Paul’s Understanding of the Church’s Mission

by Robert L. Plummer

Publisher:

Paternoster

, 2006

Overview

The Apostle Paul is the most notable Christian missionary and perhaps the most influential New Testament author. The greatest theologians in the church’s history—Augustine, Calvin, Luther, Karl Barth, and others—have repeatedly turned to Paul, and the central doctrines of the church hinge on the theology found in Paul’s writings. Yet in recent decades, disputes over the historicity of Paul’s letters and the emergence of the New Perspective have led scholars to reevaluate central Pauline texts, leading to controversy, dispute, and a fractured understanding of Paul’s intent.

Did the apostle Paul expect the early Christian communities to evangelize?

This book engages in a careful study of Paul’s letters to determine if the apostle expected the communities to which he wrote to engage in missionary activity. It helpfully summarizes the discussion on this debated issue, judiciously handling contested texts, and provides a way forward in addressing this critical question.

While admitting that Paul rarely explicitly commands the communities he founded to evangelize, Plummer amasses significant incidental data to provide a convincing case that Paul did indeed expect his churches to engage in mission activity. Throughout the study, Plummer progressively builds a theological basis for the church’s mission that is both distinctively Pauline and compelling.

Key Features

• Includes bibliographical references
• Contains Scripture and authors indexes

Contents

Top Highlights

“First, Paul employs ἀπόστολος in the general sense of ‘messenger’ or ‘accredited representative.’” (Page 45)

“Paul considered the general apostolic missionary obligation to devolve upon each local congregation. That is, each church, as a whole (not simply individuals within it), inherited the apostles’ obligation of making known the gospel.” (Page 48)

“First, biblical teaching on missions and evangelism has been neglected by the academy.” (Page 3)

“No longer did the Spirit and word come only to specific individuals for a limited duration. With the inauguration of the eschaton in Christ’s death and resurrection, the Spirit and word came to stay (Acts 1:8). Because God’s Spirit is a missionary spirit (i.e., revealing himself to humans and enabling their God-glorifying response) and God’s word is dynamic and effective, the abiding presence of Spirit and word with the elect community guarantees its active missionary role.” (Page 68)

“Paul is speaking of ‘power’ that comes from, belongs to, or is possessed by, God.³⁶ The εἰς clause (εἰς σωτηρίαν) describes the result of this power. The gospel is divine power that results in, or brings about, the salvation of everyone who believes in it. Here the gospel is described not simply as the content of what Jesus has done to bring about salvation, but is actually the effective ‘power’ which applies that salvation to believing Jews and Gentiles.” (Page 52)

Product Details

• Title: Paul’s Understanding of the Church’s Mission: Did the Apostle Paul Expect the Early Christian Communities to Evangelize?
• Author: Robert L. Plummer
• Publisher: Paternoster
• Print Publication Date: 2006
• Logos Release Date: 2011
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Bible. N.T. Epistles of Paul; Mission of the church; Missions › Theory; Evangelistic work; Church history › Primitive and early church, ca. 30-600
• ISBNs: 9781842273333, 9781498248273, 9781597527231, 1842273337, 1498248276, 1597527238
• Resource ID: LLS:PAULUNDRSTMSSN
• Resource Type: text.monograph.church-history
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T02:09:45Z

About Robert L. Plummer

Robert L. Plummer, Ph.D., is Chair of the Department of New Testament and Collin and Evelyn Aikman Professor of Biblical Studies. He has served in missionary assignments of varying length in China, Israel, Trinidad, Ghana, Malaysia, Cuba, and Turkey. Plummer founded and hosts the screencast, The Daily Dose of Greek. He is married to Chandi and they have three children. He is a member of Sojourn East in Louisville, Kentucky. He is author, editor, or co-author of several books, including 40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible (Kregel, 2010, 2021), Beginning with New Testament Greek (B&H Academic, 2020) and Going Deeper with New Testament Greek (B&H Academic, 2020).