Originally published in "The Lord's Coming Herald & Wesleyan Bible Prophecy Advocate," Summer Edition 2000
Biblical Eschatology And Liberalism: The Defining Issues
Biblical theologian Geerhardus Vos once
wrote that: "Eschatology has become the large mountain of offense lying
across the pathway of modern unbelief." What did he mean by that statement?
He meant, I believe, that the origins of nearly all the schools of modern
"liberal" theology owe their existence to a reaction against the dilemma of the
perceived failure of Christ's second coming. In other words, all these schools
of liberal theology are ideological and philosophical attempts to explain why
Jesus did not come back in the first century, as certain texts in the New
Testament would seem to indicate.
Liberal theology assumes that Jesus was wrong, and the New
Testament was mistaken on the core issues of Christ's coming and his kingdom.
Thus, the attempt to variously "reinterpret" historic Christianity in order to
alleviated the rational problem of incongruence between the human perception and
the historical reality.
Both Darbyism, or dispensational premillennialism, and
radical preterism (which says that all of biblical eschatology was fulfilled in
70 A.D.) are, contrary to the modern received perception, also theological
systems that attempt to deal with these same problems of rationality and
history. We contend that both of these schools, in their attempts to bridge the
mind chasm here, end up in fiction.
Radical preterists claim that the second coming of Jesus
Christ already happened in 70 AD, and that no further fulfillments in terms of a
so-called "second coming" are to be expected. Radical preterism, however, has
the rational problem of historical evidence and proof.
Darbyites posit a scenario of fictional events into the
future that they fail to convincingly demonstrate is taught in the Word of God-
This is also a problem of cognition and reason.
Both of the above schools rely on what is common to all the
rest of liberal theology, and that is subjectivity. The defining issue in
biblical eschatology and liberalism, then, is what can objectively satisfy both
history and rationality—not in the carnal sense of human reasoning and
understanding alone, but in that spiritual sense of human reason sanctified by
the Holy Spirit and enlightened by the Word of Truth.
In true Bible holiness the mind, as well as the spirit, soul,
and body is entirely sanctified, and the blessed Spirit guides into all truth.
Let us remember this: "Holiness is harmonizing," not only in experience, but in
theology as well.
Heart holiness is the only successful antidote to humanistic
theology! Those who oppose the biblical teaching on heart holiness will always
be skewed in their philosophical orientation to biblical eschatology.
The Bible itself is very clear in all that is essential to
our redemption, even though, as it says, some elements of the apocalyptic
understanding have been "sealed" until the end of time.
When that end-time comes, however, why
should it be unreasonable to expect that an apocalyptic unsealing of those
mysteries should occur?
The enlongated last half of Daniel's 70th week to embrace the
entire period of time now stretching between Christ's first and second advents,
we affirm, is the central element of that unsealing. If accepted,
this insight prempts and pulls the plug on the necessity to adopt a liberal view of
eschatology.
The "large mountain of offence lying across the pathway of
modern unbelief" that Geerhardus Vos described has been removed! Liberal
explanations of the apocalyptic mysteries--now that the "unsealing" process is
beginning to occur--are as unnecessary, henceforth, as they are, and always have
been, wrong.
There is no longer any need to be a liberal, believing either
Darbyism, or radical preterism, or any of the other multifaceted
"neo-orthodox" or existentialistic theories regarding the meaning of the
apocalyptic portions of Holy Scripture, all of which, we affirm, are
unsatisfactory explanations of the true biblical eschatology.
Fundamentalism, for the first time ever, has now hit upon the
right solution to the eschatological dilemma--the one that truly resonates, both
with historical reality, divine revelation, and human reason.
The stumbling block that pushes the modern
church toward liberalism has been removed! Biblical fundamentalism, now at last,
has come of age!
Consider what I say, and the Lord give thee understanding in
all things.
Related Article Links
An Open Letter To A Radical Preterist
How Dispensationalism Has Led The Modern Holiness Movement Into Liberalism
Reinventing Fundamentalism--In The Wesleyan Mode