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Tuesday, May 28, 2019

The deity of Christ in Galatians


[Gal 1:1] That Paul did not receive his commission from mere human beings (lit., from a human) but through Jesus Christ and God the Father (1:1) suggests that Paul understands Jesus as more than human (though Paul does not deny Jesus's humanity; 4:4). Both earlier and more recent commentators offer this observation.) That Paul assumes a shared understanding with his audience that Jesus is somehow divine appears in his letters' opening greetings…[v3] Prayers or wishes for a recipient's well-being were extremely common in ancient letters (e.g., 3 Jn 2). What is striking is the deity whom Paul and other early Christian writers invoke in these blessings: God, our Father, and the Lord, Jesus Christ (Gal 1:3). They regularly invoke Jesus as divine alongside the Father in a way that other works invoked deities such as Serapis. The praise certain fits Paul's Christology (e.g. 1 Cor 8:6, where "God" and "Lord" echo the Shema; Phil 2:6-11). C. Keener, Galatians (Baker 20:19), 50, 52-53. 

4 comments:

  1. Schreiner reaches the same conclusion in his commentary, "His is a divine appointment and a divine commission, and hence the gospel he proclaims is authoritative and true. The text also suggests that Jesus Christ and the Father are both divine beings, for Paul was not called merely by human beings."

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  2. 1 Peter 3:15 is a biblical proof for the deity of Jesus Christ as a stand alone:

    "but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect."

    1 Peter 3:13-14 is an allusion to Isaiah 8. A connection is made with Isaiah 8:13:

    “But the Lord of hosts, him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread."

    Peter substitutes the Old Testament phrase "the Lord of hosts" with "Christ the Lord", thereby proving that the inspired New Testament author believed Jesus Christ to be God. We are to honor Him as the Holy One.

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  3. There are many places where the NT authors attribute to Christ passages that the OT authors attributed to Yahweh. One of the strongest in my opinion is John 12:41 referencing Isaiah 6.

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