Questions Gordon D. Fee Would Ask Craig S. Keener

This article examines the real intellectual friction between Gordon D. Fee and Craig S. Keener. Below is a PhD-level reconstruction of the kinds of questions each would likely press on the other, based on their published methodologies, emphases, and tensions.

 

1. Questions Gordon D. Fee Would Ask Craig S. Keener

Fee’s questions would focus on theological coherence, canon, and control of experience.

 1.1 On Normativity of Narrative

“How do you prevent narrative from becoming normatively binding without clear criteria?”

• Fee would press Keener to clarify: 

o Which Lukan patterns are repeatable 

o Which are historically contingent 

Underlying concern: Without controls, narrative theology risks becoming selective and subjective.

 

1.2 On Unity of the Spirit’s Work

“If Luke presents varied sequences of Spirit reception, how do you maintain a unified theology of the Spirit?”

• Fee would argue: 

o Paul presents the Spirit as inseparable from conversion 

o Keener risks implying multiple receptions as normative 

Tension: Narrative diversity vs doctrinal unity

 

1.3 On Experience as Theological Data

“To what extent can contemporary experience function as a valid interpretive lens?”

• Fee would challenge Keener’s use of global miracle accounts: 

o Are these illustrative or normative? 

o Do they risk reading experience back into the text? 

Fee’s concern: Experience must be interpreted by Scripture, not vice versa.

 

1.4 On Luke vs Paul

“Are you allowing Luke’s narrative to function independently of Pauline theology?”

• Fee would resist: 

o Any separation between Luke and Paul 

o Any implication that Luke teaches something Paul does not 

Core issue: Canonical coherence

 

1.5 On Theological Method

“Is your approach sufficiently theological, or primarily historical?”

• Fee might critique Keener for: 

o Prioritising historical reconstruction 

o Underemphasizing systematic synthesis 

 

2. Questions Craig S. Keener Would Ask Gordon D. Fee

Keener’s questions would focus on respect for narrative, openness to experience, and global perspective.

 

2.1 On Narrative Integrity

“Does your emphasis on theological unity flatten Luke’s distinctive voice?”

• Keener would argue: 

o Luke intentionally presents patterns of empowerment 

o Fee risks harmonising away real differences 

Core issue: Does systematics override exegesis?

 

2.2 On Acts’ Irregularities

“How do you account for delayed or varied Spirit reception in Acts without forcing them into Pauline categories?”

• Acts 8, 10, 19 remain problematic for strict unity models 

Keener presses: Are these exceptions—or meaningful theological signals?

 

2.3 On Global Christianity

“Does your model adequately account for the lived experience of the global church?”

• Keener would highlight: 

o Widespread reports of Spirit activity 

o Non-Western Christianity 

Challenge: Is Fee’s approach overly shaped by Western theological categories?

 

2.4 On Experiential Reality

“Does your framework risk minimising the experiential dimension of the Spirit?”

• Keener would argue: 

o The New Testament portrays the Spirit as experienced power 

o Not merely theological identity 

 

2.5 On Methodological Control

“Are you privileging Paul’s didactic texts over Luke’s narrative without sufficient justification?”

• Keener challenges the assumption that: 

o Didactic = normative 

o Narrative = secondary 

Core issue: Why should Paul interpret Luke, rather than vice versa?

 

3. Direct Points of Collision (Where Debate Would Intensify)

3.1 Sequence of Spirit Reception

• Fee → Theologically unified at conversion 

• Keener → Narratively diverse and sometimes subsequent 

Flashpoint question: Is sequence theologically meaningful or historically contingent?

 

3.2 Role of Experience

• Fee → Experience must be interpreted 

• Keener → Experience can also inform interpretation 

 

3.3 Nature of Biblical Authority

• Fee → Canonical synthesis 

• Keener → Contextual exegesis 

 

3.4 Global vs Western Theology

• Keener → global experiential evidence matters 

• Fee → theology must remain textually grounded 

4. What They Would Likely Agree On

Despite tensions, both scholars would affirm:

• The Spirit is central to Christian life 

• The Spirit is experiential, not merely conceptual 

• Scripture is authoritative 

• The Spirit empowers mission and transformation 

Their disagreement is not about whether the Spirit matters, but how we interpret and systematise that reality.

 

5. PhD-Level Insight 

The dialogue between Gordon D. Fee and Craig S. Keener ultimately exposes a deeper issue:

Is theology primarily derived from the coherence of the canon, or from the diversity of its witness?

• Fee answers: coherence must govern diversity 

• Keener answers: diversity must inform coherence