Stephen W. Hiemstra's Blog, page 52

January 5, 2024

The Gospels

“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matt 15:24)

By Stephen W. Hiemstra

The name Jesus has always been a mystery to me especially in view of the early church confession:

“Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth” (Phil. 2:9-10).

Why the mystery? The name Jesus is a Greek translation of Joshua that arises because Greek has no SH sound.

Joshua’ call is informative: “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel.” (Josh 1:2) While Joshua led the people of Israel out of the desert into the Promised Land. Jesus leads his people out of bondage to sin into heaven.

This is the gist of what the angel tells Joseph before Jesus is born: “She [Mary] will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matt 1:21) In a general sense, this is what atonement implies—salvation from sin—our sin—so that we can approach God as sons and daughters.

Jesus’ Humanity

Jerome Neyrey (1998, 1-2) notes in his work on the Gospel of Matthew: “The Gospel follow in great measure conventional formulas for praise articulated in the epideictic rhetoric [a kind of oral obituary] of praise and in the rules for the encomium.” The form of an encomium in the Greco-Roman context appears in an handbook known as a progymnasmata, which is a like a school book for students of rhetoric. An encomium must include all aspects of a “hero’s life (birth, education and training, public and death)” and is particularly important in an honor-shame culture. I have said for years that you don’t really know a person until you have attended their funeral because of the variety of testimonials that are given.

The Gospels are not a typical encomium because Jesus rose from the dead. Nevertheless, the Gospel’s introduce us to the humanity of Jesus by telling his life story, teaching, death, and resurrection. Jesus’ divinity breaks through in his life through his healings, signs, wonders, and exorcisms. These are all miraculous and point beyond his life to God and Jesus’ divinity. The implication is that the humanity and the divinity of Jesus are commingled throughout his life.

An audience today would want to know more about Jesus than the Bible records for our benefit. We know nothing about his personal appearance, education, acquaintances, preferences, or language abilities. We are told that he grew up in Nazareth, was conceived out of wedlock, was an ethnic Jew, his family was poor, and he worked as a carpenter (or builder, Mark 6:3 BNT).

Each of these details pose interesting questions. For example, Nazareth in Galilee lay within walking distance of Sepphoris, a city with a Greek theater burned to the ground in 4 BC following a Jewish revolt against the Herodians (Thurman 1996, 18). Was Jesus a poor, country bumpkin or was he something more? Jesus’ social position rides on answers to such questions, yet often the Gospels do not provide us with clear answers.

Relationship among the Gospels

Throughout the history of the church, the Gospel of Matthew was thought to have been the first to be written. Scholars began in the nineteenth century to argue that the Gospels of Matthew and Luke displayed a literary dependence on the Gospel of Mark with common passages being described as part of an unretained Q document. Because of the common themes and passages Matthew, Mark, and Luke are often described as the synoptic Gospels, while the Gospel of John appears somewhat independent of the others.

The uplifting, spiritual nature of John’s Gospel led some early church writers to describe John’s Gospel as “The Eagle” (Rev 12:14). It is John’s Gospel that gives us a picture of Jesus offering one-on-one pastoral care and the only obvious sermon series in scripture—the “I AM” discourses. The synoptic Gospels provide us more a record of Jesus’ public ministry, travels, and conflict with Jewish leaders.

Matthew and Luke appear to follow the encomium form more closely than Mark or John because they begin with birthing stories. In providing a kingly genealogy up front, Matthew actually starts before Jesus’ birth describing Jesus as a son of David and a son of Abraham (Matt 1). Luke dials back to his genealogy after the birthing narrative, but works backward from Jesus to Adam (Luke 3). Mark and John skip the birthing narrative and begin their Gospels with Jesus’ baptism and ministry, offering no genealogies at all.

The Gospels

Also see:

The Face of God in the Parables
The Who Question
Preface to a Life in Tension
Other ways to engage online:

Author site: http://www.StephenWHiemstra.net
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Published on January 05, 2024 02:30

January 2, 2024

Moore Crafts the Essay

Dinty Moore, Crafting the Personal Essay

Dinty W. Moore. 2010. Crafting the Personal Essay: A Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Nonfiction. Cincinnati: Writer’s Digest Books.

Review by Stephen W. Hiemstra

Walking into a dinner of venison leaves one suspicious that you are too late for the hunt. An essay is more about the hunt and less about the dinner, according to Dinty Moore. It is the tension of the hunt that draws the reader in.

Introduction

In his book, Crafting the Personal Essay, Moore both describes the genre of an essay and how it is constructed. There are, of course, numerous types of essays, each with its own particular interests and contributions to the genre. Moore writes:

“The personal essayist (that would be you) takes a topic—virtually any topic under the big yellow sun—and holds it up the big bright light, turning it this way and that, upside and down, studying every perspective, fault, and reflection, in an artful attempt to perceive something fresh and significant. But it is always an effort, a trial, not a lecture or diatribe.” (5)

History of the Essay

The interest here in exploring and describing the world (a protestant or reformation idea) and the focus on the essayist’s particular voice (or insights) suggests that the essay is a product of the romantic era of the nineteenth century. In fact, Moore dates the earliest essay to a Frenchman, Michel de Montaigne, circa 1571 (39)—an antecedent to romanticism. Consequently, the work of the Apostle Paul in the Book of Romans would not qualify as a personal essay, even though there is tension between nature and nurture in his arguments, because he looks for the voice of God rather than trying to develop his own voice as a writer.

Background on Dinty Moore

Dinty Moore teaches writing at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio and is the author of many books and articles. In Crafting the Personal Essay, Moore divides his advice to the writer breaks into two parts: “writing the essay” and “reaching readers” (vii—viii). Eighteen of his 23 chapters focus on the writing the essay.

Organization

Moore’s advice takes the form of description, story-telling, examples, writing assignments, and handicapping his own and other people essays. Many of his chapters, for example, end with a short-list of tips for writers. In chapter 14, Writing the Humorous Essay, Moore offers these three tips:

“You need a story, not just jokes. If your goal is to write compelling nonfiction, the story must always come first…
The humorous essay is no place to be mean or spiteful…
The funniest people don’t guffaw at their own jokes.” (162)

The different kinds of essays that outlines might make distinct genre in their own right, but add color to as segments of other essays. Much like I might not see myself writing a stand-alone humorous or a gastronomical essay, knowing the basic premise of each helps in throwing a bit of spice into any meal, err—essay!

Although a slow read is appropriate, I found myself anxiously turning the pages to see what would come next. This was especially true in chapter 10 (A Closer Look: Ah Wilderness) where Moore writes about a canoe trip that he took down the Rio Grande River. Moore starts this chapter with a question:

“You can steer, can’t you?” (114)

What an introduction! Can you image being stuck in a canoe for several days with a hyper-active, know-it-all canoe partner? (At this point, I was having flashbacks to my days as a canoeing instructor in a scout camp). The point is that Moore doesn’t just tell you how to write, he shows you—that is, in fact, one of his tips.

Assessment

As a lifelong writer, I found his advice on rewriting most convicting. He writes:

“What is required, if your essay and writing skills are going to improve by leaps and bounds, is a total reconsideration of each every element of yours essay.” (220)

It’s like starting a remodeling project by moving absolutely all your furniture and furnishings into the front yard and only bringing back to room items that fit your new concept for the room (220-221). Ouch! That sounds like real work—like typing your dissertation on a manual typewriter before the invention of whiteout type work…

Dinty Moore’s Crafting the Personal Essay is an interesting and helpful read. Writers of all genre and skill levels will want to take a look.

References

Dyrness, William A. 2001. Visual Faith: Art, Theology, and Worship in Dialogue. Grand Rapids: BakerAcademic.

McGrath, Alister. 2004. The Twilight of Atheism: The Rise and Fall of Disbelief in the Modern World. New York: DoubleDay.

Footnotes

Calivin, for example, writes: “let us not be ashamed to take pious delight in the works of God open and manifest in the most beautiful theatre.” (Dyness 2001, 53).

“For some, the intellectual leaders of society were poets—the ‘unacknowledged legislators of mankind,’ as Percy Bysshe Shelley called them. The poet bore the heavy weight of articulating a moral vision for humanity, grounded in reason and nature, and inspiring a community to yearn for a new and better order…” (McGrath 2004, 50). Instead, what they got were the French and Russian revolutions.

See: Romans: Faith Seeking Understanding (http://wp.me/p3Xeut-lQ).

http://dintywmoore.com.

Moore Crafts the Essay
Also see:
The Christian Memoir
Karr Voices Memoir Clearly
Books, Films, and Ministry
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Published on January 02, 2024 02:30

January 1, 2024

Paul: Monday Monologues (podcast), January 1, 2024

By Stephen W. Hiemstra

This morning I will share a prayer and reflect on the Pauline Letters. After listening, please click here to take a brief listener survey (10 questions).

To listen, click on this link.

Hear the words; Walk the steps; Experience the joy!

Paul: Monday Monologues (podcast), January 1, 2024
Also see:
The Face of God in the Parables
The Who Question
Preface to a Life in Tension
Other ways to engage online:

Author site: http://www.StephenWHiemstra.net
Publisher site: http://www.T2Pneuma.com

Newsletter at: https://bit.ly/X-mas-Dec23, Signup

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Published on January 01, 2024 02:30

December 31, 2023

Prayer to be like Paul

By Stephen W. Hiemstra

Almighty Father,

All praise and honor, power and dominion, truth and justice are yours because you meet us in our daily lives and encourage us to look beyond the mundane to the transcendent.

Forgive us for our limited vision, our unwillingness to stretch ourselves, and become the persons that you would have us be. For your will for us many times is to make better decisions, not to wait for comfortable, risk-free answers.

Thank you for the example of the Apostle Paul who, though a persecutor of the church, was willing to listen for the voice of God and to learn from his mistakes.

In the power of your Holy Spirit, be ever with us. Calm our nerves. Grant us wisdom beyond our years. May we ever look to you in our distress.

In the precious name of Jesus, Amen.

Prayer to be like Paul
Also see:
The Face of God in the Parables
The Who Question
Preface to a Life in Tension
Other ways to engage online:

Author site: http://www.StephenWHiemstra.net
Publisher site: http://www.T2Pneuma.com

Newsletter at: https://bit.ly/X-mas-Dec23, Signup

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Published on December 31, 2023 02:30

December 29, 2023

The Pauline Letters

Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine

to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.

For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

(Acts 9:15-16)

By Stephen W. Hiemstra

The Apostle Paul wrote first about Jesus, yet himself only knew the risen Christ. He grew up in Tarsus in Asia Minor, not in Jerusalem or Galilee like Jesus’ other disciples, and he was an early persecutor of the church. Yet, he became the template for Christian converts and his conversion story appears three times in the Book of Acts (Acts 9:1-20, 22:4-21, 26:9-23). Because he was a highly educated Jew, he knew the Old Testament perhaps better than any of the apostles and wrote more than half of the New Testament. Without Paul, Christianity may have remained merely a sect in the Jewish faith. Without Paul, the divinity of Christ may not have been clearly articulated.

Paul’s Conversion

Before his conversion, Paul was known by his Jewish name, Saul of Tarsus. He was a student of Gamaliel, who was a member of the Council of the Pharisees (Acts 5:34; 22:3), which would make Paul one of the best-educated and best-connected men in Israel at the time. Paul would have fit the profile of the rich young ruler (e.g. Luke 18:18-23). His hometown of Tarsus in Asia Minor in modern-day Turkey is important because Paul was familiar with the region and local customs where he traveled on his first missionary trip.

The first mention of Saul in the Book of Acts is during the stoning of Stephen: “Then they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.”(Acts 7:58) Saul not only approved of Stephen’s stoning, he went on to lead the subsequent persecution of the church: “But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.” (Acts 8:2-3) Note the word ravage—Saul was enthusiastic in his persecution.

A key verse in understanding the church’s development is:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

Even in his persecution of the church, Saul could not help but advance the Gospel: ”Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.” (Acts 8:4) When Jesus appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus, the Gospel had already been preached in Judea and Samaria. After his encounter with the Risen Christ, only days later it was Saul preaching the Gospel in the Synagogue in Damascus and the Jews were plotting to kill him (Acts 9:20, 24).

Paul as Apostle

The dramatic nature of Paul’s conversion begs the question—How did it happen? The only people to evangelize Paul were those he arrested and threw in prison, except for Stephen. Paul must have heard Stephen’s testimony before the Sanhedrin (Acts 7). The key verses were:

“‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest? Did not my hand make all these things?’ You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered.” (Acts 7:49-52)

The kicker for the Sanhedrin was the charge: “What kind of house will you build for me?” Things made by the hand of men is code language for idolatry. Restricting worship to the temple is analogous to charging a fee for admission to a petting zoo, but it was the source of income for the priests and high priests that populated the Sanhedrin.

The words of Christ on the Road to Damascus echo Stephen’s charge of persecuting the prophets:

“Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? And he said, Who are you, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” (Acts 9:3-5)

Paul’s experience echoes the call of the Prophet Ezekiel (Eze 1:27-28). Significantly, Paul’s commission to evangelize the Gentiles appears in all three accounts of his conversion.

Paul’s Example

Paul’s sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and vast knowledge of scripture have blessed the church with a much deeper understanding of Jesus’ humanity and his divinity. Head and heart go hand-in-hand in Paul’s writing.

Immanence and Divinity

Paul serves as a template for the modern Christian. Paul is the only first-century disciple who claims apostleship based solely on a vision of the Risen Christ. Luke records that in replacing Judas Iscariot, the disciples considered selected two men, Barsabbas called Justus and Matthias (Acts 1:23), as suitable to replace him as an apostle because they had both been with Jesus and had witnessed the resurrection (Acts 1:21-22). Because Paul was the first to write about Jesus in the New Testament and wrote primarily about his divinity, which must have prodded other writers who knew Jesus in life to record revelations of their own.

Paul did not meet Luke’s criteria for an apostle, but neither do we. Our only first-hand experience of Jesus is to meet the Risen Christ.

The Pauline Letters

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Published on December 29, 2023 02:30

December 26, 2023

McDonald Expands Election

Suzanne McDonald. 2010. Re-Imaging Election: Divine Election as Representing God to Others & Others to God. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.

Review by Stephen W. Hiemstra

Working as a chaplain in an Alzheimer’s unit, I once met an older man, James, who used to wander up and down the halls all day muttering to himself—he spoke nothing but gibberish. When one day I invited James to hear a jazz saxophonist play, he was delighted. While the nurses resisted my taking him, when the music started he stood up, began dancing to the music, and invited several women to join him. More importantly, he began speaking in complete sentences and engaged in real conversation: the music helped him center and he remained cogent for several weeks. For me, the story of James is both a resurrection story and a metaphor for our election—in Christ we are reminded (awakened) of the person who God created us to be.

Demented are Us

In her book, Re-Imaging Election, Suzanne McDonald expands on a story similar to James’ story to illustrate how our identity is, in part, relationally held (159). She writes:

“…the parable of dementia has raised three fundamental concepts that pertain to the election to representation: that the reality of our true personhood may be quite radically beyond our knowing; that it may be partially and provisionally held representatively for us by another in ways that have ontological significance; and that this does not compromise our personal particularity, but rather allows another person to become the space in which both who we presently are and the truth about who we are is beyond us may be held.” (164)

Introduction

McDonald launches into her exploration of election with a question: “Why propose yet another way of thinking about election, and why do so from a Reformed point of view?” The answer follows shortly thereafter: because the “Reformed approach to election [is] fundamentally correct” (xiii). Her exploration builds on the issues and questions posed by John Owen (1616–1683) and Karl Barth (1886–1968) and pays special attention to the role of the Holy Spirit (195).

McDonald views Owen as a “representative of the historic Reformed orthodoxy in the Dordt Tradition” (xviii) and sums up his concept of election in the phrase: “in Christ by the Spirit” (11). She explains:

“The image [divine image or imago dei] having been separated from human nature [in the fall] in all save Christ, it is therefore for the very purpose of revealing and restoring the lost image of God that the eternal Son and essential image of the Father takes our nature as the Mediator of the outworking of the covenant of redemption in the covenant of Grade for those elect in him.” (20)

For Owen, the Holy Spirit plays an instrumental role by renewing in us the divine image (14).

McDonald views Barth likewise holding a high view of the Holy Spirit’s role in election. She writes:

“…in Christ we see the whole predestination of God, such that Jesus Christ alone is the [whole and universal] election of God. Election is ‘in Christ’ because there is for Barth only the one predestining act: God’s self-election to be God-for-us in the person of Jesus Christ.” (60)

Blessed to be a Blessing

Yet…

“As those, ‘without the Spirit,’ the rejected continue to live in futile rebellion against their election.” (61)

At this point, McDonald pivots. A key verse in her doctrine of election is:

“I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Gen 12:3 ESV)

In other words, we are blessed to be elected to bless others. What is this blessing? The blessing takes the form of the imago dei—the divine image—which the community of faith partakes of and represents to the non-elect (97). Here she offers 3 scriptural principles of election:

“…election entails the setting apart of one clearly delineated community in a unique relationship to God and the world, and it is the Spirit who creates, sets apart, and shapes the new covenantal community in Christ.”
“…the spirit constitutes and shapes the unique perichoretic personhood of the elect that binds together the elect community and the rest of humanity.”
“…election is the expression of—and the chosen means to further—the triune God’s purpose of blessing.” (190-191)

In so many words, the instrumentality of the divine image reflected in the community of faith accordingly allows participation in God’s work without impinging on God’s sovereignty.

Background

Suzanne McDonald is currently a professor of historical and systematic theology at Western Theological Seminary. She is an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church. Her doctorate is from University of Saint Andrews in Scotland and she is a native of Australia. Re-Imaging Election summarizes her dissertation and is the first of her two books. Her other book is: John Knox for Armchair Theologians (Westminster John Knox Press, 2013).

Organization

McDonald writes Re-Imaging Election in 7 chapters proceeded by an introduction and followed by an epilogue, as follows:

Introduction

Posing a Pneumatological Problem.

Election, the Image, and the Spirit: John Owen.
Election, the Image, and the Spirit: Karl Barth.
Election ‘in Christ’ in Barth: Some Pneumatological Queries.

Re-Presenting the Image; Re-Imaging Election.

Sketching Some Scriptural Contours.
Election, the Spirit, and the Ecclesial Imago Dei.

Election to Representation in Dialogue.

Some Problems, a Parable, and the Parousia.
Owen and Barth: Beyond the Impasse.

Epilogue: Glancing Backward, Looking Forward

Bibliography

Index of Names and Subjects

Assessment

Suzanne McDonald’s Re-Imaging Election is a captivating read. The doctrine of election is a logical necessity in developing a systematic presentation of the Gospel which makes election interesting to anyone who eschews incoherence. Pastors, seminary students, and armchair theologians in the reformed tradition will accordingly benefit from this book.

Footnotes

Reformed orthodoxy was laid by the Canons of Dordt (1618-19) in five points summarized in the mnemonic “TULIP”: total depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and persistence of the saints. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calvini....

http://www.westernsem.edu/about/facul....

McDonald Expands Election
Also
Hernandez: A Spiritual Biography of Henri Nouwen, Part 1
Books, Films, and Ministry
The Who Question
Preface to a Life in Tension
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Author site: http://www.StephenWHiemstra.net
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Published on December 26, 2023 02:30

December 25, 2023

OT: Monday Monologues (podcast), December 25, 2023

By Stephen W. Hiemstra

This morning I will share a prayer and reflect on Old Testament. After listening, please click here to take a brief listener survey (10 questions).

To listen, click on this link.

Hear the words; Walk the steps; Experience the joy!

OT: Monday Monologues (podcast), December 25, 2023
Also see:
The Face of God in the Parables
The Who Question
Preface to a Life in Tension
Other ways to engage online:

Author site: http://www.StephenWHiemstra.net
Publisher site: http://www.T2Pneuma.com

Newsletter at: https://bit.ly/X-mas-Dec23, Signup

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Published on December 25, 2023 02:30

December 24, 2023

Old Testament Prayer

By Stephen W. Hiemstra

Almighty and Loving Father,

All praise and honor, power and dominion, truth and justice are yours because you drew yourself to us in your creation and introduced us to your character in your scripture that we might see you face to face in the person of Jesus.

Forgive our unwillingness to listen, read, and study your word or emulate your example in Jesus of Nazareth.

Thank you for your mercy, grace, patience, loving kindness, and faithfulness (Exod 34:6).

In the power of your Holy Spirit, remove the scales from our eyes and the wax in our ears that we might learn to love good things and follow the example of your son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.

In Jesus’ precious name, Amen.

Old Testament Prayer
Also see:
The Face of God in the Parables
The Who Question
Preface to a Life in Tension
Other ways to engage online:

Author site: http://www.StephenWHiemstra.net
Publisher site: http://www.T2Pneuma.com

Newsletter at: https://bit.ly/X-mas-Dec23, Signup

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Published on December 24, 2023 02:30

December 22, 2023

Old Testament

The heavens declare the glory of God,

and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

Day to day pours out speech,

and night to night reveals knowledge.

(Ps 19:1-2)

By Stephen W. Hiemstra

God reveals himself to humankind through general and special revelation. General revelation reveals his existence while special revelation reveals his character. When you feel close to God in nature or music, you are talking about general revelation, but God’s character is revealed primarily through scripture. Niehaus (2014, 223-24) further distinguishes common grace covenants (those applying to all people) from special grace covenants (those applying to God’s chosen) both of which exist in perpetuity. These distinctions are helpful in understanding Old Testament expectations and prophecies concerning Jesus as messiah.

A messiah is someone who has been anointed with oil. The Old Testament depicts priests, prophets, and kings as anointed. The New Testament greek term for messiah is Christ.

Salvation

Salvation in the Old Testament is normally pictured as primarily a physical, not spiritual, concept. The Exodus is a story of God’s salvation of the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt, which has been retold many times in the Old Testament (e.g. Ps 105) as in Isaiah:

“But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.

For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you.” (Isa 43:1-3)

Here the crossing of the Red Sea and the Jordan River is retold in a generic form suggesting a spiritual truth, but it is expressed as a concrete, physical event.

This salvation occurs in a pattern outlined in Deuteronomy 30:1-3 that Brueggemann (2016, 59) describes as the Deuteronomic Cycle. Here the pattern is: collective sin, scattering and enslavement, crying out to the Lord, and the sending of a deliverer. This pattern is repeated throughout the Old Testaments, but especially in the Book of Judges.

Christ Figures

The Deuteronomic Cycle culminates with God’s sending of a deliverer. The Old Testament has many such deliverers—figures such as Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, and even a gentile: Cyrus king of Persia, who rebuilt Jerusalem (Ezr 1:1). The common characteristic of these deliverers was charismatic leadership—a kind of messianic job description.

One popular example of charismatic leadership is Gideon, whose story begins: “The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and the LORD gave them into the hand of Midian seven years.” (Jdg. 6:1) The people of Israel call out to God (Jdg 6:6) And God sends an angel to Gideon to call him into leadership. With only three hundred men, Gideon then defeats the army of the Midianites almost miraculously (Jdg 6:25).

Genealogies

A key prophecy of Christ is given in God’s covenant with David:

“The LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” (2 Sam 7:11-13)

The inference of building a house here is that David will begin a dynasty that will live in perpetuity. A dynasty is itself a statement of a human family, but the idea of an everlasting kingdom suggests divinity, which Psalm 110 appears to reiterate. The genealogies of the New Testament in Matthew 1 and Luke 3, like the Old Testament genealogies before them, are normally interpreted as king lists as with a dynasty.

Servant Songs

As mentioned earlier, Jesus took the text of his call sermon (Luke 4) and a portion of the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5) from Isaiah 61, but the influence of Isaiah on Jesus’ ministry is enormous. Consider the prophecy:

“There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.” (Isa. 11:1-2)

Jesse was, of course, King David’s father, which is consistent with the prophecy cited in the Davidinic covenant above.

Isaiah’s influence evokes a tension between the expectation of charismatic military leader and the humble person that Jesus was as we read: “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isa 53:3) This tension runs throughout the four Servant Songs of Isaiah: Isaiah 42:1-9, 49:1-13; 50:4-11; 52:13-53:12 (e.g. Oswalt 2003, 45). These divergent trends in the Old Testament suggest that Jesus, both as a human and divine person, is a much more complex figure than anyone anticipated.

Old Testament

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Published on December 22, 2023 02:30

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