Jesus and the Logic of History

New Studies in Biblical Theology #3

by Paul Barnett, D.A. Carson (Editor)

At the heart of the Christian faith stands a man, Jesus of Nazareth. Few people seriously question whether Jesus existed in history. But many, influenced by the more skeptical scholars, doubt that the Christ of orthodox Christianity is the same as the Jesus of history. In this New Studies in Biblical Theology volume, historian Paul W. Barnett lays these doubts to rest. He uncovers the methodological weaknesses present in some forms of critical scholarship, demonstrating a failure to account for important early evidence about Jesus. Once the evidence is properly marshalled, a picture of Jesus emerges that fits well with orthodox belief in him. Addressing key issues in biblical theology, the works comprising New Studies in Biblical Theology are creative attempts to help Christians better understand their Bibles. The NSBT series is edited by D. A. Carson, aiming to simultaneously instruct and to edify, to interact with current scholarship and to point the way ahead.

Genres: Theology, History, Christian, New Testament, Academic, Church History, Christianity

182 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Paul Barnett, former Anglican Bishop of North Sydney, Australia, is a Visiting Fellow in Ancient History at Macquarie University and Teaching Fellow at Regent College, Vancouver and Moore College, Sydney. He is a frequent traveler to Israel, where Christianity began, and to Turkey and Greece, to which it rapidly spread.

Reviews

[Neil Kruger · Rating 4 out of 5]

2021 reads: #52
Rating: 4 Stars

This book contributes to Historical Jesus studies and serves as an apologetic for the Christian faith. Barnett pushes back on the academy's tendency to construct a Jesus of their own imagination by demonstrating that the Christ of proclamation is anchored to the Jesus of history. The logic of history demands that Jesus cannot only be treated as a man of His time, rather He transcends His historical context, and His teachings are preserved in written apostolic testimony - the umbilical cord that continues to connect future generations to the person and work of Christ.

[Shane Williamson · Rating 4 out of 5]

2020 reads: 40/52

Rating: 4 stars

Paul Barnett has provided a brief and yet convincing account for the Jesus of the NT.

Modern renderings of the ‘historical Jesus’ center on artificial ‘social-contexts’, attempting to explain who Jesus ‘truly was’ through backgrounds and other historical data, though typically neglecting one of the most vital parts for ‘unearthing’ who Jesus was: the epistles of the apostles (which date within 30 years of his life), as well as the gospels (which date within 60 years of his life).

Barnett argues (and shows) how it is the content of these documents that best account for the spread of Christianity in the ancient world; it is here where we find the logic of history.

This is a great resource for those wanting an introduction to NT issues/backgrounds.

A personal highlight was Barnett’s case for the tradition of Jesus supplanting the usual role of rabbinic halakhah (see p. 45).

[Graham Heslop · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book should be required reading for any course introducing the New Testament. Barnett makes a convincing and clear (not to mention succinct) argument for the historicity of Jesus of Nazareth. Only, circumnavigating sceptics who would quickly dismiss the four Gospels and Luke's Acts of the Apostles as creations of the faith community, Barnett shows how the New Testament letters or epistles (undeniably dated earlier than those other documents, possibly as early as the 40s) are consistent with and draw from a richly historical tradition, supporting a single Jesus in their immediate past.

[Tim Callicutt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Paul Barnett criticizes the Jesus Seminar and those of similar ilk and sets forth a largely orthodox view of the historical Jesus. Throughout, he addresses the historical sources we have and is able to distill a broad historical narrative of Jesus’ ministry, death/resurrection, and impact.

First things first: this rating is NOT a comment on the quality of scholarship. As is typical in the NSBT series, the scholarship is strong and cohesive. If historical Jesus is your thing, I’d actually recommend the book. Instead, my ratings are narrowly based on enjoyment of the reading experience. And historical Jesus just isn’t my thing.

There are other authors who couch their arguments for certain aspects of the historicity of the Jesus story within a larger theological work. For example, take N.T. Wright’s writings on the resurrection or Larry Hurtado’s writings on early forms of Jesus worship. As a result, I find those experiences more palatable, as there seems to be a larger point at stake. Here, the purpose seems largely apologetic - which is fine as far as it goes, but I do wonder how many critical scholars are going to pick up a volume of the NSBT versus a standalone work.

With that being said, as someone who teaches history (albeit not biblical), I did find the discussion on sources compelling at times. I particularly appreciated Barnett’s approach to the epistles and extra biblical material. He also proposed an orthodox view that didn’t bow to the excesses of inerrancy. He’s willing to admit that the gospels give a somewhat muddled view of chronology and (rightly) points out that all four have theological aims that overpower their historical goals, even if those historical goals still remain present. I prefer this approach versus the mental gymnastics I heard from the pulpit when preaching through the Gospel of John where Jesus seemingly experienced all key moments in his ministry (like the feeding of the five thousand) twice, just so the Bible wouldn’t be “false.” It seems more natural that the gospels give us something of a composite picture of Jesus’ ministry, and occasionally the specific chronology on each one is off. Our faith shouldn’t be so weak that such an “error” throws it into disarray.

Anyways, if this is the book for you, I bet you know it. Go and enjoy. Barnett should be proud of his scholarship. I’ll sit here feeling a least a little guilt giving it such a low rating. But not guilty enough to change anything.

[Ethan Preston · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, by Paul Barnett, is an essential read to anyone interested in the debates that rage about the "historical" Jesus. Barnett's basic thesis is that the past attempts at recovering the "historical" Jesus have been decidedly UN-historical. Rather than consistently applying the "logic of history" or the common methodological criteria of historical inquiry, those involved in these "real" Jesus quests pick and first pick a sociological context for Jesus and then pick and choose what he could have said and done in that context. Far from being polemical or merely critical, Barnett's book is a sober assessment of modern Jesus research and provides a reasonable and historical alternative approach to studying Jesus. Barnett brings in the Pagan, Epistolary, and Gospel literature to prove that the portrait of Jesus in the NT is not only historically plausible but reliable. One of the highlights of Barnett's approach is his argument that the Epistles of the NT must play a larger role in our understanding of the historical Jesus, for the Epistles are not self-consciously historical, and therefore are (critically speaking) more reliable. They are also the earliest attestations to the life of Jesus we have. Barnett gives his readers much to chew on historically and this book makes critical arguments for the trustworthiness of the Gospels.

[Josh Anders · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really good starting place for those doing a “historical Jesus” inquiry. Most “historical Jesus” (i hate that phrase as it implies postmodernism but whatever) studies are truly ridiculous in scope and goal. This one, along with the Wright work I read previously are much more commendable in the humility of approach the authors take. This book is at its best when it includes secondary sources and expands on its’ scope as a biblical theology work. I would have liked for it to have been 50 pages longer for Barnett to expound some of his thoughts more but that’s really my only complaint.

[Stephen Childs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compelling and methodical account of how efforts to discover the "historical Jesus" often end up creating subjective and unrealistic pictures of Jesus due to 1. over-reliance on sometimes speculative reconstructions of his social context; 2. failing to take account of the movement launched by his life and death as abundantly documented in epistles and extra-biblical sources.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

excellent discussion of the historicity of Jesus and Christianity that is missing today in most academic settings.

[David M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful. Really great companion to Bauckham's Jesus and the God of Israel, which I read near about the same time.

[Tori Whitacre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Reid Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Secondary text for the Gospels, an nsbt contribution to a general apologetic for the transmission of the Gospels. I found it helpful in tandem with Blomberg.

[Josh Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Barnett argues the letters of the New Testament are just as useful as the gospels for historical inquire into the Bible. He criticizes modern scholarship which reinvents Jesus along esoteric or bizarre lines, usually through trying to contextualize Jesus and exaggerating some aspect of his contemporary culture. Dr. Barnett notes the Roman reaction to Christianity indicates the life of Jesus had an immediate and lasting impact on the world. The historical Jesus must have been remarkable enough to launch a movement. The book attempts to understand Jesus in the context of John the Baptizer, Herod the tetrarch, Anna & Caiaphas the high priests, and Pontius Pilate the perfect. Since the gospels are "self-consciously historical", the Dr. Barnett suggests starting with incidental facts supplied by the letters of the NT. The author suggests two factors are helpful in understanding the origin of the gospels. First, the rabbinic culture of Jesus's day. Second, the bios genre of the time.

This book was a great reinforcement of the traditional case for the gospels and Jesus's historical life.

[Brandon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Does a great job narrowing the gap between the "Jesus of history" and the "Christ of faith." The accusation that the Church has embellished the Jesus they worship is destroyed in parts of the book. Barnett brings the Jesus we worship in the church within one year of the historical Jesus by examining what the Apostle Paul says about Jesus. Paul's letters, he argues, are valuable because unlike the Gospels, they do not intend to convey history. Rather, they are letters to already convinced communities that mention Jesus incidentally. Significantly, nowhere does Paul elaborate on the person of Jesus. They show an assumed existence of the historical Jesus worshipped in the Church.

I did not read the entire book, but only parts pertaining to the linking the Jesus of history with the Jesus worshipped in the church. It should be noted that this book does not look into the life or meaning of Jesus.

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book about the historical Jesus that is actually worth reading. He starts with the obvious assumption that the Bible is real and describes Jesus by starting with the letters. A great approach that should put a chill in any historical Jesus writer who is unwilling to believe that Jesus as Lord is real.
He also did a very good job of putting Jesus and His death into context. After Jesus died that wasn't the end of the story. Even if you don't want to believe the resurrection (which would be a mistake) you still need to contend with the movement that followed after Jesus' death and the passion His followers had even to the point of their deaths.

[Hunter Starr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly researched and well written, Jesus and the Logic of History utilizes the logic of historical study of the New Testament. While I would not be convinced that he has actually proved his thesis, he has certainly laid bare the terrible job scholars have done at evaluating the historical veracity related in the gospels. It is a good read for those who want a less biased (by Christians or nonChristians) approach to the NT - be sure to peruse the footnotes!

[Michael Best · Rating 3 out of 5]

For anyone interested in how we know that Jesus was real as is portrayed in the Bible, I highly recommend this book. Barnett does a great job at showing why we can trust what the Bible says about Jesus, both in the Gospels and in the Epistles.

[Jim S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding.