The primary Intention of this study is to investigate the problem of the relationship between Jesus and Paul. However, it was necessary to retrace our steps to the beginnings of the discussion and to set forth the problem in all its complexity and in all its ramification for the task of biblical study and interpretation. It is therefore hoped that this study will shed some light upon the present situation and task of biblical research. In the discussion of the problem of Jesus and Paul, two more or less independent lines of the nineteenth century historical research converged: the study of the life of Jesus and Pauline research. The lines of research initiated by Strauss and Baur were made possible by the development of methodology, and this methodology was in turn rooted in the new philosophies of history which emerged at the end of the eighteenth and the beginning of the nineteenth centuries. The history of the problem of Jesus and Paul is closely tied to the development of methodology and philosophy of history. The problem of Jesus and Paul is also a theological problem. Every answer to the problem of the historical relationship of Jesus and Paul has direct implications for the content and nature of the Christian faith. Here basic theological issues and historical problems are inextricably intertwined. What is Christianity? Is it religion of Jesus or the gospel of Paul? What is the proper object of faith? Is it the person of the historical Jesus or the Christ of Pauline theology? These issues involve particularly the whole problem of Christology, the relationship of faith and history, of theology and historical research. Wrede's work is here treated as the focal point of the development of the discussion of the problem of Jesus and Paul. The various attempts to deal with Wrede's solution to the problem continue until World War I, after which a decreasing interest in the problem becomes apparent. More recently there has been a favorable shift from Jesus to Paul and an endorsement of Paul through contemporary mysticism and existentialism. In the final part it is necessary to account for the dwindling interest and to discuss the present state of the problem of Jesus and Paul. A reopening of the problem might prove salutary and assist in the clarification of the problem of the relationship of revelation and history.

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M.A. (Biblical Studies) / In recent decades the church member's life style and involvement in the congregation and the church, increasingly became a point of interest in the church. Enterprises to build up the congregation concentrate on leading, motivating and activating church members to become involved in numerous activities launched by the congregation. In spite of this it looks as if only a minority of church members really do get involved in serving the Lord The contention of this study is that church members' defective realisation of their Christian identity is the reason that the quality of their spiritual life and their involvement in church activities leaves much to be desired. Scientific Biblical research specifically from the New Testament concerning the Christian identity of the church member is therefore necessary. This Biblical information will help church members to realise their identity as believers. This in tum will enable them to fulfill their task as believers by becoming closely involved in the church. According to Erikson (1971 :90) a defective comprehension of identity leads to a misunderstanding of one's role. Such persons will try to be everything to everyone and will be never be themselves. The measure in which individuals find their identity is the measure in which they grow in stability and self-confidence. This may also be true for the member of the church. An intensive study of the abundant material in Scripture would be impossible within the confines of this treatise. For this reason the research will be confined to the Pauline material which in tum can't be used in full. Thus the theme : Relevant Pauline perspectives on the Christian identity of the church member. The object of this research is to ascertain if, and if so, which perspectives the Corpus Paulinum (C P) gives on the identity of the church member.

M.A. / Christianity was not born in a vacuum, but it completely owes its historical genesis on or from Jewish religion. The Apostolic, Primitive church was initially composed of Jewish believers who had seen in and understood Jesus of Nazareth as the anticipated Messiah predicted by the Old Testament prophets and writers. The current and lamentable truth is, Jewish Religion and Christianity are now two different and separate religions. Jesus Christ, His disciples, and Paul remained Jews as far as the Jewish culture is concerned. It is difficult to separate the sacred and secular in the Jewish economy because Jewish culture and religion are intertwined. In this culture, ploughing is as sacred as worshipping. The only apparent shift in his (Paul) paradigm was in interpreting and explaining the Old Testament prophecies and ceremonial system in the light of the Jesus Christ event at the Cross. His evaluation of that "event" and the Person of Jesus of Nazareth became the point of conflict with Judaisers and Judaism that would set a stage for separation between Christianity and Jewish Religion. The Christian Church exists in the post-Cross era. This Church is faced with, among other issues and tasks, challenges of sifting and demarcating between God's injunctions and Jewish Customs.

The Concept of the Pauline church unity founded on baptism is investigated from a practical theological perspective in terms of both the theoretical and practical method. After outlining the theological principles of this analogy; an actual situation of a local church is researched and the findings of this empirical analysis are used to indicate terms of a practical model of the body of Christ. An essential theological principle is that the church is to serve the Kingdom of God and to be a continuing incarnation of the word of God. The church which is full of quarrels and divisions would not be able to proclaim the word of God freely. Instead of preaching the word of God; they will concentrate on calling themselves that; I am of Paul, and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. This type of expression does not build unity among Christians. What we must do as Christians is that we should accept one another regardless of being affiliated to ZCC; Roman catholic church, Apostolic Faith Mission; Nazarene church, etc. According to Paul's views, all churches from different denominations form the body of Christ. There are also a handful of local churches whose members are trying to increase diversity within their pews. My aspiration is to see all the Christians from different races coming together; praying together and worshipping together as the children of God. My wish is to see the leaders from various denomination focusing on promoting fellowship and reconciliation amongst themselves and their church members accepting one another. The resolute determination of some whites to travel to black communities to worship or of blacks to join and participate in overwhelming white congregations; reveals the depth of some Christians desire to overcome the barriers which have been part of South African life for so long. This desire may be for more prevalent among the laity than the clergy have traditionally imagined. Christians from different races must change if they want to enter into the Kingdom of God. The disturbing factor is that without a real willingness to change there is little hope that it will be achieved in a generation still cluttered with the baggage of the past. Reconciliation and dignity of all believers in Christ needs to be encouraged by Pastors and church members, because we all from the body of Christ. / Religious Studies & Arabic / M.A. (Biblical Studies)

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Pauline scholarship often overlooks the fact that from the Levitical sacrificial perspective “sacrifice” and “curse” are diametrically opposed concepts. A sacrifice must be “holy and acceptable to God” (Rom 12:1). Arguably, Paul describes Jesus or his blood as a sacrifice to God (1Cor 5:7; Rom 3:25). In this light, how might we understand his assertion that Christ became a “curse” on the cross (Gal 3:13)? The “accursed” person who hangs on a tree is impure and defiled and thus totally unacceptable as a sacrifice to God (Deut 21:23; John 19:31). This research argues that the key concept that resolves such potential tensions in Paul's statements is the “covenant”. Both “sacrifice” and “curse” are covenantal concepts. Sacrificial activities are essential for maintaining the covenant between God and his people. When God's people sin, sacrifice provides the means to attain forgiveness and to remain in the covenant. However, the covenant can be broken by grievous sins such as idolatry, which result in the loss of the sanctuary and the sacrificial means. Consequently, they would fall under the “curse” of the covenant. This covenantal perspective underlies Paul's soteriology. This thesis demonstrates that in Paul's understanding Christ's death serves both ends: the termination of the Mosaic curse by becoming a curse, and the dedication of his life-blood for the maintenance of the renewed covenant. These two things are related yet not identical. As test cases for this covenantal model, this research examines three Pauline texts. Galatians 3:13 describes the redemption of God's people from the Mosaic covenantal curse. Deutero-Isaiah envisaged this event as a new “Exodus”, about which Paul talks in 1 Corinthians 5:7. Romans 3:25 illustrates the eschatological Yom Kippur for this new Exodus people consisting now of Jews and Gentiles, which sustains and sanctifies God's renewed covenant people to the end.