Perspectives on the Spirit

The representations or depictions of the Spirit (of God) are interesting enough that we have a wide range of ideas, pictures and perceptions in regard to his role and function, among various writers. For example, in both the Septuagint (LXX) and Diaspora Judaism, the Spirit of God is depicted as the source of prophetic inspiration. One distinction needs to be made in that respect, while the Spirit is regarded as the source of prophetic imagination and inspiration in Diaspora Judaism, nonetheless, the Spirit’s role as the source of miraculous power was not a common view among many Jews living in the Diaspora. In Josephus, the Spirit has a different function; more exclusively per se. Josephus associates the Spirit with esoteric wisdom and inspired speech. Philo links the Spirit of God with prophetic inspiration and conceives the Spirit as the rational aspect of the soul. Interestingly, these bodies of literature do not associate the Spirit with the resurrection of the dead as normally portrayed in Pauline literature; and with the performance of miracles as recurrently observed in the Gospels, particularly in Luke-Acts narratives.

In the Sirachaic literature, wisdom is associated with the Spirit. As God’s Spirit, she has a salvific purpose in redemptive history. We see this demonstration particularly in Luke-Acts, Gospel of John, and in Paul where the Spirit impressively and effectively raised Jesus from the dead and continues to reveal people significantly to Jesus as Messiah in order to exercise faith in him. Of course, the Spirit was the source of prophetic inspiration to the prophets and the main architect of creation.

On the other hand, modern scholarship has classified the role and function of the Spirit in the development of early Christian Pneumatology in three distinct categories respectively: Discontinuity, Continuity, and Mediating Position. This is particularly espoused in the works of Robert P. Menzies, (for example, “Empowered for Witness: The Spirit in Luke-Acts”). The notion of “discontinuity” stresses the difference of the Pneumatological conception between Paul and the early Christians (or the Primitive church). This view is taken by Gunkel. According to the latter, Paul maintained a soteriological function of the Spirit (soteriological pneumatology), whereas, the early Christians held to a charismatic pneumatology. Further, some scholars contend that the Synoptic writers correspondingly held to the pneumatological perspective of the Primitive Church. Hence Schweitzer could argue that in Matthew, Mark, and respectively in Luke, the Spirit is presented as a supplementary gift to believers in Jesus with no salvific aim. In other words, in the Synoptic Gospels, the Spirit is not necessary for (one’s) salvation but is given as an auxiliary support. Advocates of the second view of the Spirit, (“Continuity”) suggest that there is not a heightened distinction in New Testament pneumatology. That is, each presentation of the Spirit is comparatively regular among NT writers. Buschsel, however, observes that the Spirit endows upon all believers the notion of “sonship” to the family of God. For Dunn, ( see, “Baptism in the Holy Spirit: A Re-Examination of the New Testament Teaching on the Gift of the Spirit in Relation to Pentecostalism Today”), the Spirit is the means by which believers enter into the new age. He does not see the Spirit primarily as “an anointing” for power. Perhaps, Dunn would agree that the Spirit is the source of anointing power for believers who have already entered the new age?

The members of the community at Dead Sea ( see 1QS 3-4) conceived the Spirit as the source for obtaining divine wisdom (Menzies, “Empowered for Witness: The Spirit in Luke-Acts”). The Spirit is the one who effects one’s relationship with God and one’s understanding of him. On the other hand, the Rabbis interpreted the Spirit eschatologically based on their reading of Joel 3:1-2 and Ezekiel 36:26. This eschatological outpouring of the Spirit is equated with the restoration of the Spirit of Prophecy (Menzies, 95). The Rabbis understood Ezekiel’s prophecy as the coming of a new age ( 36:26, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you”) whereby evil (or sin) will be ended and removed in the world, which will be effected by the Spirit. This was the lasting hope in first-century Judaism.

In closing, the centrality of the Spirit cannot be more emphasized (as we have seen in various schools of thought), is extended to and not limited to the work of God in creation, the writing and inspiration of Scripture, preaching, inspired speech, prophetic pronouncements, healings, miracles, in Jesus’ ministry and in the life of the believer, etc… Paul could say,

12 So then, brothers, [4] we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons [5] of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

– Romans 8:12-17 (source:ESV)

* There are some excellent works written on this subject matter, the Spirit of God, from various perspectives. Below are some outstanding pieces:

Empowered for Witness: The Spirit in Luke-Acts by Robert P. Menzies
Spirit and Kingdom in the Writings of Luke and Paul: An Attempt to Reconcile These Concepts (Paternoster Biblical Monographs) by Youngmo Cho and Robert P. Menzies
Spirit and Power by Robert P. Menzies
Flame of Love: A Theology of the Holy Spirit by Clark H. Pinnock
God’s Empowering Presence: The Holy Spirit in the Letters of Paul, and Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God by Gordon D. Fee
He Who Gives Life: The Doctrine of the Holy Spirit by Graham A. Cole and John S. Feinberg
The Spirit in Gospels and Acts: Divine Purity and Power, and Gift and Giver: The Holy Spirit for Today by Craig S. Keener
Pneumatology: The Holy Spirit in Ecumenical, International, and Contextual Perspective by Veli-Matti Karkkainen1.
The Holy Spirit and Spiritual Gifts: In the New Testament Church and Today by Max Turner
God’s Indwelling Presence: The Holy Spirit in the Old And New Testaments by James M. Hamilton Jr.
Baptism in the Holy Spirit: A Re-Examination of the New Testament Teaching on the Gift of the Spirit in Relation to Pentecostalism Today, Jesus and the Spirit: A Study of the Religious and Charismatic Experience of Jesus and the First Christians as Reflected in the New Testament, The Christ and the Spirit: Pneumatology by James D. G. Dunn

Sanders on King’s death

Star-Telegram’s columnist Bob Ray Sanders was a college student 40 years ago when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot on a hotel balcony in Memphis, TN. In an article published today by Star-Telegram, a Forth Worth based Newspaper, Sanders makes the following observation,

The sting of that news has never completely left my heart. Just the thought of that thunderous voice being silenced still brings tears to my eyes and a chill to my soul. There’s no doubt the nation has come along way since then, but based on the constant reactions and overreactions to race in this country, I certainly can’t say that we’ve reached the promise land

40 years ago, Martin Luther King Jr, prophetically pronounced “I May NOT Get There With you,” in fact, he did not.

Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now. I just want to do God’s will. And He’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I’ve looked over. And I’ve seen the promised land. And I’m happy, tonight. I’m not worried about anything. I’m not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord

. — Martin Luther King Jr., April 3, 1968, Memphis

Scriptural Reading

4 Make me to know your ways, O Lord;
teach me your paths.
5 Lead me in your truth and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;
for you I wait all the day long.
6 Remember your mercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love,
for they have been from of old.
7 Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
according to your steadfast love remember me,
for the sake of your goodness, O Lord!

– Ps. 25:4-7

God as Liberator

God as liberator is an “ancient yet contemporary pivotal point around which Black theology revolves

– (Warren H. Stewart, Interpreting God’s Word in Black Preaching )

Triune Praise Video

Check it out! It is profound theologically.

African American Anthropology

One of the books (Stony the Road We Trod: African American Biblical Interpretation) I am currently reading deals with the subject of African American Biblical Interpretation. In a particular essay entitled, “The Haustafeln” (Household Codes) in African American Biblical Interpretation: “Free Slaves” and “Subordinate Women,” Clarice J. Martin forcefully argues against the ideas of “slavery” and “women subordination,” explicity recorded in the letters of Paul
( see Col. 3:18-4:1; Eph. 5:21-6:9; and also in 1 Peter 2:18-3:7). Martin’s argument is that African American Biblical Interpretation rejects such notions, these apparent “ambiguities” or “oppressive overtones” in Scripture. For African American hermeneutical approach to such topics has traditionally affirmed and maintained the fundamental integrity of humanity. She also notes that, “The white, Western, Christian proslavery hermeneutic stood in diametrical opposition to the more liberatory hermeneutic of African Americans regarding the nature of humanity and the integrity of human personhood” ( Household Codes in African American Biblical Interpretation: “Free Slaves” and “Subordinate Women in Cain Hope Felder, ed., Stony the Road We Trod: African American Biblical Interpretation, Cain Hope Felder, ed., 217). To substantiate this tradition, Martin alludes to an article written by Peter J. Paris, in which, the author sustains,

The universal parenthood of God implied a universal kingship of humankind. This is the basic proposition of the hermeneutic designated as the black Christian tradition. The black churches have always discerned this doctrine to be the bedrock for the biblical perspective on humanity, and they have given prominence to biblical passages that make it unequivocally clear. Accordingly, the black church has never hesitated to disavow any interpretation of Scripture that would attempt to legitimate racism, slavery, or any other form of human bondage… Racism has never found asylum in the black churches

– (Peter J. Paris, “The Bible and the Black Churches,” in Ernest R. Sandeed, ed., The Bible and Social Reform, 134-135)

It is also important to note the traditional text that has been used in the argument against slavery was Acts 17:26: God “made from once every nation of men to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their habitation.” It also noted that this New Testament passage was often used by slave abolitionists. Furthermore, another text that substantiates this argument is 1 Cor. 12:13, “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body– Jews or Greeks, slaves or free– and all were made to drink of one Spirit.” The emphasis here is on the “universal parenthood of God” and the “kingship of humankind.” Another text that carries a similar weight is Gal. 2:28, 28(A) There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for (B) you are all one in (C) Christ Jesus.”

Matthäuspassion by Johann Sebastian Bach

My wife named our second son’s middle name “Sebastien” (spell with an “e” instead of an “a”) for her love for Johann Sebastian Bach’s music, perhaps the greatest composer ever lived. (She loves me more than she loves you and Back altogether:).”Bach’s St. Matthew Passion was written in 1727. Only two of the four (or five) settings of the Passion which Bach wrote have survived; the other is the St. John Passion.”

Enjoy it!

Original Text
Arie
Erbarme dich, mein Gott,
um meiner Zähren willen!
Schaue hier, Herz und Auge
weint vor dir bitterlich.
Erbarme dich, mein Gott.

English Translation
Aria
Have mercy, my God,
for the sake of my tears!
See here, before you
heart and eyes weep bitterly.
Have mercy, my God.

source

Allison’s Duke Lecture on the Historical Jesus

Dale C. Allison Jr, Errett M., Grable professor of New Testament exegesis and early Christianity at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, gave a series of lecture on The Historical Jesus and the Theological Jesus at Duke Divinity School.

Enjoy!

Racism and Sexism and the Church

In a recent article entitled, Racism and Sexism and the Church, Charles Colson alludes to church tradition and argues that the church must continue fighting against “racism” and “sexism,” “It is the duty of every Christian to fight against racism and sexism,” Colson maintains.

In Rome in the third century, where women had no rights, the Church grew rapidly because it welcomed women, and gave them meaningful responsibilities. The Church was in the vanguard of women’s rights movements in the early days, as it was during the suffrage movement in America…Similarly, the Church fought against racism in its most blatant form: slavery. It started in biblical times—Paul’s letter to Philemon was about setting a slave free, and in his letter to Timothy he condemned adulterers, perjurers, and slave traders. When the Spanish conquerors came to the western world, papal edicts were issued threatening excommunication of anyone who owned slaves. The eighteenth- and nineteenth-century campaign against slavery was magnificently fought by Christian parliamentarian William Wilberforce, who brought about the abolition of slavery in 1833 in England, and soon thereafter in America. The Civil Rights movement in the 1960’s in America was led by Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., who drew upon the resources of the Christian community

Source:Christians Are Called to Fight Both “Isms”

RBL new reviews

The following new reviews have been added to the Review of Biblical
Literature:

Joan Cecelia Campbell
Kinship Relations in the Gospel of John
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6074
Reviewed by Ritva H. Williams

Daniel K. Falk
The Parabiblical Texts: Strategies for Extending the Scriptures among
the Dead Sea Scrolls
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6011
Reviewed by Matthew Goff

Karin Finsterbusch, Armin Lange, and K. F. Diethard Römheld, eds.
Human Sacrifice in Jewish and Christian Tradition
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5822
Reviewed by Jason Tatlock

John Fotopoulos, ed.
The New Testament and Early Christian Literature in Greco-Roman
Context: Studies in Honor of David E. Aune
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5899
Reviewed by Michael Labahn
Reviewed by Karl-Wilhelm Niebuhr

Paul M. Fullmer
Resurrection in Mark’s Literary-Historical Perspective
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6329
Reviewed by John Dart

Martha Himmelfarb
A Kingdom of Priests: Ancestry and Merit in Ancient Judaism
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6091
Reviewed by Henryk Drawnel

F. Rachel Magdalene
On the Scales of Righteousness: Neo-Babylonian Trial Law and the Book
of Job
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6109
Reviewed by Markus Witte

James K. Mead
Biblical Theology: Issues, Methods, and Themes
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5941
Reviewed by James D. G. Dunn

Jean-Marc Michaud, ed.
La Bible et l’héritage d’Ougarit: Mélanges bibliques et orientaux en
hommage posthume à Monsieur André Caquot
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5389
Reviewed by Paul Sanders

Günter Neumann
Glossar des Lykischen: Überarbeitet und zum Druck gebracht von Johann
Tischler
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6139
Reviewed by Diether Schürr

Romano Penna
Lettera ai Romani: II. Rm 6-11
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5681
Reviewed by Lee S. Bond

Neil A. Soggie
Myth, God, and War: The Mythopoetic Inspiration of Joshua
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6306
Reviewed by Ovidiu Creanga

Lena-Sofia Tiemeyer
Priestly Rites and Prophetic Rage: Post-exilic Prophetic Critique of
the Priesthood
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5792
Reviewed by Reinhard Achenbach

William Varner
The Way of the Didache: The First Christian Handbook
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6037
Reviewed by Jonathan A. Draper

Robert Louis Wilken, trans. and ed.; with Angela Russell Christman and
Michael J. Hollerich
Isaiah: Interpreted by Early Christian and Medieval Commentators
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6033
Reviewed by J. David Cassel