Paul and the Power of Grace

“Paul and the Power of Grace” is a shorter, and updated version of John M. G. Barclay’s “Paul and the Gift.” It is written for a wider audience (being less technical) and it’s one of the best books I’ve read in the last three years. In my opinion it is a must read. According to Barclay, “. . . this new book as a whole offers both an accessible summary of Paul and the Gift and an extension and development of that work (Paul and the Power of Grace, p. xi).

What Does It Mean to Say Grace is Free?

Barclay asserts that the New Testament concept of grace is not only understood by examining the Greek word charis, but is bound up in the idea of gift-giving. All Christians would assert that grace is a free gift. But, as Barclay points out, that assertion means different things to different people. He cautions that, “We should beware of labels such as “free” and “pure,” lest they carry the connotations of modern ideologies of gift (Paul and the Power of Grace, p. 5). Barclay contends that, “What we associate with ‘gift,’ including its definition in our dictionaries, may be a product of modern cultural shifts, and it would be anachronistic to retroject these connotations onto the past or to take them for granted in our reading of Paul (Paul and the Power of Grace, p. 11). The tendency, according to Barclay, is to “perfect” a concept. He argues that we push our definitions of gift to an extreme, especially in relation to a divine gift or grace. As a result, Barclay has identified at least six perfections of gift/grace.

The Six Perfections of Gift/Grace

1. Superabundance–A superabundant gift is perfected in scale, significance, or duration: it is huge, lavish, unceasing, long-lasting.

2. Singularity–benevolence or goodness is the giver’s sole or exclusive mode of operation. The giver is of such a character as only ever to give benefits: he/she would never do anything in a contrary mode, such as harm, punish, or judge.

3. Priority–Priority concerns the timing of the gift, which is given before any initiative taken by the recipient.

4. Incongruity–Incongruity concerns the relationship between the giver and the recipient, and maximizes the mismatch between the gift and the worth or merit of its recipient.

5. Efficacy–Gifts that achieve something, that change things for the better, might be regarded as better than gifts with limited positive effect.

6. Noncircularity–As we noted in the last chapter, Western modernity is inclined to perfect the gift as “pure” only when there is no reciprocity, no return or exchange.

(Paul and the Power of Grace, pp. 13-16).

The Significance of Recognizing the Six Perfections

For further elaboration on the meaning of the above “perfections” see Paul and the Power of Grace. My point here is to note Barclay’s contention that throughout the centuries people have used various combinations of these perfections, resulting in different understandings of grace. As Christians, we may all insist that grace is free, but our doctrine may look different from others based on the perfections we have consciously, or unconsciously accepted. Barclay states, “. . . different interpreters of this concept have tended to operate with different clusters of perfection. Nonetheless, they have often regarded their interpretation as the “correct” interpretation of grace, such that any other is not just different but wrong”. . . Disagreements may arise, not because one side emphasizes grace more than the other, but because they perfect the term in different ways” (Paul and the Power of Grace, p. 17–author’s emphasis).

Furthermore, Barclay maintains that if we want to see which perfections of grace Paul is in agreement with, we should compare these six perfections to what we find in his letters. By this means, we can arrive at a biblical (or at least, Pauline) definition of grace. This discussion alone was worth the price of the book!

What Paul Means By Grace and What He Doesn’t

There are two results of Barclay’s investigation of the Pauline concept of grace that I would like to highlight. One Pauline perfection differs from the Roman world, while the other differs from our world.

Grace for the Unworthy

As believers, we are very used to the biblical idea that God extends His grace to those who don’t deserve it. Paul writes in Romans 5:6 that “Christ died for the ungodly.” He continues by stating that “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). We recognize that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God,” (Rom. 3:23), and therefore, we are “justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:24).

Barclay notes that this concept of grace is counter-cultural. In the Roman world, grace was only to be bestowed on people who were considered worthy. Since the giving and receiving of a gift meant a social bond, one would not want to be associated with a disreputable giver. Neither would one wish to bestow a gift and connect themselves with an unsavory individual. Afterall, “Who would wish to degrade their reputation by tying themselves to people without worth?” (Paul and the Power of Grace, p. 7).

Receiving Grace Obligates the Receiver

Barclay traces the history of gift-giving by pointing out that in the modern Western World a gift is not considered a gift unless it is given without obligating the other person. Nothing could be farther from the truth in the first century Roman world. While a gift could not be earned, the receiver was obligated to the giver. As noted above, a social bond was created. While the recipient might not be able to repay the gift-giver, he/she was obligated to them and expected to express gratitude in various practical ways (See my post on Grace in 3D for a further explanation). This is no less true of the concept of grace in the New Testament. The church has frequently erred in modern times by communicating that grace is free, meaning there is no obligation on the part of the receiver. To put it in Barclay’s words, New Testament grace is unconditioned (it is given without regard to worth or capacity), but it is not unconditional (a response is expected because a relationship has been established between the believer and God). The gift of grace transforms the believer because he/she is now in a relationship with God.

Conclusion

Barclay’s, Paul and the Power of Grace, contains much more than this short review has covered. I have sought to highlight aspects that enriched me as I read. In some cases, Barclay confirmed and fortified things I already understood about the New Testament concept of grace. In other ways his treatment enhanced my understanding of this key biblical concept. Barclay’s treatment will hopefully lead to greater understanding among all Christians about the meaning of grace as we uncover the ways in which we have perfected grace in comparison with Paul and the New Testament.

Paul and the Power of Grace is available at Amazon USA / UK

Grace in 3D

Did you know that there is a depth of meaning to the word “grace” which is frequently overlooked by the modern church? In my last article, we noticed the connection between obedience and grace and I promised that we would further investigate the meaning of grace. Grace is often defined as “unmerited favor,” or “getting what I don’t deserve.” Although these are accurate definitions, they only communicate one aspect of the Greek word charis (grace).
We often find that a 3-dimensional representation of something is much more effective than simply seeing it in 2-dimensional form. Hence the popularity of new 3D movies and televisions. Similarly, it is disturbing to hear Christians speak of grace 1-dimensionally (the definition noted above), when in fact the New Testament authors’ usage encompasses more. Grace has been put on a diet by many well-meaning Christians and has lost its well-rounded meaning in favor of a more slimmed-down version. This is not done intentionally; it is usually the result of a lack of knowledge of the 1st century cultural context in which this word occurs. Recovering this context reveals that there are two other important aspects to the meaning of grace. Recapturing the 3-dimensional nature of this word, strengthens what is quickly becoming an anaemic theology of grace within the evangelical church, and, most importantly, allows us to walk more fully in the grace that God has bestowed.

Grace and Patronage

The Roman world of the 1st century was a world of limited goods. This means that a lot of things necessary for existence were in short supply. There were no shopping malls, large department stores, and there certainly was no eBay. This meant that people had to depend on others who could supply whatever their need might be. These people were called “patrons.”

Patronage was a way of life in the Roman world; everyone had one or more. Much can be learned from examining the concept of patronage, but, for our purposes, the most important thing is that the word “grace” was part of the everyday vocabulary. A patron was able to supply what I could never obtain on my own. This was called an act of grace, and it is the definition that we are most familiar with. For example, Paul talks about the “grace in which we stand” (Rom. 5:2) which we have received through God’s act of love in sending His Son to die for us “while we were still sinners” and “when we were [His] enemies” (Rom. 5:8, 10). Because of my sin, reconciliation with God is beyond my grasp. I don’t have the necessary resources in and of myself to make reconciliation possible, but Jesus, who lived a perfect life, does (Rom. 5:18-19). In Christ’s act on the cross I receive a forgiveness that I could never obtain on my own. That is grace, and it is the good news that was preached by the early church!
However, in the world of patronage, grace was much more than the act of giving what could never be earned, it was also the gift itself. Whether the gift was food, legal help, paying off debts, etc., it was called “grace.” There are a number of examples of this usage in the NT. For instance, when Paul writes, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:23), the word “gift” in Greek is charisma––grace. When Paul is speaking of the “gifts” of the Spirit given to the church in Romans 12:6, the word he uses is charismata, from which we get our word “charismatic,” as in charismatic gifts. Therefore, grace is not only the act of giving; it is the gift itself.
Third, and most important for our discussion, the word grace includes the meaning of giving thanks. We still use it this way today. When we ask someone to “say grace” we mean, “Will you give thanks for the food?”

Grace and giving thanks

Our English word “grace” comes from the Latin gratia and has entered Spanish and Italian in the forms of gracias and gratze which mean “thanks.” All these words are derived from the Greek verb eucharisto (notice the word charis––see e.g., Rom. 1:8). The important point here, is that everyone in the Roman world who received “grace” (meaning both the undeserved act, as well as the gift) would expect to give “grace” (meaning “thanks”) in return. The Roman philosopher Seneca pictured grace as a dance between 3 sisters which consisted of the act of giving (grace), the gift received (grace), and the recipient giving thanks (grace) for the gift. As long as each one of these ingredients was present, the dance of grace continued in a flowing unbroken way. No honorable person (see my article on honor under “Cross-Examination”) would ever consider not returning thanks for the gift received. This means that, although a person could never pay for the grace given, they were expected to respond with gratitude. Grace begets grace!
If a person could never repay their patron for the grace they had received, then what did giving of thanks consist of? In the Roman world, gratitude was expressed in several different ways: 1) The recipient of grace would freely proclaim the name of his benefactor and tell everyone he came into contact with about the generosity of his patron. This increased the honor of his patron. 2) Each morning a person would appear before his patron and find out if there was anything he could do for him or her that day. 3) One would always be loyal to their patron, defending them against accusations, and even going to battle with them if necessary. These, and other actions, were ways in which an individual could express thanks (grace) for a gift (grace) they could never repay (grace).

The Complete Circle of Grace

Hopefully it is not hard to see the parallels for the Christian. The Christian has received a gift (grace), they don’t deserve and could never repay (grace). This is where modern conversations about grace frequently end, but biblically speaking it is not the end of the grace-conversation. Just because we can never repay what God has done for us in Christ, doesn’t mean that there is nothing for us to do! Like the people of the ancient world, we should continually give thanks to our Patron (God). We give thanks by praising His name, and by telling others about Him (this is worship and evangelism). We seek Him out each day to see what He would have us to do, and we defend His name and even go to battle with Him, if necessary. All of these responses are ways of saying “thank you” for a gift we can never repay. Notice that all of these responses involve acts of obedience! This is why a life lived “under grace” is an obedient life (Rom. 6:14-23––see last week’s article). Why settle for a 1 or 2-dimensional view of grace when we can, and should, have it in 3D! For the doctrinal health of the church we need to restore this biblical 3D portrait of grace to our modern theology. Like love and marriage, grace and obedience go hand in hand.