In this important study Hays argues against the mainstream that any attempt to account for the nature and method of Paul's theological language must first reckon with the centrality of narrative elements in his thought. Through an in-depth investigation of Galatians 3:1-4:11, Hays shows that the framework of Paul's thought is neither a system of doctrines nor his personal religious experience but the "sacred story" of Jesus Christ.

Here, following the example of Rahner and Pannenberg, John Macquarrie examines Jesus Christ's humanity to his origin as God. Part one considers the New Testament sources, including the "classical theology" period. Part two examines the Enlightenment and post-Enlightenment critique of classical christology (i.e. studying Jesus Christ as him from above, as opposed to his humanity), while in part three, Macquarrie makes his own christological statement on who Jesus Christ really is for us today.

In the context of the present-day religious pluralism and meeting of religions, we cannot afford to ignore the subject of religious phenomenology. Non-Christian religious traditions have confronted in their own way the problems that arise from human conditions with respect to the meaning, and goal of life. The answers to these problems given by the phenomenology of religions cannot be lightly disposed of as irrelevant to the theological reflections.

Sir Issac Newton searched more than half a lifetime for the secret code that he suspected was in the original texts the Old and New Testaments. He died without ever finding it. That sacred code now reveals the story of Jesus Christ - His part in the work of creation; His coming as the babe of Bethlehem; and His glorious second coming as the promised King on David's Throne. The exciting message that was encoded into the original text tells the time of His coming and the Earth's Great Millennium! Today we are living in the time that was prophesied. This book takes us on an exciting journey into the secrets of that code and its astounding message!

This outstanding book provides an in-depth historical study of the place of Jesus in the religious life, beliefs, and worship of Christians from the beginnings of the Christian movement down to the late second century. Lord Jesus Christ is a monumental work on earliest Christian devotion to Jesus, sure to replace Wilhelm Bousset s Kyrios Christos (1913) as the standard work on the subject. Larry Hurtado, widely respected for his previous contributions to the study of the New Testament and Christian origins, offers the best view to date of how the first Christians saw and reverenced Jesus as divine. In assembling this compelling picture, Hurtado draws on a wide body of ancient sources, from Scripture and the writings of such figures as Ignatius of Antioch and Justin to apocryphal texts such as the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Truth. Hurtado considers such themes as early beliefs about Jesus divine status and significance, but he also explores telling devotional practices of the time, including prayer and worship, the use of Jesus name in exorcism, baptism and healing, ritual invocation of Jesus as Lord, martyrdom, and lesser-known phenomena such as prayer postures and the curious scribal practice known today as the nomina sacra. The revealing portrait that emerges from Hurtado s comprehensive study yields definitive answers to questions like these: How important was this formative period to later Christian tradition? When did the divinization of Jesus first occur? Was early Christianity influenced by neighboring religions? How did the idea of Jesus divinity change old views of God? And why did the powerful dynamics of early beliefs and practices encourage people to make the costly move of becoming a Christian? Boasting an unprecedented breadth and depth of coverage — the book speaks authoritatively on everything from early Christian history to themes in biblical studies to New Testament Christology — Hurtado s Lord Jesus Christ is at once significant enough that a wide range of scholars will want to read it and accessible enough that general readers interested at all in Christian origins will also profit greatly from it.