Renewing Christian Theology: Systematics for a Global Christianity by Amos Yong

Author:Amos Yong [Yong, Amos]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Baylor University Press
Published: 2014-08-01T00:00:00+00:00

✦ 9 ✦

Salvation in Christ through the Spirit

An Eschatological Soteriology

World Assemblies of God Fellowship Statement of Faith

—Article 4: The Salvation of Man

We believe in salvation through faith in Christ, who died for our sins, was buried, and was raised from the dead on the third day. By His atoning blood, salvation has been provided for all humanity through the sacrifice of Christ upon the cross. This experience is also known as the new birth, and is an instantaneous and complete operation of the Holy Spirit whereupon the believing sinner is regenerated, justified, and adopted into the family of God, becomes a new creation in Christ Jesus, and heir of eternal life (John 3:5-6; Romans 10:8-15; Titus 2:11; 3:4-7; 1 John 5:1).

9.1 Zacchaeus and the Salvation of the Children of Abraham

We begin this chapter with a look at the character of Zacchaeus, mentioned (with no other synoptic parallels) at the beginning of Luke 19. That Zacchaeus is described as being “short in stature” (Luke 19:3) is especially relevant as a follow-up on the preceding discussion on healing and disability. More precisely, Jesus’ pronouncement of salvation upon him and his house (19:9) allows exploration of the multidimensionality of salvation broached throughout this volume, but which emerged in a pressing manner in the previous chapter.

Canonically considered, Zacchaeus’ short-staturedness provokes recollection of the dwarfism that is included among a list of impairments that disqualified priests in ancient Israel from offering the sacrificial food or approaching the altar in the holy of holies (Lev 21:16-24). More damagingly, first-century Hellenistic beliefs about the “science” of physiognomy—which understood outward bodily traits to be related to or manifestations of inward moral or spiritual characteristics—would have viewed his smallness not only as representative of lowly self-esteem, but also in a derogatory sense as indicative of small-mindedness and greediness (Parsons 2006: ch. 5). In fact, that Zacchaeus is later designated a sinner (Luke 19:7) would have provided further confirmation for his physical condition, because such congenital physical diminutiveness would also have been assumed to be the result of sin (see John 5:14; 9:1-2).

From a renewal perspective, however, Zacchaeus’ physical stature deserves more extended comment. Although it would be anachronistic to think about Zacchaeus as fitting what in today’s medical terminology is called pathological dwarfism, this assumption finds support in how Luke’s description conjures up images of the crowd watching, in fascination or derision as the case may have been, Zacchaeus’ less symmetrically proportioned body run or move awkwardly ahead of the crowd and climb a sycamore tree (Luke 19:4). And while Zacchaeus appears to be relatively healthy, shortness of stature across the centuries has brought with it a wide range of physical disabilities, mobility challenges, and intellectual deficiencies. The text is silent about the degree to which he may have been physically challenged above and beyond having to get around in a “tall” world. Yet socially there is no doubt his very visible condition elicited unfair caricatures and discriminatory attitudes wherever he went. One wonders if he became a tax

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