Understanding the Gospel as Divine Power

Paul and his Letters
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Paul and his Letters
1. What is the significance of understanding the gospel as divine power, as
performative utterance?
The gospel is the good news that were presented to human beings through Christ
and his apostles. This gospel revolves around Jesus Christ who was crucified, died
and resurrected. He resurrected because death had no control over him. Instead, he
has power over death and sin. Although, he was tempted by satan, he overcame
for it was impossible for him to be a captive of sin. The gospel represents to us the
divine power that our lord and saviour Jesus Christ used to save the world. He
died so that all the nations of the world be saved. Understanding the gospel divine
power plays a role in the salvation journey of a Christian. Understanding that
Christ came to the world, died for our sins and rose on the third day is a basic step
in the process of salvation. After this, it is important that one confesses their belief
in Jesus Christ. This utterance shows that a person believes in God the father and
Jesus his son. This confession is extremely important in salvation.
2. Evaluate the meaning and aptness of Ernst Baseman's claim that Paul the
crosses the signature of the one who is risen?
Paul did not learn the gospel via secondary means. He had great knowledge in the
law and persecuted Christians prior to his belief in Jesus. He says in his letter to
the Galatians that the gospel was revealed to him by Jesus himself1. He was
therefore preaching a gospel that he received first hand. He emphasizes the
importance of the death and resurrection of Christ to the salvation of mankind.
1. Gorman, Michael J. Apostle of the Crucified Lord: A Theological Introduction to
Paul & His Letters. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,
2017.

This is why he emphasizes on the importance of baptism Romans 6. Baptism is
symbolic of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Any person who decides to
follow Jesus is baptised to signify that they accept Christ who has died and risen.
Therefore, Paul crosses the signature of the one who is risen through proclaiming
his good news to mankind. He mainly preaches the good news to the gentiles. This
is because Christ died and rose with the intention that all the nations of the world
be saved. Any person who believes in Jesus, whether Jew or Gentile will not
perish but have eternal life.
3. What are some of the common (mis) understandings of the Christian gospel
vis-a-vis Paul's perspective? In what ways has the contemporary church
appreciated or neglected the (a) narrative (b) Jewish, and (c) the political
dimensions of the gospel?
In the contemporary church, there are different perspectives that have been
adopted as far as the gospel is concerned. When it comes to the narrative aspect,
some churches choose to follow the teachings of the bible as they are without
engaging the deeper meaning. They therefore follow strictly the dictates of the
bible. Other churches aim to understand biblical text from its context so that the
true meaning can be derived. When it comes to the Jewish aspect, some churches
in the modern day believe that salvation is for the Jews. These seem not to
appreciate the teachings of Paul and other apostles such as Peter. For the majority
of the churches however, salvation both for Jews and Gentiles. As apostle Paul
notes, there is neither Jew nor Gentile before God. He sent his son Jesus Christ so
that all the nations of the earth might be saved. Politically, God has divine