A new creation in Christ
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Date
2005
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Abstract
The title "A New Creation in Christ" served as the basis for the examination of the
definitive theological and Biblical concepts of the doctrines of creation, humanity, sin
and salvation. It integrated the foci of these doctrines, in constructing a paradigm for
establishing what is meant by the dissertation title, 'a new creation in creation.' To
understand a new creation theology requires a composite structuring of these
interrelated doctrines, since no doctrine can be understood vacuously. Humanity was
not created in an abstract or theoretical world, and neither were they placed in isolation
from creation. Instead, they were very much a part of the created order, and were
endowed with specific function or purpose. They interacted with a living world and
were accorded the responsibility as its stewards. The consideration of the facets of the
doctrine of creation enabled an understanding of humanity’s placement in creation, their
purpose and how sin affected creation. This informs the doctrine of humanity in
highlighting the biblical emphasis on humanity as the special creation of God. God
created humanity in his image, and this image is an intrinsic and indispensable part of
humanity's uniqueness and existence. The constitutional nature of humanity lies in its
conditional unity of the whole person. Man is a unity of the physical, the psychological
and the spiritual, all of which are purposed to enable him, in fulfilling the intentions of
the Creator. The doctrine of sin clarified how sin affected the conditional unity of man
i.e. the physical, the psychological and the spiritual dimensions. It further demonstrated
the domino effect on creation. This precarious position which humanity found
themselves in, required the intervention of God, through the incarnation of Christ
Salvation is the free gift of God in Christ in dealing with the problem of sin, and the
consequences thereof This free gift requires that a human being appropriate salvation
in Jesus Christ, through the acceptance of him in faith and repentance. This background
established a contextual understanding of a new creation in Christ. The definitive text
for our discussion was Paul's statement in 2 Corinthians 5:17 "If anyone is in Christ,
he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come." Paul's
statement incorporates two elements of salvation. "If anyone is in Christ" is suggestive
of the first element, which is the subjective nature of salvation. This involves the
believer's conversion through repentance and faith. The second element is the objective
nature of salvation. This is suggested in the next part of the statement "he is a new
creation", which is accomplished through the redemptive work of God in Christ. The
resident implication of the reference 'a new creation in Christ', is the inauguration of a
new humanity that has begun in Christ. A cyclic model for the practical outworking of a
new creation theology has been advocated in a threefold consideration of person hood,
community and discipleship.
Description
Submitted to the Faculty of Theology and Religion Studies in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Theology in the Department of Systematic Theology, Ethics and History of Christianity at the University of Zululand, 2005.
Keywords
Creation--History of doctrines., Theology, Doctrinal., Salvation--Christianity--History of doctrines., Sin--History of doctrines.