Originally published in "The Lord's Coming Herald & Wesleyan Bible Prophecy Advocate," November Edition 2008
Postponed Kingdom Thinking Is Not Biblical Christianity
One of the cardinal tenants of classic Scofield/Darbyism is the notion that Jesus “offered” the Jews a “kingdom” during the time of His first advent, that, in this present so-called church age, or dispensation of the Holy Spirit, has now been placed on hold.
Acccording to this teaching, the kingdom is not the church, nor does it necessarily
have anything to do with the church at the present time. The messianic kingdom
is, rather, the earthly, physical, Jewish reign that Jesus sets up when He
returns. Such is the cherished gospel of Scofield/Darbyism, but is this popular
gospel of our day honestly the true gospel of Jesus Christ?
Let’s deal with the issue by examining the evidence. Where do people get the idea that the kingdom of Christ is some sort of a restoration to that Old Testament Jewish monarchial era that basically ignores everything that both Jesus and His apostles taught about fulfillment in messianism?
We could figure this all out by ourself, as dispensational premillennialists
have already done, if we dispose of the New Testament altogether in our
deference to the way that the Jewish rabbis interpret Scripture. Evidently Paul
and the non-Christian Jews of his day got into quite an argument over this very
issue--how to interpret Old Testament messianic prophecies. The apostles took
the position that the messianic kingdom had arrived in the article of Messiah’s
death and resurrection, and by salvation through the effusion of the Holy
Spirit. Those Jews, who denied that Jesus was their Messiah, took quite another
view. It was that, in spite of everything they saw fulfilled, the Messiah must
still come to set up the promised kingdom.
I can tell the world the kingdom has already been set up, and I do, but that won’t change anybody’s mind. It takes a “conversion” to see the difference between the Christian gospel of the kingdom, and the intellectually and ideologically bankrupt gospel of the parenthesis and the postponement.
Have you, friend, been converted from the errors of dispensational fabrication?
If not, why not?
Related Article Links
Why Dispensationalism Is Wrong
Dispensationalism's Fictional Jesus