"Not grace to bar what is not bliss,
Nor flight from all distress, but this:
The grace that orders our trouble & pain,
And then, in the darkness, is there to sustain."
What Is Sustaining Grace?
Last Sunday, one of my pastor's preached an excellent sermon on the grace bestowed on us by Jesus, namely, His saving grace and His sustaining grace. You can listen to it or download it here. As I was listening to him describe Christ's sustaining grace, I was reminded of a poem of John Piper's that he expounds upon and explains during a sermon he gave on the same topic. I think it's a succinct & helpful reminder of what God's sustaining grace is.
The Apostle of the Golden Age--Interview Response
While reading the September 2010 issue of Christianity Today, I stumbled upon an interview with Classics Scholar Sarah Ruden. Earlier in the year, Pantheon Books published Ruden's Paul Among The People: The Apostle Reinterpreted and Reimagined in His Own Time. I'm not particularly concerned with the content of that particular book, but I thought it might serve some of our readers to see one of the responses she gave to John Wilson's interview question/suggestion.
John Wilson: Quoting freely from many classical authors, you show how a kind of casual brutality was taken for granted in the ancient world, and how Paul's attitudes, by contrast, actually have much more in common with the norms of the 21st century.
Ruden:
"What characterizes our society at its best is the habit of looking at ourselves with a critical attitude. I think this really started for Western civilization on the road to Damascus. Paul is doing what he's expected to do in his environment. He's involved in persecution.This is all sanctioned by authority, and it's going to get him ahead in his career. He has this revelation, and he is forced to answer the questions, What are you doing? What are you actually doing? Why are you persecuting me? That is, what you do to the the world, what you do to other people, is what you do to God. So there's a galvanizing, horrifying, but enlightening realization that what you do every moment you do in the sight of an infinitely loving God. Paul's entire ministry was about that idea. He made a lot of mistakes. He certainly had changes of mind. He had regrets. As he repeatedly said about himself, he was really painfully human in pursuing this idea. He took no personal credit for what he accomplished - the credit belonged to God. But he pursued this great truth relentlessly. And I think that has made us who we are religiously and ethically. That is what brought the ministry of Jesus into our lives in very practical ways."
A few noteworthy thoughts:
1. Ruden's response isn't meant to be read as a heavy treatment of Paul's theology (and it seems obvious that she's more comfortable speaking about his views in very general terms), but I find it remarkable, that the Paul she describes is pretty consistent with the impression you get of his personal characteristics when reading his work.
A few examples:
Paul's Humility -- not taking credit, giving God the glory
Paul's Zeal -- his relentless pursuit of the truth he believes
Paul's Focus -- his entire ministry focused on a single truth
2.Her suggestion that Paul's experience on the road toward Damascus is foundational to an understanding of Western Society's self criticism as a whole is fascinating. I don't care to get into all of the implications underlying this assumption, but I believe it is a worthy suggestion. As a classical scholar, she's not really interested in the mission of Paul (or even his success or lack there-of) as much as she is interested in the message of Paul. The amazing thing about her discovery, is that the text itself seems to exemplify the changes from authoritarian brutality to humble leadership we observe more commonly in Western society. Paul asserts authority in a different way. Paul makes bold claims and answers ethical dilemmas with words meant to enlighten, warn and inform, rather than beat the reader into subjection.
Ultimately, I don't think this post is a fair representation of everything Ruden is trying to say in her book or even in this interview, but it's always encouraging to see scholarship that throws the usual (or rather "en vogue") presuppositions out the window to try to get a clear view of what the author is saying rather than serve an agenda. Ruden's views may be generic and docile enough to suit a variety of opinions, but we may say that her discoveries of Paul's inner-thoughts and context seem to match the Paul we've come to know and respect.
Is it not true that we've been blessed by this servant of Christ? I cannot speak for Ruden regarding her findings, but I'm encouraged to read some of the fruits of her labor that lead me to think on a faithful servant of an even more faithful God! Christ has blessed his bride with a body that works. A body that has big parts and little parts. Some parts have written the very Word of God, have appointed leaders and cast out demons. Some parts read the Word of God, serve quietly and suffer with confident assurance in their Savior. I believe all have something to learn of Paul's humility, zeal and focus. I believe all have something to learn of Paul's "things of first importance", and most of all his Lord, Jesus the Messiah.
John Wilson: Quoting freely from many classical authors, you show how a kind of casual brutality was taken for granted in the ancient world, and how Paul's attitudes, by contrast, actually have much more in common with the norms of the 21st century.
Ruden:
"What characterizes our society at its best is the habit of looking at ourselves with a critical attitude. I think this really started for Western civilization on the road to Damascus. Paul is doing what he's expected to do in his environment. He's involved in persecution.This is all sanctioned by authority, and it's going to get him ahead in his career. He has this revelation, and he is forced to answer the questions, What are you doing? What are you actually doing? Why are you persecuting me? That is, what you do to the the world, what you do to other people, is what you do to God. So there's a galvanizing, horrifying, but enlightening realization that what you do every moment you do in the sight of an infinitely loving God. Paul's entire ministry was about that idea. He made a lot of mistakes. He certainly had changes of mind. He had regrets. As he repeatedly said about himself, he was really painfully human in pursuing this idea. He took no personal credit for what he accomplished - the credit belonged to God. But he pursued this great truth relentlessly. And I think that has made us who we are religiously and ethically. That is what brought the ministry of Jesus into our lives in very practical ways."
A few noteworthy thoughts:
1. Ruden's response isn't meant to be read as a heavy treatment of Paul's theology (and it seems obvious that she's more comfortable speaking about his views in very general terms), but I find it remarkable, that the Paul she describes is pretty consistent with the impression you get of his personal characteristics when reading his work.
A few examples:
Paul's Humility -- not taking credit, giving God the glory
Paul's Zeal -- his relentless pursuit of the truth he believes
Paul's Focus -- his entire ministry focused on a single truth
2.Her suggestion that Paul's experience on the road toward Damascus is foundational to an understanding of Western Society's self criticism as a whole is fascinating. I don't care to get into all of the implications underlying this assumption, but I believe it is a worthy suggestion. As a classical scholar, she's not really interested in the mission of Paul (or even his success or lack there-of) as much as she is interested in the message of Paul. The amazing thing about her discovery, is that the text itself seems to exemplify the changes from authoritarian brutality to humble leadership we observe more commonly in Western society. Paul asserts authority in a different way. Paul makes bold claims and answers ethical dilemmas with words meant to enlighten, warn and inform, rather than beat the reader into subjection.
Ultimately, I don't think this post is a fair representation of everything Ruden is trying to say in her book or even in this interview, but it's always encouraging to see scholarship that throws the usual (or rather "en vogue") presuppositions out the window to try to get a clear view of what the author is saying rather than serve an agenda. Ruden's views may be generic and docile enough to suit a variety of opinions, but we may say that her discoveries of Paul's inner-thoughts and context seem to match the Paul we've come to know and respect.
Is it not true that we've been blessed by this servant of Christ? I cannot speak for Ruden regarding her findings, but I'm encouraged to read some of the fruits of her labor that lead me to think on a faithful servant of an even more faithful God! Christ has blessed his bride with a body that works. A body that has big parts and little parts. Some parts have written the very Word of God, have appointed leaders and cast out demons. Some parts read the Word of God, serve quietly and suffer with confident assurance in their Savior. I believe all have something to learn of Paul's humility, zeal and focus. I believe all have something to learn of Paul's "things of first importance", and most of all his Lord, Jesus the Messiah.
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