Becoming The Gospel Michael Gorman - 1422 Words

In his new book Becoming the Gospel Michael Gorman provides an interesting look at the life and letters of the apostle Paul. Gorman wants his readers to consider that more than knowing the gospel and its power to save, Paul want his recipients of his letters to live out the gospel in their lives. Thus Gorman’s central argument in this book is that â€Å"Paul wanted the communities he addressed†¦to become the gospel, and in so doing to participate in the very life and mission of God† (Gorman 2). Gorman explores this idea by taking the reader through a look at the letters of Paul using a â€Å"missio Dei† lens, to provide a new view of what Paul is teaching to these early Christian communities. Gorman begins by developing the central idea of the â€Å"mission die† in the Pauline letters by having us consider what it would do to our understanding to consider the mission of God in what Paul wrote in those letters. In this chapter he defines for the re st of the book what he means by â€Å"mission Dei.† Gorman sums up Paul’s understanding as, â€Å"God is on a mission to to liberate humanity†¦from the powers of sin and death† (Gorman 24). In the rest of chapter one Gorman develops this by looking at Paul, salvation and our participation in God’s mission. Next Gorman invites us to read Paul missionally, by introduction the â€Å"Missional Hermeneutic† (Gorman 50). This hermeneutic is, â€Å"reading the biblical text as witness to God’s purposes in the world and as an invitation to participate in†¦divine