11/16/18 Lecture by N. T. Wright, co-sponsored by Baylor University’s Truett Seminary
“Resurrection and the Renewal of Creation”
What does Jesus’ resurrection mean to you? Does the gospel promise to snatch us away from the world or to renew us and all the world, too? How does the Holy Spirit put the resurrection of Jesus into practical effect in us and through us right now?
For many Christians, “resurrection” is simply “what we say happened to Jesus after his death,” or perhaps “a strange word for our own future hope.” But few realize what “resurrection” meant in the first-century world where early Christianity was born. It meant nothing short of “new creation” - the reaffirmation, by the creator God, of the goodness of the original creation, starting with the crucified body of Jesus Himself. Once we grasp this, we see that many lines of thought in the New Testament, particularly in John and Paul, point not just to the resurrection of Jesus’ people, but to the restoration of the whole creation.
This restoration has already begun, and part of what the Holy Spirit is doing in the present time, through the work of Jesus’ followers, is to bring about signs and real anticipations of the ultimate new creation. This will happen when (as in Philippians 3:21 or 1 Corinthians 15:28) Jesus subjects all things to Himself and God becomes “all in all.” Christianity’s central event turns out to be even more important and relevant than many people imagine.
N. T. Wright is Professor of New Testament & Early Christianity at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
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Bio Info:
N. T. Wright was born on December 1, 1948 in Morpeth, Northumberland, England. He is a retired Anglican bishop and a leading New Testament scholar. Wright was the Bishop of Durham in the Church of England from 2003 until his retirement in 2010. He is currently Research Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at St. Mary's College, University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
In a 2003 interview he said that he could never remember a time when he was not aware of the presence and love of God. He recalled an occasion at age four or five when "sitting by myself at Morpeth and being completely overcome, coming to tears, by the fact that God loved me so much he died for me. Everything that has happened to me since has produced wave upon wave of the same."
In addition to his Doctor of Philosophy and Doctor of Divinity degrees from Oxford University, he has also been awarded honorary doctoral degrees from Durham University in 2007, the John Leland Center for Theological Studies in 2008, the University of St. Andrews in 2009, Heythrop College, University of London in 2010, and the Ecumenical Institute of Theology at St. Mary's Seminary & University in 2012.
Among modern New Testament scholars, Wright is an important proponent of traditional views on theological matters including Christ's bodily resurrection and second coming. Further, he has expressed strenuous opposition both to the ordination of openly gay persons and the blessing of same-sex partnerships and marriages. On the other hand, he has criticized the idea of a literal rapture, coauthored a book with his friend Marcus Borg, a widely known voice of liberal Christianity, and is associated with the Open Evangelical movement and New Perspective on Paul, both of which are controversial in many conservative theological circles.
He has published over 80 books and spoken often on radio and television. His latest books include The Day the Revolution Began: Reconsidering the Meaning of Jesus’ Crucifixion and God in Public. One of his most important popular series is his New Testament for Everyone that includes 18 volumes.
8 сен 2024
