Author J.CHRISTIAAN BEKER
Publisher FORTRESS PRESS
ISBN 0-8006-2438-6
This author was a professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary and passed away in 1999 at the age of seventy-five. Obviously he lectured continually throughout his teaching career and his major area was the theology of the Apostle Paul. This particular book addresses the subject of what it is that constitutes the center of Paul’s doctrine. The emphasis that this professor presents was relatively novel at the time of writing this book (the 1980’s) as compared with what was generally written concerning Paul’s theology because he felt that the center is located in the Lordship of Christ and the way it anticipates the final triumph of God. This view has been popularized more in the latter years through the writings of N. T. Wright. Beker also strongly advocated that, although Paul’s theology centered in this way, in Christ and in the eschatological hope of His coming and delivering the kingdom up to God His Father, yet, he did not have a tight doctrinal shape that he applied in all his letters but wrote according to the need of each church and its situation and particular problems. This means that although, in Beker’s view there was a cohesiveness in Paul’s doctrine, it was not held in a way that was wooden and systematic. Paul was not a systematic theologian, he was a man who’s writings had a contingent element. So, according to each church situation he emphasized different aspects of his thought in different contexts and was not seeking to attain neat consistency. According to Beker Paul saw the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the inauguration of the new age that was shortly to be consummated in His return in glory. At that point God’s triumph would be complete. Inevitably, as Beker moves in this direction his writings do critique other views, for instance the strict atonement theology of Calvin and Luther. Anyone reading thinking of reading this author must remember that it is pretty heavy theology that they will be examining. Accordingly, probably it is more suited to pastors, teachers and students who have a grasp of the language and approach he uses. Some of us have been raised on the idea that the whole of the gospel ministered by the apostle Paul can be summarized in the matter of justification by faith but, the arguments raised by this author, and a number of others whilst including justification by faith as an integral part of Paul, yet, there is so much more. It is in this larger picture being presented that we can receive benefit.
