I replied to pretribulational teacher Jim McClarty’s critique of the prewrath position. This is the first episode of a series responding to an article he wrote against the prewrath position.

I first described how good men of God can have blind spots and in this case I believe his blind spot is pretribulationism, as demonstrated in his shallow argumentation against prewrath.

I corrected him on numerous points of misrepresenting the prewrath position in his article:

LINKS MENTIONED

McClarty’s critique of prewrath:

http://pastorjimmc.com/the-pre-wrath-rapture-of-the-church/2015/08/31/

McClarty’s youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/user/SalvationByGraceOrg/videos?view=0

Two-part series on Michael the Restrainer:

https://www.alankurschner.com/34

https://www.alankurschner.com/35

15 tenets of the prewrath position

https://www.alankurschner.com/2012/07/31/tenets-of-prewrath/

The post A Reply to Jim McClarty’s Critique of the Prewrath Position: He Gets the Prewrath Basics Wrong – Ep. 46 appeared first on ESCHATOS MINISTRIES.

I first talked about Jan Markell’s sensational, pretrib, annual, Bible prophecy conference. It represents the typical pretrib conference that is not very helpful for people to learn about Bible prophecy.

Second, I played a clip of pretrib teacher Dr. Ed Hindson from last year’s Markell’s conference. It was full of rhetoric claiming that prewrath teaching is tantamount to beating your wife. You can see the video clip below where he shows a picture of an abused woman on his powerpoint for the audience!

I gave two responses to Hindson’s bad theology.

First I explained that he fails to make the biblical distinction between the Antichrist’s great tribulation and the day of the Lord’s wrath. This is typical of pretribulationism. It is a foundational flaw in the pretrib system.

Second, I talked about the failure of pretrib theology when it comes to understanding suffering and God’s good purposes in suffering. I used the example of the nature of the great tribulation and how God will use that time to refine the faith of the church, sanctifying them and emboldening them to become faithful—overcomers—during the time of the Antichrist.  Pretribs fail to distinguish between God’s retributive judgment and his disciplinary judgment. This is a clear distinction in the Bible as I explained.

The post A Reply to Jan Markell’s “Understanding the Times” Prophecy Conference and Ed Hindson Likening Prewrath to Beating Your Wife – Ep. 45 appeared first on ESCHATOS MINISTRIES.

I responded to pretrib teacher Renald Showers and his misunderstanding of the Greek perfect tense-form and thus his interpretation of James 5:7–9 and how that affects his pretrib imminency.

Specifically, I responded to the following statement by Renald E. Showers:

“[T]he fact that the Greek verbs translated [“near”] (v. 8) and [“stands”] (v. 9) are in the perfect tense and indicative mood. This fact means that each of these verbs refers to an action that was completed before James wrote his epistle and that continues on in that completed state.…This fact implies that Christ’s coming drew near before James wrote his epistle, and His coming continues to be near. In addition, Christ as Judge began to stand before the door of heaven before James wrote his epistle, and Christ as judge continues to stand before the door of heaven. In other words, Christ’s coming was imminent in New Testament times and continues to be imminent to the present day” (The Pre-Wrath Rapture View: An Examination and Critique, 219-20).

I described the following errors he made in his understanding:

1.  Showers fails to interact with the immediate context of James 5:7–9. He merely cites about a dozen interpreters who assert the exact same thing as Showers just stated—as if that is an argument in itself! If I cite thirteen interpreters that agree with me, does that mean I am right? Of course not. This is a bad method of interpretation.

2.  He states that the perfect tense in the indicative “refers to an action that was completed before James wrote his epistle.” This is not correct. The perfect tense does not encode “past action,” as it is commonly thought. This is a dated and fallacious understanding of the Greek verb system, not just the perfect tense, because “tense” is often associated in English for “time.” Not so in Greek. Only the context—not the tense-form—construes temporal reference of an action happening in the past, present, or future. When that action happens is construed by the larger context, not the tense-form of a Greek verb. The perfect tense-form communicates the semantic value of aspect, which is how the author chooses to view the action.  The perfect sense conveys the aspect of a “state of affairs.”  And an author typically chose the perfect tense-form to function as discourse prominence. So Showers misunderstands the Greek verb system on this point, which has exegetical ramifications for his imminence theology.

3.   Another point in the Greek verb system of the perfect tense-form that Showers mistakes is he says it means that the perfect-tense action “continues on in that completed state.” Showers is once again reading a semantic value into the Greek verb system. In the previous point, he read temporal reference into the perfect tense-form (perfect=past tense), here he reads the semantic value of objective “kind of action” (to use the technical German term Aktionsart). Traditional grammars made the mistake—and some still do!—of thinking that a Greek verb could tell us how the action occurs; that is, does it indicate action “just beginning,” “habitual,” “punctiliar,” “progressive,” “ongoing,” “culminate,” etc. We know, however, from linguistic advances in our understanding of the Greek verb system that Greek tense-forms do not give us the “kind of action” of a verb, just like temporal reference does not give us this information. The “kind of action” (Aktionsart) is determined by the context (and lexis), not verb endings. So on this additional point, Showers’s imminence theology is flawed because of his mistaken understanding of the Greek verb system.

4.  Finally, one does not have to search long in the New Testament before finding other examples of “near” (ēggiken) in the perfect tense-form that clearly refute any notion of imminence. A couple of examples will suffice: “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation has come near [ēggiken].” (Luke 21:20). In this case, armies need to surround Jerusalem before its desolation happens! Another example is that the kingdom of God is said to be near: “He said, ‘The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is near [ēggiken]. Repent and believe the gospel!’” (Mark 1:15). But we know that the eschatological trumpet judgments must unfold before the kingdom of God is realized (see Rev 11:15).

We do not get our theology by isolating words. Be careful of the interpreter who places undo emphasis on words claiming they can determine their theology based solely it, let alone a verb tense ending! Meaning is derived by its context. To be sure, analysis of words can be a good thing, and I describe many words in this book, but only if they are considered in light of their contexts.

Links and bibliography mentioned in program:

Learn Biblical Greek With Me!

James 5:7–9 – A Pretrib Imminent Rapture or An Expectant Second Coming of Christ? – Ep. 10

Biblical Words and Their Meaning by Silva

Exegetical Fallacies by Carson

God, Language and Scripture by Silva

Decker, Rodney. Temporal Deixis of the Greek Verb in the Gospel of Mark with Reference to Verbal Aspect. SBG 10, New York: Peter Lang, 2001. (See also his Greek Grammar!)

Mathewson, David. “Verbal Aspect in the Apocalypse of John: An Analysis of Revelation 5,” NovT 50 (2008) 58-77.

Porter, Stanley and Carson, D. A., eds. Biblical Greek Language and Linguistics: Open Questions in Current Research. Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1993.

Porter, Stanley. Verbal Aspect in the Greek of the New Testament, with Reference to Tense and Mood. SBG 1, New York: Peter Lang, 1993. (See also his Greek Grammar!)

The post A Reply to Renald Showers on James 5:7–9, Imminency, and the Meaning of the Greek Perfect Tense – Ep. 44 appeared first on ESCHATOS MINISTRIES.

I talked about my new Biblical Greek course that I am teaching, which you can find here:

www.alankurschner.com/greek

I announced this week that I am offering a Biblical Greek online course; or more specifically, I will be giving private tutoring one-on-one over skype or some other preferred live video software.

So if you have ever wanted to learn Greek here is your opportunity. This is live one-on-one tutoring in Greek from myself.

What does it take to learn New Testament Greek?

Learning Greek does not require you to be born with some special ‘gift.’ It requires two things: A desire to learn Greek and consistency in using Greek.

Your goal should be to read Greek, not “translate” Greek. There are plenty of English translations out there if you need a translation. The ultimate goal for learning Greek is to interpret God’s Word on the deep level of the original language, giving you the tools for enrichment and precision. A computer program cannot do this for you. To become competent in reading and understanding Greek you need to put in the time and work. No one has ever regretted learning Greek. The rewards are immeasurable!

Give someone a commentary and you feed them for a day; teach them to read Greek and you feed them for a lifetime.

What are your qualifications to teach Biblical Greek?

My primary PhD research is in Greek linguistics (McMaster Divinity College). I hold an MA in biblical languages (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary) with a concentration in Greek.

As far as the different pricing rates I will let you read up on that at the website:

www.alankurschner.com/greek

Do you have ideas to defray costs since I am on a strict budget?

Find a friend or two to join you to study Greek and thereby split the costs (e.g. church friends, homeschool groups, bible study groups, etc.). But make sure that your friends are as committed as you are so you can continue to afford the tutoring. Another idea is to ask your elders at your church for an educational grant. Churches should have an educational fund and since this is biblical education they should be willing to support you if you apply for it.

What day and time are the sessions?

Preferably, my tutoring sessions are on Tuesday mornings. But if afternoons, evenings, or another day other than Tuesdays will only work for you, we can talk about it.

What textbook do you use?

I teach both first and second year Greek. For first year Greek I use the grammar Reading Koine Greek: An Introduction and Integrated Workbook by Rodney J. Decker. I also require students to purchase the Greek audio of the New Testament Koine Greek New Testament on MP3 Audio CDs by Dr. Spiros Zodhiates. If you want to read and sustain Greek successively, you need to be able to pronounce it properly. This is where the vast majority of Greek programs fail—a disregard for the auditory component to learning an ancient language. We will learn the Modern Greek pronunciation system, not the artificial Erasmian system. Not to mention that the Modern method is substantially closer to the ancient sound system of the first century.

For second year Greek, I use the intermediate grammar Idioms of the Greek New Testament, 2nd., by Stanley E. Porter.

I also teach advanced Greek concepts. You can email me to inquiry about this program.

What if I have to miss a weekly session?

It is not a bad thing if you have to miss an occasional session (please give me a 24 hour advanced notice). In fact, it can be a good thing because I am big on review! You will get tired of me constantly saying to you that the key to learning Greek is review, review, review. So those missed sessions will give you an opportunity to go back and review—there it is again! In fact, on occasion I may have to cancel a weekly session if something really important comes up or I am out of state for an engagement. Remember, this is not your traditional institutional semester system, so there is a flexible schedule and no hard deadline to meet. It is at your pace.

Are there quizzes and homework?

The homework is studying the grammar and vocabulary of a particular chapter during the week. Learning happens outside of the tutoring session, as it should be. As far as “quizzes,” the Greek grammar contains an integrated workbook with many exercises that apply what you have learned. I will not be grading your exercises; that is your responsibility to check your answers, not to mention it is an effective learning process to check your own answers.

What does a typical tutoring session look like?

It begins punctually. So please log on to skype a couple of minutes early and I will call you on time. There will be very little chitchat since your time is valuable and I want you to get the most out of each forty-five minute session. There will be three main parts to each session: (1) First, you can ask me any questions that you have about the chapter you studied for the previous week. (2) Second, I will ask you certain questions to make sure you understand it. I will explain and clarify any points of grammar that I think you are having difficulty with.  (3) At the end of the session I will highlight what you need to focus on in the next chapter, as well as give you a word of inspiration and motivation. You can do it. You can learn Greek!

If my tutoring schedule is full you can subscribe to a notification for the next available opening:

www.alankurschner.com/greek

You can never say that you did not have a chance to learn Greek!  Any person can do this. It just begins with a desire and commitment to learn Greek and after that is consistency in using and applying Greek.

The post Learn Biblical Greek Online | Private Tutoring Course in New Testament (Koine) Greek – Ep. 43 appeared first on ESCHATOS MINISTRIES.

I talked about the pervasive emotional attachment that many pretrib believers have toward the notion of of imminency.  I  also read a pertinent selection from S. P. Tregelles’s The Hope of Christ’s Second Coming on sentiment and emotion.

“Perhaps today!” is the expression that many of us have probably heard as children if you grew up in a Christian home. As a child doing something wrong the notion that Jesus could return at  that “moment” could be frightening. Many of us were told that we needed to confess our sins before we fell asleep that night, lest Jesus came back in our sleep. In Sunday School we were taught that Jesus is at the door and he can open it “at any time.” As a teenager I would frequently hear sermons at youth conferences warning, “What if Jesus came back while you were at a movie theater?” In short, the idea that Jesus’ return is imminent is stock language in many denominational circles, some more than others.

This looming axiom is intended—successfully or not—to prepare us to meet Jesus. But is it true? Is it what Jesus and the biblical writers actually taught? We all know that if something is repeated enough it becomes accepted as if it is true, even unquestionable! But sometimes we do have to step back and reexamine our traditions. As Christians we should not be afraid to do this. If it is God’s truth, then it will be shown to to be truth. If something is true and we have biblically challenged it showing that it is truth, we will be even more confident than we were before. However, if we never challenge an entrenched traditional belief that we possess that in reality is false, we will continue to believe a falsehood—and not knowing it is false. In short, the Bible teaches us that we need to be Bereans who “were more open-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they eagerly received the message, examining the scriptures carefully every day to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:11).

I understand that we can have emotionally attachments to particular biblical teachings from our youth. Perhaps our heroes of the faith hold to imminence, or even our pastors and family members. But we must not fall into the fallacious mindset of “If they are wrong on imminence, then what else are they wrong on?” No one consistently has perfect doctrine, even your pastor or theological hero. That does not mean that you begin to doubt everything they ever taught you. It is not either or: They have to be perfect in every doctrinal point or they are wrong on every point. We have to practice the maturity to distinguish emotional attachments to our tradition from what is genuinely God’s truth. We need to frequently examine our traditional beliefs with much prayer, reliance on the Holy Spirit, and sound biblical interpretation. After all, don’t we want to believe what is true? It is spiritually healthy to do so.

We are living in an increasingly irrational, non-thinking, even anti-thinking society. Emotion, feelings, sentiment rules the today. Black is white, white is black. Evil is good, good is evil. What feels right, is right. What I want to be true—is true! Who are you to say what is right and wrong. It is the consequences of decades of post-modern thought affecting all aspects of life. And sadly, it has also contaminated much of the way the church thinks about the truth of God revealed in his Word. Theological affirmations for many believers is true only if it conforms to their feeling and cultural norms.

In the past two decades that I have been interacting with pretribulationists—both layperson and educated—I have observed that many of them affirm imminence out of sentimentality having emotional attachments for one reason or the other. They affirm imminency, because they want it to be true. Indeed, wanting something to be true is not a bad thing in and of itself.  But the impression I have been given over the last couple of decades—and I have interacted with innumerable pretrib believers!—is that the emotion for imminence to be true comes first, then if pressed to give evidence for this, they will cite the aforementioned proof texts to support their sentiment for their tradition. I know this to be the case, because of their emotional arguments as if I had just undermined their Christian faith! “You are stealing my blessed hope.” “You are threatening my readiness for Christ’s return.” “Jesus would never put his Bride through an awful time.”

One of the most noted Greek scholars of the nineteenth century was the English Samuel Prideaux Tregelles (1813–1875). When pretribulationism emerged he challenged the “secret rapture” view head on in 1864 writing his The Hope of Christ’s Second Coming. This classic little book is still worth reading today filled with nuggets in every chapter. One of the chapters included in his book is “Sentiment and Emotion: The Truth of God.” It is devoted to the danger and folly of accepting the “any moment” teaching because of how one feels. That is not how we recognize the truth of God. Because his chapter speaks so well to this emotional argument for imminence, I selected a few portions to read for the program.

The post The Emotional, Sentimental Attachment to the Tradition of an Imminent Pretrib Rapture – Ep. 42 appeared first on ESCHATOS MINISTRIES.