Episode 36: Preterism and Easter Sunday

Bible Prophecy Under the Microscope-Episode 36

Gary discusses the fact that ALL Christians are preterists, at least to some degree. If you believe the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is a historical fact—you are a preterist.

A preterist is someone who believes that certain prophecies have been fulfilled, that is, their fulfillment is in the past. For example, Floyd Hamilton, writes that there “are in the Old Testament 332 distinct predictions which are literally fulfilled in Christ.” All Christians are preterists regarding these prophecies since they believe they have been fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Jews who are still waiting for the promised Messiah are anti-preterists since they believe these prophetic passages have not been fulfilled. They are futurists.

Robert Van Kampen believes that the preterist interpretation of prophecy regarding the judgment coming of Christ in the first century is indefensible because “nothing historically has ever happened that bears any resemblance to these specific passages,” that is, the Olivet Discourse of Matthew 24. Notice that Van Kampen writes that there is “nothing” in history that shows that the events of the Olivet Discourse happened in the first century. Nothing? Jesus predicted that there would be earthquakes before that first-century generation passed away. There were earthquakes (Matt. 27:54; 28:2; Acts 16:26) and famines (Acts 11:28; cf. Rom. 8:35), just like Jesus predicted (Matt. 24:7). Paul tells us that the “gospel” had been preached “to all the nations” in his day (Rom. 16:25-26), just like Jesus predicted (Matt. 24:14). This says nothing of the promise by Jesus that the temple would be destroyed within a generation (Matt. 24:34). All of history attests to the fact that the temple was destroyed within a generation of Jesus’ Olivet Discourse. Therefore, Van Kampen’s assertion that “nothing historically has ever happened that bears any resemblance to these specific passages” is absurd. Van Kampen dismisses the preterist perspective hoping his readers will not check out the evidence for themselves.

Last Days Madness

In this authoritative book, Gary DeMar clears the haze of “end-times” fever, shedding light on the most difficult and studied prophetic passages in the Bible, including Daniel 7:13-14; 9:24-27; Matt. 16:27-28; 24-25; Thess. 2; 2 Peter 3:3-13, and clearly explaining a host of other controversial topics.

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Gary discusses the fact that ALL Christians are preterists, at least to some degree. If you believe the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is a historical fact—you are a preterist. Even unbelievers cannot deny that these events—whether they believe they happened or not—have changed the course of world history. In other words, Jesus Christ has changed the world forever, according to the Scriptures.

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