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Bible Prophecy Divided Into Too Few Categories
Posted : 16 Nov, 2013 01:46 AM
Bible Prophecy Divided Into Too Few Categories
Since the theology invented by John Darby, Edward Irving and others of the Plymouth Brethren in the 1830's and then by American C.I. Scofield, especially after the 1909 publication by Oxford University Press of his Reference Bible, the dominant kind of end time prophecy in the churches has been futurist and centered on national Israel as now remaining the chosen people of God. And - with its bent toward consistent literal Bible interpretation, this theology has created a number of fables of end time prophecy which read like comic book tales.
But the futurist interpretation of end time prophecy in the Bible by the followers of Darby and Scofield puts almost all end time happenings in prophecy to a time period during the tribulation period as understood by these followers. Almost everything in end time prophecy, for these people, is to happen after their tribulation begins.
Calvinism is the minority theology in the churches and very few Calvinists study end time Bible prophecy and most have little to say about it. Then, especially within the mega church movement, interest in end time Bible prophecy is discouraged and often seen to be "non-essential." A Facebook Friend of mine was booted out of his church in Ohio four or five years ago for being interested in end time Bible prophecy and not keeping quiet about that interest. One reason the churches do not want members to become too interested in end time prophecy is because it provides a knowledge of the falling away from sound doctrine by the churches, and calls the churches in false doctrines Babylon in Revelation 17 and 18, harking back to Jeremiah 50 and 51.
The result of the dominance of John Darby, Edward Irving and C.I. Scofield type end time prophecy and the lack of interest in prophecy by the Calvinists has been a failure of the church to come to learn the knowledge provided by Bible prophecy. "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee..." Hosea 4: 6
Church people, as Francis Schaeffer said, have too few categories of discernment. The traditions of men as church theology, is caught up in abstractions such as historicism and futurism as "Hermeneutics" for understanding scripture. The theologians ran too far up the ladder of abstraction in leaning to their own understanding. Remember that prophecy is God giving us knowledge, and if we use such an abstract level of thinking, which is an over-simplification of the Word of God, we are, in effect rejecting knowledge. Hosea 4: 6 says "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee..."
Church theologians and preachers, in their limited categories of discernment, cannot understand that their categories for dividing prophecy into historicist or futurist does not accurately represent what goes on in prophecy. For example, the falling away of II Thessalonians 2: 3-4, was this falling away from sound doctrine entirely fulfilled in the past, or is it to be entirely fulfilled in the future? It is neither. II Thessalonians 2: 3-4 can be said to have had one fulfillment when the Roman Catholic Church began in the period of about 313 to 380 AD and the departure from truth went on for a few centuries. In the modern timeline the falling away can be seen to have gone on in the past, from our view in 2013, since it began with several cults of the 19th century, and gained momentum after 1948. But a part of the falling away is going on now and will go on in the future.
In Revelation 13: 2 the first beast is said to have some of the traits of the leopard, bear and lion empires of Daniel 7. Then in Daniel 7: 4-8 there are four beasts as metaphors for four world empires and a Little Horn which comes up among them, which in verse 20 is said to be more stout than its fellows, or neighbors. The first beast of Revelation 13 is like, or has some of the traits of the British, Soviet Union (Russia) and Nazi Germany empires. This prophecy is past, present and future. One reason the fourth beast empire of Daniel 7 is not mentioned in Revelation 13: 2 is that it is the United States as a world empire, which has taken on some of the traits of the British, Soviet Russian (Marxist) and Nazi German empires which came before it. Again, the prophecy in Revelation 13 is neither entirely historicist, that is, fulfilled entirely in the past, nor is it entirely futurist. It is giving us knowledge also about what is going on right now. To run up the ladder of abstraction and over-simplify your "Hermeneutic" is to reject knowledge.
On Hermeneutics - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia they say that "Hermeneutics is derived from the Greek word ρμηνεύω (hermeneuō, 'translate' or 'interpret'). It was introduced into philosophy mainly through the title of Aristotle's work On Interpretation, commonly referred to by its Latin title De Interpretatione........Folk etymology places its origin with Hermes, the mythological Greek deity who was the 'messenger of the gods'. Besides being a mediator between the gods and between the gods and men, he led souls to the underworld upon death. Hermes was also considered to be the inventor of language and speech, an interpreter, a liar, a thief, and a trickster."
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