THE 511 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY CLASS V: THEOLOGY OF ROMANS, PHILIPPIANS & PHILEMON.

THE 511 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY

CLASS V: THEOLOGY OF ROMANS,

PHILIPPIANS & PHILEMON

THEOLOGY OF ROMANS, PHILIPPIANS & PHILEMON

1.1 Introduction to the theology of Romans

• Epistle of Romans in history

• Augustine (AD 386) – Tolle, lege! Tolle, lege! (13:13-14)

• M. Luther (1515) & Rom 1:17

• J. Wesley (1738) – “my heart was strangely warmed”

• K. Barth (1919) – “Bombshell on the theologians’ playground”

• Theological issues in Romans

• Justification by faith

• Presdestination and election

• Life in the Spirit & sanctification

• Israel and the people of God

• New perspective on Paul


2.1 Theology of Romans

• Background & situation briefly

• Written from Corinth/Cenchreae between AD 56-58

• During 3rd missionary journey (Acts 20:2-3)

• Prior to last visit to Jerusalem (16:23; Acts 19:29; 20:4; 1 Cor 1:14)

• Most complete presentation of Paul’s theology

• Not systematic theology – missing many important themes*

• Paul’s personal goals in writing

• Relationship building with Roman church (1:13; 15:24)

• Clarification of his theology (cf. 3:8; 6:1)

• Travel plans - relief funds to Jerusalem (15:25-29)


• Paul’s pastoral goals

• Harmony among the “strong” and the “weak” (14:1-23)

• Jew and gentile harmony

• Possible historical background for conflict

• Expulsion of Jews from Rome in AD 49 (Acts 18:2)

• Disturbances over Chrestus (Suet. Life of Claud. 25)

• Leadership of house churches to gentiles

• Return of Jewish-Christians after death of Claudius

• Jewish-Christian gentile-Christian rift over Jewish heritage

• Place of Law and good works & Jewish persecution


• The Gospel of God (1:1-6, 16-17)

• Gospel about God (obj.gen.) OR God’s own Gospel (sub.gen.)

• Gospel of His Son/Christ (1:9; 15:19)

God’s Gospel about Christ Jesus

• Also “my Gospel” (2:16; 16:25)

God’s calling of Paul to apostolic ministry

• Paul’s apostolic ministry & the gospel – worship/cultic language

• Worship (latreuo) by preaching the gospel (1:9)

• Minister (leitourgon) in priestly service (hierourgounta) w/ offering

(prosphora) sanctified by Spirit (15:16)


• Gospel is…

• Not Paul’s own message but God’s (1:1-6)

• In continuity w/ Scripture and its fulfillment (1:1-6)

• Jesus as descendant of David, Son of God (1:1-6)

• Victorious & powerful to save & redeem (1:4-6, 16; 8:31-39)

• Word, deed, power, sings & wonders, Holy Spirit & gospel (15:19)

• First to Jews then to gentiles (1:16; 9-11)

• Reveals God’s righteousness (1:16-17)

• Appropriated by faith – “from faith to faith” (1:17)


• God’s righteousness (1:17)

• Righteousness that God grants (obj.gen; cf. 2 Cor 5:21; Phil 3:9)

OR

• God’s own righteousness (sub.gen.; Rom 3:5, 21-22; 10:3)

• God’s righteousness/covenant faithfulness in light of human sin

Manifested to humans as He acquits the guilty


• Human predicament – people in need of salvation

• Righteousness of God revealed – wrath of God… (1:17-)

• Wrath of God…from heaven – just & impartial response to sin

• Refusal to acknowledge God (1:18-23; cf. Wisd 13:1-14:31)

• Idolatry, downward spiral & consequences (1:24-32)

• Jews guilty despite having the Law (2:3, 11, 13)

• Gentiles have “law in their heart” – also guilty (2:13-15)

• Judgment: eschatological & present predicament (2:5, 16; 1:18-32)

Sin reveals judgment & humans cannot free themselves


• Judgment based on “deeds”

• Payment “according to deeds” (2:6-11; cf. Matt 16:27)

• “doers of the Law” justified (2:13)

Is Paul himself contradicting his later “law-free” gospel? (cf. 3:23)

• Towards solution(s)

• Rhetorical & theological argument (1:18-3:20)

• “sweeps reader off their feet” & power of sin – powerlessness of Law

• Hypothetical situation – no-one fulfills all the Law

• Description of the humanity without Christ

• What was formerly impossible is now possible through Christ and the

Spirit “righteous requirements of Law might be fulfilled in us” (8:4)

Argument culminating in “no-one righteous…all under power of sin”


• The Origin of Sin – Adam and Christ (5:12-21)

• Adam’s sin – disobedience, condemnation, death

One man, one sin, death’s dominion, and condemnation all

• Christ’s gift – free gift, grace, justification, (eternal) life

• The cosmic power of sin (7:7-22) – “Law is holy, just, good” (7:12)

• Inability to resist sin and be free (7:14-25)

• Law is spiritual (pneumatikos) – people carnal/fleshly (sarkinos) (7:14)

• Who is speaking?

• Paul – before his conversion

• Paul – his present experience

• Non-Christians in general

• Christians in general

• Compare Rom 7:14, 17-18 – 6:22, 2, 14, 13, 19

Humanity in Adam in general – “I” of everyone under the power of sin**


• Salvation & righteousness of God

• The “how” of redemption – apart from God: sin, death, wrath

• Righteousness of God revealed…power of salvation (1:17)

God’s way of dealing with sin

• Humanity cannot save itself – salvation attested by Scripture (3:21)

• God’s righteousness demonstrated through Christ’s death

• God justifies freely (3:24) – acquits the guilty because…

• Through redemption (3:24-25) – ransom from the power of sin

• Blood of Jesus covers/expiates (OR propitiates*) sin (3:25)

Christ as the (new) mercy seat (hilasterion) (cf. Lev 16:14-16)


• Before God “passed over” sin (Gk. dia ten paresin*; 3:25)

• God “overlooked” the past sin OR

• God brought about forgiveness of sins committed in the past

• Apart from the “works of the Law” – the meaning

• Good works and piety

• Failure to do good works (3:20; 3:27; 4:2)

• Election apart from good works (9:11-12)

• Jewish boundary markers (circumcision, diet, Sabbath, calendar)

• Circumcision (2:25-29; 3:1, 30; 4:9; 15:8)

• Diet and calendar (Rom 14)

Both ideas present in Romans


• By faith…apart from the works of the Law

• Gospel-salvation appropriated by faith (1:16; 3:25; 10:4, 9)

• “faith to faith” (1:17) – from first to last (completely)

• Abraham’s trust in God’s promises (4:17-18)

• “obedience of faith” (1:5) – apposition or genitive of origins?

• Obedience = faith (app.gen)

• Obedience that is derived from faith (gen.orig.)

• Measure of faith given to each (12:3, 6; 14:1, 22-23)

• Faith in/of Jesus Christ (pisteos Iesous)* effects justification

(3:25-26)

Matter of utter trust in God who justifies the ungodly (4:5)


• Life of the redeemed and justified in the power of HS

• From Adam, sin, and death to Christ, righteousness, and life

• Peace and reconciliation with God (5:1, 10) – not wrath & enmity

• Access to God and assurance (5:2, 9-10)

• Union w/ Christ’s death and resurrection – freedom from sin

• Died w/ Christ, life in Christ (6:8-9)

• No longer under the Law but grace (6:14)

• Death to the realm and power of sin

in Christ, under grace – not in Adam or under the Law


• Freedom of the life in the Spirit (8:1-30)

• Realm of Christ and power of the Spirit – freedom from sin (8:1-2)

• Realm of human weakness and sin (=flesh) overcome (8:9)

• Righteous requirement of the Law fulfilled through the Spirit (8:4)

• Assurance – to please God now & future resurrection (8:9-11)

• Spirit assures of sonship & inheritance (8:15-17)

• Spirit as the “first fruit” of the full glorification (8:23, 29)

• Glorification of the justified (8:29-30)

Does this mean God predestined some while not others?


• God’s sovereignty in salvation

• Bound by sin – destined to condemnation & death w/o Christ

Faith in Christ saves and justifies sinners – Spirit set free

• God’s foreknowledge, predestination, and salvation (8:28-30)

• Foreknew…predestined…called…justified…glorified

• Augustinian-Calvinistic view --- divine predestination of the elect

• Arminian view --- salvation per divine foreknowledge of response

Both view need to import foreign philosophical concepts


• “Calvinistic exegesis” (e.g. T. Schreiner [2001, 2008])

• Foreknew…predestined…called…justified…glorified

• Chain of events inevitable reality for God’s & God’s people

• Nothing can break the chain – foreknown, predestined glorified

• Certainty of the future event expressed in the past aorist tense

• Sprit’s intercession and Christ’s love are “unbreakable” (8:35-37)

• God’s sovereignty & election “overrides” any human “willing” (9:16)

• Jacob-Esau (promise-flesh; 9:6-14)

• God’s mercy and hardening (9:15-18)

• Potter and the clay (9:19-24)

• Israel and gentiles (9:25-33)

Election and God’s sovereignty exalted and emphasized


• “Arminian exegesis” (Marshall [2004] & Witherington [2006])

• Death of Christ has universal scope (5:18; 11:32)

• God is free to do as pleases but God’s mercy not arbitrary (cf. 9:15)

• Language of predestination and assurance

• God’s purpose to those who have come to faith – “pre-destiny”

• “elect” – those who are believers; not unbelievers to be selected (8:33)

• God’s purpose of creating a people not to save some select individuals

• Foreknowledge does not mean predetermination (11:2)

• Potter-clay metaphor rhetorical question – God’s mercy cannot be explained

• Paul’s prayer for Israel & disappointment w/ obstinate people (10:1, 21)

• Persistence in unbelief and danger of being “cut off” (11:21-23; 8:12-13)

Mystery of divine election, predestination, and human response (cf. Jer 18)


• God’s faithfulness toward Israel (Rom 9-11)

• God’s faithfulness to Israel – who failed?

• True Israel based on promise & election not physical descent

• Abraham’s descendants: Isaac (Ishmael) – Jacob (Esau) (9:7)

• God’s election based on His mercy not merit or lineage (9:16)

• Is God unjust? God’s freedom in showing mercy (9:16-33)

• Did word of God fail since Israel rejected & gentiles believe?

• Israel heard the gospel and rejected (10:3-21)

• Has God rejected Israel then? (11:1-36)

• Olive tree into which gentiles are grafted (11:17-24)

• Remnant by grace (11:2-7) & “all Israel saved” (11:26-29)

Israel’s future role is not clarified except “the gifts and the calling of

God are irrevocable” (11:29)


• Moral life of believers

• Ethical dilemma of the Law-free gospel

• What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under

grace (6:15, 1; 3:7-8, 20; 5:20)

• Relationship between indicative and imperative

• Indicative = what God has accomplished in Christ

• Imperative = believer’s duty to obey

• Moral life and obedience based on Christ’ death & life in the Spirit

• Obedience required and made possible

• From Adam to Christ; flesh-Spirit; death/sin-life; Law-grace

• New life in Christ (6:1-23)


• Life in the Spirit (8:1-30)

• Moral life as worship and spirituality

• “living sacrifice” “spiritual/logical worship” [logiken laterian] (12:1-2)

• Practicalities of the moral life – instructions and exhortations

• ‘consider yourself dead to sin’ ‘Do not let sin exercise dominion’;

‘present yourselves to God’ (6:1-23)

• Walk in Spirit ‘set your minds’, ‘Spirit gives life’ ‘leading’ ‘sonship’,

Not flesh – ‘put to death’ ‘cannot submit’ ‘slavery’ ‘death’ (8:10-13)

• Law summarized in love (13:8-10) & fulfilled by the Spirit (8:4)

• Communal worship – wellbeing of the body b/f individual & life in

the society (12:1-15:13)

“already and not-yet” tension of the moral transformation (cf. 8:18-25)


2.2 Theology of Philippians

• Background & situation

• Written from Rome (or Caesarea/Ephesus)

• Paul in prison & church suffered persecution (1:7, 13-14, 17, 29)

• Strong personal tone and close friendship w/ congregation

• Partnership in the gospel and problem areas in Philippi

• Prayers and financial support (1:5, 19; 4:10-20)

• Disunity (4:2-9)

• Incipient Judaizing tendencies (3:1-4:1)


• Paul’s life as a pattern for behavior

• Philippians – imitate Christ & imitate Paul

• Imitation of Paul as a model in “heavenly citizenship” (1:27-30; 3:20)

• Persecution (1:12-30); threat of Judaizers (3:1-2); circumstances (4:1-20)

• Prison and persecution “the same struggle that you saw I had…” (1:30)

• False preachers (1:15-17)

• Threat of death: “living is Christ” “death gain” (1:21-23)

• Imprisonment & the spread of the gospel (1:12-14, 18)

Paradoxical nature of Christ’s suffering & Paul’s hardships


• Gains & losses for the gospel “join me in imitating me” (3:17)

• False teachers: righteousness based on the Law (3:1-3)

• Paul’s example – righteousness from God – former gains as loss

• Seek to experience power of resurrection and share in suffering (3:10)

• Expectation of glorious body and earthly life as heavenly citizen (3:20-1)

• Trying circumstances & disunity (4:9) “Keep on doing…you…learned and

received and heard and seen in me”

• Paul urges unity (4:2-9)

• Paul’s trying circumstances overcome by Christ (4:10-14)

• “all things through Christ” (4:10)

How to live in difficult & changing circumstances through Christ


• Christology (2:5-11)

• Structure of Phil 2:5-11*

• Self-emptying of Christ (2:5-8)

• Attitude of Christ

• In the form [morphe**] of God – equality w/ God not exploited

• Self-emptying I

• Emptied himself [heauton ekenosen] – form of slave

[morphe**] – in human likeness

• Self-emptying II

• Humbled himself – obedient to death – death on the cross


• Structure of Phil 2:5-11*

• Exaltation of Jesus (2:9-11)

• God exalted – name above other names

• Universal worship

• Name Jesus – every knee shall bow in heaven, earth, under the earth

• Universal confession

• Every tongue confess – Jesus as Lord [kyrios] – to glorify Father


• Jesus possessed equality w/ God (in very nature) from the very

beginning – but did not take advantage/claim [harpagon] of that

• Jesus self-emptied and took the very nature of human being –

death on the cross – God exalted Jesus and restored the divine

prerogatives to Jesus

Fullness of human condition to serve others

Status of universal lordship, the new dimension

“Let your mind be that of Christ Jesus” (2:5)*

Attitude of Christ’s self-emptying as a pattern for the community


2.3 Theology of Philemon

• Situation – app. 60 AD from Rome

• To Philemon – owner of slave Onessimus

• Onesimus had harmed Philemon and escaped (12, 17-19)

• Meets Paul, believes in Christ (10)

• Paul appeals on his behalf (12-17)

• “receive him no longer as a slave…but as dear brother” (16)

Radical reorientation of human relations in light of New Creation

Theology of New Creation presupposed


• Paul

THE 511 NEW TESTAMENT THEOLOGY CLASS V: THEOLOGY OF ROMANS, PHILIPPIANS & PHILEMON.

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