Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, 2018
The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in ... more The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in the twentieth century following the pioneering work of Adolf Deissmann. Yet only recently have scholars begun to address the potential significance of the believer’s union with Christ in texts outside of the Pauline corpus. Building on this recent expansion yet acknowledging oversights in existing studies, this paper looks to highlight the prominence of union with Christ in the epistle of 1 Peter. Its prevalence throughout the epistle and the nuances of its application suggest that it is both essential to the Petrine attempt to form the identity of his readers, and the basis from which he presents his ethical exhortation—including the explicit call to imitate Christ.
Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters, 2016
An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distin... more An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distinct challenges for Pauline scholars. A specific example appears with the use of self-control (σώφρων) language in the book of Titus, where 5 of the 16 New Testament instances of this language appear in a brief section (2:1–14). Because of the prominence of this language in Greco-Roman ethical teaching, many have used this flurry of virtue language as an example of an accommodative Pauline ethic in Titus. This article tests this label of the accommodative ethic and ultimately cautions scholars against focusing singularly on the lexical similarities between Paul and his Greco-Roman counterparts without adequately accounting for the distinctives in the way the lexical items are used in Titus. This article shows that the ethics conveyed by the frequent use of σώφρων terminology in Titus 2:1–14 cannot properly be labeled accommodative in light of the stark differences that the text exhibits fr...
The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in ... more The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in the twentieth century following the pioneering work of Adolf Deissmann. Yet only recently have scholars begun to address the potential significance of the believer's union with Christ in texts outside of the Pauline corpus. Building on this recent expansion yet acknowledging oversights in existing studies, this paper looks to highlight the prominence of union with Christ in the epistle of 1 Peter. Its prevalence throughout the epistle and the nuances of its application suggest that it is both essential to the Petrine attempt to form the identity of his readers, and the basis from which he presents his ethical exhortation—including the explicit call to imitate Christ.
Journal for the Study of Paul and his Letters, 2016
An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distin... more An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distinct challenges for Pauline scholars. A specific example appears with the use of self-control (σώφρων) language in the book of Titus, where 5 of the 16 New Testament instances of this language appear in a brief section (2:1–14). Because of the prominence of this language in Greco-Roman ethical teaching, many have used this flurry of virtue language as an example of an accommodative Pauline ethic in Titus. This article tests this label of the accommodative ethic and ultimately cautions scholars against focusing singularly on the lexical similarities between Paul and his Greco-Roman counterparts without adequately accounting for the distinctives in the way the lexical items are used in Titus. This article shows that the ethics conveyed by the frequent use of σώφρων terminology in Titus 2:1–14 cannot properly be labeled accommodative in light of the stark differences that the text exhibits from common Greco-Roman concepts for the purpose and source of self-control. Instead, these factors suggest that, while mission remains of paramount importance to the ethical exhortation in Titus 2:1–14, the use of σώφρων terms supports a different ideology, prioritizing the gospel and union with Jesus Christ.
Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, 2018
The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in ... more The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in the twentieth century following the pioneering work of Adolf Deissmann. Yet only recently have scholars begun to address the potential significance of the believer’s union with Christ in texts outside of the Pauline corpus. Building on this recent expansion yet acknowledging oversights in existing studies, this paper looks to highlight the prominence of union with Christ in the epistle of 1 Peter. Its prevalence throughout the epistle and the nuances of its application suggest that it is both essential to the Petrine attempt to form the identity of his readers, and the basis from which he presents his ethical exhortation—including the explicit call to imitate Christ.
Journal for the Study of Paul and His Letters, 2016
An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distin... more An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distinct challenges for Pauline scholars. A specific example appears with the use of self-control (σώφρων) language in the book of Titus, where 5 of the 16 New Testament instances of this language appear in a brief section (2:1–14). Because of the prominence of this language in Greco-Roman ethical teaching, many have used this flurry of virtue language as an example of an accommodative Pauline ethic in Titus. This article tests this label of the accommodative ethic and ultimately cautions scholars against focusing singularly on the lexical similarities between Paul and his Greco-Roman counterparts without adequately accounting for the distinctives in the way the lexical items are used in Titus. This article shows that the ethics conveyed by the frequent use of σώφρων terminology in Titus 2:1–14 cannot properly be labeled accommodative in light of the stark differences that the text exhibits fr...
The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in ... more The important NT theme of union with Christ has inspired numerous studies by Pauline scholars in the twentieth century following the pioneering work of Adolf Deissmann. Yet only recently have scholars begun to address the potential significance of the believer's union with Christ in texts outside of the Pauline corpus. Building on this recent expansion yet acknowledging oversights in existing studies, this paper looks to highlight the prominence of union with Christ in the epistle of 1 Peter. Its prevalence throughout the epistle and the nuances of its application suggest that it is both essential to the Petrine attempt to form the identity of his readers, and the basis from which he presents his ethical exhortation—including the explicit call to imitate Christ.
Journal for the Study of Paul and his Letters, 2016
An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distin... more An attempt to account for the unique language and themes in the Pastoral Epistles presents distinct challenges for Pauline scholars. A specific example appears with the use of self-control (σώφρων) language in the book of Titus, where 5 of the 16 New Testament instances of this language appear in a brief section (2:1–14). Because of the prominence of this language in Greco-Roman ethical teaching, many have used this flurry of virtue language as an example of an accommodative Pauline ethic in Titus. This article tests this label of the accommodative ethic and ultimately cautions scholars against focusing singularly on the lexical similarities between Paul and his Greco-Roman counterparts without adequately accounting for the distinctives in the way the lexical items are used in Titus. This article shows that the ethics conveyed by the frequent use of σώφρων terminology in Titus 2:1–14 cannot properly be labeled accommodative in light of the stark differences that the text exhibits from common Greco-Roman concepts for the purpose and source of self-control. Instead, these factors suggest that, while mission remains of paramount importance to the ethical exhortation in Titus 2:1–14, the use of σώφρων terms supports a different ideology, prioritizing the gospel and union with Jesus Christ.
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Papers by Sean Christensen