TheoThoughts

I did something in 2023 that I’ve not done before: followed a 365 chronological Bible reading plan. Honestly, in all of my years of Bible reading I’ve never been successful following a plan (well except in seminary where I pretty much had to). When I started in January, I had already read the first few chapters so I got a good start. I was motivated to keep at it. There were days I fell behind but then was able to catch up. I enjoyed it so much, I’m doing it again in 2024.

Needless to say, Revelation is the last book to be tackled. Because of dispensationalism’s vast influence on American evangelicalism, like many Christians, I believed the book should be read as chronological and as literal as possible. Woven into this interpretation was a pretribulational rapture and 7-year tribulation period.

Some years ago, I began to see that perhaps that was not the best interpretive approach for this book considering its apocalyptic genre and rich symbolism. It does speak to literal events, but not in the manner that has been made popular such as in the Left Behind series. I explain more about that here and here, if you’re interested. Greg Beale’s commentary was a game changer!

Update: it was suggested to me that the reference to the Left Behind series was a bit uncharitable and lends to a belief that Left Behind is a portrait of what all dispensationalists believe about the end times. Having studied at DTS, I recognize that this is not the case and there are definitely areas where some dispensationalists would disagree about how end times are portrayed in that series. Though at a minimum, all dispensationalists adhere to a futurist framework that interprets events in a chronological order and sees a 7 year tribulation period. At best, the Left Behind series is a pop-level rendering of what dispensationalists interpretations yielded even though they don’t fall into the sensational category. My point is that I’ve come to see things differently than the futurist, literal method that has a framework of a chronological order, rapture and 7 year tribulation period. 

Someone recently recommended to me Triumph of the Lamb: A Commentary on Revelation by Dennis Johnson, professor emeritus of practical theology at Westminster Seminary California. It’s very clear in the opening pages, that Johnson’s approach is very much like Beale, and in line with my shift. I was gripped from the beginning as he explains in a very user friendly way what this book is about.

In the introductory chapter, I was especially struck by this paragraph in the section where he describes key points about the book. In the subsection, Revelation for a Church Under Attack, he writes;

Our interpretation of Revelation must be driven by the difference God intends it to make in the life of his people. If we could explain every phrase, identify every allusion to Old Testament Scripture or Greco-Roman society, trace every interconnection, and illumine every mystery in this book and yet were silenced by the intimidation of public opinion, terrorized by the prospect of suffering, enticed by affluent Western culture’s promise of ‘security, comfort, and pleasure, then we would not have begun to understand the book of Revelation as God wants us to. The dragon’s assault on the church comes in different forms and from different quarters in different times and places. In some parts of the world the attack comes head-on, through the persecuting violence of hostile governments or neighbors; in others the danger is insidious, a slow infection to numb the Body’s discernment of error and weaken its immune system; in others, the weapon is an appealing encouragement to enjoy the advantages of compromised conformity. But always, in every age and place, the church is under attack. Our only safety lies in seeing the ugly hostility of the enemy clearly and clinging fast to our Champion and King, Jesus.

With every reading of Revelation, it has enforced with me the realities of Satan’s assault on Christ’s bride because after all, this is why it was written-to encourage a persecuted church about the finality of God’s plan and Christ’s ultimate rulership over the earth. This provides a great deal of comfort! I love that he points out the various ways these assaults happen, not just the overt governmental opposition but also from within, spawned by complacency and compromise.

As I have observed the landscape these past few years, there have been various pulls on the church that I believe fit within this latter category. Factions have arisen that align more with earthly oriented, cultural goals than heavenly ones endorsed by cherry-picked selection of Scripture with Christian leaders and influencers binding consciences under a misguided notion of Christian love and duty. I’ve watched racial essentialism grow in prominence, grasps on secular critical theories that have promoted hostilities and divisions, promotion of particular politicians as if the Christian faith was dependent on it, and attraction to Christian nationalism that has prioritized political involvement above all else. I’ve watched professing believers who once maintain sound Christian orthodoxy follow down one or more of these trails only to become engulfed in earthly oriented affinity groups, applauded by a host of followers.  Not to mention, there has been a growing trend of Christian deconstruction primarily led by a dissatisfaction over cultural factors than Bible based, spiritual ones.

Now don’t get it twisted. This isn’t about abandoning any kind of Christian obligation to be salt and light by disengaging in the frameworks of this world. I’m not suggesting we cower, hide, and disregard any kind of involvement in the political or social infrastructure of our society from a Christian ethic and to point ultimately to Christ. I’m speaking of being so engulfed in the affairs and priorities of this world, that we subjugate our Christian faith to it and engage in syncretistic belief and practice.  

I don’t claim any kind of prophetic visions or knowledge about what the future holds. But given these observations, I have this growing sense that the factions and grasps or earthly agendas will only grow more intense, especially with the 2024 election coming up in a country that has experienced growing division over social and political matters. In light of this, I have a strong conviction that Christ’s church must maintain a firm grip on her essence and purpose, and not be lured into the various factions that have little priority of Christ. The Body of Christ must represent HIS other-worldly, other cultural kingdom not a capitulation to the kingdoms of this world.

We must choose this day whom we will serve: Christ and his kingdom or the kingdoms of this world. Some of made their choices to cling to  pursuits of the flesh disguised as Christian obligations. We must choose differently and cling to Christ and his kingdom. 

Happy New Year!