Josheb
Reformed Non-denominational
- Joined
- May 19, 2023
- Messages
- 4,471
- Reaction score
- 1,941
- Points
- 113
- Location
- VA, south of DC
- Faith
- Yes
- Marital status
- Married with adult children
- Politics
- Conservative
Earlier I wrote of the hypocrisy inherent in Dispensational Premillennialism. Sadly, the practice of preaching one premise and either living as if, the premise is not true or criticizing those who believe otherwise leads to a life that can correctly and justly be called delusional; so delusional that it borders on the dissociative. The term "dissociation" (dissociation, not disassociation) is a condition in which parts of the individual become psychologically separated from one another. Simply put, years of believing the teachings of Dispensationalism causes a change in the way the world and reality is perceived. All of the hypocrisies and mentioned in Part 2 of this series on problems inherent within Dispensational Premillennialism contribute to this delusionally dissociative life but perhaps the most influential is the continuous practice of believing and saying the world is going to hell in a handbasket any day now. If that is truly true then there is absolutely no sense in doing things like taking out a mortgage, saving for children's college, or putting away money for retirement. If it is true Christians are going to be removed from the planet any day now then none of us will be around to reap the benefits of long-term investment and all that money would be going to waste, not spent in more effective ways in what remains of our time here on earth. It is a notable example of poor stewardship. Christians should live in a manner consistent with their stated beliefs and Dispensational Premillennialism is an obvious example of that not happening, but it is also an example of how this teaching skews practice because the DPer walks around with a pessimistic belief system, eschewing any possibility the gospel might have a positive global effect in all areas of life and criticizing those who believe otherwise.
Understand that dissociation occurs unawares. Psychologically, it is a term used in reference to occasions when thought or emotions get disconnected from each other or the person’s environment. In some ways this is a very commonplace or ordinary condition, such as when we forget the last mile of road on a long trip. We were alive and breathing and thinking and acting and negotiating the highway but not heeding the last mile or three. In extreme conditions the soul fractures and multiple personalities form. There’s a lot of terrain between the two. I'm not saying the Dispensationalist is mentally ill or crazy. I am saying the longer a person lives with that teaching the more different reality, the world, and their Christian life becomes. I’ve used this term in reference to Dispensational Premillennialism because of the disconnection or disjointedness between things taught by the teachers, things claimed by the adherents, actual action commonly practiced, and the actual way the world exists. I remind everyone that there's not one single prediction by a DPer in the last 190 years that has ever come true. This 100% fail rate is important to note because the word "delusion" means, "false belief or judgment about external reality, held despite incontrovertible evidence to the contrary." There is incontrovertible evidence of zero correct predictions, but the belief in imminent events persists. It persists so well that they are willing and constantly speculating how modern conditions might be end-times signs. There is incontrovertible evidence the rate of evangelical conversion has persisted (not declined or increased) over the last century, and incontrovertible evidence the gospel is having positive effect in countries outside of the US (especially in Asia and Africa over the last half-century but the Dispensationalist believes differently and holds a much different view of external reality.
Other examples include how a Christian truly believing they are going to be raptured any day now while plan for their retirement 20, 40, or more years from now, or how they can espouse a literal reading of scripture and not practice it..... thinking they are doing so! These aren't just inconsistencies between thought, word, and deed; they are examples of a serious disconnection, of a life lived so dissociated from what one preaches, and the inconsistency isn’t even seen (or recognized when attention is brought to it).
Because I live in the DC area I have occasionally been privileged to interact with politicians, lobbyists, and think-tank members working for gospel-oriented change. Every single occasion in which I have conversed with Dispensationalists they’ve all communicated at least one common theme: none of their efforts will endure if they succeed! I have dined with members of Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, radio-syndicated preachers, professors at Christian universities, and leaders of local evangelical organizations who regularly go to Capitol Hill working for political/societal change and heard them state this. When asked another common theme is expressed: Jesus is coming back any moment and they are going to be removed from the planet with their work unfinished and the world going to go to hell….. because that is the way God plans to do things! On occasion I have asked these folks (some of them public figures whose names most of us would recognize) what they think might happen if 60 or 80 or even all 100 Senators were Christians. Would it make any difference? Most of them say it can’t and won’t ever happen (even if they are working to get Christians elected!) and all of them say it won’t make any difference of substance, let alone enduring substance. They work for change they don’t always believe will happen, and if it does happen the effect won’t be substantive, and whether substantive or not it will not endure. Keep in mind: these are people who eschatologically believe one of the end-times signs is the US removing its support of the modern nation Israel. In other words, these Christians believe all their work could be destroyed anytime this week, next month or in coming years. The loss doesn’t matter because they are going to heaven.
Again: This does not happen with any other leading theological/eschatological alternative. Dispensational Premillennialism is the only theology/eschatology in which this happens in this way or this degree. It's not the historical, orthodox point of view or practice (and many of them know this but still believe any way). This kind problem of a disconnected life is unique to Dispensationalism Premillennialism.
Understand that dissociation occurs unawares. Psychologically, it is a term used in reference to occasions when thought or emotions get disconnected from each other or the person’s environment. In some ways this is a very commonplace or ordinary condition, such as when we forget the last mile of road on a long trip. We were alive and breathing and thinking and acting and negotiating the highway but not heeding the last mile or three. In extreme conditions the soul fractures and multiple personalities form. There’s a lot of terrain between the two. I'm not saying the Dispensationalist is mentally ill or crazy. I am saying the longer a person lives with that teaching the more different reality, the world, and their Christian life becomes. I’ve used this term in reference to Dispensational Premillennialism because of the disconnection or disjointedness between things taught by the teachers, things claimed by the adherents, actual action commonly practiced, and the actual way the world exists. I remind everyone that there's not one single prediction by a DPer in the last 190 years that has ever come true. This 100% fail rate is important to note because the word "delusion" means, "false belief or judgment about external reality, held despite incontrovertible evidence to the contrary." There is incontrovertible evidence of zero correct predictions, but the belief in imminent events persists. It persists so well that they are willing and constantly speculating how modern conditions might be end-times signs. There is incontrovertible evidence the rate of evangelical conversion has persisted (not declined or increased) over the last century, and incontrovertible evidence the gospel is having positive effect in countries outside of the US (especially in Asia and Africa over the last half-century but the Dispensationalist believes differently and holds a much different view of external reality.
Other examples include how a Christian truly believing they are going to be raptured any day now while plan for their retirement 20, 40, or more years from now, or how they can espouse a literal reading of scripture and not practice it..... thinking they are doing so! These aren't just inconsistencies between thought, word, and deed; they are examples of a serious disconnection, of a life lived so dissociated from what one preaches, and the inconsistency isn’t even seen (or recognized when attention is brought to it).
Because I live in the DC area I have occasionally been privileged to interact with politicians, lobbyists, and think-tank members working for gospel-oriented change. Every single occasion in which I have conversed with Dispensationalists they’ve all communicated at least one common theme: none of their efforts will endure if they succeed! I have dined with members of Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, radio-syndicated preachers, professors at Christian universities, and leaders of local evangelical organizations who regularly go to Capitol Hill working for political/societal change and heard them state this. When asked another common theme is expressed: Jesus is coming back any moment and they are going to be removed from the planet with their work unfinished and the world going to go to hell….. because that is the way God plans to do things! On occasion I have asked these folks (some of them public figures whose names most of us would recognize) what they think might happen if 60 or 80 or even all 100 Senators were Christians. Would it make any difference? Most of them say it can’t and won’t ever happen (even if they are working to get Christians elected!) and all of them say it won’t make any difference of substance, let alone enduring substance. They work for change they don’t always believe will happen, and if it does happen the effect won’t be substantive, and whether substantive or not it will not endure. Keep in mind: these are people who eschatologically believe one of the end-times signs is the US removing its support of the modern nation Israel. In other words, these Christians believe all their work could be destroyed anytime this week, next month or in coming years. The loss doesn’t matter because they are going to heaven.
Again: This does not happen with any other leading theological/eschatological alternative. Dispensational Premillennialism is the only theology/eschatology in which this happens in this way or this degree. It's not the historical, orthodox point of view or practice (and many of them know this but still believe any way). This kind problem of a disconnected life is unique to Dispensationalism Premillennialism.
