"The earliest followers of Jesus were commissioned to proclaim the gospel to the ends of the earth. Now, 21st-century scholars from across the globe offer fascinating and at times provocative insights into Jesus and Paul, in honor of their common mentor and world-renowed scholar, Professor James D.G. Gunn. Readers will enjoy a wide-ranging collection of essays focusing of Jesus, the Gospels, Acts, Paul and his Epistles. Among the diverse topics explored are: Jesus and oral tradition, magic in Luke-Acts, the elusive characters of Judas and Barabbas, the questionable identity of the opponents of Jesus, the subject of Christology, the impact of the Hebrew Scriptures on Paul's writings, the issue of ethnicity in early Christianity, and modern challenges to the 'new perspective' pioneered by Dunn. This collection will be an essential addition to any scripture library."--Back cover.