Chapter 4: The Cruciform Center Part 1
Boyd believes the Christological lens through which we read Scripture needs to be more focused. That focus must be Cruciform (cross centered). If Jesus is the key to reading Scripture, then the cross is the key to understanding Jesus.
Augustine had a famous hermeneutical 'rule of love', but a poor definition of what love entails (an inner disposition with no necessary connection to outward actions). God IS love (1 John 4:8+16), but love is defined by sacrifice (1 John 3:16). If love is defined by sacrifice, it receives its greatest possible definition in the cross (the greatest possible sacrifice insofar that God, in Christ, actually experienced our God-forsaken curse). This is why the cross is the center of the revelation that God is love.
This is not to say that the cross is the only important aspect of Jesus' ministry. It is simply the interpretive center. Even the resurrection is best understood as the victorious declaration of the power of the cross (not some sort of triumphant alternative).
Reaction
I went into this chapter with some reluctance to accept a thoroughly cruciform (not simply christocentric) hermeneutic. Boyd, however, tipped the scales with his argument. I found it persuasive. He addressed my concerns. In the few moments where I thought he might be going off the edge a bit... the footnotes clarified (it's important to read footnotes!).
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