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The Spirit of God Transforming Life: The Reformation and Theology of the Holy Spirit PDF

208 Pages·2009·2.97 MB·English
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The Spirit of God Transforming Life This page intentionally left blank The Spirit of God Transforming Life The Reformation and Theology of the Holy Spirit Paul S. Chung THE SPIRIT OF GOD TRANSFORMING LIFE Copyright © Paul S. Chung, 2009 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2009 978-0-230-62027-8 All rights reserved. ® First published in 2009 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN in the United States - a division of St. Martin’s Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Where this book is distributed in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world, this is by Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout world. ® ® Palgrave and Macmillan are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries. ISBN 978-1-349-38267-5 ISBN 978-0-230-10346-7 (eBook) DOI 10.1057/9780230103467 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data. Chung, Paul S., 1958– The spirit of God transforming life : the reformation and theology of the Holy Spirit / Paul S. Chung. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. ISBN 978-0-230-62027-8 1. Holy Spirit—History of doctrines—16th century. 2. Reformed Church—Doctrines. I. Title. BT121.3.C57 2009 ′ 231 .309031—dc22 2009013908 Design by Integra Software Services First edition: December 2009 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 In Gratitude to Jane, Beth, and Heidi, my life companions This page intentionally left blank Contents Foreword by Craig L. Nessan ix Acknowledgements xiii Abbreviations xv Introduction 1 Spirit of Life: Spirituality and Ethical Life 5 Martin Luther 6 John Calvin 11 Organizational Themes in the Study of the Spirit of God: Spirituality and Ethical Life 17 1 The Spiritus Creator 21 The Spirit, Life-Giver 23 God Seen in Light of Natural Knowledge 27 Reformation and Natural Theology 29 2 The Spirit of the Triune God 37 Luther and the Doctrine of the Trinity 38 Calvin’s Theology of the Trinity 44 Luther and Calvin: Hypostatic Union in Jesus Christ 46 Trinitarian Theology in Ecumenical Context 52 3 The Spirit and Christ-Union 71 Martin Luther and Union with Christ 74 John Calvin: Christian Life in Christ-Union 81 Calvin’s View of Election 88 Karl Barth’s View of Election in Luther and Calvin 90 4 The Spirit and Evangelical Freedom in the Law 97 Luther’s Principle of Law and Gospel 97 Calvin’s View of the Threefold Use of the Law 102 viii Contents Critical Review of the Third Use of the Law 107 Theology of the Word of God in Luther and Barth 113 5 The Church in the Power of the Spirit 119 Luther: Church as Creature of the Gospel 119 Universal Priesthood and Social Economic Diakonia 124 Calvin: Church as Mother of Believers 132 Calvin and Economic Justice 137 Conclusion 143 Eucharistic Theology in Lutheran-Reformed Dialogue 143 Controversy on Real Presence 145 Luther in Dispute with Roman Catholicism and Zwingli 148 Luther: God’s Promise in the Sacrament 150 Calvin’s View of the Substance of Christ’s Body 152 For Sacramental Unity: The Universal Church and Promise of Eschatology 155 Afterword: Max Weber’s View of Reformation and Capitalism 159 Notes 169 Bibliography 187 Index 193 Foreword The Spirit of God transforms life! This assertion is made emphatic on every page of this book. Whereas the heritage of the Reforma- tion left many with the impression that the Holy Spirit had been ignored, necessitating Pentecostal revival, Paul Chung demonstrates how potent is the force of the Spirit already in the thought and writ- ing of Luther and Calvin. What has been left too often implicit about the work of the Reformers is here made powerfully explicit. The Spirit stirs up flames of passion! “I believe that by my own understanding or strength I cannot believe in Jesus Christ my Lord or come to him, but instead the Holy Spirit has called me through the gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, made me holy and kept me in the true faith, just as he calls, gathers, enlightens, and makes holy the whole Christian church on earth and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one common, true faith.” Luther’s explanation of the Third Article from his Small Catechism concisely names several strong dynamics of the Spirit’s work within Reforma- tion theology. This book can serve well as a primer or refresher course on the central themes of Reformation theology. Chung considers the energy of the Spirit as the Spiritus Creator within the natural world, the Spirit’s place in the Trinity, the role of the Spirit in election, the controversial question of the third use of the law, and the effects of the Spirit for the life of the world. In addressing these and many other issues, the author clearly and carefully describes the fundamental shape of Reformation thinking. The main concepts of Reformation theology are outlined deftly and consequentially. Thus the book contributes admirably to the purpose of introducing the reader to what was and is at stake in the Reformation’s insistence on the centrality of the gospel. It was this commitment to the gospel of justification by grace through faith that united Luther and Calvin in a shared Reforma- tion theological perspective. Many discussions of the relationship of Calvin to Luther have emphasized those aspects of their thought that appear to diverge, for example, on the third use of the law or the nature of Christ’s presence in the Lord’s Supper. Chung’s research

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