Contrast Society
Chapter 2
A People in Mission: the Biblical Record
"The Biblical history of salvation is essentially the story of a people--the people of God who live by faith. It is the story of this community space, the life and mission in response to God's salvific initiative. The mission of God's people is deeply rooted in God's saving alternative--its vocation to holiness is God's contrast community" (p. 23).
"We cannot recover biblical view of mission apart from a radical return to peoplehood as God intended” (p. 24).
"God's people are his new creation. In the call of Abraham history begins anew. The people of God is clearly viewed as a new alternative rising up in the midst of humankind. This implies a radical break with the old. The call to Abraham to "go from your country and your kindred and your father's house" points to more than a mere change of geography. It implies a recognition of "the Lord, the God of Israel," in contrast to the “other gods" of the Chaldeans (Joshua 24:2) (p. 25).
"To know the God of Israel is to reorder all of life and its values in accord with his nature. God’s call to Abraham is an invitation to become a contrast-society... whenever Israel has this vision of its distinctive identity as God's contrast-society in sharpest focus, then it will most faithfully fulfill its mission to serve for the blessing of all of the Earth's families (p. 26).
"To be God's holy people is to adhere to a concrete social order which distinguishes it from all other nations.... this is a social order standing in sharp contrast to those which characterize all other nations. "You shall be holy to mean; for I the Lord and holy, and it separated you from the other peoples to be mine" (that it exists 20:26) (p. 28).
The prophets "bring God's message to a people who of long since ceased to be a contrast-society in the midst of the nations; they warn of impending judgment. But they also share a vision of hope beyond judgment -- a hope based upon restoration of God's reign of righteousness and peace. Picking up the theme of the ancient promise to Abraham, the prophets perceive the blessing of God's righteous reign reaching to all humanity to the faithfulness of his restored people. It is a vision of "a mountain of the Lord's house" being established in a new and highly visible way among the peoples of the earth and the nations being attracted by the gracious covenant relationships of righteousness, peace, and salvation which characterize God's people" (p 30).
"The messianic movement initiated by Jesus cannot be understood apart from the OT vision of God's people as a contrast society. Jesus’ kingdom preaching, teaching, and activity all point toward the restoration of God's people. This restoration is for the people to carry out in a definitive way God's plan for a holy people in the midst of the nations. The messianic mission is aimed at the establishment of the eschatological people of God in which the social order of the reign of God will be lived. Jesus perceives the messianic community in terms of the prophetic vision of the "Lord's house... established as the highest of the mountains." He concretely describes this new people of God as "the light of the world. A city built on a hill... that [others] may see your good works and give glory to your father in heaven" (Matthew 5:14-16). (pp. 31-32).
"This is the context in which we must understand Jesus’ revolutionary calls for his followers to absolutely renounce violence (Matthew 5:39-48) and coercive domination (Mark 10:42-45).... this perspective of a contrast-community stands in sharp contrast to secular societies, which are marked by the will to coerce and to exercise control over others. Precisely this kind of non-resistant love can communicate most powerfully its missionary witness to a God who loves his enemies and seeks to save them (Matthew 5:3, 9, 16, 44-48) (p. 32).
"A new and different people of God is appearing in the midst of the nations, of people in which God's glory shines forth for the blessing of all peoples” (Micah 4:1-4; Matthew 5:14-16) (p. 33).
"The concrete social form of the messianic community gathered by Jesus is already anticipated in the OT vision of God's people. They are to be a contrast society set in the midst of the nations as a sign of God's saving purpose for all peoples. Jesus’ great commission is based on his restored messianic community" (page 33).
"Darkness and light are figures for the two contrasting spheres -- life as a pagans, and life in the church. "In the Lord" or "in Christ" are not references to a purely mystical or spiritualized sphere; instead they mean life within the realm of Christ's rule, the church.
"The two contrasting spheres are sometimes described by long catalogs of vices and virtues (cf. Colossians 3:8-14), which need not be understood primarily in terms of individualistic ethic. Rather they describe two contrasting social orders" (p. 33).
"The contrast between the two humanities -- the old and the new -- is another image used to underscore the essential nature of the church as God's substantially different counter a society (Ephesians 2:15; 4:24; Colossians 3:9-11). The image of the new creation communicates the same reality (2 Corinthians 5:17; et al.). The contrast between the "present evil age” (Galatians 1:4) and "the age to come”(Hebrews 6:5; cf. Ephesians 2:7) is not merely a reference to salvation in a distant future. Whoever participates in the realm of Christ's rule is delivered from the present evil age. The Christian community realizes that it needs no longer to live in the bondage of evil nor according to the false structures of pagan society" (p. 34).
"Jesus’ prayer in John 17 reflects the contrast-society vision of God's people and their mission, which we have already noted in the OT. Jesus says about his followers, "They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world" (John 17:16).... the contrast-society lives in the midst of societies where the deceitfulness of evil has perpetrated degrading social forums. Christ immunity serves to make this deception manifest and therefore becomes the object of the world's persecution (John 15:18-20)" (p. 34).
With respect to 1 Peter 2:9-10, Driver says "it shows clearly that the primary concerning biblical vision is not merely the private holiness of individuals, important as this may be. The fundamental thrust of the passage is that the people of God (as a people) give witness to his saving purpose for all humanity the unambiguous identity of the early church is the prime ingredient in fulfillment of its mission. This contrast society is both the context in which God's mercy has experienced an instrument of God's mentioned the peoples of the year" (p. 35).
I'll comment on this post next post. For now, please read it carefully.
A People in Mission: the Biblical Record
"The Biblical history of salvation is essentially the story of a people--the people of God who live by faith. It is the story of this community space, the life and mission in response to God's salvific initiative. The mission of God's people is deeply rooted in God's saving alternative--its vocation to holiness is God's contrast community" (p. 23).
"We cannot recover biblical view of mission apart from a radical return to peoplehood as God intended” (p. 24).
"God's people are his new creation. In the call of Abraham history begins anew. The people of God is clearly viewed as a new alternative rising up in the midst of humankind. This implies a radical break with the old. The call to Abraham to "go from your country and your kindred and your father's house" points to more than a mere change of geography. It implies a recognition of "the Lord, the God of Israel," in contrast to the “other gods" of the Chaldeans (Joshua 24:2) (p. 25).
"To know the God of Israel is to reorder all of life and its values in accord with his nature. God’s call to Abraham is an invitation to become a contrast-society... whenever Israel has this vision of its distinctive identity as God's contrast-society in sharpest focus, then it will most faithfully fulfill its mission to serve for the blessing of all of the Earth's families (p. 26).
"To be God's holy people is to adhere to a concrete social order which distinguishes it from all other nations.... this is a social order standing in sharp contrast to those which characterize all other nations. "You shall be holy to mean; for I the Lord and holy, and it separated you from the other peoples to be mine" (that it exists 20:26) (p. 28).
The prophets "bring God's message to a people who of long since ceased to be a contrast-society in the midst of the nations; they warn of impending judgment. But they also share a vision of hope beyond judgment -- a hope based upon restoration of God's reign of righteousness and peace. Picking up the theme of the ancient promise to Abraham, the prophets perceive the blessing of God's righteous reign reaching to all humanity to the faithfulness of his restored people. It is a vision of "a mountain of the Lord's house" being established in a new and highly visible way among the peoples of the earth and the nations being attracted by the gracious covenant relationships of righteousness, peace, and salvation which characterize God's people" (p 30).
"The messianic movement initiated by Jesus cannot be understood apart from the OT vision of God's people as a contrast society. Jesus’ kingdom preaching, teaching, and activity all point toward the restoration of God's people. This restoration is for the people to carry out in a definitive way God's plan for a holy people in the midst of the nations. The messianic mission is aimed at the establishment of the eschatological people of God in which the social order of the reign of God will be lived. Jesus perceives the messianic community in terms of the prophetic vision of the "Lord's house... established as the highest of the mountains." He concretely describes this new people of God as "the light of the world. A city built on a hill... that [others] may see your good works and give glory to your father in heaven" (Matthew 5:14-16). (pp. 31-32).
"This is the context in which we must understand Jesus’ revolutionary calls for his followers to absolutely renounce violence (Matthew 5:39-48) and coercive domination (Mark 10:42-45).... this perspective of a contrast-community stands in sharp contrast to secular societies, which are marked by the will to coerce and to exercise control over others. Precisely this kind of non-resistant love can communicate most powerfully its missionary witness to a God who loves his enemies and seeks to save them (Matthew 5:3, 9, 16, 44-48) (p. 32).
"A new and different people of God is appearing in the midst of the nations, of people in which God's glory shines forth for the blessing of all peoples” (Micah 4:1-4; Matthew 5:14-16) (p. 33).
"The concrete social form of the messianic community gathered by Jesus is already anticipated in the OT vision of God's people. They are to be a contrast society set in the midst of the nations as a sign of God's saving purpose for all peoples. Jesus’ great commission is based on his restored messianic community" (page 33).
"Darkness and light are figures for the two contrasting spheres -- life as a pagans, and life in the church. "In the Lord" or "in Christ" are not references to a purely mystical or spiritualized sphere; instead they mean life within the realm of Christ's rule, the church.
"The two contrasting spheres are sometimes described by long catalogs of vices and virtues (cf. Colossians 3:8-14), which need not be understood primarily in terms of individualistic ethic. Rather they describe two contrasting social orders" (p. 33).
"The contrast between the two humanities -- the old and the new -- is another image used to underscore the essential nature of the church as God's substantially different counter a society (Ephesians 2:15; 4:24; Colossians 3:9-11). The image of the new creation communicates the same reality (2 Corinthians 5:17; et al.). The contrast between the "present evil age” (Galatians 1:4) and "the age to come”(Hebrews 6:5; cf. Ephesians 2:7) is not merely a reference to salvation in a distant future. Whoever participates in the realm of Christ's rule is delivered from the present evil age. The Christian community realizes that it needs no longer to live in the bondage of evil nor according to the false structures of pagan society" (p. 34).
"Jesus’ prayer in John 17 reflects the contrast-society vision of God's people and their mission, which we have already noted in the OT. Jesus says about his followers, "They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world" (John 17:16).... the contrast-society lives in the midst of societies where the deceitfulness of evil has perpetrated degrading social forums. Christ immunity serves to make this deception manifest and therefore becomes the object of the world's persecution (John 15:18-20)" (p. 34).
With respect to 1 Peter 2:9-10, Driver says "it shows clearly that the primary concerning biblical vision is not merely the private holiness of individuals, important as this may be. The fundamental thrust of the passage is that the people of God (as a people) give witness to his saving purpose for all humanity the unambiguous identity of the early church is the prime ingredient in fulfillment of its mission. This contrast society is both the context in which God's mercy has experienced an instrument of God's mentioned the peoples of the year" (p. 35).
I'll comment on this post next post. For now, please read it carefully.
posted by Gary McDuda at 2:16 PM
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