tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9010980460314393147.post4849531999261200743..comments2023-09-30T12:19:25.075-04:00Comments on Philosophia Christiana: Blogging Jealously for the Crown Rights of King Jesus : The Advent in Matthew IKevin Stevensonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05401508813361514067noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9010980460314393147.post-462358150246217122009-12-01T19:03:11.979-05:002009-12-01T19:03:11.979-05:00How encouraging! Although I don’t have any of C. ...How encouraging! Although I don’t have any of C. Wright’s work, it’s not for lack of want (if Fanny’s looked at my Amazon wishlist, maybe this will be remedied;). Every since you shared some of his thoughts on Deuteronomy (during one of your classes at Wheaton?), I’ve been eyeing his stuff. I have read his Old Testament ethics book...fantastic! I truly appreciated his missional hermeneutic. <br /><br />Thanks for the clarifying remarks. <br /><br />PS. How generous of you to leave my chiasm unscathed ;)Kevin Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05401508813361514067noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9010980460314393147.post-91160013913170939832009-12-01T17:27:58.762-05:002009-12-01T17:27:58.762-05:00Very helpful. I think Christopher Wright would ag...Very helpful. I think Christopher Wright would agree wholeheartedly with your conclusion. In his book, Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament, Wright explains that the identity, mission and values of Jesus are only rightly understood in light of the Old Testament storyline which culminates in him. Wright begins with the genealogy in Matthew’s gospel. He explains that this genealogy serves several functions. First, it indicates that Jesus was truly Jewish. The establishment of Jesus’ “Jewishness” is one of the ways his situatedness within the story of the Hebrew Scriptures is made emphatic. Secondly, Matthew’s genealogy establishes Jesus as truly human. Wright argues this based on the fact that Matthew begins with Abraham, who is the one through whom all peoples would be blessed. Thirdly, Matthew’s genealogy establishes Jesus as the Son of David. The Davidic dynasty was the agency through which God was to establish his reign on the earth. The tracing of Jesus, then, to the Davidic line underscores this connection.<br /><br />In addition to these factors, Wright explains that Matthew’s genealogy ties Jesus to the story of the Old Testament. The story of the Old Testament, Wright explains, begins in Genesis 1-12 with the entrance of sin and the corruption of human society. God responds to this problem by initiating a plan of salvation. The answer to the problem of sin and corruption has its beginning in God’s promises to Abraham. In the same way that the problem of sin is shown to be a universal problem in the opening chapters of Genesis, so too God’s answer to the problem of sin would include a promise in which all nations would be blessed. God’s promises to Abraham include the promise of the land, the promise that his offspring would become a great nation, and the promise of a seed through whom all the nations would be blessed. The person of Jesus, then, is only rightly understood in light of this history.Steve Galthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01408664596663574300noreply@blogger.com