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God's Healing Strategy: An Introduction to the Bible's Main Themes
In lively and accessible style, Ted Grimsrud portrays God's persevering love as the heart of the Bible's message and challenges Christians to let that love shape their lives today.
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First published November 23, 2000
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About the author
Ted Grimsrud
24 books7 followersTed Grimsrud is Professor in the Bible & Religion Dept. of Eastern Mennonite University (EMU).
Prior to teaching at EMU, Ted Grimsrud served 10 years as a pastor in Mennonite churches in Arizona, Oregon and South Dakota. He is especially interested in the connection between Christian theology and pacifism. He teaches classes in theology, peace studies, ethics, and the Bible. He is married to Kathleen Temple and is a grandfather. His website is at peacetheology.net. He hosts a weekly radio program on WEMC (91.7 FM; online at wemcradio.org), called “Wavelength,” where every Saturday at 3 p.m. he plays “the best of popular music at the intersection of country, folk, rock & roll, blues, and gospel.”
Education
Ph.D., Graduate Theological Union (1988)
M.A., Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (1983)
B.S., University of Oregon (1976)
Publications
Books
Theology as if Jesus Matters: An Introduction to Christianity’s Main Convictions. Cascadia Publishing House, 2009.
Reasoning Together: A Conversation on Homosexuality (with Mark Thiessen Nation). Herald Press, 2008.
Embodying the Way of Jesus: Anabaptist Convictions for the 21st Century. Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2007.
Transforming the Powers: Peace, Justice, and the Domination System (co-editor). Fortress Press, 2006.
God’s Healing Strategy: An Introduction to the Main Themes of the Bible. Cascadia Publishing House, 2001.
Peace and Justice Shall Embrace: Power and Theopolitics in the Bible (co-editor). Cascadia Publishing House, 2000.
Triumph of the Lamb: A Self-Study Guide to the Book of Revelation. Herald Press, 1987.
Articles
“Against Empire: A Yoderian Reading of Romans.” In Sharon L. Baker and Michael Hardin, eds. Peace Be With You: Christ’s Benediction Amid Violent Empires Cascadia, 2010. 120-137.
""Healing Justice. The Mennonite October 20, 2009, 8-10.
“Reflections on J. Denny Weaver’s The Nonviolent Atonement.” Conrad Grebel Review 27.2 (Spring 2009), 4-6.
Thirteen Sunday School lessons. Mennonite Weekly Review May 25, 2009 — August 17, 2009.
Review of Andrew Skotnicki, Criminal Justice and the Catholic Church. Modern Theology. 25.2 (April 2009), 364-67.
“How does Revelation speak today?” The Mennonite (September 2, 2008), 12-14.
“Violence as a Theological Problem.” CJP Web Journal #2 (Winter 2008).
Review of Mark Bredin, Jesus: Revolutionary of Peace. Biblical Theology Bulleton 37.4 (Winter 2007), 186-87.
“A Theology of Welcome.” In Michael A. King, ed., Stumbling Toward a Genuine Conversation on Homosexuality. Cascadia Publishing House, 2007. 237-244.
“The Legacy of CPS: Why Civilian Public Service is Important.” The Mennonite (June 19, 2007), 8-10.
Thirteen Sunday School lessons on Old Testament Prophets. Mennonite Weekly Review (June 3, 2007 – August 26, 2007).
“Walter Wink and Peace Theology.” In Frederich W. Weidmann and D. Sieple, eds. Enigmas and Powers: Engaging the Work of Walter Wink. Pickwick Publications, 2007. 74-78.
“Jesus’ Confrontation with Empire.” In Nathan Yoder and Carol Scheppard, eds. Exiles in Empire. Pandora Press, 2007. 27-41.
Scholarly Presentations
“Conversations on Homosexuality: Three Lectures.” Portland Mennonite Church, Portland, OR. February 5-6, 2010.
“Contemporary Theology in Light of Anabaptism” and “Theology as If Jesus Matters.” Papers presented to the London Mennonite Forum. September 10-11, 2009.
“Mercy, Not Sacrifice.” Cross Currents Seminar (Five Lectures). London Mennonite Centre. September 12, 2009.
“A Biblical Understanding of Justice.” Devito Lecture. Waynesburg (PA) University. March 17, 2009.
Justice Apart from the Law (and Empire): Paul’s Deconstruction of Idolatry. American Academy of Religion Annual Meetings. Chicago, November 1, 2008.
World So Full: My Quest for Understanding. Journeys with Jesus Colloquy. Laurelville Mennonite Church Center, October 17-19
Prior to teaching at EMU, Ted Grimsrud served 10 years as a pastor in Mennonite churches in Arizona, Oregon and South Dakota. He is especially interested in the connection between Christian theology and pacifism. He teaches classes in theology, peace studies, ethics, and the Bible. He is married to Kathleen Temple and is a grandfather. His website is at peacetheology.net. He hosts a weekly radio program on WEMC (91.7 FM; online at wemcradio.org), called “Wavelength,” where every Saturday at 3 p.m. he plays “the best of popular music at the intersection of country, folk, rock & roll, blues, and gospel.”
Education
Ph.D., Graduate Theological Union (1988)
M.A., Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary (1983)
B.S., University of Oregon (1976)
Publications
Books
Theology as if Jesus Matters: An Introduction to Christianity’s Main Convictions. Cascadia Publishing House, 2009.
Reasoning Together: A Conversation on Homosexuality (with Mark Thiessen Nation). Herald Press, 2008.
Embodying the Way of Jesus: Anabaptist Convictions for the 21st Century. Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2007.
Transforming the Powers: Peace, Justice, and the Domination System (co-editor). Fortress Press, 2006.
God’s Healing Strategy: An Introduction to the Main Themes of the Bible. Cascadia Publishing House, 2001.
Peace and Justice Shall Embrace: Power and Theopolitics in the Bible (co-editor). Cascadia Publishing House, 2000.
Triumph of the Lamb: A Self-Study Guide to the Book of Revelation. Herald Press, 1987.
Articles
“Against Empire: A Yoderian Reading of Romans.” In Sharon L. Baker and Michael Hardin, eds. Peace Be With You: Christ’s Benediction Amid Violent Empires Cascadia, 2010. 120-137.
""Healing Justice. The Mennonite October 20, 2009, 8-10.
“Reflections on J. Denny Weaver’s The Nonviolent Atonement.” Conrad Grebel Review 27.2 (Spring 2009), 4-6.
Thirteen Sunday School lessons. Mennonite Weekly Review May 25, 2009 — August 17, 2009.
Review of Andrew Skotnicki, Criminal Justice and the Catholic Church. Modern Theology. 25.2 (April 2009), 364-67.
“How does Revelation speak today?” The Mennonite (September 2, 2008), 12-14.
“Violence as a Theological Problem.” CJP Web Journal #2 (Winter 2008).
Review of Mark Bredin, Jesus: Revolutionary of Peace. Biblical Theology Bulleton 37.4 (Winter 2007), 186-87.
“A Theology of Welcome.” In Michael A. King, ed., Stumbling Toward a Genuine Conversation on Homosexuality. Cascadia Publishing House, 2007. 237-244.
“The Legacy of CPS: Why Civilian Public Service is Important.” The Mennonite (June 19, 2007), 8-10.
Thirteen Sunday School lessons on Old Testament Prophets. Mennonite Weekly Review (June 3, 2007 – August 26, 2007).
“Walter Wink and Peace Theology.” In Frederich W. Weidmann and D. Sieple, eds. Enigmas and Powers: Engaging the Work of Walter Wink. Pickwick Publications, 2007. 74-78.
“Jesus’ Confrontation with Empire.” In Nathan Yoder and Carol Scheppard, eds. Exiles in Empire. Pandora Press, 2007. 27-41.
Scholarly Presentations
“Conversations on Homosexuality: Three Lectures.” Portland Mennonite Church, Portland, OR. February 5-6, 2010.
“Contemporary Theology in Light of Anabaptism” and “Theology as If Jesus Matters.” Papers presented to the London Mennonite Forum. September 10-11, 2009.
“Mercy, Not Sacrifice.” Cross Currents Seminar (Five Lectures). London Mennonite Centre. September 12, 2009.
“A Biblical Understanding of Justice.” Devito Lecture. Waynesburg (PA) University. March 17, 2009.
Justice Apart from the Law (and Empire): Paul’s Deconstruction of Idolatry. American Academy of Religion Annual Meetings. Chicago, November 1, 2008.
World So Full: My Quest for Understanding. Journeys with Jesus Colloquy. Laurelville Mennonite Church Center, October 17-19
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 6, 2011
In God’s Healing Strategy, Ted Grimsrud attempts to distill the message of the Bible by portraying it as a single, coherent narrative. In the narrative, he distinguishes two parts. The first, the Old Testament, introduces the fundamental problem that faces humankind—sin—and God’s initial attempts to solve that problem. The second, the New Testament, provides the solution for the problem of sin. Grimsrud’s image of society is one of continual healing and advancement toward an ultimate idyllic vision. His Biblical perspective is designed to exhort believers to reject the mistakes of the past and to pursue healing in their relationships, all the while seeing their lives as a natural continuation of God’s healing strategy as described in the Bible.
Grimsrud begins his book by enunciating what he sees as man’s fundamental problem. He writes that there is a loving God, but that man’s relationship has been broken. The tale of how this brokenness came to be is one that he locates within the Old Testament. Though many Christians are uncomfortable with the Old Testament and try to avoid it, Grimsrud feels that it is a useful tool for understanding God’s healing strategy. He provides several warrants for using the Old Testament, the chief of which is that it “provides a rich record of the history of God’s people striving to understand God” (25). It is this history that he examines in the first seven chapters of his book.
Grimsrud walks chronologically through the Old Testament narrative, naturally starting with Genesis. In Genesis chapter 1 he finds a very important statement upon which his entire Biblical theology is based. God, after bringing order from the chaos of the void, looks at his creation and sees that it is good. God, after creating humans to be in relationship with him, looks at them and sees that they are good. Grimsrud thus sees goodness as the natural and proper state of the world. It is the natural and proper state of humankind. Humans were created inherently good. But then a problem arises. Adam and Eve sin. They destroy the goodness of God’s creation. They break the good relationship that God created them to be in with him. This chasm between God and man is the fundamental problem of the Bible, and it is a chasm that only seems to widen as the Genesis narrative continues. God meets Adam and Eve’s sin with mercy and attempts at healing. They don’t die immediately. He continues to talk to them. Then Cain kills Abel. Again God meets him with mercy. But the world grows darker and farther away from God. At this point, Grimsrud suggests, God has two options. He can either destroy his creation and start over, or he can try to restore his creation to its original goodness. Grimsrud sees the Flood as an abortive attempt at the first option. The rainbow is a sign that God has changed his mind and committed to the second option (Grimsrud draws from this the controversial theological conclusion that “God is changeable” [36]). The story of the Bible then, is a story of restoration. It is a story in which God desires for all of creation to return to its original goodness.
Grimsrud traces this story through the remainder of the Old Testament, largely with the purpose of differentiating between what the healing strategy tries to move away from and what it tries to move toward. Grimsrud characterizes this movement as bringing “newness”, and offers Abraham as the first in a long line of evidences of God’s newness. Abraham and Sarah, Grimsrud says, are the beginning of a community of faith. Not only does God bring newness to Abraham and Sarah, but he promises to make them and their descendants a blessing to all the earth by bringing that newness to all people. This strategy of moving toward “newness” (perhaps better characterized, considering Grimsrud’s depiction of the original human condition, as “oldness”) is one that God is clearly committed to over the long-term.
But what is newness? What does newness move toward, and what does it move away from? Grimsrud concludes that newness moves toward salvation and liberation, as evidenced by the Exodus account. The same account, says Grimsrud, makes it clear that newness moves away from violence and from the injustices of imperial Egypt. The rest of the Old Testament is the story of God’s people wrestling primarily with these two issues. The kingship brings these issues into primary focus. When Israel asks for a king, the prophet Samuel tells them that a human king will make them slaves and will return both to injustice and to empire. The Bible vividly depicts this loss of liberation and triumph of injustice in the characters of David and Solomon. David, Israel’s greatest king, falls into terrible sin. Solomon, its so-called wisest king, transforms his role into an oppressive authoritarian regime. The Prophets then appear to speak out against the kingship and all its injustice. They teach that God loves his people, even though they seem to have intentionally moved away from his newness, and that he remains committed to healing. God brings exile, destruction, war, plague, and death to purge Israel of dehumanization, exploitation, and religiosity. And still he remains committed to the healing strategy.
As Grimsrud moves into the New Testament, he ceases to use the language of problems and begins instead to use the language of solutions. He starts his analysis at the logical place: the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus came to establish a kingdom of liberation. In Jesus’ time, oppression still remains, despite all the best efforts of the Prophets. In one way, he simply continues where they left off. He continues to denounce the powers that be and to preach justice and repentance. His message continues to be one of critique and of healing. In fact, Jesus makes his healing even more impactful than did the prophets by extending it into the physical realm. His mercy, compassion, and genuine desire for healing are made manifest in the miracles he performs. He does just enough of these to make his point, but not enough to make it seem as though the miracles are the substance of his mission. At some point he turns away from the supernatural works that had characterized his early ministry and turns wholeheartedly to teaching. His teachings are down-to-earth, teach a positive view of life, challenge people’s expectations, and champion liberation.
Jesus’ teachings and miracles, of course, would be as vain as the Prophets’ if he did not qualify them with an even more radical kind of newness. This newness manifests itself in his death and resurrection. Jesus is willing to go the way of suffering, and he teaches his followers to do the same. His death seals his message. It gives it an air of finality. It shows the world just how serious he is. And it provides a prime paradigm for others to follow. His resurrection is at least equally significant. It vindicates his life. It shows that God’s love is stronger than death, and gives the healing strategy some teeth. And most importantly, it keeps God’s healing strategy going. If Jesus had stayed dead, then that would be the end of his revolution. But instead he rises again, and with him rises the vision of a perfected, restored community.
But again, there would be no point to all Jesus’ work if his message, his paradigm, his strategy were not embodied by the people of God. In chapters 10 and 11, Grimsrud describes the transformation of God’s people that results from Messiah’s teachings, crucifixion, and resurrection. He starts in the Book of Acts, which especially drives home the important point that Jesus’ healing strategy is a continuation of the healing that occurred in the Old Testament. The Church expands first to Judea, then to Samaria, then to all the world, recalling the promise to Abraham that his descendants would be a blessing to all nations. On the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit removes the confusion of languages that occurred at Babel. Peter preaches Jesus not as something entirely new, but as a culmination of the Old Testament’s healing strategy. Though the community after Christ seems to be much more successful at moving toward healing, moving toward justice, and moving toward newness, Acts emphasizes that this is not a different strategy. It is merely the old healing strategy finally embodied. Grimsrud then moves on to quickly mention Paul, who works chiefly to motivate “good” people who do bad things to trust in God’s mercy as a solution for their sin.
Revelation, for Grimsrud, is partly a present reality and partly a future hope. It is another call for Christians to reject the norm of emperor-worship and injustice, and the embrace faithfulness. But it is also a description of the New Jerusalem: the ultimate embodiment by God’s people of the healing strategy. In some sense this is achieved by the believers in Christ in the first century. In another sense it is looked forward to as those believers spread their message to the ends of the earth. In the New Jerusalem is the victory of healing, the return to Eden, and the restoration of goodness.
Grimsrud closes with a summary of his theology. In essence, he says that the Bible is intended a coherent narrative that points toward ultimate healing. It is a single story that promotes justice and faithfulness and rejects empire. Grimsrud also challenges believers to continue to pursue the healing that the Bible describes with the ultimate hope that one day we may once and for all fulfill the vision of the New Jerusalem.
Grimsrud begins his book by enunciating what he sees as man’s fundamental problem. He writes that there is a loving God, but that man’s relationship has been broken. The tale of how this brokenness came to be is one that he locates within the Old Testament. Though many Christians are uncomfortable with the Old Testament and try to avoid it, Grimsrud feels that it is a useful tool for understanding God’s healing strategy. He provides several warrants for using the Old Testament, the chief of which is that it “provides a rich record of the history of God’s people striving to understand God” (25). It is this history that he examines in the first seven chapters of his book.
Grimsrud walks chronologically through the Old Testament narrative, naturally starting with Genesis. In Genesis chapter 1 he finds a very important statement upon which his entire Biblical theology is based. God, after bringing order from the chaos of the void, looks at his creation and sees that it is good. God, after creating humans to be in relationship with him, looks at them and sees that they are good. Grimsrud thus sees goodness as the natural and proper state of the world. It is the natural and proper state of humankind. Humans were created inherently good. But then a problem arises. Adam and Eve sin. They destroy the goodness of God’s creation. They break the good relationship that God created them to be in with him. This chasm between God and man is the fundamental problem of the Bible, and it is a chasm that only seems to widen as the Genesis narrative continues. God meets Adam and Eve’s sin with mercy and attempts at healing. They don’t die immediately. He continues to talk to them. Then Cain kills Abel. Again God meets him with mercy. But the world grows darker and farther away from God. At this point, Grimsrud suggests, God has two options. He can either destroy his creation and start over, or he can try to restore his creation to its original goodness. Grimsrud sees the Flood as an abortive attempt at the first option. The rainbow is a sign that God has changed his mind and committed to the second option (Grimsrud draws from this the controversial theological conclusion that “God is changeable” [36]). The story of the Bible then, is a story of restoration. It is a story in which God desires for all of creation to return to its original goodness.
Grimsrud traces this story through the remainder of the Old Testament, largely with the purpose of differentiating between what the healing strategy tries to move away from and what it tries to move toward. Grimsrud characterizes this movement as bringing “newness”, and offers Abraham as the first in a long line of evidences of God’s newness. Abraham and Sarah, Grimsrud says, are the beginning of a community of faith. Not only does God bring newness to Abraham and Sarah, but he promises to make them and their descendants a blessing to all the earth by bringing that newness to all people. This strategy of moving toward “newness” (perhaps better characterized, considering Grimsrud’s depiction of the original human condition, as “oldness”) is one that God is clearly committed to over the long-term.
But what is newness? What does newness move toward, and what does it move away from? Grimsrud concludes that newness moves toward salvation and liberation, as evidenced by the Exodus account. The same account, says Grimsrud, makes it clear that newness moves away from violence and from the injustices of imperial Egypt. The rest of the Old Testament is the story of God’s people wrestling primarily with these two issues. The kingship brings these issues into primary focus. When Israel asks for a king, the prophet Samuel tells them that a human king will make them slaves and will return both to injustice and to empire. The Bible vividly depicts this loss of liberation and triumph of injustice in the characters of David and Solomon. David, Israel’s greatest king, falls into terrible sin. Solomon, its so-called wisest king, transforms his role into an oppressive authoritarian regime. The Prophets then appear to speak out against the kingship and all its injustice. They teach that God loves his people, even though they seem to have intentionally moved away from his newness, and that he remains committed to healing. God brings exile, destruction, war, plague, and death to purge Israel of dehumanization, exploitation, and religiosity. And still he remains committed to the healing strategy.
As Grimsrud moves into the New Testament, he ceases to use the language of problems and begins instead to use the language of solutions. He starts his analysis at the logical place: the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus came to establish a kingdom of liberation. In Jesus’ time, oppression still remains, despite all the best efforts of the Prophets. In one way, he simply continues where they left off. He continues to denounce the powers that be and to preach justice and repentance. His message continues to be one of critique and of healing. In fact, Jesus makes his healing even more impactful than did the prophets by extending it into the physical realm. His mercy, compassion, and genuine desire for healing are made manifest in the miracles he performs. He does just enough of these to make his point, but not enough to make it seem as though the miracles are the substance of his mission. At some point he turns away from the supernatural works that had characterized his early ministry and turns wholeheartedly to teaching. His teachings are down-to-earth, teach a positive view of life, challenge people’s expectations, and champion liberation.
Jesus’ teachings and miracles, of course, would be as vain as the Prophets’ if he did not qualify them with an even more radical kind of newness. This newness manifests itself in his death and resurrection. Jesus is willing to go the way of suffering, and he teaches his followers to do the same. His death seals his message. It gives it an air of finality. It shows the world just how serious he is. And it provides a prime paradigm for others to follow. His resurrection is at least equally significant. It vindicates his life. It shows that God’s love is stronger than death, and gives the healing strategy some teeth. And most importantly, it keeps God’s healing strategy going. If Jesus had stayed dead, then that would be the end of his revolution. But instead he rises again, and with him rises the vision of a perfected, restored community.
But again, there would be no point to all Jesus’ work if his message, his paradigm, his strategy were not embodied by the people of God. In chapters 10 and 11, Grimsrud describes the transformation of God’s people that results from Messiah’s teachings, crucifixion, and resurrection. He starts in the Book of Acts, which especially drives home the important point that Jesus’ healing strategy is a continuation of the healing that occurred in the Old Testament. The Church expands first to Judea, then to Samaria, then to all the world, recalling the promise to Abraham that his descendants would be a blessing to all nations. On the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit removes the confusion of languages that occurred at Babel. Peter preaches Jesus not as something entirely new, but as a culmination of the Old Testament’s healing strategy. Though the community after Christ seems to be much more successful at moving toward healing, moving toward justice, and moving toward newness, Acts emphasizes that this is not a different strategy. It is merely the old healing strategy finally embodied. Grimsrud then moves on to quickly mention Paul, who works chiefly to motivate “good” people who do bad things to trust in God’s mercy as a solution for their sin.
Revelation, for Grimsrud, is partly a present reality and partly a future hope. It is another call for Christians to reject the norm of emperor-worship and injustice, and the embrace faithfulness. But it is also a description of the New Jerusalem: the ultimate embodiment by God’s people of the healing strategy. In some sense this is achieved by the believers in Christ in the first century. In another sense it is looked forward to as those believers spread their message to the ends of the earth. In the New Jerusalem is the victory of healing, the return to Eden, and the restoration of goodness.
Grimsrud closes with a summary of his theology. In essence, he says that the Bible is intended a coherent narrative that points toward ultimate healing. It is a single story that promotes justice and faithfulness and rejects empire. Grimsrud also challenges believers to continue to pursue the healing that the Bible describes with the ultimate hope that one day we may once and for all fulfill the vision of the New Jerusalem.
October 1, 2017
There are many points in this book that either directly contradict the Bible (i.e. "God changes") or made me go, "hmmm, that doesn't seem quite right." While the author does make some good points, his disorganization and articulation of ideas makes it hard to figure out what he truly believes.
Edit: after rereading the book, I liked it far more. There are definitely still some ideas that I don't subscribe to, but the overall message that God is in the process of bringing about healing for this earth through first Israel, then Jesus, and continued today through the church (and that the healing will be completed at the second coming) rings true and is decently supported. While it still is not my favorite book, I can appreciate it much more now and where Grimsrud is coming from.
Edit: after rereading the book, I liked it far more. There are definitely still some ideas that I don't subscribe to, but the overall message that God is in the process of bringing about healing for this earth through first Israel, then Jesus, and continued today through the church (and that the healing will be completed at the second coming) rings true and is decently supported. While it still is not my favorite book, I can appreciate it much more now and where Grimsrud is coming from.
August 28, 2012
A welcome, and welcoming, look at the whole story of the Bible showing us a God of love and mercy, as opposed to punishment and wrath. "Mercy for me implies mercy for everyone." (p. 95) "We who are loved by God (should) love as God loves." (p. 95) Where John the baptiser preaches repent for fear of God's wrath, Jesus says repent (change life direction) because of the good news that God is love, and God's mercy will lead to the good life. (p. 128)
Although I read through it in a couple of days because it is a theme I have interest in, the book is in a group-study format.
Although I read through it in a couple of days because it is a theme I have interest in, the book is in a group-study format.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews