Class 12/1

perfecting the jews

belief that jews must convert for true fulfillment of the Church

Charles H. Spurgeon

true fulfillment of the Church is not possible if jews do not convert

dispensations of history

1. innocence

2. conscience

3. human government

4. promise

5. law

6. grace

7. millennial kingdom

innocence

adam and eve before sin

conscience

after the sin until the flood

human government

flood to tower of babel

promise

abraham to moses

law

moses to crucifixion of christ

grace

crucifixion to rapture

milennial kingdom

1,000 year reign of christ on earth

john nelson darby

founder of dispensationalism

historicist question

have biblical prophecies already happened?

dispensationalist question

or are they not yet fulfilled and coming very soon

premillenial

rapture happens before the tribulation (common among evangelicals)

postmillenial

rapture happens after tribulation

rapture

those who believe in Jesus leave their bodies and join christ

darby’s evangelical protestantism

true “church” requires inner transformation

premillennial dispensationalism

the church era only exists

because jews rejected christ

jews are

true heirs of old testament

jews during the tribulation

• 144,000 jews (12,000 from each tribe) will convert

• they come evangelists preaching to those left behind

• antichrist persecutes jews and believers

• another group of jews will stay jewish but resist the antichrist

• jews must be in the holy land for key events

• most return “in unbelief”

return to israel

seen by evangelicals as fulfillment of biblical prophecy

jews in the Holy Land will resist antichrist and rebuild the Temple

end time battles

antichrist portrayed as false messiah

armies of the “4 empires” invade Israel

Great tribulation ends in the Battle of Armageddon

outcome

jews must either convert or die

only 1/3 of humanity survives

jews who follow the 144,000 evangelists are saved; the rest perish

jews are essential for end-time events; groundwork must begin now

expectations of evangelicals

jews must return to israel in unbelief

jews must be “witness to” so they can convert after the rapture

jews are “errant” in the present but “privilege” in the next stage - ambivalence

rapture ready index

tracks signs that the end is near

left behind series

70 million copies sold

protagonist Tzion Ben Judah = perfected jew

a jewish bible scholar who discovers christianity within jewish sources

antichrist is not jewish

modern evangelical

jew seen as errant but not evil

unwittingly central to sacred history

expected to transform christians during tribulation

evangelicals believe

key feature of end of tribulation is disappearance of judaism

Dispensationalism

Christian framework for interpreting the Bible, dividing history into distinct "dispensations" (ages) where God interacts with humanity differently