Relational Grace: The Reciprocal and Binding Covenant of Charis

BYU New Testament Commentary

by Brent J. Schmidt

In ancient Greece and Rome, charis was a system in which one person gave something of value to another, and the receiver gave service, thanks, and lesser value back to the giver. It was the word used to describe familial gifts, gifts between friends, gifts between kings and servants, and gifts to and from the gods. In Rome, these reciprocal transactions became the patron-client system. Orderly gift exchange is a key building block in the development of societies. Charis (grace) is the word New Testament authors, especially Paul, sometimes used to explain Christ’s gift to people. But what is the nature of the gift? Since the fifth century, a number of Christian scholars have taught that grace is something bestowed by God freely, with little or nothing required in return. This book sets out to show that “free grace” is not what Paul and others intended. The practice in the ancient world of people granting and receiving favors and gifts came with clear obligations. Charis served New Testament authors as a model for God’s mercy through the atonement of Jesus Christ, which also comes with covenantal obligations. LDS scriptures make it clear that being saved comes through grace accompanied by forsaking sin and making and keeping covenants. For Latter-day Saints, being saved by grace means coming to Christ, being baptized and joining the community of saints, and continually living with thanks and praise for God’s gift. All of these expressions of grace are found both in the Greek and Pauline use of the word. Knowing what charis means helps us understand what God expects us to do once we have accepted his grace.

Genres: Religion, Lds

269 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 20, 2015

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explains how the word that is translated as grace in the New Testament (charis in Greek; gratia in Latin) has been mistranslated and misconceived through the years to mean a passive concept that we can just sit back and receive. In fact, in the context of New Testament times and documents, charis/gratia referred to a covenental relationship that involves action on the part of both Jesus Christ and His disciple--the emphasis being on creating a relationship. I have no Greek, but I still was able to understand and appreciate the book, and learned a lot from it about what Paul and others meant by "grace."

[Joshua Gregg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brent tackles a millennia long debate in this work, and does so with skill and tact. His knowledge, expertise, and command of the classical languages and how they better inform us of inspired writers original intents is apparent. Having an understanding of how the ancients viewed the ideas of reciprocity and grace is critical to having an understanding of how to interpret their messages. Brent opens up the words often translated as "grace" in a way that does just that, and then goes on to discuss the implications of what the authors originally meant. If you want a clear understanding of grace and it's meaning in early Christianity this book is an excellent exposition. Hopefully many people will be enlightened by the discussion that is presented in this work.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ever wanted to know how a single word's meanings changed over time? What if it is one of those really important words from a Christian perspective like “grace.” This book fills a gap for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in giving them both the Catholic and Protestant understanding of grace and how this difference of doctrine came about from a historical perspective. Then the historical change to the idea of grace is compared and contrasted with Restoration scripture. The book explains that the restoration brings back the intended and understood meaning of grace from the time of the apostles as a reciprocal and binding covenant with God. Highly recommend it.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned about this book through a podcast and so thought that I would give it a try. I have been fascinated for several years with the Hebrew word hesed and how it applied to ancient Israel. However, what about the New Testament? Dr. Schmidt does a great job showing that the Jews and early Christians did have similar concepts and teachings. Furthermore, he makes a great argument about how grace (charis) in its historical context should be viewed and interpreted in the New Testament and why there are so many divergent interpretations of what grace means. A great book and great scholarship. Definitely worth the read.

[Silver Fox · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hardly an original take, this book is an exercise in confirmation bias. The author quote mines from a variety of sources, holds to the new perspective on paul (something his church doesn't teach officially) and then tries to reason backwards that somehow it's all over in the standard works of his church.

Wildly misleading, and frankly, grossly mistaken notions from start to finish.

Not worth the read.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author explores the meaning of the Greek work charis then explains the concept of grace in Greek and Roman cultures as well as the New Testament setting. Essentially, Christ's grace is not free, and grace incurs obligations, even though we never earn grace or repay our benefactor.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scholarly, yet very readable for the lay person. This book has helped me see grace, faith, works, covenants in a whole new light.

[Marissa Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Schmidt's scholarship on the original meaning of charis (grace) in Greek and Roman literature, as well as early Judeo-Christian writings, is excellent. I found it fascinating to learn more about how Paul's use of charis fit in with the way that word was used in society at the time, and also to learn about the history of how the Christian definition of "grace" changed in the 5th century. Today, it's typical to think of grace simply as a free gift from God, but it also involved obligation and reciprocity as part of a covenant relationship.

I was less interested in the latter part of the book, where Schmidt moved into talking about Latter Day Saints scriptures and arguing that their teachings on grace align more properly with the New Testament. (I just skimmed those chapters--my goal in reading this book was to learn about the classical context of charis). I'm looking forward to continuing reading on the subject of grace in Paul's writings, and Schmidt's thorough footnotes offer several possible starting points for that.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Using broad surveys of the use of the Greek term "charis" throughout history -- often translated as "grace" in the KJV of the New Testament -- this book convincingly establishes that grace is indeed a free gift, but one that comes with a reciprocal obligation. When we comply with that relational obligation by showing gratitude and love to God for his gift of grace to us (i.e., by thanking and worshiping God and by striving to keep His commandments) we receive even more grace, thereby obligating us to continue showing gratitude and love, and so on, until we are eventually perfected, through grace.

[Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book on recovering the ancient Greco-Roman conception of grace.

Biggest weakness was when he was surveying LDS scholars on the meaning of grace, somehow he omitted the most influential scholar of them all on this subject, Stephen E. Robinson.