Read more
The key to understanding the apostle Paul's teaching lies in the apostle's understanding of eschatology or "the last days."
List of contents
Contents
Abbreviations
Acknowledgments
I. Paul: The Man, His Message, and His Letters
A. The Man: The Contours of Paul’s World
B. The Message: The Quest for the Center of Paul’s Thought
C. His Letters: The Extent of Paul’s Writings
II. Pauline Theology: The Triumph of God in the World
A. The Anti-God Forces
B. Humans
C. Creation
D. Christ
III. Pauline Christology: Messiah and the Turn of the Ages
A. The Christ-Event and Sin
B. The Christ-Event and the Flesh
C. The Christ-Event and the Law
IV. Pauline Soteriology: Salvation Now and Not Yet
A. Galatians 5:16-18
B. 1 Corinthians 10:11-13
C. Romans 6:1-14
D. Romans 7:14-25
E. Romans 8:17-30
F. Romans 13:11-14
G. Philippians 1:6; 3:1-14, 20-21
H. Ephesians 2:1-10
V. Pauline Anthropology: From Plight to Solution
A. Survey of the Leading Views of Paul’s View of the Law
B. An Examination of the Pertinent Pauline Texts on the Law
VI. Pauline Pneumatology: The Spirit as the Presence of the Future
A. The Indwelling of the Spirit
B. The Gifts of the Spirit
C. The Fruit of the Spirit
D. The Filling of the Spirit
E. The Intercession of the Spirit
VII. Pauline Ecclesiology: The Church as the Dawning of the Age to Come
A. Church and Metaphor
B. Church and Sacraments
C. Church and Worship
D. Church and Ministry
E. Church and State
VIII. Pauline Society: Galatians 3:28 and the New World Order
A. Jew Nor Gentile
B. Slave Nor Free
C. Male Nor Female
IX. Pauline Eschatology: Signs of the Times and the Beginning of the End
A. Theories of Pauline Eschatology
B. Topics of Pauline Eschatology: The Signs of the Times
Bibliography
Indexes
About the author
C. Marvin Pate (MA, Wheaton; PhD, Marquette University) taught for thirteen years at Moody Bible Institute. Now he is chair of the department of Christian theology and professor of theology at Ouachita Baptist University. Pate has authored, co-authored, or edited twenty books.
Summary
The Christian, according to the apostle Paul, lives between two times. The end is already present with Christ's death and resurrection, but the end is yet to come with his second appearing. Following the seminal work of Oscar Cullmann, Marvin Pate argues that this "already/not yet" eschatological tension lies at the heart of all writings of the apostle Paul and is, in fact, the key to understanding them. Pate traces the concept of “already/not yet” back to its Jewish roots and shows with exceptional clarity how Paul’s teachings on God, Christ, human beings, salvation, the Holy Spirit, the church society, and the last things can be successfully placed within this “already/not yet” framework. In his analysis, Pate exegetes numerous key passages in the Pauline letters.
