“JOY TO THE WORLD”

joy-to-the-worldPMW 2025-102 by Jordan Wilson

Public Service Announcement:

“Joy to the World” is a Christmas song. Don’t get me wrong, I’m for singing it all year round, but I think it is especially appropriate to sing at Christmas.

To my fascination, I’ve seen a couple articles floating around which essentially misinterpret the song by forcing their own eschatological presuppositions and “poo poo” its traditional characterization as a Christmas song. Those of us who understand it in the sense of being a celebration of the first advent are then issued a slap on the wrist along with a disapproving tsk tsk. Continue reading

THE ISAIAH 9 CHILD

PMW 2025-101 by Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr.isaiah 9

In Isa. 9:1–7 we find a glorious climax to all the preceding prophetic material. Judah’s ultimate hope (vv. 1–2) is in the Messiah who will righteously rule (vv. 6–7) over a free and prosperous people (vv. 3–4). These words should spur the Jews to faithfulness during their time of fearful oppression (8:7–8). Had they acted in faith, God would have sent the Messiah much earlier, since God presents her with conditional promises (e.g., Lev. 26).

Isa. 9:1–2: He treated the land of Zebulun … with contempt
The northern parts of the land, which were the most distant from Jerusalem and the closest to the enemy, suffered the most (2 Kgs. 15:29). Yet they will one day be made glorious (v. 1). Their darkness will be turned to light (v. 2). Again, Judah’s judgment will not cause total destruction. This finally comes to pass in the New Testament when Jesus comes into the area (Matt. 4:13–16), which begins the dawn of a new day for the Gentiles.

Continue reading

HOW TO INTRODUCE PRETERISM (2)

PMW 2025-100 by Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr.

In my last article I began to suggest an effective strategy for presenting a preterist approach to Revelation to any dispensational friend you might have (and if you are in America and have Christians friends, they are almost certainly dispensational). Unfortunately, after I began that article I quickly strayed off the path and ended up following a few rabbit trails. Now I have found my way back and will present the promised article.

Remembering what has been stated
Though much was written in jest (i.e., jest in time, you might say) in my last article, there are a few things you must bear in mind as you attempt to introduce preterism to any associates. I noted the following two matters: (1) To make your introductory presentation manageable, I recommend concentrating on one key passage rather than ranging over dizzying array of several. And (2) you should begin at Revelation’s opening rather than jumping into some of the more exciting and familiar portions of the book. So, let me map at a battle plan for you. Continue reading

HOW TO INTRODUCE PRETERISM (1)

PMW 2025-099 by Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr.

In the modern evangelical world, we live in a dispensational-dominated reality. The average Christian leads a colorful life of expectation. He is either looking for a red heifer or a blood moon, while he plays pin-the-horns on the Antichrist. Consequently, it is difficult to get a hearing on even the possibility of a preterist analysis of everyone’s favorite book of the Bible: Revelation. And by this I mean, of course, an orthodox preterist approach to Revelation. Not the wholesale preterist theology of hyper-preterism, which is unorthodox heresy.

So, how can you introduce a preterist approach to Revelation in just the few minutes you will have before your head is bashed in with the New Scofield Reference Bible, or one of the other two dozen or so dispensational study Bibles written by “prophecy experts”? We must take to heart Jesus’ directive: “What thou doest, do quickly.” Continue reading

GOD IS A LOVING CREATOR (3)

PMW 2025-098 by Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr.

As I conclude this brief three-part study on God’s goodness to us in creation, I want to close with the fact that our Creator is perfectly righteous.

God Is Perfectly Righteous

The God who creates man and gives him all good things, is perfect and righteous. The Bible repeatedly speaks of God’s absolute righteousness, making such statements as:

“The Rock! His work is perfect, / For all His ways are just; / A God of faithfulness and without injustice, / Righteous and upright is He” (Deut 32:4).
“As for God, His way is blameless” (Psa 18:30a; 2 Sam 22:31).
“Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; Your judgments are like a great deep” (Psa 36:6).
“Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens” (Psa 71:19a).
“The ways of the LORD are right” (Hos 14:9).
“The LORD is righteous within her; / He will do no injustice. / Every morning He brings His justice to light; / He does not fail. / But the unjust knows no shame” (Zeph 3:5).

Jesus prays to God calling him “righteous Father” (John 17:25). Continue reading

GOD IS A LOVING CREATOR (2)

PMW 2025-097 by Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr.

This is my second article in a three-part series on God’s goodness as our Creator. Postmillennialists should emphasize God’s goodness in creation because his goodness guides creation to its good end. We believe that even though the world will never be perfect before Christ returns, we will make dramatic advances toward perfection as the gospel progresses in history.

Now I will consider the fact that:

God Creates Man

The Bible opens in its first chapter with the majestic march of six days. In Genesis 1 we read the record of God’s unfolding creative process as it leads to its climax in the creation of man (Gen 1:26–28). Man is the very goal of creation, and its high point. In fact, though it necessarily mentions the creation of the starry heavens (Gen 1:1, 14–16), the creation record intentionally focuses on a small part of the universe: the earth, its flora and fauna . . . and man (Gen 1:2–13, 17–30). And even the creation of the sun, moon, and stars is for the purpose of giving light on earth the special arena of God’s creative work (Gen 1:14–16). Continue reading

GOD IS A LOVING CREATOR (1)

PMW 2025-096 by Kenneth L. Gentry, Jr.

The postmillennial hope is rooted in the goodness of our loving God, who is our Creator. Thus, evidence of the postmillennial hope can be found in the creation account in Genesis 1–2.

Genesis is the book of beginnings, and for our purposes we will focus on its presentation of the beginning of the world, of man, and the revelation of God’s goodness to man. In order to properly understand our spiritual hope in a God-given salvation we must recognize our historical context in a God-created world. Neither Christianity nor salvation can be abstracted from the real world. Christianity is not a magical and mystical faith, but an historical and supernatural one. Continue reading