The idea that we can equally view Jesus' death and resurrection from the vantage-point of Leviticus, as well as Leviticus from the Vantage-point of Jesus' death and resurrection is instructive, and bears a lot of fruit. Leviticus depicts the Day of Atonement, and the sacrifice in the Central Sanctuary as not only a place of forgiveness of the nation of Israel's sins, but also as a purification of the sanctuary (See Lev. 16). Scholars who reflect on this, chief among them being Jacob Milgrom and Jon Levenson (most others simply draw on them), write that the Central Sanctuary, first the mobile tabernacle, and then the Jerusalem Temple is a microcosm of the world. The purification of the tabernacle, then, restores balance to a creation that has been put into disharmony with its Creator, so that the LORD's blessing may flow into that creation, and the creation is upheld. Granted, this is done on a small scale in the purification of the tabernacle, but it is done on behalf of the whole world, and stands in for the reconciliation of the whole world to its Creator.
Likewise, through Christ's death and resurrection, Christ has entered into the heavenly sanctuary and made purification for sin. This not only allows for the believer to enter into right relationship with his or her Creator, but also reconciles all of creation to God. Christ upholds the world by the word of his power by virtue of the purification that he made in his death and resurrection (Hebrews 1). what was done on behalf of Israel in the Central Sanctuary and Jerusalem Temple has been done on behalf of the whole world through Jesus Christ. As Paul writes in Romans 8:19-22,
19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.
Every thing has been placed under Christ's feet due to his victorious, purifying work on the Cross. As Creation is made subject to him rather than to futility, creation is restored.
What does this mean concerning the comprehensive scope of the Gospel? Tell me what you think, and we will continue this discussion tomorrow.
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
How does the NT relate to the OT: A Two-Track Approach
One way that the Old Testament can relate to the New Testament is through what I call a two-track approach. Here is a description of what I mean.
An interesting vantage-point, I think, is to view the relationship between the OT
and the New is that we are on two tracks, one leading from the OT to the New,
and one leading from the New Testament to the Old. In any point of Biblical
theology, we can stand from the vantage-point of one of the testaments and ask
how the other illuminates it. For example, it is commonplace to read the OT
Sacrifices from the vantage-point of Jesus. Jesus fulfills the OT sacrificial
system. Is it illuminating to read the crucifixion of Jesus from the vantage-point
of Leviticus? What would it have to say that is of help in understanding the
nature of what Jesus has done in his crucifixion and resurrection? Even the last statement betrays a Christocentric approach to the text that the self-consciously Christian scholar cannot escape. As a Christian, I will
ask different things from the text than a Jewish scholaror scholar from another
religion or with no faith experience at all.
This
is a Canonical approach like Brevard Childs’, in which the OT and NT are the
Church’s book, and that what is authoritative for the church is the Bible as
read in the church. The Bible is interpreted in the community of Faith, and has
a binding word to say to them. This is almost similar to Brueggemann’s
approach, in which he writes that the NT story is one way with which to
interpret the OT, but it is not necessary. There are a variety of appropriate
approaches. This fits into Brueggemann’s radically community centered view of
authority by which the community can accept the witness of the Scriptures, in
which they become binding, but they can just as easily not. Childs sees the
whole Bible as being a reliable revelation of God. This of course, is also
testimony concerning God, but it is more than that. It is more than just
Testimony, but a truth statement concerning God.
Tomorrow, we will unpack what viewing the crucifixion through the lens of Leviticus has to say about Christ's redemptive work on the cross.
Sunday, February 10, 2013
The Relationship between the Old and New Testaments, a two-track approach.
It is no doubt that from a Christian reading of the Old Testament, that Jesus Christ fulfilled much of the Old Testament Law, as, for example, Jesus pronounces all foods clean in Mark 7:19 (Textus Receptus has a slightly different reading here, as reflected in the NKJV, "because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, [thus]
purifying all foods?)." This in essence, nullifies the role of the dietary and food laws in the life of the Christian community. In a similar manner, Christ's high-priestly sacrifice has fulfilled the sacrificial law for the forgiveness of sins (interestingly, Hebrews has little to say about peace and thank offerings), as illustrated in the book of Hebrews. As the sin offering at the Day of Atonement was given by limited, imperfect, sinful priests who needed to atone for their own sins first, it needed to be repeated year after year, and could not clean the conscience. Christ's self-sacrifice was once and for all, and could clean the conscience, as his sacrifice was perfect.
When we look from the vantage-point of the New Testament witness, then, the Day of Atonement sacrifice, as described in Lev 16, is of no longer any use for the forgiveness of sins, the perfect has replaced the imperfect. When we look from the vantage-point of Leviticus 16, however, and explore what Leviticus has to say about what was accomplished in the Day of Atonement, our view of what Jesus has done is enriched.
We will explore this further tomorrow. God bless.
When we look from the vantage-point of the New Testament witness, then, the Day of Atonement sacrifice, as described in Lev 16, is of no longer any use for the forgiveness of sins, the perfect has replaced the imperfect. When we look from the vantage-point of Leviticus 16, however, and explore what Leviticus has to say about what was accomplished in the Day of Atonement, our view of what Jesus has done is enriched.
We will explore this further tomorrow. God bless.
Friday, February 8, 2013
How does the New Testament and Old Testament relate to each other?
What I would like to begin exploring on Bible Thoughts Today is the relationship between the Old and New Testaments. The church has always affirmed that what is known as the Old Testament is Christian Scripture, as much as the New Testament is. Has the coming of Jesus changed the status of the Old Testament? Is the Old Testament and what it contains merely a "shadow" of things fulfilled in the New Testament? These questions are not easy to answer, because the Old Testament is read differently in the light of what Jesus has done in his life, death, resurrection, and ascension to God the Father's right hand. I am going to make a statement related to the issue of the relationship between the two testaments, and let the discussion begin, and as that discussion unfold, talk about what has been said about the testaments' relationship.
The Bible can be read multivalently. It is fruitful to read Genesis by itself, read it in its relationship with the rest of the Old Testament, and read it in relationship with the rest of the Christian Canon. The messages we get from Genesis as we do this are beneficial and complementary to each other. An example of this is when we read in Genesis 12:1-3 that through Abraham's seed all the families of the earth will be blessed. In relation to Genesis alone, we see this clearly in the story of Joseph, as he saves the families of the earth from starvation. In relation to the Old Testament as a whole, we see Israel's mission of blessing and witness to all of the peoples of the earth. In relation to the New Testament, we see this blessing through the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Abraham's greatest Son, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. We can see, as well, that believers in Christ are to extend the blessing, as heirs of Abraham's promise.
Respond to this blog, and let the discussion begin. Tomorrow, I will reflect on how the Old and New Testaments are fruitfully read in dialogue with each other, looking at How the Book of Hebrews reflects on the Day of Atonement in Leviticus 16, and what light Leviticus casts on what Christ's sacrifice accomplishes.
Thank you for reading Bible Thoughts Today. If you find this blog helpful, recommend it to others, and leave a comment.
The Bible can be read multivalently. It is fruitful to read Genesis by itself, read it in its relationship with the rest of the Old Testament, and read it in relationship with the rest of the Christian Canon. The messages we get from Genesis as we do this are beneficial and complementary to each other. An example of this is when we read in Genesis 12:1-3 that through Abraham's seed all the families of the earth will be blessed. In relation to Genesis alone, we see this clearly in the story of Joseph, as he saves the families of the earth from starvation. In relation to the Old Testament as a whole, we see Israel's mission of blessing and witness to all of the peoples of the earth. In relation to the New Testament, we see this blessing through the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Abraham's greatest Son, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. We can see, as well, that believers in Christ are to extend the blessing, as heirs of Abraham's promise.
Respond to this blog, and let the discussion begin. Tomorrow, I will reflect on how the Old and New Testaments are fruitfully read in dialogue with each other, looking at How the Book of Hebrews reflects on the Day of Atonement in Leviticus 16, and what light Leviticus casts on what Christ's sacrifice accomplishes.
Thank you for reading Bible Thoughts Today. If you find this blog helpful, recommend it to others, and leave a comment.
Monday, February 4, 2013
Resources for Transformational Development from the Old Testament: How do we use Old Testament Law? Part 5: John Rogerson's Method
February 1, 2013’s Bible Thoughts Today explores
method in interpreting Old Testament Law for transformational development. It
concentrates on the method of John Rogerson, a British Old Testament theologian
and ethicist.
So far, this
blog has been quite general and has roughly outlined the role that the legal
material of the Pentateuch played in the life of Israelite and Jewish
communities, and has drawn some implications for some of the goals of
development work. This begs the question concerning how the specific, time and
culture bound, specific legal material that makes up the whole of the
Pentateuch’s legal material is used in development work. Again, I draw upon the
categories of Old Testament ethics in order to suggest an answer to the question.
John
Rogerson’s method in his book, Theory and
Practice of Old Testament Ethics involves the discovery and use “of
imperatives of redemption” and “structures of grace.” Rogerson defines an
“imperative of redemption” as, “a reason for commanding a particular action
that is grounded in what God has graciously done in redemption.” He defines a
“structure of grace” as “a social arrangement that is meant to work our
graciousness in practical terms, so that both those who administer it and those
who benefit it are aware of the graciousness implied.”[1]
Rogerson’s
“imperatives of redemption” and “structures of grace” work in tandem. An
example of an imperative of redemption is Deuteronomy 15:14b-15,
Give to him as the LORD your God
has blessed you. Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the LORD your God
redeemed you. That is why I give you this command today.
This command is given in the
context of a law regarding providing liberally for a Hebrew slave when the
slave leaves a master’s service after his limited term of service ends,
If a fellow Hebrew, a man or a
woman, sells himself to you and serves you six years, in the seventh year you
must let him go free. And when you
release him, do not send him away empty-handed. Supply him liberally from your
flock, your threshing floor and your winepress. (Deuteronomy 15:12-14a)
The structure of grace, which
provides for the release from a limited period of slavery used to settle debts,
is rooted in the fact that the Israelite who purchased the Hebrew slave is
descendant of a people who were slaves in Egypt. Because the master’s
ancestors, and hence the master, has experienced the pain of slavery, and been
redeemed from it by God, the master should be generous with the slave(s) that
he has. The law regarding the release of slaves in Deuteronomy and Leviticus 25[2] and the
law of Jubilee in which sold land reverts back to its original owners, and thus
a family’s patrimony and means of independent livelihood is restored (Lev 25)
is grounded in the fact that since Israel was redeemed by God from Egypt, the
Israelites are God’s servants and should not be treated as another’s slaves.
The idea that the Israelites were slaves in Egypt that God redeemed is the
motive force, or “imperative of redemption” behind the laws in Deuteronomy 15
and Leviticus 25 regarding the freeing and generous treatment of Hebrew slaves
and the return of a family’s ancestral land in the year of Jubilee.[3]
The
limited scope of the areas of life covered in the legal material of the
Pentateuch means that rather than providing a comprehensive rule for every area
of Israelite life, they were meant to portray the character of the LORD, and
the type of society that Israel had to be to be pleasing to the LORD. The point
of the law regarding slaves in Deuteronomy, Leviticus and the Book of the
Covenant in Exodus is that ideally slavery should not exist in Israel,[4] and the
law of the Kinsman redeemer that purchases a family member out of debt slavery
or a piece of land that has been sold to settle debts reinforces this picture.[5]
The
legal material in the Pentateuch paints a picture of the gracious character of
God, and the type of society that Israel was to be to please God and live with
God in their midst. This material pointed Israel Godward, and was to transform
them into a people of God. The material in the Pentateuch regarding slavery
accepts that there is slavery in Israel, but points to the ideal that there
should not be, and provides mechanisms to remove slavery from Israel grounded
in God’s gracious act of delivering Israel from slavery. In cultural contexts
that differ from Iron Age Israel to a greater or lesser degree, the legal
material does not provide culturally contextualized mechanisms to remove
slavery from a society, but shows the character of the LORD, who demands that
it is removed for God’s blessing and presence to be in a society. The
imperative of redemption that God delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt shows
the character of God that has also redeemed us in Christ Jesus from bondages
that effect societies and peoples throughout the world on multiple levels. The
imperative of redemption that God has redeemed us so we should strive for the
redemption of others calls for the development structure of grace through which
the character of our gracious God can be manifested through our different
societies.
Bible
Thoughts Today has briefly examined the legal material in the Pentateuch
and has concluded that this material was promulgated to turn Israelite society
Godward, so that it becomes a society in which God could dwell and which God
could bless. From this, it concluded that helping people find a way of life
that God blesses and in which they could live in God’s presence should be a
primary goal of Christian development work. This is rooted in pursuing the aims
and priorities of God in public and private life. If this is the case, then
Christian development work should be rooted in evangelism and discipleship
first and foremost. We then briefly examined a method with which to apply the
individual, concrete and culturally specific laws in the Pentateuch’s legal
material to different societies. To this end, we lifted up Rogerson’s
“imperatives of redemption” and “structures of grace” as a method with which to
apply the individual laws of the Pentateuch to culturally different contexts.
We hope you have found this past week’s reflections on the
use of the Old Testament Law in transformational development useful in
stimulating thought concerning the use of the Bible in contemporary society. If
you did, we ask you to mention Bible Thoughts Today and recommend it to your
social networking circle. This next week, the discussion will be guided, but
more open ended, as we turn to the use of the Bible in contemporary evangelical
thought, starting off with a discussion of the relationship between the Old and
New Testaments.
Resources for Transformational Development from the Old Testament: How do we use Old Testament Law? Part 4: Implications for Christian Development Work
January
31, 2013’s reading on Bible Thoughts Today begins to explore the “so
what” concerning the goal of Old Testament law in Israelite society. What does
it teach us concerning what the aims of an intentionally Christian
transformational development should be?
III. Implications for Christian Development Work
What is the
take-away of this study in Old Testament law for Christian development? 1) It
shows that the end goal of God’s giving a law to Israel was so that Israel
would prosper materially and enjoy God’s presence in their midst. It shows the
ethos and values of God in interaction with his people. God desires to bless
and dwell with his people. If this is the end goal of God in the foundational
documents of the Bible, helping people to live a life that God blesses in the
presence of God should be the primary goal of Christian development work. 2)
There is a way of life that God blesses, and this is rooted in pursuing the
aims and priorities of God in public and private life. 3) An outgrowth of this
is that evangelism and discipleship are necessary components of Christian
development, as it seeks to develop a people motivated to live in a way that
God blesses. Samuel Moffett speaks of evangelism as the leading partner in
mission, in which evangelism restores the “vertical relationship” with God and secondarily
our “horizontal relationship” with our fellow humans is restored.[1] In a
similar vein, Ronald Hesselgrave writes that evangelism is more important than
social action because the eternal is more important than the temporal, but the
two should not be separated in the overall mission of the church as witness to
God’s Kingdom. He goes on to write that social concern is not merely a support
to the church’s mission, but part of it.[2]
What I am
talking about when I mention that discipleship and evangelism are necessary
components of Christian development is a bit different than Moffett’s and
Hesselgrave’s comments, with which I am in full agreement. To live as God’s
blessed people, and to experience God’s blessing involves a conversion of a
culture Christward, in which components of the culture are turned toward Christ
in faithful obedience to the Gospel.[3] The
legal codes in the Pentateuch were promulgated to turn Israel Godward, to
convert the once Egyptian slaves into the people of God that live in covenant
with their God, and experience the holistic blessing that such a relationship
would bring. This discipleship and formation of the people of God was
promulgated through the Levitical teaching of Torah, and through the
maintenance and participation in the religious life of Israel (1 Chron 26; 2
Chron 34).[4] The
evangelism and discipleship of people is the equivalent of the Levitical
promulgation of Torah and calling people into a relationship with God in Christ
Jesus, turning a people Christward in obedience that is culturally informed. As
God transforms a community, the blessing of God living in their midst through
discipleship and worship is transformative.
Tomorrow we will look at some method from John Rogerson, an
Old Testament ethicist that deals with the interpretation and application of
Old Testament legal material in our contemporary contexts.
Do you have questions, concerns, strong disagreements, or
anything else to add to the discussion? Please respond by making a comment.
Here is a broad question for you. What should the
relationship be between evangelism, discipleship and development work?
[4] Patrick D.
Miller, The Religion of Ancient Israel (Louisville:
Westminster/John Knox, 2000) 173-74. I am well aware that through much of
Israelite and Judean history, Torah was not promulgated as it should have been
and the sacrificial system was corrupted. This levitical instruction and temple
worship was the ideal.
Resources for Transformational Development from the Old Testament: How do we use Old Testament Law? Part 3: What is the "Good" in the Pentateuch's Legal Material?
Today, January 30, 2013, Bible Thoughts Today continues
the discussion began on January 28 concerning using the legal material in the
Pentateuch in transformational development. Previously, we provided our thesis,
and the general program of our presentation. Then, we summarized the legal
material in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, with a concentration on the
blessings and the curses that are found appended to the legal material. Today,
we posit an answer to the question concerning what is the “good” in the
Pentateuch’s legal material. Our answer may surprise some of our readers.
II. What is “the Good” in the Pentateuch’s Legal Material?
What does
the overall flow and content of the Pentateuch’s legal material, especially the
blessings and the curses, have to say about the question, “what is the good?”
It seems that the legal material, instead of being an end unto itself, has a
goal, that Israel will have a prosperous life in the land that God has given
them. Holiness through obedience to the law is to be seen as instrumental to
the end of a blessed life with God. The believing Israelite looked beyond legal
stipulation and obligation to a blessed life in communion with God.[1] In
Leviticus 26, the LORD does not only promise deliverance from enemies and
astounding productivity in the Land of Promise, but also promises,11
“I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you. 12
I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people.” Obedience to
the law provided prosperity to the Israelites, as well as God’s presence in
their midst.
Tomorrow we will discuss implications that our previous
discussions have for Christian transformational development, and post a second
blog defining what we mean by Christian transformational development.
Thank you for reading our blog today. Please recommend Bible
Thoughts Today to others if you find the blog helpful to you, and begin a
fruitful discussion by posting a comment. God bless.
[1]
See for example, Walter Kaiser, who uses holiness as a central theme for Old
Testament ethics (Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Toward Old Testament Ethics
[Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1983]). Holiness is a central theme, but it is a
means to living life in the land with God, not an end.
Resources for Transformational Development from the Old Testament: How do we use Old Testament Law? Part 2: Summary of Legal Material: The Blessing and the Curse
Resources
for Transformational Development from the Old Testament: How do we use Old
Testament Law?
Part
2: Summary of Legal Material: The Blessing and the Curse
On Bible Thoughts Today for January 29, we are summarizing
the blocks of legal material in Exodus, Leviticus and Deuteronomy,
concentrating on the appended blessings and curses. We then notice an important
similarity between them.
Here are summaries of the blessing and curse passages at the end
of the Pentateuch’s main legal sections.
A) Exodus 23:20-31. The bulk of the
legal material in Exodus, called the “Book of the Covenant,” is in Exodus
20:1-23:21. After the “Ten Words” in Exodus 20, we find laws dealing with
everything from the celebration of religious festivals (23:14-19) to what to do
with an ox that gores someone (21:28-32).[1] At the end of this block
of material is the following passage:
20 "See, I
am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to
the place I have prepared. 21 Pay attention to him and listen to what he says.
Do not rebel against him; he will not forgive your rebellion, since my Name is
in him. 22 If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I
will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you. 23 My
angel will go ahead of you and bring you into the land of the Amorites,
Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites and Jebusites, and I will wipe them
out. 24 Do not bow down before their gods or worship them or follow their
practices. You must demolish them and break their sacred stones to pieces. 25
Worship the LORD your God, and his blessing will be on your food and water. I
will take away sickness from among you, 26 and none will miscarry or be barren
in your land. I will give you a full life span. 27 "I will send my terror
ahead of you and throw into confusion every nation you encounter. I will make
all your enemies turn their backs and run. 28 I will send the hornet ahead of
you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. 29 But I
will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become
desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. 30 Little by little I will
drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession
of the land. 31 "I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea
of the Philistines, and from the desert to the River. I will hand over to you
the people who live in the land and you will drive them out before you.” Exod
23:20-31
At
the end of the Book of the Covenant is the obligation of the LORD to Israel as
obedient covenant partners. 1) God will fight against Israel’s enemies; 2) God
will bless food and water and grant fertility and long life; 3) God will drive
out the inhabitants of the Promised Land and Israel will inherit it.[2]
B)
Deuteronomy 28-30. Deuteronomy 5-27 starts with a passage that reads:
1 Moses
summoned all Israel and said: Hear, O Israel, the decrees and laws I declare in
your hearing today. Learn them and be sure to follow them. 2 The LORD our God
made a covenant with us at Horeb. 3 It was not with our fathers that the LORD
made this covenant, but with us, with all of us who are alive here today. (Deut
5:1-3; NIV)
Deuteronomy
is depicted as a renewal of the covenant with the generation of Israel that
survived the wilderness wanderings.[3] It is a sermon by Moses
that updates the material found in earlier blocks of legal material as Israel
enters the Promised Land. This is interspersed with new laws, such as laws
concerning kings and prophets (17-18), how to deal with Israelites who become
like the nations they are dispossessing (13), and how to deal with the nations
in the land of Canaan that they are dispossessing as opposed to nations far
away with which they battle (20).
In much more developed form; the
large block of legal material is followed by instructions for a ceremony of
blessings and cursings that the tribes of Israel are to perform when they enter
the land (Deut 27:11-26).[4] This is followed by an
elaborate pronouncing of blessing on obedience and even more elaborate
pronouncement of curse on disobedience (Deut 28-29). This is followed in Deut
30 by a promise of restoration to the land when Israel repents. The section of
blessings and cursings concludes with the following two verses.
19 This day I
call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before
you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your
children may live 20 and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his
voice, and hold fast to him. For the LORD is your life, and he will give you
many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob.
This, in my reading is the goal of
the legal material in Deuteronomy, for the people of Israel to enjoy a
prosperous and long life in the land that the LORD swore to give to Israel’s
first ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
C)
Leviticus 26. Leviticus 26 is a pronouncement of blessing for obedience or
cursing for disobedience concerning the legal stipulations found in the
so-called “Holiness Code” in Leviticus 17-25. Most interesting regarding
Leviticus 17-25 is the intermixing of what later interpreters have called
moral, ceremonial and civil law. At the end of this legal material is a
blessing for obedience (26:1-13) and a curse for disobedience (26:14-39). The
last few verses are a promise of forgiveness and remembrance of the repentant,
even after Israel falls victim to God’s curse (26:40-44).
What all three bodies of legal
material have is an appended blessing for obedience, and in the case of
Deuteronomy and Leviticus, a curse for disobedience. After disobedience there
is a promise of renewed relationship between God and Israel after Israel is
humbled by his punishment and repents.[5]
Return
tomorrow where we briefly discuss the “good” that the law is trying to achieve
in the life of Israel.
[2]
Admittedly, God driving out the previous inhabitants of the Promised Land is a
problem for a number of ethicists. The Pentateuch reflects upon this dilemma
and provides a response (Genesis 15:12-16; Deuteronomy 9:1-6; 20:16-18). The
nations that Israel is to dispossess are being dispossessed because of their
wickedness.
[3]
There has been discussion regarding Deuteronomy being modeled after Late Bronze
Age Hittite suzerain-vassal Treaties. For a recent discussion, see Richard
Hess, Israelite Religions: An
Archaeological and Biblical Survey (Grand Rapids, Mich/ Nottingham,
England: Baker/Apollos, 2007) 55-57. In this writer’s opinion, the elaborate
curse has more in common with Neo-Assyrian treaties than the more gentle
Hittite treaties. The problem with such discussions is that in the scribal
traditions of the ANE, we find a conservatism in which old forms endure, and
rather than borrowing from Hittite or Neo-Assyrian treaty forms, Deuteronomy
may be drawing on more indigenous forms found in a cultural milieu similar to
that of the Hittites and the Neo-Assyrians.
[4]
The blessings are not spelled out, but the cursings are.
[5]
It seems that Leviticus comes short of promising a return to the land, as we
see in Deuteronomy.
Resources for Transformational Development from the Old Testament: How do we use Old Testament Law? Part 1: Introduction
Today, I will be reposting some blogs that I posted last week.
Hopefully releasing it bit by bit will encourage all of you to pause, read and
think about the interpretation and application of the legal material in the
Pentateuch for transformational development.
The series of blogs will concentrate on Exodus 20-23, Deuteronomy
5-30 and Leviticus 17-26. A common feature of these large blocks of material is
that after the legal material is presented, there are sections concerning
blessing for obeying the legal material, and curses for disobedience. In all
three bodies of material are given in the context of a covenant between Israel
and the LORD. It is my contention that the legal material can be viewed
as a means by which Israel was converted and turned “Godward,” to adapt the
phrase turning a culture “Christward,” coined by Andrew Walls. This forming of
a covenant with Israel and a turning of Israel Godward through a body of
instruction was a preparation for God to dwell in Israel’s presence and bless
Israel. This can be used as a model of development that places evangelism and
discipleship at the heart of Christian development work. As a culture turns
“Christward,” they are transformed into a people in whom the presence of God
can dwell and bless.
The Old Testament discipline in existence that can contribute most to the use
of the Old Testament in development is Old Testament ethics. The basic question
that ethics asks is “what is the good?” The large legal sections in the
Pentateuch, by putting the blessings and cursings as the climax of the legal
material, points to the good being enjoying a blessed life that is indwelled by
God’s presence. A second and related question that relates to the first is,
“how is the good achieved?” To answer this question, I draw on two concepts
from John Rogerson, “Imperatives of Redemption,” and “Structures of Grace.” The
imperatives of redemption are motive clauses that ground the law in the context
of God’s gracious acts, usually the deliverance of Israel from Egypt. The
structures of grace are laws that form a societal mechanism that implements
God’s graciousness in practical terms. I use the legal material involving the
release of the Hebrew slave as a case in point to illustrate both of Rogerson’s
concepts.
Come back tomorrow. We can continue the discussion.
Saturday, February 2, 2013
Welcome to Bible Thoughts Today
Hi all,
Welcome to the newly formatted Bible Thoughts Today. The purpose of this blog is to explore the use of the Bible in contemporary evangelical Christianity, and to explore ways that it can be used more faithfully and effectively.
I will start by sharing a recent experience I had leading a discussion in a college class that I teach. We were talking about the inspiration of Scripture, and I was pleased that they grounded their discussion of inspiration in the role that Scripture played in their lives, that the Bible was our spiritual guide and that it was useful for teaching about how to live the Christian life, very much what 2 Timothy 3:16-17 talks about.
What the class did NOT talk about in almost all cases was the cornerstone to most conservative evangelical statements concerning the inspiration of scripture, that the scripture is inspired in the original manuscripts. The students seemed to ground their view of inspiration in the infallible teaching authority of the Scriptures, not in the idea of its inerrancy, which seems to be the issue on which conservative evangelical statements concentrate.
I would like to start off the restart of Bible Thoughts Today with a question concerning what evangelical churches are teaching parishioners about inspiration, if anything. In many ways, the college class's approach to inspiration is helpful, as it sidesteps the sticky issue that we no longer have any of the original manuscripts and recognizes the idea that the Bible has made its largest impact on the world through translation.
What have you been taught about the inspiration of Scripture, or for you church leaders, what have you taught the people that God has put under your care?
Welcome to the newly formatted Bible Thoughts Today. The purpose of this blog is to explore the use of the Bible in contemporary evangelical Christianity, and to explore ways that it can be used more faithfully and effectively.
I will start by sharing a recent experience I had leading a discussion in a college class that I teach. We were talking about the inspiration of Scripture, and I was pleased that they grounded their discussion of inspiration in the role that Scripture played in their lives, that the Bible was our spiritual guide and that it was useful for teaching about how to live the Christian life, very much what 2 Timothy 3:16-17 talks about.
What the class did NOT talk about in almost all cases was the cornerstone to most conservative evangelical statements concerning the inspiration of scripture, that the scripture is inspired in the original manuscripts. The students seemed to ground their view of inspiration in the infallible teaching authority of the Scriptures, not in the idea of its inerrancy, which seems to be the issue on which conservative evangelical statements concentrate.
I would like to start off the restart of Bible Thoughts Today with a question concerning what evangelical churches are teaching parishioners about inspiration, if anything. In many ways, the college class's approach to inspiration is helpful, as it sidesteps the sticky issue that we no longer have any of the original manuscripts and recognizes the idea that the Bible has made its largest impact on the world through translation.
What have you been taught about the inspiration of Scripture, or for you church leaders, what have you taught the people that God has put under your care?
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