"Christ in You": A Study in Paul's Theology and Ethics

"Christ in You": A Study in Paul's Theology and Ethics. By William B. Barcley. Lanham: University Press of America, 1999, 170 pp., $42.50.

William B. Barcley's monograph "Christ in You" is a published 1997 Ph.D. dissertation written under the tutelage of J. Paul Sampley at Boston University. The study compares the expressions "in Christ" and "Christ in you" within the epistles of Paul.

The first chapter argues persuasively that scholarship has yet to define conclusively either expression or explain their relationship adequately within Pauline theology. Chapters 2-4 examine the "Christ in you" expression within the epistolary, theological, soteriological, and pneumatological contexts of Galatians, Romans, 2 Corinthians, and Colossians. Though the phrase occurs only five times in the entire Pauline canon (Gal 2:20; 4:19; Rom 8:10; 2 Cor 13:5; Col 1:17), Barcley appraises it as "a well-established formula within Paul's thought" and "a central concept in Pauline teaching" (p. 50). He explains the infrequency of the phrase as possibly related to its traditional origin, which was "so bedrock that it did not bear frequent mention" (p. 122).

Barcley asserts throughout that there is a slight variation in meaning between "in Christ" and "Christ in you." Paul uses "in Christ" primarily as a corporate expression in comparison to the more personal phrase "Christ in you," which recalls a believer's baptism and dynamically recounts a believer's entrance into the Christian faith. "Christ in you" therefore is a theologically loaded phrase. Leading readers "back to the fundamentals of the faith" (p. 138), "Christ in you" encompasses the entire recreation process whereby believers become conformed to the image of Christ. This process begins at baptism, continues throughout the believer's life, eschatologically looks forward to the end times, and anticipates the believer's final transformation "from glory to glory" (p. 138). As the study progresses, parallels emerge between "Christ in you" and "Spirit in you." Both are shown to depict the indwelling power of God that regenerates and recreates believers into the image of Christ. But whereas "Spirit in you" focuses primarily on the process, "Christ in you" focuses primarily on Jesus as both the first cause of Christian transformation and as the final goal of the transformation process, since conformity to Christ is the process's ultimate objective. By establishing "Christ as exemplar for the life of faith," "Christ in you" promotes Christ-likeness as the standard for Christian ethics (p. 138).

In sum, then, "Christ in you" is a dynamic phrase that broadly describes God's salvation of human beings through the work of Christ in believers. In Pauline terms, this means " `Christ in you' makes possible new life `in Christ' and forms the basis by which the benefits of Christ's death and resurrection accrue to believers (including justification, reconciliation, sanctification and redemption" (p. 140).

Authors of published dissertations are always to be congratulated and Barcley is no exception. He is to be commended for bringing to our attention an important theological expression that has not received adequate attention. He supports his clearly written text with meaty endnotes that successfully engage in appropriate scholarly debate without confusing the internal objectives of the thesis proper. And, unlike what we find in many dissertations, he manages to relate a narrowly defined topic to the broader emphases of Biblical theology.

This study could be upgraded on several fronts, however. First, the phrase "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith" (Eph 3:17), which Barcley dismisses as "slightly different" from "Christ in you" (p. 22), should be incorporated into this study. By not doing so, Barcley preempts the possibility that Ephesians might contribute an added dimension to our understanding of this Pauline concept. Equally unfortunate is this work's omission of an exploration of the OT concepts of "new creation" and "new covenant," which Barcley portrays as being fulfilled by the presence of Christ in believers. A brief development of Paul's interpretation of Jeremiah 31 and Ezekiel 36 would further support the importance of transformation soteriology in Paul's thought (e.g. 2 Cor 3). Third, on the level of scholarly discussion, it is surprising that Barcley does not evaluate the ongoing debate regarding the exact meaning of justification within Pauline theology. It appears that he presupposes a transformational concept, which is legitimate, but he never explains why, and never appraises the forensic perspective. And finally, while "in Christ" is corporate in meaning, it also has important personal implications for the individual Christian. These issues aside, this monograph is a valuable contribution of significant merit.

Edward P. Meadors

Taylor University, Upland, IN

Copyright Evangelical Theological Society Sep 2001
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