The first chapter introduces Dallas Willard, his place in 20th century thought and the necessity of research at this present time. The thesis's sources, approach and topic, i.e. an exposition of Willard's view of the kingdom of God, the gospel of the kingdom and Jesus as understood by Jesus' first listeners before his ascension, are discussed. The thesis's four principle chapters focus on two stages of the Jesus' first listeners' understanding of his gospel. The first of these, chapter two, is a digression which examines Willard's tenuous relationship to a few exegetical scholars who, like Willard, claim that the church's gospel ought to be Jesus' gospel. But Willard's differing conclusions about that gospel point to his differing approach to the Scriptures concerning which he says, “You have to be, in a certain manner, an ontologist if you're going to understand the Scripture.” The chapter concludes by laying some signposts to a full dress account of Willard's doctrine of God and the Bible, religious epistemology and hermeneutics. Chapter three starts with Willard's view of the basic mental framework of both Jesus and of his first listeners which enabled a first stage understanding of Jesus' gospel, namely that the eternal kingdom of God was available for Jesus. This gospel is analyzed in terms of its underlying Christology and soteriology. The effect that belief in this gospel has on people is discussed before concluding with Willard's view of the status of this gospel in light of Jesus' death and resurrection. A necessary digression is pursued in chapter four to consider Willard's view of the availability of the kingdom before Jesus' advent. Temporary and enduring elements of that divine arrangement are discussed before setting up the next stage by speaking of Willard's view of the transition to the new arrangement which is announced by and made possible in Jesus Having prepared the way in the previous chapters, chapter five covers the altogether new understanding of God's kingdom which is the hallmark of Willard's theology, namely that the kingdom of God is available through Jesus to everybody. As in chapter three, this “second stage” understanding is analyzed in terms of its assumed Christology and soteriology. A much longer digression is necessary in order to describe the effect that belief in this gospel has on people. The final points of the thesis concern the continuing relevance of this stage in light of Jesus' death and resurrection.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:698871 |
| Date | January 2016 |
| Creators | Robb, Michael Stewart |
| Publisher | University of Aberdeen |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://digitool.abdn.ac.uk:80/webclient/DeliveryManager?pid=230982 |
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