David R. Reagan
Reagan has John measuring a temple that didn’t exist in the first century and still doesn’t today.
As preterism spreads into mainstream churches, futurist preachers feeling the heat are compelled to respond. However, typically, they haven’t done their homework, don’t really understand preterism and fail miserably at refuting it. Such is the case with Dr. David R. Reagan, host of Lamb & Lion’s weekly television program, Christ in Prophecy.
In Reagan’s article The Fallacy of Preterism, he says at least one thing that is true:
The cornerstone of the Preterist position is a belief that the book of Revelation was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Yes, for the preterist position to be correct, the book of Revelation must have been written prior to a.d. 70, not in the mid-nineties. One of the strongest arguments for the early date is that John the Revelator was told to measure the temple (Rev. 11:1). This, we contend, would not make any sense after its destruction in a.d. 70. Apparently, without much thought, Reagan responds:
…this argument ignores the fact that the Scriptures teach there are going to be two future Temples, one during the Tribulation which the Antichrist will desecrate (Daniel 9:27 and 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4), and another during the Millennium which Jesus Christ will consecrate (Ezekiel 40-46). The Temple mentioned in Revelation 11 must be the Tribulation Temple since the passage says it will be trampled down by the Gentiles for 42 months (the last half of the Tribulation).
This is probably the only serious attempt to respond to the preterist position in the entire article. Presumably, Reagan thinks he has offered a compelling argument. But how would John measure a temple that didn’t exist at the time he was alive and, as Reagan agrees, is still not in existence today?
Preterists contend John was told to measure a temple that existed at the time we believe Revelation was written. Reagan has him back in the first century measuring a temple that still doesn’t exist. So who holds the more believable position?
Unfortunately for Reagan, he did not make any headway in his attempt to refute preterism. Furthermore, he is clearly unaware that the great tribulation occurred almost 2,000 years ago.
To read Reagan’s response to preterism, click here.
Related article: Timeline: The Great Tribulation
Receive e-mail notifications of updates to Michael Fenemore’s blog, The Preterist Report: