One of the very first lectures I heard at King’s Evangelical Divinity School was to ditch my presuppositions, both biblical and denominational. The goal of course is for us to learn to approach the bible in an objective manner rather than a subjective way. Why? So that we can allow the bible to speak for itself, even if it means that we let go of some of our long-held views. I think that is one of the many reason the New Perspective on Paul has gained much interest, if for nothing else it has challenged us to rethink what the bible meant to its original intended audience.

Take some time and reflect on the following words from Gordon D. Fee.

Mention “salvation by grace alone” and immediately most people think, “the Apostle Paul”; but mention “speaking in tongues” and most people think “Pentecostals” or “charismatics.”

And this, despite the fact that Paul claims to have spoken in tongues more than even the Corinthians themselves. This little exercise merely illustrates how much most of read the New Testament through the filters of our own experience of the church. Moreover, this instinctive way of hearing the word “glossolalia” is probably unfair both to Paul and to those who currently experience this (very biblical) expression of Spirituality.
– Listening to the Spirit in the Text, by Gordon D. Fee, (Eerdmans 2000), p105