THE FALL AND RISE OF MANY - A Christmas Devotion on Luke 2:34

 

“And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel” (Luke 2:34)

The holiday classic, A Christmas Story (1983), is well-known for its hero Ralphie’s mission to get a Red Ryder B.B. Gun for Christmas. The boy pursues many schemes to influence his parents, his teacher, and even a store Santa in hopes of fulfilling his fantasy of becoming a sharp-shooting sheriff – all while dismissing the warnings of adults that he’ll shoot his eye out. If you don’t already know, I’m sure you’ve guessed. Spoiler Alert: Injuring his eye (breaking his glasses!) is exactly what happens when Ralphie gets his Ryder B.B. Gun for Christmas. He heard the warnings but couldn’t see the truth. A great example of “Be careful what you wish for.”

For almost half a millennium, the Jewish people had lived under foreign rule by a succession of pagan empires. Most recently, the Roman Empire occupied Israel, polluting the promised land in the eyes of many Jews. The people longed for a messiah to sit on David’s throne, for salvation from their Roman enemies, and for God to return to his Temple (Luke 1:68-71, 74, 77-79; 2:30, 32; 19:45-48). But throughout the prophetic witness of God’s inevitable deliverance, there was an ominous undertone: Who can endure the day of his coming? (Mal 3:1-2; Mark 1:2-3; Luke 3:4, 8, 16-7; 7:27; 19:41-44; 19:11-27; 20:9-19). In Simeon’s prophecy, he speaks to this point: God’s deliverance will be great for many in Israel, but not for all. As Mary notes in her poem, God “brings down the rulers and exalts the humble” (Luke 1:52). There will be a reversal of fortune when God acts (Luke 6:20-25; 16:19-31). When hope arrives, God will balance the books (Luke 4:18-19; 7:22-23; 14:7-24; 18:18-30; 19:1-10; 21:1-4; 22:24-30). Be careful what you wish for. Are you ready?

Like Ralphie, we often long for a great hope to be fulfilled and a glorious outcome to realized, but we don’t often see the truth when we hear the warnings of what that hope will look like. We want God to bring revival, reform, and renewal, but we don’t think that when God answers our prayers, that WE will be the one revived, reformed, and renewed – often by “painful” measures! With whatever sin you are currently struggling, with whomever you are treating as less than yourself, pray to God for help turning away from such behavior. Heed the biblical warnings that result from such sins. In this way, when God does act mightily, you will see the truth, recognize the time, and be ready when hope arrives (Luke 19:41-44).

 

Spirit and Flesh - The Egalitarian Basis of Galatians 3:28

 

 

Scholars have long recognized the egalitarian sentiments in Paul’s letter to the Galatians, particularly in verse 3:28, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (NASB20). They note Paul’s concern that requiring Jewish ethnic practices (like circumcision) for full membership in the Church would divide Christians, assert Jewish privilege over Gentiles, and enslave both under spiritual Powers. While many understand the place of 3:28 in Paul’s argument, few recognize its Scriptural basis, the underlying theological framework, and how Paul conceptualized his “egalitarian” approach to ministry and mission. We can recognize the apostle’s understanding by observing the patterns of his argument throughout his letters.[1] In short, Paul bases his egalitarianism on Christ’s death and resurrection, the outpouring of the Spirit, and the nature of God.

In the biblical conception, inequality and the privilege-oppression dynamic begin in idolatry. Humans elevate the good aspects of God’s creation to the point of worship, particularly those aspects which order our world and mark out distinctions in creation’s diversity. For example, God creates the sun, moon, and stars that order days, years, and seasons (Gen 1:16-18), and humanity worships them (Deut 4:19; 17:3; 2 Kings 23:5). God creates beasts of various kinds (Gen 1:20-26), and humanity worships them (Rom 1:23). God creates cooperating authorities (Rom 13:1-3), and humanity worships government (Rev 13:12, 15; 14:9, 11). In the process, humanity becomes more like the idols they worship and less like the image of God (Ps 115:8; 135:18; Isa 6:9f; Rom 1:23ff; 8:29; 12:2; Phil 3:19ff). At the same time, the idolator sees others in terms of their idolatry. A person who idolizes wealth from the vegetation of the ordered seasons will enslave a person of a different race to feed his greed. The idolator has objectified another human, treating him as less than the image of God. Or man who idolizes sex and masculinity, sees women in those terms, objectifies them, treating them as both subordinate to men and less than the image of God. The result is the establishment of various privileged-oppressed patterns of behavior that objectify, exploit, and diminish the image of God in humanity.

However, even within this privileged-oppression dynamic, both privileged and oppressed are imprisoned by the spiritual forces behind these idolized, ordering powers of creation thru sin, though the former enjoy the benefits that result from greater collaboration. There are numerous designators for these forces. Both Paul and Peter identify them, in part, as “principalities and powers” (Rom 8:38; 13:1-3; Col 1:13-16; Eph 1:21; 3:10; 6:12; 1 Cor 15:24; 1 Pet 3:22). The idea of spiritual forces behind the ordering powers of creation is well-recognized.[2] The same idea is present in the so-called gods that were said to exist behind idols (1 Cor 10:19-21). Similarly, there are spiritual powers (such as angels) closely connected to nations,[3] governments (1 Cor 2:8; Col 1:16; Rom 13:1-3), and even churches (Rev 1:20).

One term Paul uses for these ordering powers of creation is stoicheia (Gal 4:3, 9; Col 2:8, 20). This term has a range of meanings dependent upon its context. It can refer to the essential elements of the universe (2 Pet 3:10, 12), to basic principles of religious teaching (Heb 5:12), or to the spiritual forces that are connected to the elements of the cosmos (T. Sol. 8:2, 4). In Colossians 2:8-10, Paul warns the church to not be “taken captive” (sylagogeo, a likely pun on synagogue) by false philosophies and traditions rather than that of Christ who is above all “principality and power,” and who has both disarmed and triumphed over the powers in his death (vv. 14-15). In 2:18, he warns them about the worship of angels (see Acts 7:42-43; Amos 5:25-27). As in Galatians, Paul dissuades the Colossians against circumcision (2:11-13) and both Jewish calendric and its aesthetic practices such as food, drink, festivals, new moons, and sabbath days (Col 2:11, 16, 21-23). In Galatians 4:3 and 4:9, Paul mentions the stoicheia of the world, identifying them as basic elements of pagan idolatry that held the Gentiles in bondage, and from which Christ has freed them (again, see Col 2:20). In doing so, Paul again identifies the basic elements of the Jewish Law as stoicheia, citing the observance of days, months, seasons, and years (Gal 4:10). This follows a close connection between (or identification of) angels and the mediation of the Law (3:19), an idea that is present elsewhere.[4] Therefore, in both Galatians and Colossians, Paul likens religious practice under the Law to pagan idolatry; both were characterized by bondage to spiritual powers. That, of course, is Paul’s argument in Galatians 3. The Law confined the Jews under bondage and under sin,[5] with the intent of separating them from the corruption and influence of the pagan Gentile world (Eph 2:12-19). In Acts 10:12 & 11:6, the noted “unclean” animals that, in part, separated Jews from Gentiles are the same mentioned in Rom 1:23 and Genesis 1:20-26. Yet, the Spirit is poured out upon the Gentiles as had happened to the Jews at Pentecost (Acts 2:2-4, 17-21; 10:44-47).

Importantly, there was nothing evil in the Law itself (Rom 7:7). Rather, it was human sin corrupting the Law in the flesh (Rom 7:5, 25; 8:3-8). The same corruption was at work with other ordering aspects of God’s good creation. The biblical conception is of sin corrupting aspects of our base natures, then corrupting others, and finally creating corporate solidarities or allegiances along the lines of the aforementioned orders and distinctions. The term Paul frequently uses to denote this corruption-solidarity dynamic is “flesh.” In neutral terms, the Hebrew conception of “flesh” (basar) lends itself to solidarity thinking in terms of marriage (“one flesh” [Gen 2:23f.; 1 Cor 6:16]), families or kin groups (“bone and flesh” [2 Sam 19:12f.; Gen 29:14; Rom 9:3]), and humanity in general (“all flesh” [Gen 6:12; Joel 2:28f.]). While the Greeks had a term for “flesh” (sarx) and a term for “body” (soma), the Hebrews had only one word, basar (“flesh”), to cover both ideas. Therefore, there are times when “flesh” and “body” are near synonymous terms in Paul (1 Cor 6:15-19; 15:39-40; Eph 5:28-33).

Paul teaches that participation in Christ’s death (Rom 6:3-11; Col 2:12, 20; 3:32; 2 Cor 5:14-15; Phil 3:10) strips believers of “fleshly” solidarities - essentially dying to such solidarities and dying to the ordered distinctions that create them. For example, both Paul and Jesus say the “one flesh” solidarity of marriage ends at death (Rom 7:2-3; Mark 12:25). Similarly, Paul says that the jurisdiction of the Law ends at death (Gal 2:19-20; Rom 6:14; 7:1, 4-9). In Colossians 2:20, Paul tells the Gentile Christians that they’ve died with Christ to the stoicheia. We can add to this that death to sin liberates from the slavery to the body of sin, or the flesh of sin (Rom 6:2-22; 8:3). There are different ways in which Paul expresses this idea, including, being baptized into Christ or into his death (Rom 6:3-5; Col 2:12), stripping off or crucifying the “old self” or “old human” (anthropos [Rom 6:6; Eph 4:22; Col 3:9]), and removing the body of the flesh (Col 2:11). But while death in Christ breaks the old solidarities of the flesh, participation in Christ’s resurrection (Rom 6:4-11; Col 2:12-13; 3:1) creates a new solidarity in Christ, energized by the Spirit. Paul refers to this as being clothed with or putting on Christ (Gal 3:27; Rom 13:14; 1 Cor 15:53-54) or putting on the “new self” or “new human” (anthropos [Rom 6:6; Eph 2:15; 4:24; Col 3:10]).

Importantly, these distinctions and solidarities aren’t eliminated by participation in Christ; they are just no longer the bases for exclusion, division, privilege, and oppression. Rather, believers are One in Christ, and creation returns to the ordered goodness of God’s original intention, which is why Paul can state that neither the Law’s circumcision (Gal 5:6; 6:15; 1 Cor 7:19) nor food sacrificed to idols (1 Cor 8) ultimately matters.

In Galatians, some Christians were mandating circumcision as a requirement for full membership in the Church and in the family of Abraham. Paul responds to this perceived threat to the freedom of the Christian (2:4; 5:1, 13) by noting the Law’s intent, which included contemporary confinement until the fulfillment of God’s promise to bless the Gentiles in the family of Abraham. He argues that requiring circumcision and other “works of the Law” (see 2:11-14) will divide the Church along ethnic lines (3:16), assert Jewish privilege over and against Gentile Christians, and bring them back under the bondage of the same kinds of spiritual powers from which Christ had freed them (1:4; 4:3, 9-10).

The word “promise” (epangelia) is mentioned six times in Galatians 3 (twice more in Galatians 4), starting with verse 14, which identifies it as the “promise of the Spirit.”[6]

It is in Acts 2 that the promised Spirit was poured out on Jesus’ Jewish disciples,[7] so that Peter (v. 17-18) could proclaim it to be the fulfilment of Joel’s prophecy:

“It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind [literally “flesh”]; and your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will have dreams, your young men will see visions. And even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days” (Joel 2:28-29 NASB).

In Acts 10:44-47 (see also 11:15-18; 15:8), the Spirit then comes upon Gentiles.

In chapter 3, Paul reminds the Galatians that they’re received the Spirit of promise (3:2-3, 5, 14; see also 4:6; 5:16, 18). He then notes in vv. 27-28,

“For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Paul is citing Joel 2:28-29. Both passages are about the Spirit coming upon people. Instead of “flesh” (which includes both Jew and Gentile), Paul makes the point explicit since the distinction is vital to his main point, but he similarly includes the references to men and women and both slave and free – the free being implicit in Joel.

E. C. Rust says, “Joel promises a democratization of the prophetic consciousness in the new age when God shall pour out his Spirit upon all flesh.”[8]

And note the language Paul uses in v. 27: “baptized into Christ” and “putting (enduo) on Christ.” This is the language of dying to the solidarities of the “flesh” (Gal 3:3) and living in the solidarity of Christ – a solidarity energized by the Spirit, rather than the flesh (3:3; 4:29; 5:16-25; 6:8) - so that Jew, Gentile, slave, free, man, & woman are now one in Christ. And Galatians isn’t the only letter in which Paul makes a connection between Joel 2 and the solidarities of the “flesh.” In 1 Corinthians, Paul writes,

“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit” (1 Cor 12:13).

In this chapter, Paul notes the varieties of gifts, ministries, and effects but the same Spirit, Lord, & God (vv. 4-11), with the example of many members but One body (vv. 12-13, 20, 27) with One Spirit (v.13), in which there should be no division (v. 25; see also 1:10; 11:18).[9] Again, body and flesh can be near synonyms in Paul and in this letter (1 Cor 6:15-19; 15:39-40). Again, we have the language of participation in Christ’s death. In chapter 15, when he addresses the reality of Christ’s resurrection, the believer’s relation to that resurrection, the subjugation of “principalities and powers” (vv. 24-28), the inability of the flesh to inherit the next age (vv. 35-50), and how resurrected believers will bear the image of the heavenly Christ (vv. 47-49), Paul says the perishable will “put on” (enduo – same as in Gal 3:27) imperishable (vv. 53-54; see also vv. 42-52). In chapter 6, he had already noted the Christians participation in Christ (vv. 14-15), noting the “one flesh” solidarity of marriage (v. 16; see also 7:4). Back to 12:13, Paul says that all our baptized into One body with One Spirit, whether Jews or Greek or slaves or free. This is the same argument Paul used in Gal 3:27-28, and he appears to be thinking again of Joel 2:28-29. Even as he applies the Oneness of Christ’s body to the varieties of gifts by the One Spirit, he emphasizes the importance of all these gifts. Even if some gifts and their positions are more important to the body (12:28-30; 14:1-40), Paul encourages the Corinthians to earnestly pursue those gifts and positions (12:31; 14:1, 39; 11:5). Regardless, we see a pattern emerging in Paul’s thinking: participation in Christ’s death and resurrection takes off the old solidarities of the flesh and puts on the new solidarity of Christ – a solidarity energized by the Spirit (6:17-19; 12:11-13; 15:42-47). We see the same line of reasoning in Colossians where Paul writes,

“Do not lie to one another, since you stripped off the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self, which is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created it— a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, and free, but Christ is all, and in all” (Col 3:9-11).

Here again, Paul tells the Christians that they’ve died to the solidarities of the “flesh.” Paul had already noted that the Colossians had died and been raised in Christ (1:22; 2:12-13, 20; 3:1, 3). They’ve stripped off the old self and put on (enduo – as in Gal 3:27 and 1 Cor 12:13) the new self (see 2:11). And just as in Galatians 3:28, there is now no distinction among Greek-Jew, circumcised-uncircumcised, barbarian-Scythian, and slave-free. “Christ is all, and in all.” Bound together in the unity of Christ’s one body (2:19; 3:14-15). The pattern in Colossians 3 is the same as in 1 Corinthians 12 and Galatians 3, even if particularities are stressed more than others in a given letter and even if the distinctions vary: death and resurrection in Christ, new solidarity in unity (3:14-15), including victory over the Powers (1:16; 2:15), the stoicheia (2:8, 20), and references to Jewish ethnic rituals such as circumcision (2:8, 11-23: 3:11). References to male and female are absent here, but barbarian and Scythian are included. Of course, Paul was primarily an apostle to the Gentiles (Rom 11:13), and his variations on the “all flesh” of Joel 2:28 bear this out. Nevertheless, the pattern reveals the principle - one that could be interchanged depending upon situation. Circumcision separated Jews and Greeks, “culture” separated Greeks from “barbarians” and Scythians. Certainly, patriarchy separates men and women. Indeed, as a sign of the covenant, circumcision established both Jewish and male privilege.

We can see further evidence of this pattern and principle in Ephesians 2. Gentiles once separated and excluded have now joined in the “blood of Christ” (v. 13), tearing down the divider of the Law’s commandments and ordinances in his flesh (vv. 14-15), putting to death the hostility (v. 16), making Jew and Gentile into one new person (anthropos - v. 15), in one body (v. 16),[10] by one Spirit (v. 18). Two chapters later (4:17-25), he notes that the Gentile Christians are no longer excluded from the life of God, no longer walking in the futile thinking of their idolatrous ways. They’ve taken off the old self and put on (enduo) the new self, renewed in the spirit of their minds, all members of one body.[11] Additionally, in Romans 13:14, Paul tells the church to “put on” (enduo) Christ and make no provision for the flesh. He immediately follows this in 14:1-23, reprimanding them on quarrels and disunity over the subjects of eating, drinking, and kosher diets, noting that no food is truly unclean (14:14), but that the believer should make considerations for the conscience of the “weaker.”

That’s similar to the point Paul makes in 1 Corinthians 8 on the respecting the consciences of “weaker” believers and food sacrificed to idols. He nevertheless notes that because there is One God, One Lord, by whom all things are made (v. 6), all foods are open for consumption. He’ll touch on this point again at 10:26, asserting that all food is kosher because all the earth is God’s and all that it contains (Ps 24:1). In Acts 10, Peter's vision of unclean animals to eat results in his understanding that all Gentiles can come to God because God shows no partiality (v. 34). Paul agrees with Peter (Gal 2:6; Eph 6:9; Rom 2:11). The idea of divine impartiality comes this from Deuteronomy 10:17, which bases societal justice and impartiality on the impartiality of God (see also 2 Chron 19:7). Thus, because God is impartial, his image-bearers are to be impartial (Deut 1:17; Job 13:10; Ps 82:2; Prov 18:5; 24:23; 28:21; Mal 2:9; 1 Tim 5:21). In his letter, James calls partiality a sin, reprimanding his audience for their unequal distinctions,[12] while tying impartiality to “love of neighbor” (2:4-9). Indeed, that’s a point Paul makes in Colossians 3:10-15: to put on the new self is to put on compassion and love, dwelling in the one body of Christ. In Christ, neither circumcision nor circumcision matters, but faith working through love (Gal 5:6).

While Paul appears to have rightly understood the “pouring out of my Spirit on all flesh” to refer to the solidarity of all humans (Gen 6:17), implying both Jew and Gentile, he also understood it to refer to all types of "fleshly" solidarities needing the Spirit poured out upon them. The so-called "Household Codes" in Ephesians 5:21 to 6:9 are a further elaboration of what it means to be filled with the Spirit (5:18) and covers many of the same ideas found in Galatians 3, Colossians 3, and 1 Corinthians 12, also probably based on Joel 2:28-29, particularly as it covers the similar subjects of the Spirit working through the “fleshly” solidarities of women and men, parents and children, free and slave. Paul had already talked about the Spirit working thru the "fleshly" solidarities of Jews and Gentiles in 2:11-22.

As such, the “household codes” describe a life of mutual submission (v.21), love of neighbor as self (5:28-33), reciprocity (6:5-9), and impartiality (6:9). As “one flesh,” “one body,” or “one self,” (1 Cor 6:16; 15:39; Eph 5:31; Gen 2:4; Matt 19:5-6; Mark 10:8), the wife and husband each “have authority/rights” (exousiazō) over the other’s body (1 Cor 7:4), just as an individual as “authority/rights” (exousia) over one’s self (1 Cor 7:37; 8:9; 9:4, 5, 6, 12, 18), even as no one is to “have authority” (exousiazō) over others in the Church (Luke 22:25; 1 Cor 6:12), even as the Church is one body (Rom 12:4-5; 1 Cor 10:17; 12:12-13, 20; Eph 2:16; 4:4; Col 3:15). Therefore, the "Love of wife as self" is the same as "love of neighbor as self" (Lev 19:18; Mark 12:31; Gal 5:14). However, I'd note the old solidarity of marriage ends at death, but the new solidarity in Christ necessarily continues into eternity (Mark 3:33-34), extending beyond Israel (Luke 10:29-37). Also, note “masters according to the flesh” (6:5) – similar to Gentiles in the flesh (2:3) and circumcision in the flesh (Col 2:11). Again, both distinctions and “fleshly” solidarities are parts of God’s good creation; the problem arises when they are used for privilege & oppression.

Returning to 1 Corinthians 8, Paul’s point in v. 6 about their being One God, the Father and One Lord, Christ is a reference to the Shema prayer of Deuteronomy 6:4-5 that the Lord God is One, in which Paul now includes Jesus. In 12:9, 13, he mentions the One Spirit. And as we look through all these focused passages, we see the unity of Church based on the unity of God: One Lord (Col 3:15; 1 Cor 12:4; Eph 4:5), One body (1 Cor 12:12-13, 20; Eph 2:16; 4:4; Rom 12:4-5), One Christ (Gal 3:16), One Spirit (1 Cor 12:4, 8-9, 11, 13; Eph 2:18; 4:4), One Father (Eph 4:6), One God (Gal 3:20; 1 Cor 12:6; Gal 3:20; Eph 4:6). If God is One then he is the God of all races, sexes, ages, & classes. Not just men. This is the social justice implications of creative monotheism. And just as with God’s impartiality, so with his love. In Matt 22:36-40, Jesus takes the greatest commandment of Deuteronomy 6:5, combines it with the second greatest commandment of Leviticus 19:18 ("love of neighbor"), which we understand as irrespective of distinctions.[13] Love, impartiality, unity, and equality flow out of the Oneness of God. And God wants his creation and his image-bearers to reflect that unity and equality.

Therefore, we can see how Paul conceptualized his egalitarian approach to ministry. The apostle understood the basic problem of inequality, which faced both society and the Church: humans worship the ordering aspects of creation and the various marks of distinction as idols. In doing so, they create solidarities or allegiances (“flesh”) with a privilege-oppression dynamic, which separates and excludes as the basis of unequal, societal injustices. Once again, there is nothing fundamentally wrong with these orders and distinctions or with these solidarities or allegiances. Food, drink, circumcision, the Law, marriage, race, and sex are all the good creation of a God. It is only when these good creations are idolized and used as the basis of oppression and injustice that become tools for evil. Paul’s solution to this privilege-oppression scenario is participation in Christ's death & resurrection. In doing so, we die to the idols and the “principalities and powers” behind them, shedding the old solidarities, putting on the new solidarity of Christ.[14] We become part of that One unified body, for One crucified and resurrected Lord, by One poured out Spirit, all accomplished by One creator God. This is the thinking that undergirds Paul’s teaching in Galatians 3:28. Properly understood, it is a fundamental point of biblical egalitarianism.

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[1] In this article, I accept the tradition of attributing Pauline authorship to both Colossians and Ephesians along with the generally undisputed letters. The authorship of Second Thessalonians and the Pastorals do not factor into my argument.

[2] Rev 7:1; 14:18; 16:5; Jub. 2:2; 1 En. 21:3; 43:1; 60:11-24; 80:1, 6-7; 2 En. [Longer recension] 4:1-2; 12:1; 15:1; 16:7; T. Sol. 4:6; 8:2; 18:1-42

[3] Deut 4:19; 32:8 (LXX); Dan 10:13, 20-21; Sir 17:14; 1 En. 89:59-61; 4QDeut^j,n; 1 Clem. 29:2.

[4] Deut 33:2; Ps 68:17; Jub. 1:27-29; Acts 7:53; Gal 3:19; Heb 2:2; Somn. 1:140-44; Ant. 15.5.3)

[5] Gal 3:19, 22-24; 4:1-3, 5, 8-9, 21-31; 5:1, 18; Rom 5:20; 7:8-13; 11:32

[6] See also Eph 1:13; 3:5-6; Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4-5; 2:33, 38-39.

[7] See Isa 32:15-20; 44:3; Ezek 36:24-30; 39:29; Joel 2:28-29; Zech 12:10; Rom 5:5; Titus 3:5-6.

[8] E.C. Rust, Nature and Man in Biblical Thought (London: Lutterworth Press, 1953), 137.

[9] 1 Corinthians 12 shares many of the same ideas of Romans 12: diversity amidst unity, the analogy of the human body and the “body of Christ,” and the gifts of the Spirit.

[10] If you’re thinking of man and woman becoming “one flesh,” you are on the right track.

[11] The deluding effects of idolatry are noted in Scripture (Ps 115:5-8; Zech 10:2; Rom 1:21-22, 31). What Paul says here in Ephesians 4 about the futile thinking of idolators and need for mind renewal, he says in Romans 1:18-32 and 12:1-8, including being members of one body and the aforementioned unity amidst charismatic diversity.

[12] See also Acts 10:20; 11:12; 15:8-9 and Romans 10:12.

[13] See also Romans 13:8-10 and Galatians 5:14.

[14] In 2 Corinthians 5:1-17, in much the same way that justification by faith in Christ is the new badge that identifies in the present the final verdict on the last day, Paul points to that final judgment in which the Spirit who presently “clothes” the believer in the new solidarity in Christ as a pledge from God (v. 5; see also 1:22; Eph 1:14), bring a renewed, imperishable body. Therefore, because of participation in Christ’s death and resurrection (vv. 14-15), “we recognize no one by what they are in the flesh” (v. 16).

On Sanctification Through the Flesh ...

Last year, I surveyed the writings of the early Church Fathers to see if any early Christian source saw an “order of creation” in such passages as 1 Corinthians 11 and 1 Timothy 2. None what soever. However, I was intrigued by the general curiosity the early Greek Christians showed in their engagement with the “one flesh” of marriage (1 Cor 6:16; 15:39; Eph 5:31; Gen 2:4; Matt 19:5-6; Mark 10:8). While Paul in  Eph 5:32 saw the unity of Christ and Church as a great mystery (not the “one flesh” of marriage which is a common idea in Judaism and ancient Hebrew anthropology), the Church Fathers, with their background in Hellenistic and Platonic anthropology of body-spirit dichotomy, thought this “one flesh” concept was, indeed, a great mystery (a sacramentum), which suggests unfamiliarity.

The ancient Greeks had two terms: sarx (“flesh”) and soma (“body”). The sarx was the stuff of the body and the soma gave the sarx/flesh form. The soma was the factor of individualization among the ancient Greeks. The ancient Hebrews had a term for “flesh”: basar. They did not have a term for “body.” The ancient Hebrews did not have a “form” word marking off individualization, thus, there was a blurring of lines separating people. The nephesh (“soul,” psuche, the vital principle that animated the basar/sarx/flesh or “body”) could extend beyond the contours of the individual, encompassing a household, a tribe, a nation, humanity itself in both positive and negative ways. This is how corporate solidarities are created in ancient Hebrew anthropology and thought. Thus, the “flesh” (basar) lends itself to solidarity thinking in terms of marriage (“one flesh” [Gen 2:23f.; 1 Cor 6:16]), families or kin groups (“bone and flesh” [2 Sam 19:12f.; Gen 29:14; Rom 9:3]), and humanity in general (“all flesh” [Gen 6:12; Joel 2:28f.]). Again, the Greeks had terms for “flesh” and “body,” the Hebrews only had “flesh” to cover both ideas. Therefore, there are times when “flesh” and “body” are near synonymous terms in Paul (1 Cor 6:15-19; 15:39-40; Eph 5:28-33). Look at all the references to the Church being the “body of Christ” (Romans 12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 3:6; 5:23; Colossians 1:18, 24), of believer’s being “in Christ” (Romans 8:2, 39; 12:5; 1 Corinthians 1:2, 30; 15:18, 22; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 2:4; 3:28; 6:15; Ephesians 1:3, 10, 12, 20). In Ephesians 5:18-6:9, it’s about being filled with the Holy Spirit; like Galatians 3:27-28, 1 Corinthians 12:13 and Colossians 3:9-11, it’s partially based on Joel 2:28-29. It’s about the Spirit working through the “flesh” (Paul had already noted the Spirit working thru "fleshly" solidarities of Jew-Gentile in chp. 2). Note how Paul uses Christ-Church as an analogy for husband-wife: head and body. Husbands should love their wives as their own bodies like Christ loves his body, the Church. Paul quotes Gen 2:23-24 to this effect. Again, “flesh” and “body” are frequently near synonyms. Now look at what Paul says v.26 of our Ephesian 5 passage:

“… so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.”

Same idea as 1 Corinthians 7:14 and for the same reason: the Spirit working thru the solidarity of the flesh. Look at 2 Corinthians 7:1:

“Let’s cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”

In the previous chapter he had talked about corruption and defilement from idolatry and being mismatched with unbelievers. He uses more corporate language this time the imagery of Christian believers being a temple of God (v. 16), just as he does in Ephesians 2:21 and in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 and 6:19 where he notes the Spirit dwells within that “temple” and that it shouldn’t be corrupted (3:17). Of course, Christ is frequently referred to as a temple in the works of Paul, Peter, and John. We see references to various corruptions and defilements in Paul’s writings (1 Cor 15:33; 2 Cor 11:3; Eph 4:22). One of the main reasons why the “flesh” (basar, sarx) is defiled, weak, and corrupting is because it creates these corporate solidarities that spread corruption. Paul notes this when he’s speaking about a Christian man becoming “one flesh” with a prostitute (1 Cor 6:14-20). The corrupting nature of the “flesh” is one of the reasons why God wanted the Israelites to be separate the surrounding pagan influences, which Paul notes 2 Cor 6:17, quoting from Isaiah 52:11 and Leviticus 26:12. As Paul notes in Galatians and Ephesians, the Law was given to separate Jew from pagan Gentile until the time of Christ and the coming of the Spirit. Those who are in Christ (a part of his body) partake of the Spirit. The Spirit lives in them like God always promised would happen. When did the Spirit come? Pentecost. Peter says it fulfills the Promise of Joel 2:28-29: “I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh. And your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your old men will have dreams, your young men will see visions. And even on the male and female slave. I will pour out My Spirit in those days.” The “all flesh” here refers all humankind (again, see Gen 6:12), and thus, includes Jew and Gentile. So, in Joel 2:28-29 we have Jew, Gentile, slave and free, and male and female. Sound familiar? Galatians 3:28:

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

The word “promise” (epangelia) is mentioned six times in Galatians 3 (twice more in Galatians 4), starting with verse 14, which identifies it as the “promise of the Spirit.” In chapter 3, Paul reminds the Galatians that they’re received the Spirit of promise (3:2-3, 5, 14; see also 4:6; 5:16, 18). Again, Ephesians 5:18-6:9 is about what it means to be filled with the Spirit and how (as in Joel 2:28-29) the Spirit works through the “fleshly” solidarities of women and men, parents and children, free and slave. And, again, Paul had already talked about the Spirit working thru the "fleshly" solidarities of Jews and Gentiles in 2:11-22, saying, “the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called ‘Uncircumcision’ by the so-called ‘Circumcision’ (v. 11), you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the people of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise (v. 12), “who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall” (v.14), “by abolishing in His flesh the hostility, which is the Law composed of commandments expressed in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two one new human (anthropos)” (v. 15). The new human/anthropos/person/self is, of course, that of Christ and those in him as his body. This new solidarity occurs by participating in Christ’s death (Rom 6:3-11; Col 2:12, 20; 3:32; 2 Cor 5:14-15; Phil 3:10), which strips believers of “fleshly” solidarities - essentially dying to such solidarities. For example, both Paul and Jesus say the “one flesh” solidarity of marriage ends at death (Rom 7:2-3; Mark 12:25). Similarly, Paul says that the jurisdiction of the Law, around which was created the solidarity of the Israelites, ends at death (Gal 2:19-20; Rom 6:14; 7:1, 4-9). We can add to this that death to sin liberates from the slavery to the body of sin, or the flesh of sin (Rom 6:2-22; 8:3). There are different ways in which Paul expresses this idea, including, being baptized into Christ or into his death (Rom 6:3-5; Col 2:12), stripping off or crucifying the “old self” or “old human” (anthropos [Rom 6:6; Eph 4:22; Col 3:9]), and removing the body of the flesh (Col 2:11). But while death in Christ breaks the old solidarities of the flesh, participation in Christ’s resurrection (Rom 6:4-11; Col 2:12-13; 3:1) creates a new solidarity in Christ, energized by the Spirit. Paul refers to this as being clothed with or putting on Christ (Gal 3:27; Rom 13:14; 1 Cor 15:53-54) or putting on the “new self” or “new human” (anthropos [Rom 6:6; Eph 2:15; 4:24; Col 3:10]).

Back to Galatians 3:28, look at the verse 27:

“For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.”

This is the language of participation in Christ’s death and resurrection. This is the language of dying to the solidarities of the “flesh” (Gal 3:3) and living in the solidarity of Christ – a solidarity energized by the Spirit, rather than the flesh (3:3; 4:29; 5:16-25; 6:8) - so that Jew, Gentile, slave, free, man, & woman are now one in Christ. In 1 Corinthians 12:13, Paul writes,

“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.”

Then in Colossians 3:9-11,

 “Do not lie to one another, since you stripped off the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self, which is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created it— a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, and free, but Christ is all, and in all.”

And this same idea appears in other places in Paul such as 2 Corinthians 5 and in brief expositions in Romans and Ephesians.

Back in Galatians and the context of its writing, some Christians were mandating circumcision as a requirement for full membership in the Church and in the family of Abraham. Paul responds to this perceived threat to the freedom of the Christian (2:4; 5:1, 13) by noting the Law’s intent, which included contemporary confinement until the fulfillment of God’s promise to bless the Gentiles in the family of Abraham. He argues that requiring circumcision and other “works of the Law” (see 2:11-14) will divide the Church along ethnic lines (3:16), asserting Jewish privilege over and against Gentile Christians. Rather, Paul asserts that the badge of identity in Abraham’s family is not circumcision or other “works of the law,” but faith in Christ (Gal 2:16, 20; 3:2, 7, 9, 22) identifying one as belonging to Christ or being in Christ (Gal 3:29), including Gentiles (Gal 3:8). The Law is not of faith (Gal 3:12); its solidarity was a temporary measure that has now ended (Gal 3:22-25; Rom 10:4) with the coming of Christ and the Spirit. As noted in Ephesians 2:11-22, the Law - which necessarily separated Israel from the corrupting, “fleshly,” influence of its pagan, gentile neighbors - is no longer needed now that the Spirit has been poured out on those in Christ. In fact, the Law can be a hindrance to the working of the Spirit thru the flesh if it separates the Spirit-filled people of God from their non-Christian neighbors. With the outpouring of the Spirit, the partitioning must come down in order that the defilement of the world can be reversed. Now that the idolatrous Powers have been defeated by Jesus on the cross, the Spirit pours thru Christ as the head sanctifying the body of the Church/Israel. And thru the Church/Israel and its members, the Spirit and the Word liberate, revitalize, and recreate the world. Essentially, God's uses the same “fleshly” solidarities and dynamics of creation, through which sin corrupted the world, in reverse with the Spirit sanctifying, revitalizing, and eventually resurrecting - first Christ to Israel/Church, then Israel/Church to the world.

 

Complementarianism & Idolatry

Idolatry is worshipping a creation of God as a god. When that happens, humans (who are made in the image of God) become less like the image of God (Rom 1:23; Phil 3:19-21) and more like the image of the idol they worship (Pss 115:8; 135:18; Rom 1:23; Phil 3:19-21). They become slaves to these idols thru sin – like an addiction that is almost impossible to shake. The more they worship the idol and sin, the deeper enslaved they become. The enslaving sin and the idolatry has a deluding effect upon the worshipper, so they have difficulty recognizing the truth (Ps 115:5-8; Zech 10:2; Rom 1:21-22, 28, 31; Rev 21:8; 22:15). At the same time, the idolatry is debasing (Rom 1:24, 26-27; Col 3:5; Ezek 22:9-11; Phil 3:19; Eph 5:5). The idol eventually has a totalizing effect upon the person, absolutizing itself in the mind of the idolater, becoming all-consuming, encompassing the individual or group making itself appear permanent inevitable and inescapable. The prison becomes the ultimate reality, and the prisoner can never even think that there is any other way than that of the idol. Now, not only does the idolater become more like the idol, but he or she begins to see other people thru that idol. That’s part of idolatry’s deluded all-encompassing effect. The image of God in other people begins to break down in the mind of the idolater. People are objectified and then exploited by the idolater in service of the sin and the idol. Thus, a person can be used by an idolater for sex, money, power, etc. Idolatry then is what leads to oppression. That is the overall, general biblical conception of why things are bad.

Now, let’s take patriarchy. Result of the fall of humans (Gen 3:16). Men worship sex, possessions, power, masculinity, etc. as idols and begin to treat women like objects that they can take (Gen 4:19; 6:2; 11:29; 12:19; 20:3; 21:21; 24:3-4, 7, 37-38, 40, 51; 26:34; etc.). Thus, the result is polygamy, female slavery, prostitution, sexual assault, etc.

Now, specifically complementarianism. It’s become all-encompassing and totalizing to many complementarians to the point of being raised to the level of a gospel issue that there can be no “agree to disagree,” no tolerance, egalitarians must be excluded. Many complementarians are completely deluded on this issue, unable to see the truth in Scripture. They can’t even imagine another reality than their own, even to the point of believing complementarianism (as somewhat distinct from historical patriarchy) has always been what Christians have always believed. Whether they see it or not, complementarians deem women as subservient in some capacity. 

So, what are complementarians worshipping? Could be sex, power, possessions, tradition, masculinity, a theological doctrine or system, the past … many options.

There are biblical methods of addressing idolatry. One of the most important is truth. If idolatry deludes and deceives, truth is dangerous to idols. Because of that danger, idolatrous systems attempt to silence the truth thru bullying, peer pressure, and general fear. But even silence is not enough. Idolatry ultimately creates a delusional system so all-encompassing that no one will even think there is an alternative to it. Idolatry will create a world silent to the truth, so that people born into it never know there is an alternative. So, there are many people who are complementarians/patriarchists only because they were born into that system and knew no other until much later in life. They may have heard of egalitarianism but were told how evil it was by other people born into the system.

This is the reason Jesus is said in the bible to “set the captives free,” to “bring sight to the blind,” to be “the way the truth and the life,” “the light of the world, piercing the darkness,” and why what Jesus does is compared to a new Exodus and why his victory on the cross occurred during Passover.

Eternal Life and the Kingdom of God: Interpreting zoen aionion

 

The confusion surrounding the definition of the gospel frequently involves the misconception that the good news refers to a penal substitutionary death of Jesus instead of humans, in which he takes their punishment from God and they take his righteousness, thereby permitting humans to attain eternal life, either in heaven or in the resurrected body of new creation. While the gospel, in truth, is best defined as the Kingdom of God and Jesus as its king, the misconception that mistakes one of the gospel’s implications for the whole continues to squint at the magic eye of “justification by faith”, hoping to see a gospel with blurred vision. However, one occasionally hears a voice noting that the idea of inheriting “eternal life” appears frequently in Scripture, indicating that the concern of Jews in the first century was more about living eternally than hoping for the coming of God’s Kingdom. Let’s set the record straight.

The phrase zoen aionion is frequently translated as “eternal life” but is better to be translated as “the age to come”, referring to the age of the Kingdom of God, as opposed to “this present evil age” (Gal 1:4). This is most clearly seen in Mark 10:17-30. The rich young ruler asks, “What shall I do to inherit the age to come?” Note verses 23 & 24: “How hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!” The phrase “eternal life” then is practically synonymous with the “Kingdom of God.”

Therefore, we see the following verses:

1 Tim 6:12 – “take hold of the life of the age to come to which you were called”

Matt 19:29 – “inherit the life of the age to come”

Matt 25:34 – “inherit the kingdom”

Mark 10:17 – “inherit the life of the age to come”

Luke 10:25 - “inherit the life of the age to come”

Luke 18:18 – “inherit the life of the age to come”

1 Cor 6:9 & 10 - “inherit the kingdom of God”

1 Cor 15:50 – “inherit the kingdom of God”

Gal 5:21 - “inherit the kingdom of God”

John 3:3 – “unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 3:36 - “He who believes in the Son has the life of the age to come; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

John 3:4 – “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter (eiserchomai) a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?”

John 3:5 – “unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter (eiserchomai) into the kingdom of God.”

John 3:15 - “whoever believes will in Him have life in the age to come.”

John 3:16 – “whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have life in the age to come.”

Again, the phrase “eternal life” must be understood as another way of describing the “Kingdom of God.” Will that age to come be one in which believers are resurrected into Spirit-empowered bodies so as to live forever in the perfect new creation of glory? Yes, of course, but that is a part of the Kingdom that must not be mistaken for the whole. One can understand the gospel as including release from prison of sin/idolatry (Luke 4:18; Acts 14:15), favor (Luke 4:19; Acts 20:24), peace (Acts 10:36; Eph 6:15), and salvation (Luke 1:69-71; Acts 16:17), if that latter term is properly understood. But all of those individual aspects are parts of the whole that is the Kingdom of God as the rule & reign of God in Jesus. To say the gospel is about salvation (properly understood) is no different than saying the gospel is about peace. Don't mistake a part for the whole.

The Gospel in Romans 1:1-17

 

 

In recent years it has become far more apparent that most Christians have a misconceived conception of the gospel. As the reading of biblical scholars trickle down or (better) percolate up, the average Christian is becoming more aware of the deficiencies in our inherited definition of the gospel. Either from positive takes or by negative reactions, many believers are noting the possibility that a better definition is available. The traditional conception of the gospel, as passed down from the Reformers is popularly understood as follows: Jesus is born as God incarnate, lives a sinless life, is crucified on a cross, taking the penalty from God for our sins, so that he takes our sin, we take his righteous sinless life, which enables God to grant us mercy, so that when we die, we go to a reward in heaven, rather than sent by God to hell for eternal conscious torment. We could perhaps simplify this definition of the gospel with the term “justification by faith” or even as “God grants salvation to those who believe”. Now, there are some significant problems with the broader definition, but even if we summarized the gospel as “personal salvation”, we would still be mistaking a part for the whole, placing the other parts askew, and obscuring the necessary, overall framework. The problem is a misconception based on minimization; we’ve inherited a minimized gospel definition which results in a misunderstanding of its nature. Worse than the lack of accuracy, this misconceived gospel definition greatly affects how we then understand all the other subjects the gospel touches in the bible – significant subjects! While many more learned yet still mistaken Christians are aware of the fuller definition, they still prefer that which they learned in youth to the voluminous evidence to the contrary, standing athwart biblical scholarship, yelling “Stop”, on little islands of choice prooftexts, slowly sinking beneath the waves.

I would like to address a few of those prooftexts, while primarily focusing on Paul’s introduction to the Epistle to the Romans (1:1-17). This letter has been traditionally appreciated as the summa theologiae of Paul’s thought, particularly by the Reformed tradition that sees justification by faith as the gospel. In this regard, I want to look at several of the phrases Paul uses in his introduction, noting how they relate to the overall biblical understanding of the gospel as the Kingdom of God and its king, and showing that Paul’s understanding of the gospel conforms to the overall biblical picture.

Romans 1:1 – “gospel of God”

Is this the same gospel that Jesus taught in the Gospels: the good news of the Kingdom of God (Matt 4:23; 6:10; 9:35; 24:14; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:43; 8:1; 16:16; Acts 8:12; 20:25; 28:31)?

Romans 1:1, 4, 6, 7, 8 - “Christ”

The word “Christ”, of course, is a title referring to an anointed figure (a messiah), popularly understood to be a coming king like David.

Romans 1:3a – “concerning his son”

The “son” refers more to the king of Israel (see Ps 2:6-7; Acts 13:33-37; Heb 1:1-13 [Ps 110:1]; 5:5-6 [Ps 110:4]; Matt 26:63; Luke 4:41; John 1:49; 11:27; 20:31; Acts 8:37; 2 Cor 1:19; Gal 2:20; Eph 4:13; 1 John 5:20), than the second of the trinity.

Romans 1:3b – “descendent of David”

Throughout the Gospels, particularly in Matthew, Jesus is identified with David (Matt 1:1, 6, 17, 20; 12:3; Luke 2:11), as the Son of David (Matt 9:27; 12:23; 15:22; 20:30; 21:9, 15; Luke 1:27, 32, 69; 2:4; 3:31; John 7:42), and with Davidic passages applied to him (Matt 2:2, 9-10 [see Num 24:17]; 2:6 [see Micah 5:22]; 21:5 [see Zech 9:9; Gen 49:11; Num 24:17]; 22:42-45 [Psalm 110:1]).

Naturally, the references and links to David is to establish Jesus’ messianic kingship, but the reference goes even deeper than that. We have a first oblique reference to David in Gen 49:10-11 with the prophecies of Jacob about his sons:

“The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. He ties his foal to the vine, and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine; he washes his garments in wine, and his robes in the blood of grapes.”

Note the scepter. Note the foal (ʿayir), the female donkey ('āṯôn), and the female donkey’s colt (literally “son” [bēn]).

Jump to Numbers 22. The prophet Balaam is ordered by Balak, king of the Moabites to curse the Israelites (vv. 6-20). Balaam rides a female donkey ['āṯôn] to do so (vv. 21-33). In chapter 24, Balaam predicts a star and scepter shall come forth from Jacob that will crush Moab and possess Edom (vv. 17-18). We know this is referring to David because of 2 Samuel 7-8. When King David lived in his house and Yahweh has defeated his enemies, he attempts to build a house (a Temple) for Yahweh (2 Sam 7:1-7). Yahweh responds by promising that after David dies, he will raise up a descendant who will build that house (vv. 8-13). Significantly, Yahweh promises that this descendant’s kingdom will be established forever (vv. 13, 16). In the following chapter, David defeats Moab and Edom, fulfilling the Numbers 24 prophecy.

The question then becomes when and how will God fulfill his covenant promise to David and establish his kingdom forever (Pss 2; 18; 110; Isa 9:7; 2 Chron 13:5; 21:7; 33:7; Isa 9:7; 16:5; 22:22; Ezek 34:23; 37:24-25; Hos 3:5; Jer 23:5; 30:9; 33:15-26; Amos 9:11). Psalm 89 is a good example of the continued reaffirmation of God’s promise to establish a Davidic kingdom forever:

“I have made a covenant with my chosen; I have sworn to David my servant, I will establish your seed forever and build up your throne to all generations” (vv. 3-4)

Yet, the idea of a human king over Israel seems to conflict with God’s original intent that he should be king over Israel – a plan Israel had rejected (1 Sam 8; Judg 17:6; 18:1; 21:25). So while we read passages about a Davidic messiah’s eternal kingdom (particularly Psalms 2, 8, 89, 110, and even Daniel 7), we also see continued references to Yahweh as king, both of Israel and all of creation (Exod 15:18; 1 Chron 16:31; Psalm 5:2; 10:6; 24:8, 10; 29:10; 44:4; 45:11; 47:2, 6-8; 68:24; 74:12; 84:3; 93:1; 95:3; 96:10; 97:1; 98:6; 99:1; 145:1; 146:10; Isa 6:5; 24:23; 33:2; 41:21; 43:15; 44:6; 52:7; Jer 8:19; 10:10; 48:15; 51:57; Mic 4:7). Jesus appears to note this tension between a human king and God as king in Mark 12:35-37 (Matt 22:41-46; Luke 20:41-44), citing Psalm 110 as a riddle:

“How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? David himself said in the Holy Spirit, ‘The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’ David himself calls Him ‘Lord’; so in what sense is He his son?”

At his trial, Jesus will apply both Psalm 110 and Daniel 7:13 to himself (Mark 14:62; Matt 26:64; Luke 22:69), the latter reading,

“I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven, one like a Son of Man was coming, and he came up to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.”

The following verse reads:

“And to him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed (v. 14)”

The vision is then interpreted in verses 18, 22, and 27:

‘The saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, for all ages to come’ …  the Ancient of Days came and judgment was passed in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the time arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom … ‘Then the sovereignty, the dominion and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him.’

In both passages cited by Jesus, we have evidence of a human figure being given the kingdom along with God himself. An even stranger passage comes in Zechariah 9:9:

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your king is coming to you;

He is just and endowed with salvation,

Humble, and mounted on a donkey,

Even on a colt (ʿayir), the foal (bēn) of a donkey ('āṯôn).

Deutero-Zechariah (chps. 9-14) alludes to the Genesis 49:11 prophecy about the Davidic messiah.

However, as the context makes clear, the king here is Yahweh himself (9:1, 4, 6-8, 10-16). Zechariah 14 makes this explicit:

“And the LORD will be king over all the earth; in that day the LORD will be the only one, and his name the only one” (v. 9).

“Then it will come about that any who are left of all the nations that went against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts” (v. 16).

It appears that Deutero-Zechariah has combined the messianic David figure (see references to David in chps 12-13) with Yahweh himself.

Certainly, Matthew and John regarded Jesus as both the Davidic messiah and Yahweh himself.

When Jesus makes his triumphal entry into Jerusalem the week of Easter, both writers quote the Zechariah 9:9 prophecy (Matt 21:5; John 12:15). However, while both mostly follow the LXX in their quotes, they both diverge with the wording of the donkey but not in the same way. Looking at the Greek of Zechariah 9:9, it’s apparent that the LXX translator missed the reference to Genesis 49:11. Both Matthew and John attempt to rectify the LXX’s error, bringing their Greek closer to a reference to Genesis 49:11.

עירה וְלַשֹּׂרֵקָה בְּנִי אֲתֹנוֹ (Gen 49:11)

τὸν πῶλον αὐτοῦ καὶ τῇ ἕλικι τὸν πῶλον τῆς ὄνου (LXX Gen 49:11)

וְעַל־עַיִר בֶּן־אֲתֹנֽוֹת (Gen 49:11)

ἐπὶ ὑποζύγιον καὶ πῶλον νέον (LXX Zech 9:9)

ἐπὶ ὄνον καὶ πῶλον υἱὸν ὑποζυγίου (Matt 21:5)

ἐπὶ πῶλον ὄνου (John 12:15)

If this is what Deutero-Zechariah is doing, then not only does it fall into line with the conception of Christ from the Gospels and other early Christian sources; it points to a single messianic figure who is also the coming of Yahweh.

Paul also identified Jesus with Yahweh. In 1 Corinthians 8:6, Paul quotes the monotheistic Shema prayer of Deuteronomy 6:4 and includes Jesus within it. In both Romans 14:11 and Philippians 2:10, he will apply Isaiah 45:23 to Jesus. In the latter passage, Paul says that Jesus “existed in the form of God” but “did not regard equality with God a thing to be ἁρπαγμὸν.” A similar idea appears in Colossians 1:15-18.

What mattered most of all is that this coming messiah, this descendant of David, would bring this eternal kingdom, whether human or divine, bringing this eschatological Kingdom of God to earth as it is in heaven.

Romans 1:4 – “declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead.”

Jesus was put to death for falsely claiming to be the King of the Jews (Matt 26:63-66; 27:11, 29, 37; Mark 14:61; 15:9, 12, 18, 26; Luke 22:70f; 23:3, 37f; John 18:33, 39; 19:3, 7, 19, 21 [see also Matt 27:54; Mark 15:39; cp. Luke 23:47]). The resurrection vindicated his claim (Acts 13:33).

Romans 1:9 – “the preaching of the gospel of his son”

Again, a reference to kingship.

Romans 1:16 – “the gospel … is the power of God for salvation”

Does this refer to the traditional view that the gospel is about how one gets “saved”? Is it about justification by faith? No. Rather, what Paul is referring to is what he himself saw on many occasions. When the gospel of the Kingdom of God is preached, the Spirit calls people who hear it to accept the message in faithful obedience. You can see this by looking at 1 Thessalonians 2:12 and 2 Thessalonians 2:14. The gospel of the Kingdom is preached, and God calls them into that Kingdom. In 1 Thessalonians 2, Paul speaks to them the gospel of God (2:2, 4, 9), and, thru the process of that preaching/proclamation, “God calls [them] into his own kingdom and glory” (v. 12). As he notes in his follow-up letter, God calls them through their proclamation of the gospel (2 Thes 2:14). The content of the gospel isn’t about how one gets saved, but its proclamation does save. The good news of the Kingdom of God is power for salvation, even if the specific content of the gospel isn’t salvation.

Many who prefer to keep hugging the cherished familiar definition of the gospel they heard as children, will hunker down for their last stand in 1 Corinthians 15:1-2.

“Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved.”

However, like complementarians circling the wagons around 1 Timothy 2:12 but suddenly surprised by 1 Timothy 4:14, 5:1-2, 17, 19, the traditionalists have little ground to on which to stand. As in the Thessalonians, reference to the gospel’s saving power does not contradict the all the other references to the gospel as the good news of the Kingdom of God.

Again, Jesus is referred to as Christ, or king (v. 3). Again, his resurrection from the dead vindicated his claim to be the king of the Jews (v. 4). In verses 5-9, Paul lists numerous witnesses to that resurrection.

Around 30 CE, the disciples have witnessed the death and resurrection of Jesus. Luke wants to explain what happened afterwards. So, Jesus was speaking to them concerning the Kingdom of God (Acts 1:3). The disciples ask about restoring the Kingdom to Israel (1:6). Jesus replies that only the Father knows (1:7), BUT they are to receive the Spirit in power and be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth (1:8). So right off the bat in Acts, the subject of concern in the disciples’ commission is the Kingdom. This should be no surprise given the numerous, notable examples (Luke 1:33; 6:20; 8:10; 9:11, 27, 62; 10:9, 11; 11:2, 20; 12:31-32; 13:18, 20; 13:29; 17:20-21; 19:11; 21:31; 22:29; 23:42, 51). Just as in Paul, Luke understands that the gospel is the Kingdom (Luke 4:43-44; 8:1; 9:2, 60; 16:16), which is why it was being preached, proclaimed, and taught even before the crucifixion and resurrection. In Luke 9:1-6, Jesus commissions the disciples to go out preaching the gospel (v. 6). What is this gospel that he commissions them to preach (prior to his death and resurrection)? The Kingdom of God (v. 2).

So, when the Spirit is poured out in Acts, and Peter gives his first recorded sermon to launch the Church, it's on the promised descendent of David on the throne (2:30), who would be resurrected (2:31), to which the disciples are *witnesses* (2:32; see 1:8 again). In the sermon’s climax, Peter quotes Psalm 110 about a king given dominion over the world and seated next to God (see also Acts 5:31; 7:56). He identifies Jesus' as the christ/king. Of course, in Luke 20, Jesus follows up a discussion on the resurrection with one on the christ/king/descendent of David in Psalm 110. During his trial, Jesus is asked if he is the christ/king. He affirms it, citing Psalm 110 and Daniel 7 (Luke 22:66-71). So, Jesus is put to death for claiming to be the christ/king (Luke 22:71; 23:2-3, 11, 35, 37-39, 42). Joseph of Arimathea (who Luke notes was waiting for the Kingdom of God) takes Jesus' body (23:51). The resurrection is God overturning the verdict, vindicating Jesus as the true christ/king.

Back in Acts, Phillip preaches the gospel of the Kingdom of God (8:12), as does Paul (20:25; 28:23). In fact, the preaching of the Kingdom of God is the last line of the book (Acts 28:31). Paul preaching the gospel of the Kingdom of God in Rome (28:31) as a witness (28:23), goes back to the start of the book: preaching the gospel of the kingdom towards the ends of the earth as witnesses to the resurrection that proved Jesus was the king of that Kingdom.

Back to 1 Corinthians 15, remember that Paul’s objective here is to explain the general resurrection at the end of the present age to gentiles somewhat unfamiliar with this distinctively Jewish idea. In doing so, he naturally points to the most obvious (and so far only) example: the resurrection of Jesus. And since the resurrection vindicated Jesus’ claim to be the king of the Jews, and his crucifixion “enthroned” him in his Kingdom, and since the final, general resurrection of believers coincides with the full consummation of the Kingdom, it should no surprise that Paul mentions the gospel of the Kingdom of God and a few of the relevant passages. Again, Paul refers to Jesus’ kingly title of Christ throughout this passage. In verse 23, he refers to Jesus’ final appearance as a parousia, a technical expression to denote the arrival or visit of a king. Some 13 years after Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, when Emperor Nero visited the city of Corinth, advent coins were struck that carried the legend Adventus Augusti Corinth. The Latin word advent here corresponded to the Greek word parousia.

Importantly, in verse 24, Christ hands over the Kingdom to the Father, when he has katargese all rule, power, and authority. In verse 25, Paul expounds Psalm 110:1, the kingly psalm mentioned by Jesus at his trial and Peter at Pentecost, both identifying Christ as king of the Jews and denoting the coming of the Kingdom of God. In verse 27, he quotes Psalm 8:6, a psalm that mentions “son of man” (a phrase which Jesus called himself, and in which he linked to Daniel 7 and quoted with Psalm 110 at his trial). Psalm 8 is also a probable allusion to Adam and God granting authority to “him” (Gen 1:26-28). Paul had just mentioned Adam in verse 22 and will do so again in verse 45. The reference to Adam in verse 22 approximates a similar reference in Romans 5:14.

               So, while in 1 Corinthians 15, Paul continues his assertion that the proclamation of the gospel of the kingdom of God is a power to salvation by the simultaneous calling of the Spirit, his explanation for the resurrection, both of Christ and all believers, necessarily contains Kingdom of God language, verses, and references. Therefore, we can understand why Paul refers to the gospel in Romans 1:16 as “the power of God for salvation.”

Romans 1:17 – “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed.”

Here we have one of the most significant ideas of Romans, perhaps, as many believe, the single point that Paul wants to convey to the Roman church. Significantly, as the New Perspective on Paul has shown, the righteousness of God (θεοῦ δικαιοσύνην) refers to Yahweh’s characteristic faithfulness to the covenant he made with Abraham and the other patriarchs (Gen 12, 15, 17). It is not an attribute that can be imputed into the believer.

In Mark 12:26-27 (Mat 22:23-33; Luke 20:27-40), Jesus answers a question from the Sadducees about the authenticity of the resurrection. In doing so, he notes the incident of Moses and the burning bush, quoting Exodus 3:6, in which Yahweh says, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Exodus 3 does not refer to any sort of resurrection; so why did Jesus say (in Luke 20:37) that Moses showed the dead are raised (see also Matt 22:29-32; Mark 12:26-27)? Here Jesus isn't citing the passage as proof text for the resurrection, but rather pointing to what the passage says about the character and nature of God, which then results in resurrection. Exodus 2 ends noting the bondage and affliction of the Israelites, and that God is remembering his covenant with the patriarchs, which had predicted the Egyptian enslavement and liberation (Gen 15:13-14). So, in Exodus 3 (a mix of the J, E, and P sources), God identifies himself to Moses as that God of the patriarchs (v.6), the one who hears the affliction of his people (v.7), who liberates (vv.8-9), who keeps his promises (v.8). In vv. 14-16, there's a repeat of God's identification with the patriarchs twice more, adding his name: Yahweh. Based on the verb "to be", it indicates both a character & relationship: "I am what I am, I will be what I will be." A name to be remembered thru all generations (v.15). Yahweh is saying that his character and nature is one in which the Israelites of all generations can depend, that he is with them, and that he keeps his promises. That's part of the covenant, beginning with Abraham and the other patriarchs.

So, again, Jesus is pointing to a Pentateuch passage, recording an event after the death of the patriarchs of the covenant, which references the covenant, references the patriarchs, and expresses the dependability of God's character as evidence for the resurrection. The way the redactor put the Pentateuch together (& the way the Yahwist put his narrative together) the calling of Abraham & the election of Israel (Gen 12) is about how to fix the fall of humanity from Genesis 3 to 11 and onward. Part of that fall is the introduction of death in humans (Gen 3).

Again, the Gospels are about the good news of the Kingdom of God and God becoming king through Jesus; from his David-like anointing by John the Baptist to his enthronement on the cross.[1] Mark opens his “beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ (1:1) with three references to the exodus. Verses 2-3 of the first chapter mix Exodus 23:20 and Malachi 3:1a (which is referencing Exodus 23:20) and Isaiah 40:3 which is a part of Deutero-Isaiah's new exodus motif.[2] Malachi 3:1b predicts Yahweh appearing in his Temple (see Mark 11:15). The "dead" Moses appears in Mark 9. Yahweh has returned to the Temple like Malachi 3:1 predicted. The glory of God is now in Jesus, not the Temple. The theophany of the burning bush is being referenced by the greatest theophany of them all. Jesus is about to have his Last Supper, a Passover meal. He's about to be crowned king of the Jews on the cross, during Passover. His death will be a baptism (Mark 10:38-39), later understood by Paul as like the parting of the Red Sea (1 Cor 10:1-4). He's about to launch the greatest Exodus of them all in his resurrection.

So, in Mark 12:26-27, Jesus is talking about resurrection just days before his own, affirming its validity by referencing a theophanic story about the character, dependability, covenant-faithfulness (righteousness) of God. That's exactly how Paul himself describes the gospel in Romans 1:17.

In conclusion, as can be seen from the terms & phrases he uses, Paul is making many references indicating that his understanding of the gospel as the Kingdom of God and Jesus as its king conforms with that of the Gospel writers and Jesus himself. Rather than being about justification by faith or how one gets “saved”, the gospel is about God’s rule and reign thru Jesus Christ, which then brings salvation in its proclamation, but also peace, justice, and healing.

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[1] Intended by the Romans to be a macabre, mocking parody of the charge against Jesus, the soldiers dress him up as a king with robe, staff, and crown. They then put him on the cross and hang a sign above his head, “This is the king of the Jews” (Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38; John 19:19). In the most startling, scandalous, ironic event in human history, Jesus becomes King of the Jews and King of the World by being humiliated and executed on a Roman cross. This is his coronation and enthronement. This is how his kingdom arrives.

[2] This passage also references the “good news” (bāśar; εὐαγγελίζω [LXX]) twice in verse 9.