Christology and New Testament ethics

Written on Thursday 24 April 2003 for University of Cambridge, BA Theology Part IIA

Does Christology make a Distinctive Contribution to New Testament Ethics?

To state the obvious, the New Testament was written in response to Jesus Christ; without Jesus there would be no New Testament. Therefore Christology makes a contribution to every area of New Testament theology. However the question of whether or not that contribution is distinctive is more difficult, especially with regard to ethics. Many of Paul's ethical demands are identical to those in the Old Testament, commands not to kill or to steal, commands against sexual immorality. But whilst Paul's conclusions might be similar to, or in certain circumstances, identical with Old Testament laws, his justifications for, and the means by which he arrives at these conclusions, are centred wholly on Christ. He states that the Law no longer applies to Christians as a means of justification because in Jesus we have died to the Law and are alive in the Spirit.¹ His position on the Law outside justification is difficult to work out, but Luther summarises it well. He says we are justified by faith in God's grace, but only fully in the future. At the moment we are still in the flesh and therefore sinful. The Law is not evil, so there is no harm in Christians obeying it, provided they recognise it for what it is. So, the conclusions Paul reaches do not come from an exposition of the Law, but rather a meditation on Christ. This is essentially the position of all the New Testament writings.

In this essay I shall explore Christology in the full and proper sense, including what Christ does being who he is. Hence his suffering, death and resurrection, and what they achieved, should be seen as an integral part of Christology. Christ's identity is his work, and his work is his identity. For example, Jesus' name means 'Saviour', and he came to save people from their sins (Matthew 1.21). The New Testament does not make the distinction between the two in Christological statements, for example Hebrews 1.1-4, Philippians 2.6-11, and much of Mark's teaching on discipleship, so I will not make the distinction either.

The writer to the Hebrews sees Jesus as the transition between the old and new covenants. Whereas the old covenant was based on perpetual sacrifice and atonement, the new covenant is based on Jesus' once-for-all sacrifice. He removes our sin forever, saving us from our death forever;² we have no part whatsoever in our salvation. However that does not mean that we should be irresponsible. In the same way that keeping the Law was the correct response to God's personal saving work out of Egypt,³ so the ethical demands made in Hebrews are the correct response to Jesus' personal saving work. Jesus is described as the "pioneer and perfecter of our faith", he is both the one who enables us to be saved (the pioneer), and the one on whom we should model our lives (the perfecter).⁴ These two ideas are extremely important for Christology and ethics in Hebrews.

Although the largest amount of sustained moral exhortation is in chapters twelve and thirteen, there is a considerable amount in the first six chapters. Chapter one establishes Jesus as superior to all things, as he is the "exact imprint of God's very being", the "firstborn" of all creation.⁵ Chapter two establishes the closeness of Jesus' condition to our own. In 2.14f the writer says,

Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death.

Jesus shared in our sufferings, he became like us in order to save us. He was tempted as we are but did not sin (4.15). The implication is that we should try to become more like him in this (5.7), rejecting temptation and sinfulness and living a holy life.

An application of this point is in 3.1 - 4.13, where the faithfulness and trust of Moses and Jesus is compared to that of the Israelites, and held up as an example to follow. The description of faith is extended in chapter eleven, where it is shown to be a "moral quality of firmness, fidelity, and reliability".⁶ Faith should be expressed in Christian life, in the same way that it was expressed in the lives of all the people in chapter eleven, and ultimately in the life of Jesus. The call to faith is based primarily on Jesus' example: being faithful and obedient to God, to the point of suffering and even death (12.3f). For with faith comes obedience, shown in Hebrews 5.1-10, where the writer introduces Jesus' sacrifice. He has previously called Jesus the "great high priest" (4.14), and now he says that Jesus did not "presume to take this honour", but instead was "appointed" by God. Although Jesus had a position of greatness, his attitude was one of "reverent submission", not self-glorification. 5.7 says that when Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, he was heard because of his humility before God, not because of his position as high priest, as one might expect. Therefore, the two main ethical concepts important in Hebrews come from Christology: self-sacrifice (submission, obedience, humility) and faith (firmness, fidelity, reliability).

Through Jesus' pioneering work we are able to follow his example into glory. He was morally perfect; he did not have to atone for his own sins when he made the sacrifice for ours (7.26-28). So it is proper that we should aim for moral perfection, not because it saves us, but because the one who has saved us was morally perfect. The moral demands made are to be obeyed as a response to salvation in Christ.

The cross is central to Paul's theology. His ethics are firmly grounded in his theology, so that the two are often not separated neatly within his writings. Therefore his ethics need to be understood in terms of the cross. Yet his is not wholly a theologia crucis, for another major theme in Paul is what Irenaeus described, saying, "out of his infinite love, Christ became what we are, that we may become what he is".⁷ This is what Paul means when he talks about Jesus "being born under the Law" to redeem those "under the Law" so they might "receive adoption as children".⁸ God's Son became flesh so that we who are in the flesh might become God's sons, and so that "the just requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us".⁹ The Spirit works in us to make us like Christ, thus satisfying the demands of the Law in us; what Christians are depends on what Christ became.¹⁰ Paul says to the Philippians,

..work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure. - Philippians 2.12b-13 (more on Philippians 2 later)

He says, do and be what you are. You are in Christ, you are saved. Christ is working in you, therefore be like Christ, work out your salvation. Ultimately of course we will be like Christ, wholly sinless and pure, and although we are still sinful now, that perfecting process is begun in everyone 'in the Spirit', making us more and more Christ-like.¹¹ In the same way as in Hebrews, Paul says we are to be like Christ in identity (we are the children of God) and in works (so act like the children of God).

This idea is worked out in more detail by Morna Hooker in her essay Interchange in Christ and ethics, where she makes a parallel between Romans 1, 6 and 12. In Romans 1 Paul describes people's bodies as "degraded" and their minds "debased" by their sinfulness. In Romans 6 Paul talks about dying and rising in Christ. In Romans 12 Paul encourages his readers to offer their bodies as a "living sacrifice" and to allow their minds to be "transformed" and "renewed", in contrast to the previous life of sinfulness. The new life, gained by dying and rising in Christ, involves doing what is right and brings honour to God; "Since Christ behaved in a certain way in order to bring salvation to Paul's readers, how can they not imitate him in that particular respect?" The new life is one of conformity to the image of Christ. The transition from the old life to the new is participation in the death and resurrection of Christ,¹² which leads to transformation and renewal in our lives, so that we are able to do and be what we are. Again, the Spirit works in those justified by faith in order to make them righteous before God; the only way to do this is to make them more Christ-like, as he was the only perfect human, he is the model for righteousness. Thompson says that this 'becoming more Christ-like' is not some mechanical copying of every action of Christ, and neither can we emulate Christ in everything, for example his glory. Instead, it is the "Spirit-enabled following of Jesus' spirit and attitude as exemplified and characterized on the cross".¹³ The very things which Paul calls us to emulate were demonstrated by Jesus on the cross; humility, meekness, gentleness, love, compassion, endurance through suffering, forgiving spirit, and, most importantly, his attitude as a servant (13). So the cross is at the centre of Paul's ethics.

Philippians 2 is the best example of this in Paul's writings. 2.1-4 anticipates verse five, telling the Philippians to "be of the same mind", have "the same love", "do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves", "look... to the interests of others". They must be of "one mind"; verse five tells us whose, "Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus...". Jesus did not come for his own benefit, he was humble before others, washing their feet. He was of one mind with God, which means that he did whatever God wanted him to do, he was obedient and faithful to God, and he did everything out of love for others.¹⁴ Paul directly relates ethical demands to Jesus, and then describes what Jesus did and who he is in 2.6-11,

who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death -

even death on a cross.

Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every other name,
so that at the name of Jesus,
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

At the centre of this chiastic construction is the cross: it was the culmination of Jesus' life on earth and the beginning of his exaltation in the whole world. This passage includes the important concept of the kenosis, the self-emptying of Christ, which is also seen in 2 Corinthians 8.9; Jesus loses everything he has, in order to gain everything for us. Our life is only possible through participation in Jesus' death and life. Before 2.6-11, Paul relates ethics to Jesus, and he does the same afterwards; verse twelve begins, "Therefore...". 2.14 says "Do all things without murmuring and arguing," because Christ didn't complain about what God wanted him to do, so we shouldn't either. Christ is clearly the model for our lives. Emulating Christ does not require a strict ethical code, therefore, but life in the Spirit, making us more like Jesus. It is a process and it is a whole lifestyle, as both Hooker and Thompson point out. It involves conformity to the cross, to the self-emptying, self-giving love Christ demonstrated on the cross and embodied in the Incarnation.¹⁵ If anything this is more difficult than following an ethical code, as the list of the gifts of the Spirit in Galatians 5.22-23 shows, but we are not alone. Romans 8.9-11 explains that the Spirit of God dwells in us, giving us life, and 8.26-27 explains that the Spirit helps us, interceding on our behalf "with sighs too deep for words". Philippians 2 tells us that God is at work in us, helping us. We are only able to be like Christ because of what Christ did for us, we are only able to move towards glory because Christ gave up his glory and became a slave, to take away our sinfulness. Again, identity and works are one.

Like many of the letters in the New Testament, 1 Peter begins with a summary of the gospel and the hope it brings, "By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead".¹⁶ Immediately after this section, 1.13 begins "Therefore...". Many sections in 1 Peter begin 'therefore' or similarly, all relating to previous descriptions of Christ. So ethics in 1 Peter follow what Christ has already done, following the New Testament pattern of response to salvation and hope.

The major focuses of ethical teaching in 1 Peter are obedience and suffering. The writer does, of course, have other demands, for example in 2.11 the readers are urged "to abstain from the desires of the flesh". However the main themes are obedience and suffering. In 2.21 the writer tells us the reason why these are so important, "..because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps". 2.23-25 draws this out more, showing Christ to be the paradigm for the suffering the Christian community is called to endure.¹⁷ Because of Christ's suffering, we must be obedient to God and expect to suffer ourselves.¹⁸ Peter calls his readers to "rejoice" in their sufferings (4.13), because by suffering we are sharing in Christ's suffering, for we know that he will return in glory, as Philippians 2 says. 'Suffering' in 1 Peter refers to the events of the Passion (see 4.1), so that in 1 Peter also, the cross is the primary basis for ethics, more so even than in Paul, who also has the idea of interchange and Incarnation, becoming and birth as well as loss and death.

Instead of being derived from the Law, ethics in the New Testament are derived from God himself, in Jesus, as the "pioneer and perfecter" of our faith. The call to emulate Christ in is not a straightforward, 'do-everything-as-Christ-did', but a 'do-everything-as-Christ-would-do', 'live-as-Christ-would-live'. So because of Christ's self-emptying in the Incarnation, because of his humility and obedience in life, because of his humility and obedience in death, because of who Jesus was and is, what he has done and does, therefore we should strive to be like him. The Holy Spirit works in us to enable us to move towards perfection. Jesus' identity and works are at the centre of the gospel, and therefore must be at the centre of whatever follows from it, whatever it is 'used' for. If the Law is to be followed, it is only in response to Christ; it doesn't make us righteous, for "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God";¹⁹ it is God who truly makes us righteous, in Christ.

Notes

1 Romans 7.6. While Paul may say slightly different things in different letters (compare Galatians 3.1-14 to Romans 7.7-13), his message is that it is not a sin to obey the Law, as long as the Law doesn't take the place of faith in justification. This is why Galatians differs from Romans; the Galatians were falling into the belief that the Law justifies so Paul tells them that, compared to the grace of God in Christ, the Law is a curse. In Romans he says the Law is not evil, but rather is used by sin for evil purposes (7.13).
2 See Hebrews 8.6ff and 10.12.
3 Exodus 20.2f and Deuteronomy 5.6f.
4 'Perfection' in Hebrews is not moral perfection, which is how Jesus was "made perfect" (4.9) when there is no suggestion that he was morally imperfect. Perfection in Hebrews is rather the state of glory which we will all be in at the end; the root of the words used for 'perfect' and 'perfection' is the Greek word telos, which means 'end'. Christ was the first to achieve this, and enables us to do the same.
5 See Hebrews 1.3 and 1.6.
6 Lindars, p.109.
7 Irenaeus, Adversus Haereses, book 5, preface.
8 See Galatians 4.4f. Also 2 Corinthians 8.9, "For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich." This is one of the verses which is behind Irenaeus' statement.
9 Romans 8.4: we participate in Christ's righteousness by walking in "the Spirit".
10 Hooker, pp.59f, "The behaviour which is appropriate for those who are in Christ and who wish to become like him conforms to the attitude which he showed in becoming like us." - p.63.
11 "Paul's goal for his readers is that individually and collectively they should be transformed progressively into the image of the person of Jesus Christ, the last Adam, and so reflect the character of God, as he did." - Thompson, p.238. The transforming process is both the work of the Holy Spirit and our own act of will.
12 This paragraph, Hooker, pp.57f, with reference to Romans 14.5-9.
13 Thompson, p.239.
14 This is how Paul believes Christians should live, with the mind and attitude of Christ.
15 "..the gospel demands conformity to the cross" - Hooker, p.65. See Philippians 2.7 - this is describing the Incarnation.
16 1 Peter 1.3b.
17 This is also true in Paul's writings, although it is less explicit, and in Hebrews too (2.9, 2.18, 5.8, 13.12). The paradigm of suffering is vitally important in Mark as well. In Mark, Jesus tells the Disciples to take up their crosses and follow him. This is clearly an indication that standing out, suffering, and obedience to the point of death are the requirements for following Christ. And the basis for this requirement? Jesus himself, "Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering..." - Mark 8.31a. Much more can be said about Mark, but I do not have the space to do so, other than to highlight the fact that the theme of emulating Christ in suffering is common throughout the New Testament.
18 1 Peter 4.12-19.
19 Romans 3.23.

Bibliography

CK Barrett. Commentaries on First and Second Corinthians - Black's NT Commentaries. London: Black's, 1992 and 1973.

Markus Bockmuehl. Jewish Law in Gentile Churches. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 2000.

Andrew Chester and Ralph P Martin. The Theology of the Letters of James, Peter and Jude. Cambridge: CUP, 1994.

CEB Cranfield. The Gospel According to St Mark. Cambridge: CUP, 1959.

JA Fitzmyer. Romans - Anchor Bible Series No 33. New York: Garden City, 1992.

Morna D Hooker. From Adam to Christ: Essays on Paul. Cambridge: CUP 1990.

Barnabas Lindars SSF. The Theology of the Letter to the Hebrews. Cambridge: CUP, 1991.

Martin Luther. Lectures on Galatians, 1535 (Complete Works of Luther, Vol.26-27). Concordia: St Louis, 1963, 1964.

PT O'Brien. The Epistle to the Philippians: A Commentary on the Greek text. Michigan: Grand Rapids, 1991.

Michael Thompson. Clothed with Christ. Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1991.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise stated, are taken from the NRSV Annotated Study Bible (ed. Howard Clark Lee), Cambridge: CUP 1999.

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