In the history of the church, the most heated debate in Christology has been over the understanding of the person and work of Jesus Christ. Some theologians have researched the life of Jesus based on their determination that Christ cannot be both human and God. Others either have understood Christ from above, grounded in the church’s proclamation, or from below, basing their view of Christ on historical investigation. More recently, a number of popular but flawed attempts to reconstruct the life and teaching of Jesus have emerged. However, a perspective utilizing faith to interpret the history of Jesus, found through reason, may provide the most adequate christological methodology.
Study Questions
- What are the contemporary issues concerning christological methodology, and how do they concern the church?
- What is the “search for the historical Jesus,” and how important is it for understanding the person and work of Jesus Christ?
- How has Rudolf Bultmann’s understanding of Christology affected views of Christ and his work?
- How should a study of the person and work of Jesus Christ progress? Why is it necessary to operate in a particular order?
- How should one react to the growing tendency to view the incarnation of Jesus Christ as mythological and irrelevant for modern religious practice?
