This World

The message of the New Testament is, for many, obscured by the mythological language in which it is expressed, and by the mythological world-picture which the NT presupposes and in which it is embedded. It is no use trying to allegorize these mythological elements, as for instance by saying that various miracles which modern people find incredible are really just symbolic. The healing of a blind man might indeed be a fit metaphor for enlightening those whose understanding is darkened; turning water into wine could symbolize a change in the age from the insubstantial theology of Judaism to the intoxicating message of Jesus. Okay… that’s not a very good one. The point is that to allegorize the NT is not an acceptable exegetical procedure. The text meant that the blind were healed and the water was turned into wine literally. We can accept that or not, but that is what was meant.

So getting rid of the mythology by rendering it inoffensive through rationalization is not acceptable. Bultmann correctly realized that modern theology has to confront the question head on: does the NT has anything to say to modern man once it is demythologized? And the answer is Yes, it does.

If we consider the picture of Man presented in the NT of course we have the mythological ‘history’ of The Fall, of Adam’s disobedience, of the world polluted by Sin, and by Death as a consequence. I certainly do not think of death as a lurking presence in the world introduced by a personified Sin. Death is a natural process without which our existence as living creatures would be impossible. Not do I think that the persuasive powers of a talking snake in an idyllic primordial garden has any reality.

The underlying concepts which are explained by this mythological language can be understood by modern men, however. The NT emphasizes freedom and responsibility. Paul speaks of “flesh” , not meaning man’s sensual nature but rather meaning the entire sphere of what is visible and manageable, which comes to determine man’s existence only when man’s decides to “live according to it.” He desires to find his fleshly existence secure and this desire gives “the flesh” its fatal influence over him. He finds his existence in the creature, rather than in the Creator, and this transforms “the world” into “this world” of sin and death, delivering the man living according to the flesh up as a man in bondage to it.

Man’s attempt to secure his life transforms for the worse his relations with his fellow men. The dependence on the transitory things of this world finds its expression in a loveless relation to his neighbors. Everyone, anxious to secure his own existence, pursues his own interests with an utter disregard for the needs of others. Thus arises the Hobbesian war of all against all.

Salvation from this fate cannot be achieved by following the Jewish law. That much is plain. The atmosphere of self-seeking and hatred, relieved only by the morality of contract and convention, is precisely what the Fourth Gospel means by “this world.” To be “of this world” is exactly to live bound by certain conventional standards and values. The Pharisees are of this world precisely because of their obsession with rule-making and rule-breaking. They are slaves to man-made convention and to the tyranny of public opinion.

If this is the NT portrait of the natural man, what is the path of escape from this world of bondage and this fleshly way of life? In the NT a radical life of freedom is offered through faith (trust in God) and through the workings of the Spirit. The Christian’s faith need not be in the historicity of a list of miracles, but rather is trust in God, and obedience to the command to love one’s neighbor and to love God. Over and over Jesus tells us to observe the lilies of the field and the ravens, to trust in Divine Providence, to let go of the grasping attachments of this world. To trust God, to love others, and to be guided by the Holy Spirit is the heart of NT kerygma, and that is the "new man" Paul wrote of, in person in this world but not of this world.

The critique of modern life that is implicit in this message is just as pointed now as it was 2000 years ago. The false belief that an authentic existence can be achieved through one's own efforts leads to the futile striving for righteousness based on prideful piety and rule-mongering. Indeed, the letter killeth! Paul's message is actually easier to understand once the clumsy Semitisms and archaic mythological language is stripped away. The freedom from the past and the ability to embrace the future is the gift of Gos's grace.

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good tidings to the afflicted;he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,to proclaim liberty to the captives,and the opening of the prison to those who are bound. ~Isa. 61:1 // Lk 4:18

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. ~2 Cor.3:17