OBrien Peter - The Perfect Saviour

Richard B. Gaffin, Jr (ThD, Westminster Theological Seminary) is Professor Emeritus of Biblical and Systematic Theology, Westminster Theological Seminary.

David Gooding (PhD, Cambridge) is Professor Emeritus of Old Testament Greek at Queens University Belfast and is a member of the Royal Irish Academy.

Jonathan Griffiths (PhD, Cambridge) served as Assistant Minister at Christ Church, Westbourne, and has joined the Proclamation Trust as an instructor on the Cornhill Training Course.

Peter T. OBrien (PhD, Manchester) is Emeritus Faculty Member, formerly Vice-Principal and Senior Research Fellow in New Testament, Moore College, Sydney.

David Peterson (PhD, Manchester) served as Principal of Oak Hill Theological College, London, and is now Emeritus Faculty Member at Moore College, Sydney.

Thomas R. Schreiner (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is the James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Peter Walker (PhD, Cambridge and DPhil, Oxford) is Associate Vice-Principal and Tutor in New Testament and Biblical Theology at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford.

Bruce W. Winter (PhD, Macquarie) is Director of the Institute for Early Christianity in the Graeco-Roman World, Emmanuel College, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Senior Research Fellow in Ancient History, Macquarie University, Sydney and Visiting Fellow, St Edmunds College, University of Cambridge 200712.

When I was studying theology, each week my tutors (one of whom has written a chapter in this volume) would set an essay title and a reading list covering a major theme in a New Testament book. We students would go away, read up on that theme, reflect on it for a week, and write three or four thousand words on it. For each New Testament book that we studied, we only had opportunity to write four or five essays, but at the end of that series of detailed studies on key themes, we came to see that we had four or five solid footholds to equip us to tackle the book and to know it well. Gaining a firm grasp of a few key issues within a book was, for me, the best way of getting to know the book as a whole.

This present volume is, if you like, a tutorial series on the book of Hebrews. It is designed to help preachers embarking on a sermon series to get their heads around Hebrews its key themes and difficult questions. This is not a full theology of Hebrews, but a theological taster and introduction, designed primarily for pastors. It is hoped that it will be of value to those leading Bible study groups and those in theological education as well.

The impetus for this project came from a desire to bridge the gap between the work being done on Hebrews by evangelical scholars in universities and colleges and the real world of the busy preacher. Too often good New Testament research never makes it to the pastors study because it is presented in a form that is not practically digestible in the time that a pastor has for sermon preparation. And if you are reading this now, I imagine that you will share the conviction of the authors that theological research is only valuable insofar as it aids the proclamation of the gospel.

The idea for this volume took shape in my mind as I studied the work that David Peterson did for his PhD on the theme of perfection in Hebrews. This is an important theme and Davids study is excellent. But many pastors will not have time or opportunity to read the monograph that David produced as a result of that study. When I suggested this present project and asked David if he would produce a prcis of his research, he kindly agreed, and the project was born. I owe him very special thanks.

I must also register my gratitude to all the contributors and to Philip Duce at Inter-Varsity Press for their willingness to invest time and energy into this project. I know that they share my prayer that it will be for the good of the church and the glory of her Lord.