Answering the "Replacement Theology" Critics (Part 1)

American Vision ^ | 10/7/2005 | Gary DeMar

[topcat54]

Replacement theology has become dispensationalism's latest prophetic boogeyman. If you want to end a debate over eschatology, just charge your opponent with holding to replacement theology. What is “replacement theology,” sometimes called “supersessionism,” and why do dispensationalists accuse non-dispensationalists of holding it? Here’s a typical dispensational definition:

Replacement Theology: a theological perspective that teaches that the Jews have been rejected by God and are no longer God’s Chosen People. Those who hold to this view disavow any ethnic future for the Jewish people in connection with the biblical covenants, believing that their spiritual destiny is either to perish or become a part of the new religion that superseded Judaism (whether Christianity or Islam).¹

“Replacement theology” is dispensationalism’s trump card in any debate over eschatology because it implies anti-semitism. Hal Lindsey attempted to use this card in his poorly researched and argued The Road to Holocaust.² He wove an innovative tale implying that anyone who is not a dispensationalist carries the seeds of anti-semitism within his or her prophetic system. This would mean that every Christian prior to 1830 would have been theologically anti-semitic although not personally anti-semtic.

As Peter Leithart and I point out in The Legacy of Hatred Continues,³ it’s dispensationalists who hold to a form of replacement theology since they believe that Israel does not have any prophetic significance this side of the rapture! Prior to the rapture, in terms of dispensational logic, the Church has replaced Israel. This is unquestionably true since God’s prophetic plan for Israel has been postponed until the prophetic time clock starts ticking again at the beginning of Daniel’s 70th week which starts only after the Church is taken to heaven in the so-called rapture. Until then, God is dealing redemptively with the Church. Am I making this up? Consider the following by dispensationalist E. Schuyler English:

An intercalary⁴ period of history, after Christ’s death and resurrection and the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, has intervened. This is the present age, the Church age. . . . During this time God has not been dealing with Israel nationally, for they have been blinded concerning God’s mercy in Christ. . . . However, God will again deal with Israel as a nation. This will be in Daniel’s seventieth week, a seven-year period yet to come.⁵

According to English and every other dispensationalist, the Church has replaced Israel until the rapture. The unfulfilled promises made to Israel are not fulfilled until after the Church is taken off the earth. Thomas Ice, one of dispensationalism’s rising stars, admits that the Church replaces Israel this side of the rapture: “We dispensationalists believe that the church has superseded Israel during the current church age, but God has a future time in which He will restore national Israel ‘as the institution for the administration of divine blessings to the world.’”⁶

Dispensationalists claim that their particular brand of eschatology is the only prophetic system that gives Israel her proper place in redemptive history. This is an odd thing to argue since two-thirds of the Jews will be slaughtered during the post-rapture tribulation, and the world will be nearly destroyed. Charles Ryrie writes in his book The Best is Yet to Come that during this post-rapture period Israel will undergo “the worst bloodbath in Jewish history.”⁷ The book’s title doesn’t seem to very appropriate considering that during this period of time most of the Jews will die! John Walvoord follows a similar line of argument: “Israel is destined to have a particular time of suffering which will eclipse any thing that it has known in the past. . . . [T]he people of Israel . . . are placing themselves within the vortex of this future whirlwind which will destroy the majority of those living in the land of Palestine.”⁸ Arnold Fruchtenbaum states that during the Great Tribulation “Israel will suffer tremendous persecution (Matthew 24:15–28; Revelation 12:1–17). As a result of this persecution of the Jewish people, two-thirds are going to be killed.”⁹

During the time when Israel seems to be at peace with the world, she is really under the domination of the antichrist who will turn on her at the mid-point in the seven-year period. Israel waits more than 2000 years for the promises finally to be fulfilled, and before it happens, two-thirds of them are wiped out. Those who are charged with holding a “replacement theology viewpoint” believe in no inevitable future Jewish bloodbath. In fact, we believe that the Jews will inevitably embrace Jesus as the Messiah this side of the Second Coming. The fulfillment of Zechariah 13:8 is a past event. It may have had its fulfillment in the events leading up to and including the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Contrary to dispensationalism’s interpretation of the Olivet Discourse, Jesus' disciples warned the Jewish nation for nearly forty years about the impending judgment (Matt. 3:7; 21:42–46; 22:1–14; 24:15–22). Those who believed Jesus’ words of warning were delivered “from the wrath to come” (1 Thess. 1:10). Those who continued to reject Jesus as the promised Messiah, even though they had been warned for a generation (Matt. 24:34), “wrath has come upon them to the utmost” (1 Thess. 2:16; cf. 1 Thess. 5:1–11; 2 Pet. 3:10–13).

Before critics of replacement theology throw stones, they need to take a look at their own prophetic system and see its many lapses in theology and logic.

Read Part Two of this article...

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1. Randall Price, Unholy War: America, Israel and Radical Islam (Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 2001), 412.

2. Hal Lindsey, The Road to Holocaust (New York: Bantam Books, 1989). The address for Bantam Books is 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York.

3. Gary DeMar and Peter J. Leithart, The Legacy of Hatred Continues: A Response to Hal Lindsey’s The Road to Holocaust (Powder Springs, GA: American Vision, 1989).

4. Inserted into the calendar.

5. E. Schuyler English, A Companion to the New Scofield Reference Bible (New York: Oxford University Press, 1972), 135.

6. Thomas Ice, “The Israel of God,” The Thomas Ice Collection: www.raptureready.com/featured/TheIsraelOfGod.html#_edn3

7. Charles C. Ryrie, The Best is Yet to Come (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1981), 86.

8. John F. Walvoord, Israel in Prophecy (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1962), 107, 113. Emphasis added.

9. Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum, “The Little Apocalypse of Zechariah,” The End Times Controversy: The Second Coming Under Attack, eds. Tim LaHaye and Thomas Ice (Eugene, OR: Harvest House, 2003), 262.

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Gary DeMar is president of American Vision and the author of more than 20 books. His latest is Myths, Lies, and Half Truths.

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Permission to reprint granted by American Vision P.O. Box 220, Powder Springs, GA 30127, 800-628-9460.

[Quix]

CERTAINLY IT MAY WELL BE SUPERNATURALLY VISIBLE.

It may well be a long descent around the globe as the Space Shuttle as you have outlined.

It may be via world TV that it is visible.

IT WILL BE VISIBLE PRECISELY AS THE ANGELS PREDICTED. They don’t just belch foul air when speaking FOR GOD ALMIGHTY.

God have mercy on so much affrontery to HIS WORD posted on such threads!

[Lord_Calvinus]

***And just what, in God’s name, makes you think that the clouds that Jesus will come to earth in do not exist in heaven or cannot exist in space???? Hmmmmmmm???***

So, Jesus’ coming in the clouds will now be space clouds. That, along with this UFO idea means that at this point Dispensationalism has about zero crediblity.

If y’all were wearing Niki’s, I might be very concerned for you right now. ;^)

[Dr. Eckleburg]

We have been justified but our glorification has yet to take place although God sees it as done. It's our experience catching up to our election.

I agree our glorification occurs in the future and is accomplished by the past work of Christ.

However, it's only logical that men's sanctification itself has a beneficial effect on the earth itself -- the more God's grace shows itself throughout the world by the increasing number of Christians, the better off the world is.

I don't believe the Gospel is defeated in this life. I believe Christ overcomes the world, "on earth as it is in heaven."

It wasn't Paul or Peter who gave the Great Commission; it was Jesus Christ. Did He task us with failure or success?

Looking back at history, it seems as if the pacifism and withdrawal of the Anabaptists has carried over to a lot of today's eschatology. Calvin certainly believed that a growing and vigorous Christianity would positively influence the planet.

To believe the world is going to get worse and worse is to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

Cui bono?

[Lord_Calvinus]

***Holy Spirit isn't rising up within one's spirit in fierce outrage at some of the REPLACEMENTARIAN PONTIFICATIONS hereon, then it may well be likely that some major component of one's spirituality is dead.***

Since you believe that little space ships have been coming to the earth for some time now and you believe this is a part of God's grand plan for the return of the Lord and the institution of the millennial kingdom of Christ,

I
must
ask....

Have you been taken by aliens before?

Is this how you know they exist? Is this your evidence?

[Quix]

So, tabsternager's whole point about earth not literally meaning the whole earth

WRONG>

YET AGAIN!

YET AGAIN

We see the REPLACMENTARIAN/ CONTRARIAN PRETERIST/ AMIL/ POSTMIL

PERSPECTIVE

1. Using the rationalizations part and parcel of the type of rationalizations displayed by the SO CALLED "higher criticism" school of theological Scripture debunkers of the last 100 years plus.

2. displaying a similar cheeky attitude toward the WORD OF ALMIGHTY GOD.

3. Displaying a similar neutering, explaining away of THE WORD OF ALMIGHTY GOD into dusty, dried skim-milk sop.

4. Seeking earth bound; earth focused; earth valued; 'scientifically comfortable' neuterings of GOD'S WORD INSTEAD OF JUST TAKING IT ON FAITH AT FACE VALUE.

5. Seeking an interpretation of THE WORD OF GOD ALMIGHTY that is

VOID

of the MIRACULOUS;

VOID OF THE MAJESTY;

VOID OF THE GLORY;

VOID OF THE POWER

VOID OF THE DEMONSTRATION;

VOID OF THE

ILLUSTRATIVE GRANDEUR;

OF GOD ALMIGHTY.

6. Yet AGAIN we see the REPLACEMENTARIAN JOINING THE "HIGHER CRITICISM SCHOOL'S PERSPECTIVE'S SEEMING COMPULSION to

KNOCK GOD

DOWN TO

MAN'S SIZE

INSTEAD

OF REACHING UP

TO GOD

IN FAITH.

I suspect an exammination of the historical trends in such matters will discover that the REPLACEMENTARIANISM'S construction on prophetic Scriptures began to rise in more vocal opposition to the 2,000 years of a dispensational understanding of prophecy

QUITE IN STEP WITH THE DEADLY EFFECTS OF THE "HIGHER CRITICISM" ALICE IN WONDERLAND SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY's successful conquests over so many mainline denominations.

Some of the REPLACEMENTARIAN denominations may have escaped some of the deadliness of the HIGHER CRITICISM SCHOOL OF ALICE IN WONDERLAND THEOLOGY in term of Salvation issues . . . but they sure seem to have swallowed hook, line and sinker the lies about the WORD OF GOD fostered and foisted on the world from the pit of hell.

[Iscool]

It may be a single cloud that encompasses the entire earth...

Lightening from east to west, no matter where you are at on earth...

I have never opened the Bible and read something and then said, “Well God, I just don’t believe You...

Plenty of times after reading something I have said to God, “I don’t git it...Show me more”...

But never, “Well, I’d say You’re wrong, God”...

[blue-duncan]

“Cui bono?”

Did you just use a naughty word?

We are not talking about sanctification and its present effects, we were talking about presently, “reigning”, “enthroned”, “ruling” and that is future. We are footsoldiers now in the battle that has already been won, but is still being played out; like our sanctification.

[Iscool]

When I was a kid, I used to take a shotgun to school...The Principal would hold if for me till school was over...

Never needed to lock the doors at home...

Church doors were open 24/7...

Used to hitch hike everywhere...Always got a ride...

Used to say the Lords prayer at school, led by the teachers...

Most of the teachers you’d see on Sunday at church...

Everybody turned out for the 4th of July and Veteran’s Parades...

Fights at school never involved weapons...

You did drugs when you were sick...

I could go on and on and on...

And you think things are getting better and you are bringing in the Kindgom for God, eh???

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you for sharing your insights, dear brother in Christ!

Spiritual beings have been bound in the past:

And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. – Jude 1:6

For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast [them] down to hell, and delivered [them] into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; - 2 Peter 2:5

Likewise, Satan will be bound:

And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. – Revelation 20:1-3

The “Law of the Excluded Middle” (either/or) does not apply to God.

Being in the flesh does not preclude being in the spirit. Nor does being in the spirit preclude being in the flesh. Nothing can thwart the will of God.

Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. – Hebrews 13:2

And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and [one] sat on the throne. - Revelation 4:2

And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: [then] came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace [be] unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust [it] into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. – John 20:26-27

And it came to pass, that, while they communed [together] and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them. But their eyes were holden that they should not know him - Luke 24:15-16

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, [even] to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. – John 1:12-13

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and [of] the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. - John 3:5-7

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. - Romans 8:9

And the LORD God formed man [of] the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. – Genesis 2:7

For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, [who is] our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory. – Col 3:3-4

So also [is] the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam [was made] a quickening spirit. – I Cor 15:42-45

There is a physical body and a spiritual body, an earthy ark and a heavenly ark, an earthy temple and a heavenly temple, an earthy Jerusalem and a heavenly Jerusalem, an earthy holy mountain and a heavenly holy mountain, a throne of David and a throne of God. None of these are mutually exclusive.

To God be the glory!

[Quix]

INDEED!

AMEN! AMEN! AMEN!

NOTHING can thwart The Will of Almighty God of The Angel Armies.

Thanks for your insights, Dear Sister in Christ.

[Quix]

Plenty of times after reading something I have said to God, “I don’t git it...Show me more”...

But never, “Well, I’d say You’re wrong, God”...

= = =

INDEED! THAT'S HOLY SPIRIT BORN WISDOM

Quite a contrast compared to the

So Called "HIGHER" CRITICISM ALICE IN WONDERLAND REPLACEMENTARIAN CONTRARIAN PRETERIST SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY

and it's convoluted, rubberized, mangled, twisted, contorted, illogical, dismissive laws of so called Biblical Interpretation.

Am finding an inner zeal for THE WORD OF GOD uncommon even to me, this morning . . . rising up very fiercely within me. I find myself ready to yell out . . . WHERE IS THE LORD GOD OF ELIJAH--LET GOD ARISE AND HIS ENEMIES BE SCATTERED!

LET GOD ARISE AND THE LIES ABOUT HIS WORD BE SCATTERED!

I'll resist going to find a jawbone of a donkey.

But some folks need to resist the seductive lies of the enemy in distorting the WORD OF ALMIGHTY GOD.

It's interesting, when they cannot come up with a rational, Biblical, reasonable reply to my posts . . . they trot out the UFO/ET issue. Impressive. They know little or nothing about it, evidently--neither Biblically nor from solid study in our era . . . yet they seem to feel compelled to trot it out derisively when their arguments fall flat or can't even get started in reply to my feeble words or more importantly, even regarding what God has to say about the REPLACEMENTARIAN perspective in His Word etc.

[Quix]

Excellent examples.

The blinders necessary to pretend that the world is getting better and better are incredible.

They must be bot at the ALICE IN WONDERLAND SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY ONLINE SHOP.

[Quix]

The derisiveness of your uninformed post is noted. BUT I CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND--when there is no available argument to reply with--it's soooooooo convenient to toss out the UFO/ET stuff to slice and dice with. Must do wonders for the REPLACEMENTARIANS' credibility.

1. I don't believe God needs UFO's in the least.

2. It remains to be seen whether GOD OF THE ANGEL ARMIES will use more of Ezekiel's chariots in our era, or not.

3. Abductions do not occur with authentic Christians--especially without any 'invitation' from some occult activity etc.

4. Any spiritual world harrassments or assaults in my youth were countered effectively by THE NAME AND BLOOD OF JESUS.

5. How many times would you like me to repeat: (A) My close relative worked within sight of the craft on a daily basis.

(B) I've studied the topic since at least 1962--in contrast to swallowing hook line and sinker the disinformation of the MSM--that being very immpressive FREEPER behavior to swallow the MSM party line so completely. /sar

(C) Willful blindness about the disinformation and deceptions in the vast subject area of the FALLEN ANGELS/ NEPHILIUM/ WATCHERS/ ET's AND THEIR DOINGS IN OUR ERA WILL NOT STOP the march and sweep of END TIMES prophetic history future one micro-gram's worth.

(D) Many Christian FREEPERS will find sackcloth and ashes the most suitable garb once some things start happening more overtly and rapidly.

(E) The events will be beyond shame and humiliation. The emotions will be beyond tears and fear. Whole paradigms and whole systems of structured REALITY ITSELF will come tumbling down in flash. And you will remember that I have so warned you well ahead of time.

(F) Men's hearts WILL FAIL THEM UTTERLY AND TOTALLY FROM FEAR as SCRIPTURE PREDICTS--in our era.

(G) Many folks are wise enough to avoid pontificating about a topic they know little about. Others brazenly slice and dice in an arena they are blind and uninformed-to-the-max in.

(H) Whether the UFO/ ET aspect is more overtly displayed within 1-3 years as the Iraq war winds down--plausible given Dr Werner von Braun's warning in 1974 about the war on terror to come; the war with Iraq to come and the war with ET in space to come after the prior two scheduled wars . . . or whether it will be closer to whatever is scheduled around 2012 . . . remains to be seen. But it WILL happen.

(I) Those of us who keep tabs on such things have already seen considerable prelimary preparing of the populace at new levels, degrees, qualities of disclosure.

(J) CHRIST HIMSELF warned HIS FOLLOWERS, HIS TRUE SHEEP, to WATCH, LOOK UP; BE PREPARED, DISCERN THE TIMES. Only fools disobey CHRIST JESUS LORD OF LORDS AND KING OF KINGS.

[Lord_Calvinus]

***I have never opened the Bible and read something and then said, “Well God, I just don’t believe You...”***

Essentially, this is EXACTLY what you are doing. In Acts 1 it clearly states that as the disciples saw Jesus taken up in the clouds he will return in that same manner. Now, in order for you to make that somehow “fit” your theology, you are inventing all kinds of insane ideas:

1. Clouds in space: The problem here is that Acts 1 states that a cloud took the Lord into heaven and he will return in the same manner. Clouds don’t exist in space. Clouds exist in our atmosphere. So, in order for your theology to make sense, you must just make up stuff out of Science Fiction.

2. a single cloud covering the entire earth: Every eye will see HIM, not the clouds. Inventing nonexistent global coverage clouds doesn’t help you. Besides, half the earth is asleep.

3. Lightening from the east to west: Again, every eye will see HIM, not lightning. And, that much charged energy in the atmosphere would have deadly consequences. People would be hiding from it.

4. TeeVee: Only American arrogance seems to suggest that the whole world has access to this type of media.

I suppose at this point, you will stray further into as Quix puts it ALICE IN WONDERLAND THEOLOGY to justify making the Bible say what it doesn’t really say. I suppose you will now invent some event to have everyone awake and outside at the same time looking up. But, you still have to contend with the natural cloud in Acts 1 which didn’t cover the earth and wasn’t in space that took the Lord.

[Uncle Chip]

So, Jesus’ coming in the clouds will now be space clouds. That, along with this UFO idea means that at this point Dispensationalism has about zero crediblity.

Ohhh ... Okay ... well then just reach over into your Old Scratch Preterist Bible and make sure that Revelation 1:7 is scratched out there where it says: "Behold He cometh with clouds and every eye shall see Him".

And scratch out all the rest of those pesky little verses while you're at it.

[Quix]

So, Jesus’ coming in the clouds will now be space clouds. That, along with this UFO idea means that at this point Dispensationalism has about zero crediblity.
Ohhh ... Okay ... well then just reach over into your Old Scratch Preterist Bible and make sure that Revelation 1:7 is scratched out there where it says: “Behold He cometh with clouds and every eye shall see Him”.

And scratch out all the rest of those pesky little verses while you’re at it.

= = =

INDEED.

AND while they are at it . . . they’d better wind up the delusion that God won’t care at all about their flushing portions of HIS WORD.

[Lord_Calvinus]

Behold, He is coming with giant space clouds of metrion gas, and every eye will see Him on TV orbiting the globe, even they who pierced Him from their graves. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him and the massive saucer fleet of attack aliens.

Do you really think the Bible reads something like that??? Do you really? Cause that doesn’t exist in the Bible, but on the SciFi shelf at the B&N.

[Quix]

Trying to get your rubber REPLACEMENTARIAN BIBLES to read like a normal Bible is an exercise in futility.

Try accepting the real Bible at face value and taking it for what it says.

It’s not THAT difficult . . . except . . . evidently . . . for REPLACEMENTARIANS.

[1000 silverlings]

So, Jesus’ coming in the clouds will now be space clouds

Maybe He'll harness up Old Zeke's chariot and swing low

[Uncle Chip]

Do you really think the Bible reads something like that??? Do you really? Cause that doesn’t exist in the Bible, but on the SciFi shelf at the B&N.

Do you believe that the Lord God is incapable of "coming with clouds" and in a way so that "every eye shall see Him"????

or do you believe that John was lying when he wrote the words: “Behold He cometh with clouds and every eye shall see Him” [Rev 1:7]???

Which is it???