For the Apostle Paul, humans do not identify and act on their own but are constituted, in part, by relationships. Samuel D. Ferguson shows that, according to Paul, the work of the Holy Spirit further attests to this, as Christians realize their new life through Spirit-created relationships of sonship and communal interdependence.
Paul's anthropological assumptions influence the rest of his thought, and in this study, Samuel D. Ferguson follows a growing interest in the corporate, non-autonomous nature of his doctrine of humanity. In a further departure from strictly individualistic interpretations, the author explores the bounded and relational aspects of Paul's anthropology. An array of »relations« ranging from those with the Creator, world, cosmic forces, other persons, and Christ, are shown as impacting human agency, identity, and volition, evidencing what this study terms »Relational Anthropology.« The work of the Spirit further demonstrates this phenomenon, as texts from Romans 8 and First Corinthians 12 witness to Spirit-wrought relationships that actualize the new life of a believer, including the Spirit-generated relation of sonship and Spirit-sustained relations of interdependence experienced through shared charismata.
