The Preterist Report 2008
Scripture quotations on this page are taken from the NASB unless otherwise noted.
(The entire website is undergoing a conversion to the ESV.)
2008 Dec 30
Predatory fish has its own fishing line and lure
I recently published a story on this stareater fish saying, “New species that confound evolutionists continue to appear.” A reader of The Preterist Report protested. He suggested that the highly unusual appendage attached to the fish’s chin could have evolved as the result of “a random, advantageous mutation”:
The appendage would have been the result of a random, advantageous mutation that, over the course of time, gave that particular sub-species an advantage in that particular environment. Its progeny would have had a better chance of survival than its non-appendaged cousins. In another environment, that very same mutation may not have been a significant advantage and both sub-species would have continued to survive (or go extinct) side-by-side. In another environment, the same appendage may have been a liability, leading to the extinction of that sub-species (e.g., larger predators attracted to the lure), allowing the non-appendaged cousin to thrive. Environment plays an extremely critical role in the survival of a mutation to the point that a mutation cannot be considered advantageous or disadvantageous until placed in a particular environment and given a chance to propagate or go extinct. (emphasis his)
Here’s the condensed version:
One fish’s chin just happened to grow a fully developed fishing line with a bright red lure on the end. The advantage afforded by this wonderful improvement allowed the fish to survive long enough to produce descendants that could use their fully developed fishing lines too.
(The line-and-lure tools would need to be fully developed. Otherwise, they would have been useless providing no advantage.)
It’s unusual for your editor to have nothing to say, but what can one say without becoming sarcastic and disrespectful? I did my best and replied as follows:
If you believe a long fishing line with a bright red lure on the end could be the result of a “random, advantageous mutation,” then you are far more broadminded than I. You’re welcome to your belief; however, I don’t share it, and the burden of proof is not on me, it’s on the evolutionist. As usual, the evolutionist can prove practically nothing.
Truth for any of us is often simply a matter of what one is willing to believe. I can’t believe that the case I have mentioned in The Preterist Report can be explained by any evolutionary theory.
Yes, I did say in the article that evolutionists are fools, but Paul said it first:
For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. (Rom. 1:20); Professing to be wise, they became fools (v. 22).
This was originally written in regard to pagan religion, but since the theory of evolution is a religion requiring more faith than any other religion I know of, I think Paul’s comments apply here as well.
Read more about the stareater fish…
2008 Nov 05
Question: If all prophecy has been fulfilled, and Jesus is not returning to bring peace, how will human suffering ever end? Surely, God won’t let it go on forever.
Answer: Suffering is necessary to prepare Christians for eternal life (John 16:33; Rom. 5:3; 1 Pet. 1:7). God’s people are tested and strengthened through suffering and at the end of their lives, go to be with the Father and Jesus in heaven (John 14:2-3). That is when suffering ends.
Why would God bring this plan to an end? It’s working perfectly. Does our infinite God want to limit his kingdom? Does he want to stop having children? God has put up with unspeakable suffering down here on earth for thousands of years, and we suspect he is able to stand a lot more.
The popular reasoning says Christ will one day return to begin his reign as King of kings, ending all wars and other suffering. This view fails to fully recognize that Jesus is already reigning. He inherited his kingship and all authority in heaven and earth immediately after his crucifixion (Matt. 28:18). He received his kingship no later than the time of his ascension:
13“I kept looking in the night visions,
And behold, with the clouds of heaven
One like a Son of Man was coming,
And He came up to the Ancient of Days
And was presented before Him.
14“And to Him was given dominion,
Glory and a kingdom,
That all the peoples, nations and men of every language
Might serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
Which will not pass away;
And His kingdom is one
Which will not be destroyed.
(Dan. 7:13-14)
Christ already has a kingdom and reigns over “all the peoples, nations and men of every language,” and there will be no end to the increase of his kingdom:
There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of David and over his kingdom… (Isa. 9:7)
Christ’s kingdom is a spiritual kingdom made up of his chosen people who constitute a royal priesthood to the nations (Luke 17:20; 1 Pet. 2:9; Rev. 1:6). It has nothing do to with forcing the world’s inhabitants to obey him, nor is it about ending anyone’s suffering in this life.
2008 Sep 14
Question: Is there no end of time? How does history end, or does it go on without end?
Answer: As I study the writings of others on the subject of prophecy, I continually read phrases like “the end of time” or “the end of history.” I have never seen the term “end of history” mentioned in any Bible. In a few translations, “the end of time” occurs. For instance, we find it in Dan. 12:4 in the NASB and CEV:
“But as for you, Daniel, conceal these words and seal up the book until the end of time; many will go back and forth, and knowledge will increase.” (NASB)
This rendering is clearly the work of biased translators. The same phrase is translated “time of the end” in virtually every other translation. To verify this, you can read the passage and switch to different translations by clicking here.
The end-of-time teaching goes hand in hand with the misguided notion the earth and whole universe will be burned up; a misunderstanding of 2 Pet. 3:7, 10. The vast majority of Christians have been thoroughly brainwashed with these false teachings.
The kingdom of Christ will go on growing forever:
There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of David and over his kingdom… (Isa. 9:7)
Christ’s kingdom increases because new believers are born of God every day. At the end of their fleshly existence, they die and go to heaven. If there was an end to history, this wonderful process would stop, and Isa. 9:7 would be contradicted.
2008 Sep 06
Question: In the book of Acts, James quotes Amos 9:11-12 and predicts the rebuilding of David’s tabernacle. When was this fulfilled?
15“With this the words of the Prophets agree, just as it is written,
16 ‘After these things I will return,
And I will rebuild the tabernacle of David which has
fallen,
And I will rebuild its ruins,
And I will restore it,
17 So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
And all the Gentiles who are called by My name,’
18 Says the Lord, who makes these things known from long ago.
(Acts 15:15-18)
Answer: James is not presenting this as a prediction; he is referring to its fulfillment. Notice, the Gentiles would begin turning to God immediately after the rebuilding of David’s tabernacle. We know the Gentiles received the gospel in the first century, so the rebuilding of David’s tabernacle must have occurred beforehand. To properly interpret this passage, one must understand that prophecies concerning David are fulfilled in Christ. This principle is clearly explained in Acts 2. Peter quotes David from Ps. 16:8-11:
25“For David says of Him,
‘I saw the Lord always in my presence;
For He is at my right hand, so that I will not be shaken.
26 ‘Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue exulted;
Moreover my flesh also will live in hope;
27 Because You will not abandon my soul to Hades,
Nor allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.
28 ‘You have made known to me the ways of life;
You will make me full of gladness with Your presence.’
It sounds as though David is writing about himself. However, Peter provides the proper understanding of the Psalm. It’s actually speaking of Jesus:
29“Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the
patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.
30“And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on
his throne,
31he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did
His flesh suffer decay.
32“This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.
33“Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He
has poured forth this which you both see and hear.
34“For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says:
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
35 Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” ’
(Acts 2:25-35)
None of this refers to David; it applies to “one of his descendants”: Jesus. David “looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ.” It is Christ who sits at God’s right hand; it was Christ’s body that did not decay. The rebuilding of David’s tabernacle is fulfilled in the resurrection of Christ “So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, And all the Gentiles who are called by My name.” This was clearly fulfilled in the first-century when, after the resurrection of Christ, the gospel went forth to the Gentiles. A future fulfillment is impossible because the Gentiles have already received the gospel.
This has tremendous implications. To be consistent, we should interpret the surrounding verses in Amos 9 as fulfilled in Christ as well; including verse 15:
“I will also plant them on their land,
And they will not again be rooted out from their land
Which I have given them,”
Says the Lord your God.
When preterists declare that this and other similar passages are not predictions about Jews returning to the land of Palestine, we are routinely accused of “spiritualizing everything away.” Such an accusation simply reflects an abysmal understanding of the New Testament. The predictions we have quoted from Amos were intended to be spiritualized away ― because the true meaning is spiritual. All such predictions are fulfilled in Christ and the New Covenant. Interpretations requiring a literal temple or return to Palestine by modern Jews are bogus. The big mistake people make is interpreting the Old Testament literally, forgetting that the New Testament interprets the Old. It is distressing to witness so many failing to interpret Old Testament prophecy in the manner specified in the New Testament, choosing instead the same blindness the first-century Jews suffered from when most of them utterly failed to comprehend how Jesus had fulfilled the predictions of the prophets.
2008 Aug 25
Ratzinger bans the name of God
Joseph Ratzinger, commonly referred to as the “Pope,” or “Holy
Father,” bans use of “Yahweh.”
Read more…
2008 Aug 23
Question: I was wondering what Jesus meant when he said, “Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken and one will be left” (Matt. 24:40). Futurists claim that this refers to the rapture. Can you offer an explanation? Also, do you believe in a rapture?
Answer: Actually, most futurist commentators, including such famous preachers as Jack Van Impe, do not believe that Jesus was referring to the rapture here. Those who do, consider the ones “taken” to be righteous Christians, and the ones “left” evil unbelievers who must suffer through the tribulation. This sounds like a reasonable interpretation until we consider verses 37-39 where Jesus is comparing this aspect of his coming to the days of Noah. At that time, the ones “taken” were the evil ones, not the righteous. This is the weakness of the rapture interpretation.
I believe that Jesus was simply referring to the random nature of the troubling events which took place during the Jewish War from a.d. 67-70. As the Roman general, Vespasian, rampaged through Judea, although many Jews were caught in the turmoil, a substantial number actually escaped. Some whole towns surrendered and were spared while other individuals simply fled. Josephus said, “many of the most eminent of the Jews swam away from the city [Jerusalem], as from a ship when it was going to sink” (Wars of the Jews, 2.20.1.556). It is often forgotten that many Jews remained in the land after the war; enough to launch the Bar Kochba rebellion (a.d. 132-135).
Yes, I believe that the rapture of living Christians off the face of the earth occurred in the first century. Charles E. Hill calls this belief “bizarre” (Charles E. Hill, “Eschatology in the Wake of Jerusalem’s Fall” in When Shall These Things Be? [Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2004], 92). Of course, it was bizarre; just like Christ’s miracles, his resurrection, and ascension into a cloud. People of faith don’t have a problem believing such things. Perhaps Hill does. Many preterists argue that the mention of clouds in 1 Thess. 4:17 is just another reference to the cloud imagery often associated with God and his visitations. However, that was clearly not the case at Christ’s ascension. He left the earth by rising into a literal cloud, and I believe that Christians did the same thing.
2008 Aug 13
Three 9,000-year-old skulls found in Galilee
Nine-thousand-year-old skulls might appear inconsistent with the biblical account of creation. However, Torah defenders have an answer for this:
Some Torah authorities explain that findings which are dated before the Jewish date of creation are remnants from worlds which G-d created and destroyed before this world. [emphasis mine, maf]
2008 Aug 09
Question: Could you explain Rev. 16:12?
The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east. (Rev. 16:12)
How was the Euphrates dried up so the kings of the east could make war on Jerusalem considering the proximity of the Roman armies during the siege?
Answer: We must remember that the book of Revelation was written in a specific style. Its genre is referred to as apocalyptic literature. It is highly symbolic. In Revelation, Babylon is symbolic of Jerusalem, which is being destroyed. The original Babylon was taken when Persian armies diverted the Euphrates River allowing them to enter the city. Daniel says only this: “30That same night Belshazzar the Chaldean king was slain. 31So Darius the Mede received the kingdom at about the age of sixty-two” (Dan. 5:30-31). MacArthur explains how this was accomplished:
One ancient account alleged that Persia’s General Ugbaru had troops dig a trench to divert and thus lower the waters of the Euphrates River. Since the river flowed through the city of Babylon, the lowered water enabled besiegers to unexpectedly invade via the waterway under the thick walls and reach the palace before the city was aware. The end then came quickly, as guards, Belshazzar, and others were slain on Oct. 16, 539 b.c. (John F. MacArthur, Jr., The MacArthur Study Bible, NASB ed. [Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2006], Dan. 5:30)
The reference in Revelation is reminiscent of this event, but in the new context refers to the armies of Titus destroying Jerusalem (spiritual Babylon). It is a mistake to take all this literally. The prophecy is simply using symbols that would have been well understood in the first century to dramatically portray the destruction of “Babylon the Great”: Jerusalem.
2008 Jul 24
Codex Sinaiticus now available online
“Codex Sinaiticus is one of the most important books in the world. Handwritten well over 1600 years ago, the manuscript contains the Christian Bible in Greek, including the oldest complete copy of the New Testament.”
2008 Jul 20
Heaven’s rehearsal
Futurists reject every prediction Jesus and his apostles ever made regarding the timing of the second coming. Jesus taught that he would marry his bride immediately after the destruction of Jerusalem. See Matt. 22:7-8; Matt. 24-25 (chapter 24 is the destruction, 25:1-13 is the wedding) and Rev. 18:21-24; 19:1-7. (Babylon is symbolic of Jerusalem.)
Futurists think the wedding will take place in the future; and now they think they need a rehearsal. On November 1, 2008, thousands of Christians will gather in Toronto, Canada to “hold a rehearsal for Christ’s bride in preparation for the day when we will all stand as one before God.”
You can watch a promotional video at the link below. The reason they have so much video available, appearing as though the rehearsal has already taken place, is because it has. They did this last year; and they will probably be doing it for many years to come, that is, until they get tired of rehearsing for a wedding day that never arrives. Just imagine the thousands, or perhaps millions of dollars Christians will be spending to celebrate this nonevent. Meanwhile, missionaries beg for contributions to spread the gospel. Of course, sadly, missionaries are spreading futurism as well. (However, there is some good news. I have recently heard from missionaries in the Philippines and India who are teaching preterism.)
To view the promotional video for Heaven’s Rehearsal, click here.
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