Exalted Above the Heavens

Peter C. Orr is lecturer in New Testament at Moore College, Sydney, Australia. In his new book, Orr attends to what he considers a neglected topic in NT studies—the ascension and exaltation of Christ. Portions of the text are new material, while other parts are condensed versions of Orr’s earlier work in Christ Absent and Present published by Mohr Siebeck in WUNT. It is important to note that Orr is not examining the ascension as simply a past event but, rather, in terms of Christ as he is currently seated at God’s right hand. To these ends, the volume unfolds with an examination of the exalted Christ through the lens of his identity, location, and activity.After a brief introduction in ch. 1, Orr launches into the identity of the exalted Christ through the lens of the earthly Jesus (ch. 2). Chapters 3 and 4 pursue the same ends, but from the perspective of the Spirit and church, respectively. Chapter 5 transitions to the location of Christ. This chapter and the three that follow analyze Christ’s location from the perspective of his absence. Orr begins his analysis with attention to the Gospels and the book of Hebrews. Chapter 6 discusses the body of the exalted Christ, focusing on the aspects of the physical, heavenly, spiritual, discrete, and glorified. Chapter 7 resumes the emphasis on the location of Christ but from the perspective of Paul. Orr masterfully dissects Paul’s emphasis on union with Christ with the seemingly contradictory teaching in the Gospels that Christ is bodily absent from the earth—a teaching that Paul also affirms. Chapter 8 continues to explore the synthesis of Christ’s presence and absence. Orr argues that these aspects of Christ’s location are not contradictions but mutually informing. In the last two chapters, Orr summarizes his findings and explores their consequences for Christ’s activity on earth (ch. 9) and in heaven (ch. 10). Chapter 11 offers some theological and pastoral reflections. The arrangement of the chapters is fascinating. In some cases, Orr starts with the Gospels and sequentially moves to Paul’s epistles. In other cases, Orr takes a more systematic approach by grouping various strands of evidence together under a specific theological topic.Overall, Orr’s treatment of the material is careful and balanced. Some of his scholarly interaction is with the seminal scholar of a particular controversy, while other interactions delve into the most current literature. This diversity in discussion is testimony to the breadth of the volume’s research while still being only 200 pages. One question that lingered was the placement of the sixth chapter. In chs. 5, 7, and 8, Orr addresses the location of Christ. On the one hand, ch. 6 appears to be a digression because of its focus on the body of Christ, but on the other hand, the body of Christ is Paul’s starting point for discussing the location of Christ, which is the subject of ch. 7. Unexpected delights include Orr’s attention to the absence of Christ. By exploring this aspect of Christ’s existence, Orr is able to make a substantive case for Christ’s location by where he was not. Also, Orr’s discussion of the differences in Christ and Spirit were illuminating for a deeper understanding of Trinitarian theology. This volume is a welcome addition to the literature on the ascension and exaltation of Christ. Hopefully, its presence will spur on more attention to this ignored subject

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