tulsa 2011
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An Example of the Use of the Dialectic Argument Against Scripture
What is the dialectic? It is something that is not easy to understand
when the concept is new to a person.
In the dialectic as seen by Hegel, there is first the thesis and then
its opposition, the anti-thesis, and finally the synthesis.
This opposition can be seen also as absolute truth or absolute
morality being the thesis, and emotional attachments to relationships
the anti-thesis. The synthesis in Transformational Marxism is a
victory for feelings, for relationships over absolute truth and
absolute morality.
The absolute truth given to us in scripture by God the Holy Spirit is
fact. But facts, as the thesis in a debate, can threaten people's
relationships. And people have strong feelings about their
relationships. Many Christians have strong feelings toward their
churches, their pastors and priests, and have loved ones in their
congregations.
When truth conflicts with feelings, the feelings are the anti-thesis.
Among the movements within American psychology of the fifties and
sixties that the Transformational Marxism led by the professors of the
German Frankfurt School made use of was the self psychology of Carl R.
Rogers and A.H. Maslow. Carl Rogers taught that feelings are most
important, and are more important than knowing or cognitive
competence. Rogers always referred his clients back to "what do you
feel?"
When the feelings of relationships with theologies, with
denominations, churches and people in these structures conflict with
the facts of scripture, then the dialectic process of argument against
the facts often begins.
Here is an example of a possible use of the dialectic to argue against
some of Paul's doctrines as part of his revelation given him by the
risen Christ (Acts 26: 15-18).
John Darby, the father of the man made theology called
dispensationalism, said that the
"Church has sought to settle itself here, but it has no place on the
earth... [Though] making a most constructive parenthesis, it forms no
part of the regular order of God's earthly plans, but is merely an
interruption of them to give a fuller character and meaning to
them..."
John. N. Darby, 'The Character of Office in The Present Dispensation'
Collected Writings., Eccl. I, Vol. I, p. 94.
"Them" are all physical Israel. The church, for Darby exists to "give
fuller character and meaning to all physical Israel." Darby, known as
the Father of dispensationalism, thought that the purpose of the
Christian church, the ekklesia as a meeting, assembly or congregation
of Israel reborn in Christ, the Israel of God, made into The Body of
Christ like the Catholic capital C Church, was to honor all physical
Israel. The dispensationalists say that God's people the Jews are
earthy. They are involved in physical and literal things, like the
blood sacrifice of animals, a literal bloodline from Abraham,
circumcision, and a physical temple building.
Lewis S. Chafer, follower of C.I. Scofield and founder of Dallas
Theological Seminary, insists that dispensationalism: "... has
changed the Bible from being a mass of more or less conflicting
writings into a classified and easily assimilated revelation of both
the earthly and heavenly purposes of God, which reach on into eternity
to come.."
Lewis. S. Chafer, ‘Dispensationalism,’ Bibliotheca Sacra, 93 (October
1936), 410, 416, 446-447
So, Chafer tells us that the man made theology called
dispensationalism made scripture into an "easily assimilated" system.
And since this man made theology is easier to understand and remember
than the complexity of scripture, with some disagreements between
teachings under thd Old Covenant with doctrines in the New Testament.
But in simplifying the doctrines of scripture, John Darby, C.I.
Scofield and Lewis S. Chafer themselves decided that physical Israel
remains God's chosen people, a man made doctrine that does not accept
or understand the transformation of physical Israel into an Israel
reborn in Jesus Christ (John 3: 1-7).
Charles Ryrie writes in his book, Dispensationalism Today (Moody,
1965, pp. 44, 45):
"The dispensationalist believes that throughout the ages God is
pursuing two distinct purposes: one related to the earth with earthly
people and earthly objectives involved which is Judaism; while the
other is related to heaven with heavenly people and heavenly
objectives involved, which is Christianity’ . . . This is probably the
most basic theological test of whether or not a man is a
dispensationalist, and it is undoubtedly the most practical and
conclusive. A man who fails to distinguish Israel and the Church will
inevitably not hold to dispensational distinctives; and the one who
does, will."
J. Dwight Pentecost is another dispensationalist theologian who in his
book Things To Come ( 1965) says "The church
and Israel are two distinct groups with whom God has a divine plan.
The church is a mystery, unrevealed in the Old Testament. This mystery
program must be completed before God can resume His program with
Israel and bring it to completion. These considerations all arise from
a literal method of interpretation."
(page 193, J. Dwight Pentecost, Things To Come, Zondervan, 1965).
Charles C. Ryrie (born 1925) says:
"basic promise of Dispensationalism is two purposes of God expressed
in the formation of two peoples who maintain their distinction
throughout eternity." Charles C. Ryrie, Dispensationalism Today,
1966, pp.44-45.
In his book, Dispensationalism (1966), Charles Ryrie says "The
essence of Dispensationalism, then, is the distinction between Israel
and the church."
(page 3, "Dispensationalism")
"The nature of the church is a crucial point of difference between
classic, or normative, dispensationalism and other doctrinal systems.
Indeed, ecclesiology, or the doctrine of the church, is the touchstone
of dispensationalism(and also of pretribulationalism)."
(page 123, Charles Ryrie Dispensationalism (Chicago: Moody Press,
[1966], 1995)
In classical dispensationalism God has two groups of people, all
physical Israel, who
remain the chosen people, and the ekklesia, the meeting, the assembly,
which William Tyndale
consistently translated as congregation, and not as church.
The classical dispensationalists - John Darby, C.I. Scofield, and Lewis
S. Chafer - insist that "Israel" in scripture
always means physical Israel, the literal descendants of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob. Israel, for the dispensationalists cannot mean anything other
than all physical
Israel. And the dispensationalists do not separate the remnant of
physical Israel,
which Hebrews 11 identifies as being a small number who had faith,
from the various forms
of false doctrines and false practices of physical Israel, including
Talmudic Judaism, and the religion of the Pharisees of Christ's time.
Suppose that a Christian who wants to follow scripture instead of man
made theology points out that Jesus Christ in John 10: 16, teaches as
fact that "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them
also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be
one fold and one shepherd."
The Christian who has a love for the truth of God's word instead of
man made theology might also cite Paul in Romans 12: 4, I Corinthians
10: 17, Galatians 3: 28, Ephesians 2: 14-16, and Ephesians 4: 4 all of
which say there is one Body of Christ, not two.
For example, Paul in Romans 12; 4 says "For as we have many members in
one body, and all members have not the same office:" And "There is
neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is
neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus."
Galatians 3: 28
"For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the
middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh
the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for
to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross,
having slain the enmity thereby:" Ephesians 2: 14-16
And in Ephesians 4: 4 Paul says "There is one body, and one Spirit,
even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;"
Here is where the dialectic may begin as an argument against the facts
of scripture and "it is written," in order to defend the man made
theology and its follower's feeling relationship with that theology.
The defender of the theology of John Darby, C.I. Scofield and Lewis S.
Chafer will say that God is going to save physical Israel in the
future, and then there will be one fold, and one Body of Christ. The
defender of the theology may or may not cite scripture which he thinks
proves that God will save physical Israel in the future.
And - many times, or almost always the person who defends man made theology
against scripture comes in through a side door and not through the main door. That is,
he side steps a frontal argument against a particular scripture or set of scriptures, and
instead comes against the scripture from the side.
I have an audio of a 2012 interview on an Internet site with Dave MacPhearson on the origin of the pre-trabulation rapture theory. In the interview MacPhearson outlines the history of dispensationalism from Margaret Macdonald, to Edward Irving, on to John Darby, through Darby's several trips to the U.S. and Canada promoting the theology, then to the takeover by the dispensationalists of the Niagra Bible Conference (1876-1897), and finally to C.S. Scofield and his 1909 Reference Bible, published by Oxford University Press.
The 2012 MacPhearson interview is not archived, but go to Google and type in "PRETRIB RAPTURE DISHONESTY by DAVE MACPHERSON." In the introduction MacPhearson writes that "When I began my research in 1970 into the exact beginnings of the pretribulation rapture belief still held by many evangelicals, I assumed that the rapture debate involved only "godly scholars with honest differences." The paper you are now reading reveals why I gave up that assumption many years ago. With this introduction-of-sorts in mind, let's take a long look at the pervasive dishonesty throughout the history of the 179-year-old pretrib rapture theory:"
What is the dialectic? It is something that is not easy to understand
when the concept is new to a person.
In the dialectic as seen by Hegel, there is first the thesis and then
its opposition, the anti-thesis, and finally the synthesis.
This opposition can be seen also as absolute truth or absolute
morality being the thesis, and emotional attachments to relationships
the anti-thesis. The synthesis in Transformational Marxism is a
victory for feelings, for relationships over absolute truth and
absolute morality.
The absolute truth given to us in scripture by God the Holy Spirit is
fact. But facts, as the thesis in a debate, can threaten people's
relationships. And people have strong feelings about their
relationships. Many Christians have strong feelings toward their
churches, their pastors and priests, and have loved ones in their
congregations.
When truth conflicts with feelings, the feelings are the anti-thesis.
Among the movements within American psychology of the fifties and
sixties that the Transformational Marxism led by the professors of the
German Frankfurt School made use of was the self psychology of Carl R.
Rogers and A.H. Maslow. Carl Rogers taught that feelings are most
important, and are more important than knowing or cognitive
competence. Rogers always referred his clients back to "what do you
feel?"
When the feelings of relationships with theologies, with
denominations, churches and people in these structures conflict with
the facts of scripture, then the dialectic process of argument against
the facts often begins.
Here is an example of a possible use of the dialectic to argue against
some of Paul's doctrines as part of his revelation given him by the
risen Christ (Acts 26: 15-18).
John Darby, the father of the man made theology called
dispensationalism, said that the
"Church has sought to settle itself here, but it has no place on the
earth... [Though] making a most constructive parenthesis, it forms no
part of the regular order of God's earthly plans, but is merely an
interruption of them to give a fuller character and meaning to
them..."
John. N. Darby, 'The Character of Office in The Present Dispensation'
Collected Writings., Eccl. I, Vol. I, p. 94.
"Them" are all physical Israel. The church, for Darby exists to "give
fuller character and meaning to all physical Israel." Darby, known as
the Father of dispensationalism, thought that the purpose of the
Christian church, the ekklesia as a meeting, assembly or congregation
of Israel reborn in Christ, the Israel of God, made into The Body of
Christ like the Catholic capital C Church, was to honor all physical
Israel. The dispensationalists say that God's people the Jews are
earthy. They are involved in physical and literal things, like the
blood sacrifice of animals, a literal bloodline from Abraham,
circumcision, and a physical temple building.
Lewis S. Chafer, follower of C.I. Scofield and founder of Dallas
Theological Seminary, insists that dispensationalism: "... has
changed the Bible from being a mass of more or less conflicting
writings into a classified and easily assimilated revelation of both
the earthly and heavenly purposes of God, which reach on into eternity
to come.."
Lewis. S. Chafer, ‘Dispensationalism,’ Bibliotheca Sacra, 93 (October
1936), 410, 416, 446-447
So, Chafer tells us that the man made theology called
dispensationalism made scripture into an "easily assimilated" system.
And since this man made theology is easier to understand and remember
than the complexity of scripture, with some disagreements between
teachings under thd Old Covenant with doctrines in the New Testament.
But in simplifying the doctrines of scripture, John Darby, C.I.
Scofield and Lewis S. Chafer themselves decided that physical Israel
remains God's chosen people, a man made doctrine that does not accept
or understand the transformation of physical Israel into an Israel
reborn in Jesus Christ (John 3: 1-7).
Charles Ryrie writes in his book, Dispensationalism Today (Moody,
1965, pp. 44, 45):
"The dispensationalist believes that throughout the ages God is
pursuing two distinct purposes: one related to the earth with earthly
people and earthly objectives involved which is Judaism; while the
other is related to heaven with heavenly people and heavenly
objectives involved, which is Christianity’ . . . This is probably the
most basic theological test of whether or not a man is a
dispensationalist, and it is undoubtedly the most practical and
conclusive. A man who fails to distinguish Israel and the Church will
inevitably not hold to dispensational distinctives; and the one who
does, will."
J. Dwight Pentecost is another dispensationalist theologian who in his
book Things To Come ( 1965) says "The church
and Israel are two distinct groups with whom God has a divine plan.
The church is a mystery, unrevealed in the Old Testament. This mystery
program must be completed before God can resume His program with
Israel and bring it to completion. These considerations all arise from
a literal method of interpretation."
(page 193, J. Dwight Pentecost, Things To Come, Zondervan, 1965).
Charles C. Ryrie (born 1925) says:
"basic promise of Dispensationalism is two purposes of God expressed
in the formation of two peoples who maintain their distinction
throughout eternity." Charles C. Ryrie, Dispensationalism Today,
1966, pp.44-45.
In his book, Dispensationalism (1966), Charles Ryrie says "The
essence of Dispensationalism, then, is the distinction between Israel
and the church."
(page 3, "Dispensationalism")
"The nature of the church is a crucial point of difference between
classic, or normative, dispensationalism and other doctrinal systems.
Indeed, ecclesiology, or the doctrine of the church, is the touchstone
of dispensationalism(and also of pretribulationalism)."
(page 123, Charles Ryrie Dispensationalism (Chicago: Moody Press,
[1966], 1995)
In classical dispensationalism God has two groups of people, all
physical Israel, who
remain the chosen people, and the ekklesia, the meeting, the assembly,
which William Tyndale
consistently translated as congregation, and not as church.
The classical dispensationalists - John Darby, C.I. Scofield, and Lewis
S. Chafer - insist that "Israel" in scripture
always means physical Israel, the literal descendants of Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob. Israel, for the dispensationalists cannot mean anything other
than all physical
Israel. And the dispensationalists do not separate the remnant of
physical Israel,
which Hebrews 11 identifies as being a small number who had faith,
from the various forms
of false doctrines and false practices of physical Israel, including
Talmudic Judaism, and the religion of the Pharisees of Christ's time.
Suppose that a Christian who wants to follow scripture instead of man
made theology points out that Jesus Christ in John 10: 16, teaches as
fact that "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them
also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be
one fold and one shepherd."
The Christian who has a love for the truth of God's word instead of
man made theology might also cite Paul in Romans 12: 4, I Corinthians
10: 17, Galatians 3: 28, Ephesians 2: 14-16, and Ephesians 4: 4 all of
which say there is one Body of Christ, not two.
For example, Paul in Romans 12; 4 says "For as we have many members in
one body, and all members have not the same office:" And "There is
neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is
neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus."
Galatians 3: 28
"For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the
middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh
the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for
to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross,
having slain the enmity thereby:" Ephesians 2: 14-16
And in Ephesians 4: 4 Paul says "There is one body, and one Spirit,
even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;"
Here is where the dialectic may begin as an argument against the facts
of scripture and "it is written," in order to defend the man made
theology and its follower's feeling relationship with that theology.
The defender of the theology of John Darby, C.I. Scofield and Lewis S.
Chafer will say that God is going to save physical Israel in the
future, and then there will be one fold, and one Body of Christ. The
defender of the theology may or may not cite scripture which he thinks
proves that God will save physical Israel in the future.
And - many times, or almost always the person who defends man made theology
against scripture comes in through a side door and not through the main door. That is,
he side steps a frontal argument against a particular scripture or set of scriptures, and
instead comes against the scripture from the side.
I have an audio of a 2012 interview on an Internet site with Dave MacPhearson on the origin of the pre-trabulation rapture theory. In the interview MacPhearson outlines the history of dispensationalism from Margaret Macdonald, to Edward Irving, on to John Darby, through Darby's several trips to the U.S. and Canada promoting the theology, then to the takeover by the dispensationalists of the Niagra Bible Conference (1876-1897), and finally to C.S. Scofield and his 1909 Reference Bible, published by Oxford University Press.
The 2012 MacPhearson interview is not archived, but go to Google and type in "PRETRIB RAPTURE DISHONESTY by DAVE MACPHERSON." In the introduction MacPhearson writes that "When I began my research in 1970 into the exact beginnings of the pretribulation rapture belief still held by many evangelicals, I assumed that the rapture debate involved only "godly scholars with honest differences." The paper you are now reading reveals why I gave up that assumption many years ago. With this introduction-of-sorts in mind, let's take a long look at the pervasive dishonesty throughout the history of the 179-year-old pretrib rapture theory:"
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