The Road from Damascus: The Impact of Paul's Conversion on His Life, Thought, and Ministry

by Richard Longenecker

Publisher:

Eerdmans

, 1997

Overview

Conversion is intrinsic to the Christian religion. The most remarkable conversion recorded in the New Testament is that of Paul, and most Christians consider Christ's encounter with Paul to be a prototype of Christian conversion generally. This collection of eleven essays gives Paul's conversion a firmer rootage in the biblical materials while also emphasizing personal application. The contributors examine the nature of Paul's Damascus Road experience and the impact of that experience on his thought and ministry, and explore how Paul's experience functions as a paradigm for Christian thought and action today.

Contributions to this volume include:

• "Interpreting Paul's Conversion—Then and Now," Bruce Corley
• "A Realized Hope, a New Commitment, and a Developed Proclamation: Paul and Jesus," Richard N. Longenecker
• "A New Understanding of the Present and the Future: Paul and Eschatology," I. Howard Marshall
• "Israelite, Convert, Apostle to the Gentiles: The Origin of Paul's Gentile Mission," Terence L. Donaldson
• "Paul and Justification by Faith," James D. G. Dunn
• "God Reconciled His Enemy to Himself: The Origin of Paul's Concept of Reconciliation," Seyoon Kim
• "Contours of Covenant Theology in the Post-Conversion Paul," Bruce W. Longenecker
• "Sinai as Viewed from Damascus: Paul's Reevaluation of the Mosaic Law," Stephen Westerholm
• "Paul's Conversion as Key to His Understanding of the Spirit," Gordon D. Fee
• "Paul on Women and Gender: A Comparison with Early Jewish Views," Judith M. Gundry-Volf
• "Paul's Conversion and His Ethic of Freedom in Galatians," G. Walter Hansen

Contents

Top Highlights

“Should the Damascus Road experience be understood primarily in terms of a ‘conversion,’ a ‘transformation,’ an ‘alternation,’ or a ‘call’?” (Page xiii)

“There is, therefore, development but not transformation.” (Page 51)

“The title Lord, by contrast, would have conveyed to Gentiles the note of supremacy, needing then only clarification regarding the nature of that supremacy.” (Page 34)

“Luther and Calvin also posited two ways, but spoke more about repentance than conversion and allowed for a preparation preceding grace.” (Page 11)

“Second, the experience of Christians—including that of Paul—from the very start was tied to their reception of the Spirit.” (Page 57)

Praise for the Print Edition

In short, while this work does not treat every major topic in Pauline thought, it forms a helpful primer on numerous key topics and their origins, admirably meeting the objectives of the series.

—Craig L. Blomberg, Denver Seminary Journal

Product Details

• Title: The Road from Damascus: The Impact of Paul's Conversion on His Life, Thought, and Ministry
• Editor: Richard N. Longenecker
• Publisher: Eerdmans
• Publication Date: 1997
• Pages: 269

About Richard Longenecker

Richard N. Longenecker is a prominent New Testament scholar and Professor Emeritus of New Testament at Wycliffe College, Toronto. He was formerly Distinguished Professor of New Testament at McMaster Divinity College, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario.