What Does Paul Say about Pleasure | Max Lee

Lecture Title - Paul and the Pursuit of Pleasure Paul, in his debate with a wisdom group at Corinth, addresses Greco-Roman attitudes toward (idol) food (1 Cor 8:1–13; 10:23–30), sex (6:12–20), and entertainment (15:32). He engages with a kind of moral naturalism which motivates the Corinthians’ behavior. While he acknowledges that natural desire can serve as partial index of what is good, Paul nevertheless warns against letting anything have power over us (1 Cor 6:12). Food, drink, human intimacy, and play are physical and social pleasures that are good gifts from our Creator. They can, however, be dangerously idolatrous and addictive. Paul offers instruction on how we can enjoy pleasures as created goods without turning them into idolatrous practices. Max J. Lee (PhD Fuller Theological Seminary) is Professor of New Testament at North Park Theological Seminary. He is one of the Creation Project’s 2020–21 Henry Resident Fellows, researching natural desire and pleasure according to Paul. He is co-editor of Fire in My Soul: Essays on Pauline Soteriology and the Gospels in Honor of Seyoon Kim (Wipf and Stock, 2014) and author of Moral Transformation in Greco-Roman Philosophy of Mind: Mapping the Moral Milieu of the Apostle Paul and his Diaspora Jewish Contemporaries (Mohr Siebeck, 2020). The Henry Center for Theological Understanding provides theological resources that help bridge the gap between the academy and the church. It houses a cluster of initiatives, each of which is aimed at applying practical Christian wisdom to important kingdom issues—for the good of the church, for the soul of the theological academy, for the sake of the world, and ultimately for the glory of God. The HCTU seeks to ground each of these initiatives in Scripture, and it pursues these goals collaboratively, in order to train a new generation of wise interpreters of the Word—lay persons and scholars alike—for the sake of tomorrow’s church, academy, and world. Visit the HCTU website: https://henrycenter.tiu.edu/  Subscribe to the HCTU Newsletter: https://bit.ly/326pRL5 Watch the HCTU on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HenryCenter Connect with us! https://twitter.com/henry_center https://www.facebook.com/henrycenter/ https://www.instagram.com/thehenrycenter/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/thehenrycenter

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This is our archive of public lectures and conversations where scholars and pastors offer careful reflection on a range of biblical, theological, and ecclesial topics. The HCTU seeks to bridge the gap between the academy and the church by cultivating resources and communities that promote Christian wisdom. This is accomplished through a cluster of initiatives, each of which is aimed at applying practical Christian wisdom to important kingdom issues—for the good of the church, for the soul of the theological academy, for the sake of the world, and ultimately for the glory of God.