Part 2: The Second Adam
Part 2
The Second Adam
In the conclusion to chapter 2, it was noted that in some of Paul’s later letters he appears to move toward an emphasis on Christ’s humanity when speaking of the incarnation. Throughout the centuries, however, Christianity has not always fared well on this point and has frequently veered in the direction of a fourth-century heresy known as Apollinarianism. Here the church pays lip service to Christ’s humanity but often emphasizes his deity in ways that downplay the genuineness of that humanity. Thus a fourth-century bishop named Apollinaris affirmed that Christ had a fully human body, but he argued that it was inhabited by a divine mind. This view was ultimately rejected by the orthodox church for eliminating the genuine humanity of Christ—since Jesus’s divine mind, even as a child, would not have had to develop and learn as the human mind must. Unfortunately, the influence of this unbiblical heresy can still be felt at times in the church today.
In part 2, then, we pursue the affirmation of Christ’s genuine humanity in the Pauline letters by turning our attention to Paul’s references, and in some cases apparent allusions, to Christ as second or last “Adam.” To be sure, there is disagreement over how much in Paul’s letters should be included in such a discussion, since Adam is specifically mentioned only three times (1 Cor. 15:21–22, 44–49; Rom. 5:12–21). Rather than focusing narrowly on Paul’s use of the name Adam, the discussion is broadened to include the Apostle’s use of related imagery from the creation narrative in Genesis, including Paul’s language of the new creation, the second Adam, and the imago Dei (chap. 3). Broadening the discussion in this way allows for a thorough treatment of the topic of Christ’s work as the creator of a new creation and new humanity, even though in some instances the allusion to Adam may have been distant. We then turn to Paul’s emphasis on the true humanity of the second Adam, Jesus of Nazareth (chap. 4).