Читать книгу Offer Them Life - Dan W. Dunn - Страница 8

The premise of this book is that the biblical theme of life is one of the primary themes of the Bible, and as such, provides a helpful foundation for the theory and practice of evangelism. It is essential, therefore, to explore the life theme from the perspective of biblical studies, which I will do in chapters 3 and 4. Because it is impossible to engage in a comprehensive survey of all the resources available in the field of biblical studies, I will emphasize selected Old Testament scholars in this chapter and selected Johannine scholars in the next.

Klein: Life Is the Goal

Earlier I referred to the 1991 article by Charles Scobie that mentions a 1983 article by Hans Klein in which life (Old Testament) and new life (New Testament) are proposed together as offering a centralizing theme for biblical study. Klein does not view life/new life “as the centre (Mitte) of the Old Testament and New Testament respectively but rather as the goal (Zielpunkt) which they envisage.”86 This supports my earlier claim concerning the relationship between life and the kingdom of God, in which life may be considered to be the ultimate goal for human beings and creation, with the kingdom viewed as either one of the instruments God chooses to bring that goal to fruition, or as the arena in which God’s full-life intentions take place.

In assessing Klein’s proposal, Scobie applauds Klein’s attempt to use life as the leading idea of the Bible because it acknowledges the strong differences between the Old and New Testaments, while at the same time highlights that “all areas of life belong to life under God.”87 One may appreciate Scobie’s recognition (through Klein) concerning all of life belonging to God. This is one of the reasons that a strong emphasis on the biblical theme of life provides a significant foundation for evangelism. Even for persons who prefer not to view life as the principle theme of the Bible, a strong emphasis on that theme reminds us that evangelism begins with God’s intention to create, bear, and nurture life. Evangelism is intrinsically connected not only to God’s creation, but also to God’s creative intent. This is a point that merits serious consideration in evangelistic theory and practice.

It Starts with the Living God, and We Are Included

Otto Baab emphasizes that “perhaps the most typical word for identifying the God of the Old Testament is the word ‘living.’”88 As the living God, God acts in history, displays power, and delivers. Of special importance is how the Old Testament characterizes all other gods (idols) in comparison to the living God. Other gods are lifeless, dead, weak, and inadequate.89 Only the living God, Yahweh, could help, save, and deliver, and only Yahweh had helped, saved, and delivered. Based on their personal experience with the living God, therefore, the Old Testament writers conceived of God as being active in history and active in their personal and corporate lives. Baab writes that “since God is a living God, he is unavoidably involved in all of the complexities and uncertainties of life. His life interacts with that of his people.”90

Edmond Jacob also places a strong emphasis on the theme of God as a living God. Previously we noted Jacob’s contention that “the idea of eternity is secondary to that of life. God is not living because he is eternal, but he is eternal because he is living.”91 Jacob expands on this idea by stating that “life is what differentiates Yahweh from other gods.”92 Moreover, he shares Baab’s perspective that there is a strong link between God’s “living-ness” and God’s interactions with humanity. “Just as life is a mysterious reality which can only be recognized, so God is a power which imposes itself on man [sic] and comes to meet him [sic] without his being always prepared for it.”93

Even more significant is Jacob’s further contention that not only does God meet us in an imposing way, but the nature of this meeting also includes an invitation to choose life for ourselves, as highlighted by Deuteronomy 30:19. It is only by virtue of making this choice “that man [sic] truly becomes what he is.”94 This concept is helpful because it not only stresses the importance of the theme of life for those who relate with Yahweh, but it also speaks to the nature of what humanity is invited to. We are invited to life, and the one who issues that invitation is the living God who created life, sustains life, and redeems life. We should give this invitation to life a valuable place in evangelistic theory and practice.

The Living God Interacts with Us Relationally

Also germane to this project is the perspective that Jacob and Baab share concerning the relational nature of God’s interactions with humanity. Based on a study of God’s interactions with Moses at the burning bush, Jacob suggests that one of the important concepts regarding the name of God is that when the Israelites said the name of God, it was God’s presence that was emphasized, not God’s eternity. Thus, “God is he who is with someone.”95

This perception that relationship with God is inherent in the Israelite understanding of God as the living God is further underscored in Jacob’s section on life as the destiny of humanity. He stresses that although God has created human beings as independent persons, humanity “only attains that independence by ever-renewed contact with the one who is the source of his life and the source of all life.”96

Baab speaks to this point too. In a discussion of the implications of viewing God as Creator, he remarks that “man [sic] and the universe are contingent upon the fact of God. They derive their existence from him and are consequently not self-sufficient or self-contained. They have meaning and value . . . only in the light of their relation to him.”97 Thus, we cannot conceive of the life God intends for us without also conceiving of God relating with us, participating in our lives.

Walther Eichrodt shares similar convictions. He notes a growing awareness throughout Old Testament history of this relational dynamic and suggests that it reached its zenith with the prophets. Based on a sharp focus on the personal nature of God’s holiness, the overriding concern for the Israelite people became the question of how they stood in the sight of their holy, sovereign, and covenant-making God.98 The prophets helped shape a move toward a more individual (not individualistic) understanding of the need to make decisions regarding obedient participation in God’s ways in the world. A distinction was made, therefore, between persons who were Israelite by birth and persons who were considered to be a part of God’s people through virtue of their individual decisions to obey and follow God.99 Eichrodt concludes by saying that “what raised the individual divine-human relationship to a new plane, making it a full and living reality, was the way in which the prophets carried to its logical conclusion the belief that man’s [sic] relations with God were explicitly personal in character.”100

This Receiving of Life from God Involves Obedience

It becomes quickly obvious to any reader of the Old Testament that God’s granting of life is directly linked to obedience. This is how an integral relationship with the God of life is maintained. Moses’s well-known exhortation in Deuteronomy 30, “therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live,” is immediately followed with “loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him.”101 Earlier in Israel’s history, in Exodus 23, God directly links obedience to God’s command concerning idolatry, promising to bless their bread and water, remove sickness from among them, prevent barrenness or miscarriage among the women, go before them to drive out their enemies, and grant them God’s intended length of life for them.102 These are just two of many possible examples that illustrate the direct connection between the obedience of God’s people and the experience of full life as God intended it for them.

Michael Brown helpfully notes that more is envisioned here than simply receiving the health benefits of the “hygienic practices legislated in the Torah,” for “ . . . the text indicates that covenantal obedience would bring about supernatural blessings of health—i.e., more than just reaping the rewards of ‘clean,’ godly living.”103

Norman Whybray echoes this sentiment in his treatment of the Old Testament conceptions of “the good life.” After a chapter-long survey of Exodus through Numbers, he concludes that “these books, while celebrating Yahweh’s power and his desire for his people’s welfare, will have served as a warning to later generations that the good life is attainable only by faithful obedience to his laws.”104 This is a theme we will return to in the section on insights from the Gospel of John. Before proceeding further, however, it would be prudent to discern how the Old Testament authors conceive of life.

The Concept of Life in the Old Testament

It will be helpful to focus on what the Hebrew people envisioned during the periods when they conceived of life as something they could experience during their earthly lifetime. As has already been seen in the earlier references to Exodus 23 and Deuteronomy 30, the Israelites, if they remained faithful to God’s covenant, pictured themselves receiving physical sustenance (blessing of bread and water, Exod 23:25), physical health (removal of sickness, Exod 23:25), reproductive fertility (no miscarriages or barrenness, Exod 23:26; abundantly prosperous in the fruit of their wombs, Deut 30:9), long life (fulfillment of the number of days, Exod 23:26), victory over enemies (Exod 23:27–28, Deut 30:7), success and prosperity with crops and livestock (Deut 30:9), security in the land (Deut 30:16), and compassion (Deut 30:3).

Many Old Testament passages refer to the tangible experience of God’s intended life. Psalm 84:11b says that “ . . . no good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.”105 Psalm 23 refers to green pastures, still waters, an overflowing cup, continual goodness and mercy, and “not wanting” (lacking). Psalm 107 recounts the Lord’s wondrous deeds among the redeemed, including deliverance from trouble (verses 6, 13, 19, 20, and 28), a city to dwell in (verses 7 and 36), healing (verse 20), plentiful water (verse 35), and a fruitful yield with crops and livestock (verses 37–38).

Concerning prosperity, Proverbs exhibits a judgmental attitude to the unjust use of riches, but not toward riches in and of themselves. “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.”106 Proverbs also contends that the search for wisdom and understanding is far more important than the search for gold and jewels, but this does not mean that tangible blessings are contrary to wisdom’s desire. To the contrary, “long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her; those who hold her fast are called blessed.”107

I could share other Old Testament passages to demonstrate the very tangible ways the Hebrew people conceived of life, but these suffice to make the point. These concrete notions concerning what life actually is are fairly strongly agreed upon by a variety of Old Testament scholars. Michael Brown, for example, suggests that Mediterranean peoples shared the idea that God (or whichever deity a people worshipped) would grant blessing to “soil, body, and womb.” Thus, the Hebrew people conceived of life as “adequate food supply, health, longevity, and the ability to reproduce.”108 Sister Marie de Lourdes, in commenting on the Hebrew word hayyim (life), writes that “for the Hebrew, existence was not sufficient for life. To live meant to be vibrantly happy, to have good health, to be considerably successful in undertakings.”109 Levenson proposes that the Hebrew Bible’s concept of life includes “ . . . power, skill, confidence, health, blessing, luck, and joy.”110 In his discussion of the Hebrew word barak (to bless), Oswalt mentions the concepts of long life, fertile reproduction, prosperity, and success, and goes on to say that the primary role of blessing “ . . . seems to have been to confer abundant and effective life upon something . . . or someone . . . ”111

Norman Whybray engaged in an extensive survey of parts of the Old Testament in an attempt to detect the Old Testament’s conception of “the good life.” As a result of this survey, he identified twelve features that appear to be prominent: security, a land to live in, power, food, long life, wealth, family, justice, laws, wisdom, pleasure, and trust in God.112 Notice in Whybray’s list that there is a mixture of tangible features such as food and wealth, and intangible features (though no less real) such as power, justice, wisdom, pleasure, and trust in God. This leads into the next section, which considers a related insight by scholars concerning a shift that took place in Israelite conceptions of life.

The Correlation between Life as “Knowing God” and Life as “Receiving God’s Gifts”

Jacob and Eichrodt discuss how the Old Testament develops a distinction between the singular blessing of being in fellowship with God as independent from the other blessings that God’s people may experience in this life. Jacob talks about the relationship between blessing and the experience of shalom. As the creator and giver of life, blessing originates with God. It is a gift. The result of blessing in the life of the Israelite believer is shalom, “which suggests the idea of abundance, prosperity and peace; this state will only be fully attained in the last times, but for the righteous it can be a present reality, so true is it that there is nothing hoped for which cannot be translated immediately into actual life.”113

Jacob goes on to comment, however, that there was a shift in Israelite attitudes. Over time they moved to a declining emphasis on earthly abundance and success as the central aspects of the blessed life to a stronger emphasis on relationship with God. This “led to a view of life as no more the possession of God’s gifts but of God himself.”114

Eichrodt observes that this trend was especially powerful in exilic and post-exilic periods. The Hebrew people had experienced horrendous loss during these times, so that their previous vision of what it meant to be blessed by God underwent significant change.115 They were no longer members of a prosperous nation that seemed to be enjoying God’s favor. Their world had been turned upside down. Thus, “in a situation where the individual was struggling for certainty about what the goal of his conduct should be, without having the life and prosperity of his nation to guarantee that his efforts were being successful, and where at the same time the external pressures which burdened the life of the community made a return to a naïve interrelation of blessing and assurance of God impossible, men [sic] readily accepted the prophetic proclamation of fellowship with God as the supreme good.”116 I suggest that this declining stress on “God’s gifts” (Jacob) or “natural goods” (Eichrodt), along with an increasing stress on “God himself” (Jacob) or “the religious good of salvation”117 (Eichrodt), has also found its way into current Christian understanding, and this is quite relevant to the ministry of evangelism.

A relationship with God through Jesus Christ is an essential (and probably the essential) dimension of what it means to be a Christ-follower. In this context, then, some Christians choose to downplay the daily blessings of God in life, and also, therefore, in evangelism. This can inadvertently lead to an understanding of the gospel that focuses primarily on an internal relationship with God and ignores the other dimensions of what full life in Christ should and could mean for Christ’s followers. God’s intentions would be better served, however, if both dynamics were included in gospel understandings and gospel invitations. Yes, first and foremost, we can and should be “in possession of God,” but we can also be in “possession of God’s gifts” (to use Jacob’s words). Why must we divorce the two? Is it really possible to divorce the two? Are not God’s gifts of peace, joy, provision, happiness, reconciliation, service, significance, worship, and more, included in a “package deal” when we are in relationship with God? Can we not invite persons to be in relationship with God and at the same time inform them that this relationship will include God’s blessings? Certainly, we must be careful how we communicate the interrelationship between personally relating with God and experiencing God’s “other” blessings. We do not want to convey a tit-for-tat invitation, such that persons only enter into relationship with God in order to receive God’s abundant blessings. The interface between being in relationship with God and receiving God’s blessings is more holistic and integrated than that.

Viewed from the other side of the coin, however, this is precisely the point. Just as we do not want persons to seek God’s gifts without seeking God himself, neither do we want them to seek God himself without also seeking God’s gifts. If the interface is holistic and integrated, it must be seen as such from each dimension.

Claus Westermann’s perspective is useful at this point. In Blessing in the Bible and the Life of the Church, he makes a careful distinction between God’s deliverance and God’s blessing. Deliverance describes the saving acts or events of God, while blessing describes the working of God in the processes of history to bring about fullness of life in daily experience.118

In a different work (What Does the Old Testament Say About God?), Westermann offers a keen observation concerning the relationship of humanity’s creation to this notion of God’s working within the processes of history. He suggests that the tendency in Christian theology is to conceive of a disconnect between human creation and the rest of creation, and that this conception is quite unfaithful to the biblical material concerning creation. Human existence is inextricably tied to “living-space (the garden), the provision of food (the trees of the garden), work (the commission to cultivate and preserve), and in particular the community (‘a helper fit for him’ Gen. 2:18),” so that people “are only human in these relations, not beyond them in an abstract existence.” In the context of this theological anthropology (or anthropological theology), we can more fully grasp the importance of understanding the role of blessing in Christian life and understanding. “It is the working of the blessing that allows all these necessary parts of human existence to persist: God’s blessing allows humanity’s food to grow and prosper, preserves human living-space, gives people success in their work, and grants peace (shalom) within the community.”119 Blessing for Westermann, therefore, is an ongoing experience.

In a discussion of what salvation means in the Old Testament, Baab notes the integral link between having a relationship with God and the experience of God’s blessings. “By tentatively defining salvation as the good which comes to men [sic] in their life with God, we are able to avoid the artificial separation between processes and their consequences, which underlies the general misunderstanding of the Old Testament as reflecting a religion primarily of concrete rewards for good conduct.”120 Eichrodt shares a related insightful viewpoint. He notes that though the exilic and post-exilic prophetic posture helped shape the theological conviction that fellowship with God was the supreme good, the priestly interpretation of the covenant relationship was “characterized by the organic synthesis of earthly blessing and the supreme gift of salvation.”121 He further contends that these two perspectives were “impossible to unite in fruitful tension,”122 resulting in either a strong focus on fellowship with God as the most valuable consequence of God’s salvation, or on natural goods as the most valuable consequence of it.

Despite the difficulty in maintaining a fruitful tension, I encourage us to put forth the effort to move toward an organic synthesis, both in theology and in evangelism. Let us not cast away God’s blessing(s) too quickly. God is the creator and giver of life. It was God’s original intention in creation for humanity and all of creation to experience fertile life, and this continues to be God’s intention. As John Oswalt says, “God gives life. Neither god, nor man, nor rite can do so. Nor does God have to be cajoled to give his blessing. He wishes to give it to all who will trust him (Gen. 12:3).”123 Let us not downplay God’s intentions for us. Let us include God’s blessings in our evangelistic vision, communication, and invitation.

Two Tensions or Continuums Are Clearly Present

Before shifting to chapter 4, which discusses insights from John’s Gospel, it would be helpful to note that two tensions or continuums clearly emerge from these Old Testament insights. The first is the tension or continuum between conceiving of life in terms of God’s tangible blessings versus conceiving of life as the overall or general blessing of knowing God. Hopefully, the importance of addressing this issue was made obvious in the previous section. I will return to this theme in the context of Johannine perspectives on life.

The second tension or continuum is that which Jon Levenson noted between God’s promise of life and the clearly observable fact of death, and the post-exilic development of a concept of the resurrection of the dead to address this situation. This is quite similar to the already/not-yet tension related to the kingdom of God that was discussed in chapter 2. I do not wish to revisit that discussion. However, I would like to note that the post-exilic development of the resurrection concept resulted in the postponement of the expectation for earthly benefits related to the life that God would share with God’s people. In this context, I want to share pertinent findings from my field research concerning the this-life benefits of following Christ and the after-life benefits of following Christ.