A People Called: Narrative Transportation & Missional Identity in 1 Peter Submitted by David Michael Shaw to the University of Exeter as a thesis for the degree of PhD in Theology May 2017 This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this thesis which is not my own work has been identified and that no material has previously been submitted and approved for the award of a degree by this or any other University. Signature: ………………………………………………………….. Abstract Conversations concerning the missional posture of 1 Peter have been dictated largely by the now (in)famous debate between David Balch’s assimilationist position over and against John Elliott’s more sectarian position. More recent work has sought to bridge the gap between Balch and Elliott with a variety of more nuanced positions such as Miroslav Volf’s “Soft Difference”. Most of the discussion revolves around the practicalities of cultural engagement and what it might mean for church members to interact with the world as “Christians” in an increasingly hostile environment. The present thesis takes a step back from the coal face of missional engagement to focus on how that mission is shaped. More particularly, I am concerned with how 1 Peter utilises the language of divine calling (καλέω) that appears in five specific instances (1:13–21; 2:4–10; 2:18–25; 3:8–17; 5:6–14), alongside central events and motifs from the Old Testament, to cultivate a narrative that forges a distinct Christian identity and mission, that has its basis in Israel’s history and the life of Christ. Our concern with narrative and cultural interaction leads us to consider the relevant Petrine texts, through the dual lenses of Social Identity and Narrative Transportation theories which reveal how various groups interact, and how narratives shape actions and beliefs respectively. I argue that through the language of calling, and with the assistance of key OT motifs, 1 Peter seeks to develop a Christian identity that might be best described as “elect sojourners”; that believers are those who are elect of God and yet rejected by the world. This identity manifests itself in a life of “resident-alien-ness”—in the world, yet no longer of the world—that consequently leads to various forms of suffering. Amid such suffering, 1 Peter calls the church to a priestly ministry—representing God to the people, and the people to God—through a life geared towards blessing, even when such a life leads to suffering. This is the life to which the Anatolian believers have been called: a life of holiness as a priestly community, committed to the gracious endurance of suffering, and of blessing those who would oppose them. iii Contents ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................... iii CONTENTS ........................................................................................................ v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................. ix LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................ xiii CHAPTER 1: FRAMING THE PRESENT STUDY ............................................. 1 1.1. Setting the Scene .................................................................................... 1 1.2. Mission in 1 Peter Research: A Survey of the Literature .............................. 5 1.2.1. David L. Balch & John H. Elliott .................................................. 7 1.2.2. Miroslav Volf: “Soft Difference” ................................................... 8 1.2.3. Joel B. Green: “Living as Exiles” ................................................. 10 1.2.4. Rolex Cailing: Missional Use of the OT ..................................... 13 1.2.5. David G. Horrell: Wives as Missional Paradigm ........................ 15 1.2.6. Eric W. Zeller: Biblical Theology of Mission according to 1 Pet 2:9–12 ......................................... 18 1.2.7. Douglas Holm: Doing Good and Verbal Witness ....................... 21 1.2.8. Summary ..................................................................................... 26 1.3. Καλέω (Calling) in Antiquity ................................................................ 28 1.3.1. Καλέω in the LXX and Second Temple Literature ...................... 28 1.3.2. Καλέω in Greco-Roman Literature ............................................. 30 1.3.3. Καλέω in the New Testament ..................................................... 32 1.3.4. Καλέω in 1 Peter ......................................................................... 39 1.4. Social Identity Theory ........................................................................... 41 1.4.1. Why is Social Identity Theory Pertinent for Thinking about Mission? ...................................... 43 1.4.2. Social Identity Formation ........................................................... 44 1.4.3. Effects of Group Status on Intergroup Conflict .......................... 47 1.4.4. Strategies for Resolving Intergroup Conflicts ............................ 51 1.5. Narrative Transportation Theory ........................................................... 53 1.5.1. Story and Narrative: Elements and Distinctions ........................ 54 1.5.2. Narrative Transportation and Persuasion ................................... 56 1.5.3. Antecedents for the Storyteller and Story Recipient .................. 58 1.5.4. Consequences of Narrative Transportation ................................ 60 1.5.5. Narrative and Worldview ........................................................... 62 v Contents 1.6. First Peter in View of Social Identity and Narrative Transportation Theories ................................................... 64 1.7. First Peter in Context ............................................................................ 64 1.7.1. Authorship and Date .................................................................. 65 1.7.2. Provenance, Destination(s), and Recipients .............................. 71 1.8. Summary and Point of Departure ........................................................... 78 1.9. Outline of Thesis ................................................................................... 79 CHAPTER 2: CALLED TO BE HOLY .............................................................. 83 2.1. Introductory Comments ......................................................................... 83 2.2. Present Action; Future Hope (1 Peter 1:13) ............................................ 89 2.3. Called to be Holy (1 Pet 1:14–16) ......................................................... 98 2.3.1. Children of Obedience (1:14) ..................................................... 98 2.3.2. Called to be Holy (1:15–16) ..................................................... 103 2.4. A New Paternity (1 Peter 1:17–19) ..................................................... 111 2.4.1. Fearing the Father who Judges Impartially (1:17) ................... 112 2.4.2. A Blood-Stained Ransom (1:18–19) ......................................... 122 2.5. Hope in Jesus’ Death and Resurrection (1 Peter 1:20–21) ...................... 131 2.5.1. A Ransom from Eternity Past (1:20) ........................................ 132 2.5.2. Resurrection Hope (1:21) ......................................................... 135 2.6. Conclusion ......................................................................................... 137 CHAPTER 3: CALLED OUT OF DARKNESS ............................................... 139 3.1. Introductory Comments ....................................................................... 139 3.2. Called to Jesus, the Living Stone (1 Peter 2:4–5) ................................... 141 3.2.1. Coming to the Living Stone (2:4) ............................................. 142 3.2.2. Called into God’s Eschatological Temple Community (2:5) .... 147 3.3. One Cornerstone; Two Destinies (1 Peter 2:6–8) ................................... 154 3.3.1. The Cornerstone that Brings Honour (2: 6–7a) ....................... 155 3.3.2. The Cornerstone that Brings Shame (2:7b–8) .......................... 164 3.4. Called Out of Darkness (1 Peter 2:9–10) .............................................. 170 3.4.1. Identifying God’s Eschatological Temple Community (2:9a) .. 171 3.4.2. The Purpose of God’s Eschatological Temple Community (2:9b) ............................... 184 3.4.3. A “Mercied” People (2:10) ....................................................... 189 3.5. Conclusion ......................................................................................... 192 CHAPTER 4: CALLED TO GRACIOUS ENDURANCE ................................ 195 4.1. Introductory Comments ....................................................................... 195 vi Contents 4.2. Isaiah 53 and Social Creativity in 1 Peter 2:21–25 ................................ 199 4.3. Christ: Servant of God & Prototype of Gracious Endurance (1 Peter 2:21–23) ............................................. 206 4.3.1. Called to Follow in the Footsteps of Jesus, the Exemplar (2:21) ................................................... 207 4.3.2. The Example of Christ (2:22–23) ............................................. 215 4.4. Substitution & New Life: The Purpose of Christ’s Gracious Endurance (1 Peter 2:24–25) .............. 227 4.4.1. Substitution