom rule (Rom. 15:12).” Contrary to my good friend, I think...
by Bret Capranica | Dec 13, 2006 | Biblical Studies, Pauline Theology
From Schreiner on Paul’s theology of righteousness: Regarding Righteousness “. . . justification should not be accepted as the center of Pauline theology . . . . The foundation of his theology is the glory of God in the work of Christ” (193) “This righteous status with God is no fiction but a reality. Further, because believers are right in God’s sight, God grants them his Spirit and power to live a new life. Hence, the forensic gift of righteousness becomes the basis (and is the only basis) on which believers receive God’s powerful Spirit that transforms their lives” (194). “In the death of Jesus Christ, therefore, the saving righteousness and the judging righteousness of God meet. God vindicates his judging holiness since God in Christ absorbs his wrath at his crucifixion (203). Schreiner demonstrates a rare humility in scholarship today when he acknowledges changing his position regarding the righteousness of God. He once saw it not as forensic, but reformative. He has changed his position and acknowledges those who helped him in the process. (205-206). “Paul is arguing that the forensic work of Christ is the basis of God’s transforming work, but it does not follow from this that the forensic and transforming work are the same thing. What this verse does indicate is that Christ’s forensic work is not separated from a changed life but is the basis for such a change” (207). “To sum up, righteousness is an end-time gift (Gal 5:5), a verdict from the day of judgment, which has now been pronounced in the lives of believers on the basis of the death and...
by Bret Capranica | Dec 10, 2006 | Biblical Studies, Pauline Theology
From Schreiner: “Paul must explain in his gospel how Jesus Christ has accomplished redemption. Human beings are freed to honor and praise God because Jesus in his person and work has vindicated God’s honor. He has succeeded where Adam and Israel failed. He is the promised seed of Abraham and David, the Lord of heaven and earth, and he even shares in the divine nature. He fulfills the promises of the new covenant, and through him the promise made to Abraham that all nations would be blessed is inaugurated” (152). “The promises of salvation made to Israel were not yet fulfilled, and the nation continued to live under Roman control because of its sin. The pattern of sin that permeated Israel’s history demonstrated that the glorious promises of deliverance and salvation were not yet a reality. The history of Israel shows that for God’s promises to be fulfilled, a new humanity is necessary; and for a new humanity, we need a new Adam. Paul proclaims that Jesus the Messiah is the new Adam” (152). Schreiner notes that Israel had not seen the fulfillment of the OT prophecies regarding their ultimate salvation (159). He rightly sees that the promise to Israel in the Abrahamic Covenant is limited to the area of Palestine, but the whole of the Abrahamic promises makes Abraham the heir of the world (160), involving descendants that are broader than Israel as a nation (but not detrimental to the literal fulfillment of those promises to Israel either). “The lordship of Jesus cannot be confined to an initial decision where one submits to his lordship. Paul often appeals...
by Bret Capranica | Dec 9, 2006 | Biblical Studies, Pauline Theology
While I’ve fallen behind in posting on my reading from Tom Schreiner’s book, Paul, Apostle of God’s Glory in Christ, I’ve not really been behind in reading it. I’ll try to catch my posts up: Sin is a Power: Sin is . . . a tyrannical power that exercises its dominion over those in Adam. It enters the world through Adam’s sin and exercises its sway over all people (Rom 5:12-19). Sin manifests its reign in the domonion of death (Rom 5:21). Apart from Christ people are ‘slaves’ to sin (Rom 6:6), whereas believers have been freed from the sin that enslaved them and are now enslaved to righteousness (Rom 6:16-18, 20, 22). The image of slaver is not overstated since unbelievers cannot liberate themselves from sin’s grip. Sin exercises control over them so that they are in bondage to it (127-128). Under the rule of the pedagogue (Gal 3:24). The law as our tutor: Paul uses the illustration of the pedagogue for its temporal significance. That is, he does not appeal to the pedagogues because they functioned as teachers or curbed unsuitable behavior. He introduces the pedagogue for one reason only: pedagogues had charge over people during their minority years. Pedagogues are assigned to children, and when one becomes an adult a pedagogue is unnecessary. Thus, Paul uses the pedagogue as a metaphor for the law to make the point that the law was in force for only a certain period of salvation history. . . . Paul uses the illustration to describe the era in salvation history before the coming of Christ, when believers did not yet...
by Bret Capranica | Nov 3, 2006 | Biblical Studies, Pauline Theology
From Schreiner on The Violation of God’s Law “. . . we fail to grasp the depth of Pauline theology if we restrict the definition of sin to a violation of what God commands. Instead of viewing sin as a rejection of god personally, we may understand it primarily in terms of failing to live up to a standard. Sin certainly involves the failure to heed God’s commands. What must be emphasized, however, is that sin is first and foremost a rejection of the supremacy of God and his lordship over our lives” (103). “Sin does not primarily consist in violating God’s commands; it involves the repudiation and rejection of a person. . . . What Paul stresses . . . is that the horizontal dimension of sin exists because of the vertical rejection of God” (106). “. . . the promises of the Old Testament regarding Israel had not yet become a reality, and the Old Testament teaches that such promises will be fulfilled when the Spirit comes . . . and softens people’s hearts so that they are enabled to keep the Torah. . . . The Jews are judged because of their failure to obey the Torah” (109-110). Schreiner provides a detailed view of how the phrase “works of law” should be defined. He reviews that perpetuated by Rudolf Bultman, that the phrase refers to a legalistic attitude, obeying the law is a means to earning favor with God. He then reviews James Dunn’s view and the New Perspective on Paul, that “works of the law” refers to Jews trying to place nationalistic distinctions between Jews...
