Is dispensationalism a theological framework or a hermeneutical approach?
Dispensationalism pretends to be a “literalistic” hermeneutical approach, but it is in fact a contrived framework which results from a single, fundamental error. The fact that this error is so foundational is the reason why its “prophetic plan” is so complicated.
Fans of the (rather sick) TV series Twin Peaks have a lot of fun trying to figure out the meaning of the many symbols and clues left by series creator David Lynch. But his apparent originality isn’t that original. His inspiration is the occult. The funny thing is that the occult itself isn’t all that original. It is simply an inversion of many things in the Bible, which is also filled with strange symbols and clues. It is no coincidence that Twin Peaks was the product of a culture that was once soaked in the Bible.
We are working our way through the “Songs of Ascent” at church, and I’ve been asked to do Psalm 124 tomorrow. Reading through it, I could just state the obvious, as all the commentators seem to do (though they do make very helpful observations), but wisdom and songs came with Israel’s “Pentecostal” age of rule (Day 4, the Kings, Testing) so the literature of the time is as harmless as a dove but as subtle as a serpent. There is no way this song is as simple as it seems. Again, it took me a while to crack the structure, and what comes out is not what I expected. It is not a song of Israel escaping from her enemies. It is a song of Israel not getting what Israel deserves.
“Touching a bone made an Israelite unclean. Burning bones upon Jeroboam’s altars defiled them. This was not because bones were unholy but because they were already holy.”
Here’s a new chapter from God’s Kitchen (members only).
“This is now bone of my bones
And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman,
Because she was taken out of Man.”
Genesis 2:23
1 Peter 2:4-10 | Sermon Notes
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—
Peter’s use of the stone image should bring many Old Testament images to mind:
We have two types of stones: uncut stones (altar, judgment – the Law) and cut, or precious, stones (glory and riches – Grace).
Preterists have a go at dispensationalists for interpreting the Bible through the lens of current headlines. We recognize that the Bible must be interpreted in its historical context, for its “first audience.” But there’s a brand of “newspaper exegesis” that plagues preterism as well.
An analysis of the literary structure of Day 5 of Creation and passages that are apparently parallel.
Continue reading
“And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God.” Job 19:26
Full preterism leads logically to gnosticism. If death is already defeated, salvation has come to the world, and all is now perfect, then of necessity all three — death, salvation and perfection — have to be redefined. They are only Covenantal, “spiritual.” You can probably understand why doctrines like these don’t originate from the persecuted church. Some hope.
However, that said, I agree with 97.3963798475% of full preterism. Their take on the parousia texts is logical and contextual. Jesus actually did come back soon, as He promised, to rescue the persecuted firstfruits church. The textual ping-pong of the well-meaning partial preterists (who can’t agree between themselves on which parousia texts refer to the end of history) is a confusion of which our God could not possibly be the author. So what’s the answer?
“Egypt, Judah, Edom, the people of Ammon, Moab, and all who are in the farthest corners, who dwell in the wilderness. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart.” - Jeremiah 9:26
Reading through the Old Testament as a young Christian, I always felt the Bible got bogged down when the Lord started pronouncing judgments upon nations other than Israel. For starters, I hadn’t paid enough attention earlier to remember who these sovereign states were. And more to the point, wasn’t God losing the plot a bit? I mean, there were plenty of other peoples during these times which aren’t even mentioned in the Bible at all.
Unfortunately, few commentators take the Bible seriously enough to understand what is actually going on. Older books will fill you in on the background, which is certainly helpful. But the big question is Why is God doing this now?, both now in history and now in the prophet I am reading?
As usual, when the structure and context of things is understood, seemingly boring “classic” texts suddenly come to life. In the case of the prophets it is a consuming fire. Continue reading
Just as the Restoration, through death in Babylon, miraculously reunited Ephraim and Judah in a new body, the attacks on the Firstfruits church miraculously reunited Jew and Gentile. The Restoration body (pictured in Ezekiel 37) was a type of the Firstfruits church. In the big picture, this new body appears in the Bible Matrix at Maturity. It was an army from the grave, a multitude of shiny individuals united and animated by the Spirit of God, moving as a single shining entity. The Creation week pictures this as flocks of birds and schools of fish. The Tabernacle images it as clouds of incense. This is the warrior bride, terrible as an army with banners.
Light – Ark-Word (Sabbath) -
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit
through the bond of peace.
