Introduction by Kirk R. MacGregor - James Clarke and Co Ltd

Introduction
of one’s own soul) and where each individual in good standing with God
is a pneumatikov~ a[nqrwpo~ (“spiritual human,” or a human dominated
by the Christlike desires of the Holy Spirit). The transformation from a
yucikov~ to a pneumatikov~ a[nqrwpo~ cannot be accomplished by human
effort, such as religious affiliation or acts of social justice, since no
one can alter the fundamental inclination of one’s soul. Exclusively the
work of the Spirit, I explain the precise nature of the associated changes
to the believer’s soul and why they effect a habitual harvest of good spiritual
fruit, as opposed to the occasional good fruit which the unregenerate
may yield. Moreover, these changes infuse the believer with a spectrum
of theological virtues, classically summarized in Galatians 5:22–24, sufficient
for acting righteously in all circumstances. All in all, the believer
is marked as such by citizenship in the Kingdom of God, or adherence to
the philosophy of life where God is the ruler over all earthly affairs but,
when God rules, he does so as a servant leader who comes up alongside
others with unconditional love and expects his followers to do the same.
In chapter eleven, Georg Plasger examines the “negative side” of eternal
security or the danger from which believers are secure, namely, God’s
coming wrath, from the perspectives of Albrecht Ritschl (1822–1889),
Martin Luther, and Karl Barth (1886–1968) and then considers each of
these perspectives in light of the Pauline doctrine of redemption. Aiming
to correct the past clerical abuses of placing inordinate guilt upon perceived
transgressors, Ritschl severely de-emphasized God’s wrath to the
point of objective nonexistence, such that God never exhibits anger and
expresses only love toward humanity. Thus, the wrath of God is reduced
to a psychological construct whereby individuals who have not yet embraced
Christ fail to feel God’s ubiquitous love. By contrast, Luther regards
God’s wrath as real and accounts for it by finding within the divine
constitution a behavioral dualism, in which God displays his alien nature
of judgment against sinful people but exhibits his true nature of love and
mercy toward believers. Luther also felt that believers experience the
underbelly of wrath when God progressively destroys the old person of
sin or “flesh” still resident within. Synthesizing Ritschl’s exclusivity of love
with Luther’s veridicality of wrath, Barth understands God’s wrath as an
expression of his love, since God does not direct his wrath toward creatures
but toward the demonic forces of futility which threaten to destroy
them. The exemplification of God’s wrath as a necessary component of
his love occurs at the cross, thereby concurring with Luther that wrath
SAMPLE
xxix
© 2011 James Clarke and Co Ltd