by Sam Waldron | May 24, 2011 | Current Events, Eschatology
I am assuming three things in this response to Camping.
First, the Bible predicts the yet future bodily return of Christ (Acts 1:9; 3:19, 20).
Acts 1:9-11 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
Acts 3:19-21 “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time.
Second, this return of Christ will not be secret, but public, glorious, visible, and universal (Matt. 24:24-27; 1 Thess. 5:1-4; 2 Thess. 1:6-10).
Matthew 24:24-27 “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in advance. So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be.”
My rejection of setting dates for Christ’s second coming in no way means that I do not believe that Christ is coming. To put this in other words, rejecting the notion of setting dates for Christ’s coming does not mean rejecting Christ’s coming itself.
Third, I am not denying that there are certain signs that Christ’s coming is drawing near. My rejection of setting dates for Christ’s second coming in no way means that there are no signs of His coming. What I am assuming and saying is that there are no time signs of His coming. For instance, Jesus gives this sign of His coming:
Matthew 24:14 “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.”
This is in a sense a sign of His coming. But this sign of Christ’s coming is in no way a time sign of His coming. That is, it enables no one to make a prediction like that Mr. Camping made of the date of Christ’s coming.
The fact that dirt is being moved on one side of our property is a sign that a new building is coming, but it is not a time sign. We do not know when our church’s first service in the new worship center will take place.
Dr. Sam Waldron is the Academic Dean of CBTS and professor of Systematic Theology. He is also one of the pastors of Grace Reformed Baptist Church in Owensboro, KY. Dr. Waldron received a B.A. from Cornerstone University, an M.Div. from Trinity Ministerial Academy, a Th.M. from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. From 1977 to 2001 he was a pastor of the Reformed Baptist Church of Grand Rapids, MI. Dr. Waldron is the author of numerous books including A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, The End Times Made Simple, Baptist Roots in America, To Be Continued?, and MacArthur’s Millennial Manifesto: A Friendly Response.
by Sam Waldron | May 23, 2011 | Current Events, Eschatology
I had every intention of continuing my series in the life of Elijah Sunday evening until Friday afternoon. On Friday afternoon to relieve the boredom of a long and lonely drive home from Michigan I was listening to Rush Limbaugh. I was surprised to hear him mention to the millions in his radio audience the name of Harold Camping and his prediction that the rapture would occur on May 21. Rush was not misinformed. Harold Camping did predict the rapture of the Christians May 21 and the gradual annihilation of the world over the next several months. His prediction received wide publicity over the last month or two in the media. This is really surprising since Camping has already proved himself a fallible prophet when he predicted the coming of Christ in his book 1994?.
Harold Camping’s prediction has already been proved wrong. I have no desire to mock a pitiful old man and his poor, deluded followers. Why blog on Why the Prediction That Christ Would Come Yesterday Was Wrong? I am not doing so because I believe there is any value in beating a dead horse or in this case a dead prediction. I am doing so because such occasions as this one provide a teachable moment to impart important biblical teaching. It is not wrong to take advantage of the occasions of Easter and Christmas to teach about the resurrection and the incarnation—even though such holidays are merely cultural and not required by the Word of God. Even so it is proper to take advantage of the hullabaloo over Camping’s false predictions to get some important teaching of the Bible out there.
I want to say a couple of things about my title, Why the Prediction That Christ Would Come Yesterday Was Wrong. It struck me that someone could react when I sent out this title Friday, May 20 by saying that I was uttering a prediction just as much as Camping. That reaction would be fair if I what I meant was that I was predicting that Christ would not come on Saturday. But that is not what I meant. What I intended by my title was that whether or not Christ was coming on Saturday it was wrong for Camping to predict it. It was wrong because the Bible forbids such predictions by teaching that no one knows the day or the hour of Christ return. If that language sounds familiar, it is because I am borrowing it from Jesus Himself (Matthew 24:36).
Dr. Sam Waldron is the Academic Dean of CBTS and professor of Systematic Theology. He is also one of the pastors of Grace Reformed Baptist Church in Owensboro, KY. Dr. Waldron received a B.A. from Cornerstone University, an M.Div. from Trinity Ministerial Academy, a Th.M. from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. From 1977 to 2001 he was a pastor of the Reformed Baptist Church of Grand Rapids, MI. Dr. Waldron is the author of numerous books including A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, The End Times Made Simple, Baptist Roots in America, To Be Continued?, and MacArthur’s Millennial Manifesto: A Friendly Response.
by Richard Barcellos | May 20, 2011 | Hermeneutics, Historical Theology
Scholasticism. One of the ways that Medieval Scholasticism influenced the Reformation was through the universities attended by the Reformers. Our modern university system evolved during the late Middle Ages. Luther was well-schooled in the scholastic method and philosophy. His utter contempt for Aristotle was no doubt an over-reaction to his university training and the element of superstition in much of late medieval scholasticism.[1] McGrath comments:
Scholasticism is probably one of the most despised intellectual movements in human history. Thus the English word ‘dunce’ derives from the name of one of the greatest scholastic writers, Duns Scotus. Scholasticism is best regarded as the medieval movement, flourishing in the period 1200-1500, which placed great emphasis upon the rational justification of religious beliefs. It is the demonstration of the inherent rationality of Christian theology by an appeal to philosophy, and the demonstration of the complete harmony of that theology by the minute examination of the relationship of its various elements. Scholastic writings tended to be long and argumentative, frequently relying upon closely argued distinctions.[2]
Jaroslav Pelikan says, “The theological discussions of the period sometimes dealt with issues that did not directly involve the belief, teaching, and confession of the church.”[3] He goes on to list some of those theological discussions: whether a monk who died and then was resurrected would be obliged to return to the same religious order; whether or not the body of Christ after His resurrection had been able to digest food; whether or not Christ was alive when the lance pierced His side; the color of the Virgin Mary’s hair; the fact that Mary was conversant in the seven liberal arts, including astronomy, as well as with theology, as summarized in the Sentences of Peter Lombard.[4] Looking at it from this vantage-point, one can hardly blame Luther for his attitude toward Aristotelian scholastic theology, if in fact it can be said to be the catalyst of such speculation.
Though late medieval scholasticism had its faults, Calvin, for example, took the positive scholastic element of systemization and applied it in producing his Institutes of the Christian Religion.
[1] See David C. Steinmetz, Luther in Context (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1995), 56, where Steinmetz says, “No historian would seriously dispute the proposition that Luther’s break with scholastic theology was primarily a break with the theology of his own Occamist teachers.”
[2] McGrath, A Life of John Calvin (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1995 reprint), 40.
[3] Pelikan, Reformation, 13, 14.
[4] See Pelikan, Reformation, 38-50 for a synopsis of the development of late Medieval Mariology.
Dr. Richard Barcellos is associate professor of New Testament Studies. He received a B.S. from California State University, Fresno, an M.Div. from The Master’s Seminary, and a Th.M. and Ph.D. from Whitefield Theological Seminary. Dr. Barcellos is pastor of Grace Reformed Baptist Church, Palmdale, CA. He is author of Trinity & Creation, The Covenant of Works, and Getting the Garden Right. He has contributed articles to various journals and is a member of ETS.
Courses taught for CBTS: New Testament Introduction, Biblical Hermeneutics, Biblical Theology I, Biblical Theology II.
by Richard Barcellos | May 20, 2011 | Biblical Theology, Eschatology, New Testament, Old Testament, Practical Theology, Systematic Theology
As far as Christ as the ultimate fulfillment of the Sabbath, I would say this…If the Sabbath as instituted at creation was a symbol and type of the eternal state, then the Sabbath between creation and consummation is at least that. The Sabbath is not a symbol or type of Christ, strictly speaking; it is a symbol and type of that which Christ attains for us – the eschatological state. And until that state comes in its fullness and finality, the Sabbath yet remains as its symbol and type. I think Hebrews 4 argues this.
Dr. Richard Barcellos is associate professor of New Testament Studies. He received a B.S. from California State University, Fresno, an M.Div. from The Master’s Seminary, and a Th.M. and Ph.D. from Whitefield Theological Seminary. Dr. Barcellos is pastor of Grace Reformed Baptist Church, Palmdale, CA. He is author of Trinity & Creation, The Covenant of Works, and Getting the Garden Right. He has contributed articles to various journals and is a member of ETS.
Courses taught for CBTS: New Testament Introduction, Biblical Hermeneutics, Biblical Theology I, Biblical Theology II.
by CBTSeminary | May 20, 2011 | Apologetics, Current Events
Many of you have seen the signs: “Judgment Day May 21, 2011.” But did you know that the radio broadcasting network led by Harold Camping—the prophet making this prediction—is worldwide? This picture was taken in Windhoek, Namibia.
Camping’s judgment day prediction has become so well-known in Africa that national newspapers are answering the question: “Will the world end on May 21st?” In Namibia, the New Era newspaper recently published “End of world message misleading.” As this article begins:
The Council of Churches in Namibia (CCN) is concerned about “misleading” messages displayed on billboards about “the coming of the Lord” – supposedly on May 21 – marking the second coming of the Lord.
CCN Chairman, Reverend Maria Kapere, urged Namibians to oppose all misleading, and in many cases, subtle profit-making people that thrive on people’s vulnerability and ignorance to attract followers with the ultimate goal to gain following by spreading unbiblical messages.
False teaching, heresy, and cults are not limited to America or to the West. Which is why every pastor around the world needs to be equipped to “hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9).
With this in mind, Dr. Barcellos and I have been asked to come to Namibia this summer to help pastors rightly handle the word of truth and make a defense of the faith. From August 8th through the 12th, we will have two modular classes on hermeneutics and worldviews. Tasked with teaching on worldviews, I have titled my course “Christianity and Its Competitors: Contending for the Christian Worldview.”
Will you please pray for us as we prepare to serve our Savior in Namibia? As you can see, the need there is urgent. May Christ use us for the good of His church and the building of His kingdom!
CBTS Faculty fully subscribe to the 1689 Confession of Faith, hold an advanced
degree in their field of instruction, and possess significant pastoral experience.
