We have misunderstood Paul, badly. We have read his words through our own set of assumptions. We need to begin with Paul’s world view, to see things the way he saw them. What if ‘original sin’ was never part of Paul’s thinking? What if the idea that we are saved by faith in Christ, as Luther argued, was based on a mistranslation of Paul’s words and a misunderstanding of his thinking? (Steve Chalke)

I have recently read The Lost Message of Paul by Steve Chalke, and I have been recommending it to just about everyone I meet. It is a timely reminder that we should read the Bible with the context in which passages or letters were written at the forefront of our mind. The dangers of accepting mis-translations, and reliance on historical commentaries are also mentioned. It is a refreshing, liberating and encouraging book, which underlines the message that God will not give up on us, whatever we do, or whoever we are.