Paul Apostle of the Heart Set Free
by F. F. Bruce
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Book Summary Information
Author: F. F. BruceEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2000-03-03
ISBN: 0802847781
Number of pages: 522
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
Book Reviews of Paul Apostle of the Heart Set Free
Book Review: No Better Biography On Paul
Summary: 5 Stars
Fred Bruce was a conservative evangelical who had much influence in the British Isles. His work still stands as a testimony to his beliefs, in stark contrast to the majority of scholars in Britain who have capitulated to modernism, due to an abundance of the New Perspective on Paul gathering. As the influence of FF Bruce faded, the core doctrinal assumptions that he had cherished and articulated began to lose its vitality in the evangelical fold.
'Thus by Christ's incarnation and His offering Himself for the sin of others, God, says Paul, 'condemned sin in the flesh' (Rom 8:3) - condemned it in human nature as a whole - and inaugurated the new age of spiritual freedom, the age, we may say, of the new covenant.' p 199
Soteriology is evidently the major theological issue in Paul's contribution to the New Testament. Bruce engaged with this subject matter and frequently made assessments that are fresh, yet are in keeping with conservative convictions. Bruce underwrote the classical view of justification and repudiated the idea that it was un-Pauline: 'Paul at Antioch Psidian not only says that 'through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you', but adds that 'by Him every one that believes is justified from all these things, from which you could not be justified by Moses' law' (Acts 13:38). From these words as they stand, indeed, the full Pauline doctrine of justification by faith could not be deduced, but the words are quite in line with Paul's teaching in Romans 3:20-26.' p 165
The life of Paul is a complex one. His missionary work would fill a whole volume. His Epistles do. Many have unsuccessfully attempted to formulate his theology from the 1st century to the present day. In Bruce's work, we have a non-contradictory, chronological reading of Paul's life. This makes for good reading and assists in understanding the varying challenges the apostle had to face and stand up to, at specific times in his life.
'According to Paul, 'Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified' (Gal 3:1) when the gospel was preached, and equally on every such occasion Christ was 'preached as raised from the dead' (1 Cor 15:12). Apart from that, the empty tomb and the resurrection appearances mark the transition from the historical Jesus to the exalted Christ.' p 101
Paul's motto, 'To Live Is Christ, To Die Is Gain' is made alive in the pages that repeatedly deal with his unique ability to prioritize this life subjected to the next. He lives for the upward calling and heavenly reward.
'Incorporation into this body is effected by personal faith in Christ, sacramentally sealed in baptism and sustained by the eucharist. For Paul, baptism symbolizes the believer's dying and rising with Christ. It is plain, however, that for Paul dying and rising with Christ was not merely a matter of sacramental theology or church doctrine, but of personal experience. This personal appropriation of the love manifested to mankind in the self-sacrifice of Christ was as real as his awareness of personal faith-union with Christ, and of that faith-union as the source of his Christian life.' p 138 Herman Ridderbos placed as great an emphasis on our union with Christ: 'To be baptized means also to participate in an actual sense in what once took place in Christ.' Paul: An Outline Of His Theology p 405
As I continued to read, I found Bruce's knowledge of the ancient Middle-East and modern Mediterranean a valuable help in establishing the social systems unique to each place and culture. He conveniently did not overstate the historical facts, but adequately highlighted the cross-cultural boundaries that our first missionary had to contend with.
Bruce displayed his great understanding of realized eschatology: 'Yet in saying 'the Lord is the Spirit' (2 Cor 3:17) Paul suggests, not indeed the identity, but certainly the close association that exists between the ascended Christ and the Spirit in the believer.' p 120 To Bruce's mind there existed the certainty that the personal aspect in the surpassing revelations given the apostle would become a form of apologetic to his apostleship, and therefore unique to the office of apostle:
'It is a mysticism of very exceptional order...but he (Paul) does not have a mystical theology.' p 147
I heartily enjoyed this read, as it was free from the debates of 'which Paul' was being portrayed from the outset. Bruce singularly and emphatically went to work on the biblical text available to him, as his primary source. There is no better resource on Paul than this, given that there are hidden undercurrents in the New Perspective agenda.
Summary of Paul Apostle of the Heart Set Free
This is a biography of Paul by one of the foremost Pauline scholars of our time. While Bruces primary concern is to portray the life of the apostle Paul, he also examines the main themes of Pauls thought, set in their historical background and illustrated from his letters.Church History Books
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