Category Archives: Chalke, Steve

‘The Lost Message of Paul’ – ‘pistis Christou’

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Does the expression pistis Christou mean ‘faith in Christ’, or ‘the faith [or faithfulness] of Christ’?

This post is not an attempt to settle the question once and for all, but rather to respond to an argument mounted recently by Steve Chalke.

In chapter 10 of The Lost Message of Paul (2019) Chalke says that:

‘Martin Luther, John Calvin and countless others following them have chosen to translate pistis Christou as ‘faith in Christ’, and then to hang their whole doctrinal approach on it.

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Christ, or the Bible?

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Let’s be clear: we worship Christ, and not the Bible.  But to slide from that position to one which says that ‘infallibility lies with Christ, and not the Bible’, or, ‘the word of God is to be identified with Christ, and not the Bible’, is to get stuck in a quagmire of confusion.  It is to set aside the testimony of Christ himself to the Bible, and also to place in serious jeopardy the Bible’s witness to Christ.…

Original sin

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Definition

‘Original sin’, like some other terms (‘total depravity’, ‘unconditional election’, ‘limited atonement’, irresistible grace’ come immediately to mind) requires careful definition if it is to provide useful service in theological discussion.

For Calvin, original sin is

‘a hereditary depravity and corruption of our nature, diffused into all parts of the soul, which first makes us liable to God’s wrath, then also brings forth in us those works which Scripture calls “works of the flesh” (Gal 5:19).’ …

Scripture as the word of God

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It seems quite fashionable these days for Christian people to insist that the expression ‘the word of God’ can only be applied to Jesus Christ, and not, say, to Scripture.  Steve Chalke, for example, writes: ‘the Bible itself is unambiguous: “The word of God” is a person not a book.’

However, the phrase is used in Scripture itself in several ways:-

  1. The gospel, Acts 4:31; 6:7; 13:5, 26;1 Cor 1:18; Heb 6:5; 1 Pet 1:23,25; 2 Cor 5:19; 2 Tim 2:9 4:2.
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Steve Chalke and the Bible

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The Rev Steve Chalke, founder of the Oasis Trust and high-profile Christian leader, has been making waves in the evangelical world for some time now.  First came his book (co-authored with Alan Mann), The Lost Message of Jesus, in which he rejected the doctrine of ‘penal substitution’.  Then, in early 2013, he came out in favour of same-sex marriage.

Most recently, in a paper entitled Restoring Confidence in the Bible, he has attempted to articulate his views about the nature and authority of the Bible. …

‘God is love, and…’

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Steve Chalke’s (and Alan Mann’s) book, The Lost Message of Jesus, is, I suppose, yesterday’s papers telling yesterday’s news.  Published in 2003, it generated more heat than light, and polarised well-meaning people into opposing groups of fans and critics.

It’s all a bit late to be offering a review of the book.  But I suspect that its central point (that ‘God is love’ is all that we really need to know about God, and everything else must be forced through this one filter), is not going to go away.…

Carson on ‘The Lost Message of Jesus’

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Plenty has been thought, said, and written about Steve Chalke and his comments on atonement in The Lost Message of Jesus.  Although N.T. Wright (who endorsed the book) has said that he doesn’t think that Chalke intended to deny penal substitution, Chalke has gone on record to confirm that he did.  (See here for Garry J. William’s reply to Chalke, and here for a penetrating review by Donald MacLeod).

As for The Lost Message of Jesus, D.A.…