The New Testament and the People of God (Christian Origins and the Question of God Book 1)

by N.T. Wright

How do these genres—the Jewish story reaching its climax, and the Hellenistic bios, the life-story of a human individual within the Greco-Roman world—fit together? The answer, I suggest, lies in Luke’s grasp of a central theological point, which enables him to tell the story of Jesus in the way that he does. Like so many Jews (and presumably well-taught proselytes) of the period, Luke believed that, prior to Jesus, Israel’s story had yet to reach its climax. The exile was not over; redemption had yet to appear.41 It was appropriate, within that context, that he should tell the story of the one life in which, he believed, the exile became most truly exilic, sin was finally dealt with, and redemption at last secured. But at the same time Luke clearly grasped the equally important Jewish belief that when Israel was redeemed the whole world would be blessed. Israel’s salvation was not to be a private affair only: it was to be for the benefit of all.