Norman Gulley

A Christ-centered Approachto Last-Day Events

Copyright © 1998 byReview and Herald® Publishing AssociationInternational copyright secured

The author assumes full responsibility for the accuracy of all facts and quotations as cited in this book.

Unless otherwise noted, Bible texts in this book are from the Holy Bible, New InternationalVersion. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, International Bible Society. Used by permission of ZondervanBible Publishers.

Bible texts credited to Moffatt are from: The Bible: A New Translation, by James Moffatt.Copyright by James Moffat 1954. Used by permission of Harper & Row, Publishers, Incorporated.

Scripture quotations marked NASB are from the New American Standard Bible, © The LockmanFoundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977.

Texts credited to NKJV are from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982,by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Bible texts credited to RSV are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright ©1946, 1952, 1971, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches ofChrist in the U.S.A. Used by permission.

Texts credited to RV are from The Revised Version, Oxford University Press, 1911.

This book wasEdited by Gerald WheelerCopyedited by Eugene LincolnJacket designed by Ron J. PrideCover photo/illustration: PhotoDisc/Ron J. PrideTypeset: 11/12 Times

PRINTED IN U.S.A.

02 01 00 99 5 4 3 2

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication DataGulley, Norman R.

Christ is coming! : a Christ-centered approach to last-day events/Norman Gulley.

p. cm.Includes bibliographical references.

1. Seventh-day Adventists—Doctrines. 2. End of the world.3. Second Advent. I. Title.

BX6154.G85 1998236—dc21 98-23498

CIP

ISBN 0-8280-1335-7

“For more than 30 years Norman Gulley has been teaching and writing about the last things.His doctoral dissertation focused on Karl Barth’s eschatology, and Gulley brings a depth of re-flection and richness of research to this book. Christ Is Coming, the pinnacle of his life’s work,makes a major contribution to the Adventist Church and to Christian thought in general. What im-presses me most about this book is Gulley’s love for Christ and the assurance that He brings aswe face the end-time.” William G. Johnsson, Ph.D.

Executive Publisher and EditorAdventist Review

“Seventh-day Adventists for too long have anticipated the end of this world with fear and trep-idation. Norman Gulley successfully challenges that premise. He demonstrates that ‘the real timeof trouble is for those who hate God’s people, and seek to eradicate them.’ The author has givenus a work that encompasses far more than predictions about last-day events. It summarizes thelifework of one who has taught systematic theology for almost 40 years.”

Rose OtisVice PresidentNorth American Division

“At last a thorough treatment of the Adventist doctrine of eschatology with a solidly biblicaland Christ-centered focus! Eschatology is treated wholistically, within the larger perspective ofthe biblical worldview and the major alternative worldviews and end-time movements. This bookwill be an invaluable guide to last-day events for college and seminary students as well as pastorsand laypersons. I plan to use it as my textbook for my seminary class in biblical eschatology.”

Richard M. Davidson, Ph.D.Old Testament DepartmentAndrews University Theological SeminaryJ. N. Andrews Professor of Old Testament

Interpretation and Chair

“Gulley’s book provides an exciting, positive picture of the Second Coming for those whosefaith is in the Lord. It is well grounded in Scripture, written in an easy-to-grasp style, yet providesadditional material for those who wish to dig deeper. A must read for every Adventist who believesand hopes for the soon return of our Lord.” Randall W. Younker, Ph.D.

Director, Ph.D./Th.D. programsAndrews University Theological Seminary

“A comprehensive, sensible, thoroughly Adventist, thoroughly Christ-centered look at adoctrine of the end-times. This book fills a major gap in Adventist publication.”

Jon Paulien, Ph.D.Professor of New Testament InterpretationAndrews University Theological Seminary

“Christ Is Coming! is the most comprehensive volume on last-day events in the light of thegreat controversy that has ever been written. With its focus on Christ instead of the crisis, it bringshope to the heart and refreshes the soul.” Jack J. Blanco, Th.D.

Dean, School of ReligionSouthern Adventist University

Norman Gulley’s book Christ Is Coming! is a comprehensive, yet easy-to-read discussionof the major issues regarding salvation, the understanding of Scripture, and the end-timeprophecies. Its evaluation of the deceptive end-time doctrines of our time is beneficial for everyreader. Its greatest contribution is the consistent application of the everlasting gospel to theprophetic Word of God.” Hans K. LaRondelle, Th.D.

Professor Emeritus of TheologyAndrews University Theological Seminary

Christ Is Coming! is written to give the reader step- by-step instructions on how to preparefor the final events in the great controversy. Gulley takes complex contemporary themes and de-velops them into a simple, concise writing style for average people.”

Oliver J. McKinneyMinisterial Association SecretarySouthern Union Conference

“If you are serious about watching and working while awaiting the parousia of our Lord,Norm Gulley’s thoroughgoing volume will help render the journey informed and expectant. I’llbe keeping my copy close at hand.” Mervyn A. Warren, Ph.D., D.Min.

Chairman of ReligionOakwood College

“The book is fragrant with hope, faith, and confidence in Christ’s soon return, and I’vebeen deeply moved by it. Those who know and love Norman Gulley as a teacher will hear hisvoice in every line, and if they listen carefully, they will hear Christ’s voice as well.”

Ed Christian, Ph.D.Assistant Professor of English and BibleKutztown University of Pennsylvania

“One of the most popular religion classes at Southern Adventist University is Last-Day Events,taught by Norman R. Gulley. From years of experience and deep study he offers a unique textbookthat is for all members of the church.” Leo Van Dolson, Ph.D.

Adjunct Professor of Religion and Health Evangelism

Southern Adventist University

“With the impressive thoroughness we’ve come to expect, Norm Gulley has done the Seventh-day Adventist Church and the Christian church in general a great service in preparing a textbookon last-day events. . . . It holds a wealth of immediately relevant information that every concernedand committed Christian will want to read.” Warren Ashworth, Ph.D.

Professor of ReligionPacific Union College

“This comprehensive volume is a must for all who want to hear the present heartbeat ofcentrist Adventist eschatology.” Arthur N. Patrick, D.Min., Ph.D.

Visiting Associate ProfessorChurch History and Pastoral MinistryLa Sierra University

“A comprehensive and all-encompassing overview of where we are today in terms of last-day events. Dr. Gulley has written a book that all Seventh-day Adventists should read, whetherthey would agree with every point or not.” Clifford Goldstein

Editor, Liberty

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This book is dedicated to all my students, past, present, and future. Whatan inspiration and joy to have you in my classes! I dedicate the book tothose I have had the privilege of presenting last-day events to at campmeetings, workers’ meetings, and weekend seminars. You too were sucha blessing to me! I look forward to more. I have learned from you. Last,

I want to dedicate the book to each reader, that you may be encouraged to joy-fully face final events.

Iwant to thank the Review and Herald® Publishing Association for undertakingto publish this volume. I salute you for sensing the church needs a textbook/sourcebook on last-day events. Special thanks are due Richard Coffen, vicepresident for editorial; Gerald Wheeler, assistant vice president; JeannetteJohnson, acquisitions editor; and Tim Crosby, editor-at-large. I am grateful to

these persons and to all the team who worked so well on the project. As always,Gerald Wheeler did excellent work in editing.

I want to thank those who gave such kind and generous endorsements of thisbook. Their words are an encouragement. Above all, I want to thank my Saviourfor the many ideas that came to me while looking at last-day events from His per-spective. I have sensed His presence with me in the research and writing of thisbooks, and worship and adore Him for His gracious leading during the many yearsof gathering and thinking through the data.

Grateful thanks to Peggy Bennett, director of libraries and her staff for obtain-ing interlibrary loan books and articles through the McKee Library at SouthernAdventist University.

Dedication

Acknowledgments

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Foreword

The heartbeat of Adventism is succinctly expressed in the words of theHymn, “We have this hope which burns within our hearts, hope in the com-ing of the Lord.”

While early Adventists eagerly grasped the prophecies of the SecondComing, their focus centered not so much upon the doctrine per se as on Christ

Himself. It was with tears of joy and eager anticipation that they looked forward toseeing their Saviour and Lord. That hope is still the spirit of Adventism today.

As the good news of salvation through Christ alone and His soon return is broad-cast by satellite and shared with others by millions of Adventists around the world,the great controversy between Christ and Satan is intensifying. Planet Earth, filledwith people for whom Christ died, hurtles through the pre-Advent time zone withcomparatively few aware that they are heading toward the end of human history. Thefaster we travel, the greater our need of the Holy Spirit to help us focus on Christ in-stead of the crisis while at the same time recognizing the hazards along the way.

Dr. Norman Gulley has provided a comprehensive, Christ-centered volume onend-time events, movements, and scriptural teachings crucial to our understandingand safety. Postmodern thinking, which holds opposite values to be equally true;spirituality without the authority of Scripture; theistic evolution without 24-hour daysof creation and a weekly Sabbath; worship as entertainment; and apparitions of Marywith supposed messages from heaven are only a few of the hazards exposed.

While Dr. Gulley wrote Christ Is Coming! first as a textbook for Seventh-dayAdventist young people, I recommend it to all of whatever age and Christian per-suasion whose hope is the return of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Robert S. Folkenberg

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INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23PREFACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

PART ONE l INFORMATION FOR THE JOURNEY

CHAPTER 1 l HOPE FOR POSTMODERNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Defined . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Differences Between Modernity and Postmodernity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Difficulties in Postmodernity for the Study of End-time Events. . . . . . . . . . 31Postmodern Theory Cannot Be Lived . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32Limits to Pluralism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34Opportunities in Postmodernism for Truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34The Gospel as Transcultural, Transgenerational . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36The X Generation and Truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

CHAPTER 2 l THE LARGER BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

The Larger Worldview of Scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

CHAPTER 3 l CHRIST KNOWS THE FUTURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Process Thinking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47Process Theology as Threat to Christianity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48The Issue of Personal Freedom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50A Deeper Dimension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Contents

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Faulty Idea of Freedom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51True Freedom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51The Truth About God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51Christ as Revelation of God . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52Crossless Theology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

CHAPTER 4 l CHRIST IN CONTROL OF FINAL EVENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Escape From Egypt. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57Red Sea . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58Our Greatest Danger. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59Go Possess the Land. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59The Other Giant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60Other Giants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

CHAPTER 5 l SNEAK PREVIEW INTO LAST-DAY EVENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Importance of Daniel and Revelation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62Entirely New Religious Experience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63The Book of Daniel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63The Book of Revelation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65Another Major Division in Revelation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66Two Further Structures in Revelation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66The Great Controversy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

CHAPTER 6 l DISPENSATIONAL FINAL EVENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

System of Biblical Interpretation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71The Roots of the Movement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72Dispensational Hermeneutics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72Is the Present Return of Israel Prophetic? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80Calvary as Christ’s Last Word About Israel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83The Future. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

CHAPTER 7 l OTHER VIEWS ON FINAL EVENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Nineteenth-Century Ideas About the End . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

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Twentieth-Century Ideas About the End . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94Danger of Historical Criticism of Scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96Biblical Eschatology Is Three-dimensional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97Christological Eschatology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

CHAPTER 8 l THE ROLE OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Earmarks of the Counterfeit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102How Satan Has Made a Counterfeit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103Catholicism in the End-time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

CHAPTER 9 l THE ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

CHAPTER 10 l MODERN SPIRITUALISM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

The Pretense of Spiritualism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128No Protection in Churches Against Spiritualism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128Role of Spiritualism in the End-time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129Masterpiece of Deception. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

CHAPTER 11 l THE CHARISMATIC MOVEMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Challenge to End-time Christians. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132Extensive Influence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133Astonishing Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133Roots and Focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134Importance of Acts to Tongues-speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134The Debate on Tongues in Acts and Corinthians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135Biblical Evaluation of Tongues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137The Two-Baptism Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137Tongues as a/the Sign. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137Why Spirit Baptism After Conversion in Acts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138The Real Meaning of the Full Gospel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138The Function of the Spirit Since Pentecost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140The Sign of the Spirit’s Presence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141Tongues and the “Spirit of Truth” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142Non-Christian Tongues-speaking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143“Christian Tongues” Induced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

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Bypassing the Conscious Mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145Linguistic Analysis of Tongues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147Why Tongues? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147Tongues Movement as Fulfillment of Prophecy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

CHAPTER 12 l THEOSOPHY: ROOTS OF THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT . . . . . . 159

Where We’ve Come So Far . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159The End-time Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160New Age of Synthesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162Brief Overview of Roots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162Pierre Teilhard de Chardin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163Theosophical Preparation for the New Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163Helena P. Blavatsky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164Alice A. Bailey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166Reappearance of Christ. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167The Coming Teacher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

CHAPTER 13 l THE NEW AGE MOVEMENT AND END-TIME EVENTS. . . . . . 179

When Does It Begin? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179New Paradigm Shift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180Humanity Taking Charge of Evolution? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183Global Consciousness. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185Global Union and the Antichrist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

CHAPTER 14 l THE NEW AGE ATTACK ON JESUS CHRIST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

In the End-time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193False Gospel Promoted. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ, 1907. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193The Urantia Book, 1955 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197A Course in Miracles, 1976 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200Is One Greater Than Christ to Come? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204

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CHAPTER 15 l THE CHRISTIAN COALITION AND THE ENDGAME . . . . . . . . . 211References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

CHAPTER 16 l DOMINION ESCHATOLOGY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

Goal: World Dominion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

CHAPTER 17 l PRECURSORS OF END-TIME ESCHATOLOGY . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Savonarola in Florence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235John Calvin’s Geneva. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237Oliver Cromwell in England . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237Puritans in England and New England. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238Religion and State United in Other Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242Confusion of God’s Kingdom With the World’s Kingdoms . . . . . . . . . . . . 242The Kingdom in Premodern Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244The Kingdom in Modern Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244Biblical Views of the Kingdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

CHAPTER 18 l YOU WILL NOT SURELY DIE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

The Trump Card in the End-time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254Debate About Death . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

CHAPTER 19 l THE INTERMEDIATE STATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

He Saw Her Last Night . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260The “Already” and “Not Yet” Eschatological Tension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260Intermediate State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

CHAPTER 20 l PURGATORY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

More Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268Where Did the Idea Come From? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269Protestants Take Note. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275

CHAPTER 21 l HOLISTIC VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Contemporary Holistic Anthropology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

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What About Soul Sleep? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281

CHAPTER 22 l THE CHRISTIAN VIEW OF DEATH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

Old Testament Insights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284New Testament Insights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287Death and Spiritualism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291Death as the Last Enemy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293Christ’s Return and the Resurrected Saints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293Christ’s Teaching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294Christ’s Death . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

CHAPTER 23 l THE DEBATE ON HELL HEATS UP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299

The Hell-Death Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299Those Opposing Hell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304

CHAPTER 24 l THE CASES FOR AND AGAINST HELL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305

Taught in Scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305Taught by Christ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305Examples Seeming to Confirm Hell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306The Case Against Hell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311

CHAPTER 25 l THE BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW AND HELL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312

The Question of Justice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

CHAPTER 26 l THE BATTLE AGAINST THE SABBATH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

Satan’s Guise in Attacking Christ and His Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326A Look at History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333

CHAPTER 27 l THE SABBATH IN CRISIS? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335

Three Views on the Sabbath. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335Old and New Covenant Dichotomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336Sabbath Not Rejected in the New Covenant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336

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Sabbath Not a Creation Ordinance? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337Sabbath as Temporary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338Sabbath as a Creation Ordinance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338The Creator/Redeemer Dichotomy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

CHAPTER 28 l SATAN’S SUNDAY SABBATH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344

Sunday in the New Testament . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 345Sunday Worship in the New Testament Questioned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346Origin of Sunday Observance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347Sabbath as a Type. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348Sunday as a Moral Commandment?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349Sunday and Religious Liberty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350

CHAPTER 29 l THE CHRISTIAN SABBATH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351

Sabbath as Essence of the Gospel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352Types Met Fulfillment in Christ. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352Sabbath More Than a Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353Sabbath Remains for Christians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353The End-time Sabbath Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354How to Prepare for the Coming Crisis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357

CHAPTER 30 l THE REAL ISSUE IN THE COMING SUNDAY LAW . . . . . . . . . 358

The Purpose of the Sabbath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359Sabbath as Creation Ordinance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360Sabbath Unfolded in Salvation History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360Old Testament Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361New Testament Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363The Real Issue in the Sunday Law. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365The Final Exodus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 370

CHAPTER 31 l EVOLUTION: A THEORY IN CRISIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

The Mission of Seventh-day Adventists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375Massive Influence of Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376Influence on Christians. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377Evolution of Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378

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Recent Publications Calling Evolutionary Theory Into Question . . . . . . . . 379The Parameters of Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380Causation as a Part of Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381The Origin of Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384

CHAPTER 32 l EVIDENCES AGAINST EVOLUTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388

Descent or Design. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388The Function of DNA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389Complexity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391The Human Eye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393The Cell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 396

CHAPTER 33 l EVOLUTION UNDER FIRE AND AN END-TIME CHALLENGE . . 398

Natural Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398The Fossil Record Doesn’t Support Darwin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400Punctuated Equilibrium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402Cambrian Explosion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402Cladistics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403Molecular Biology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404Evolutionary Logic Questioned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404Evolution as a Religion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405The Changing Evolutionary Worldview and the Challenge

to Seventh-day Adventist Mission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 408

CHAPTER 34 l THE PRE-ADVENT JUDGMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410

Jesus Understands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410The Pre-Advent Investigation in Its Biblical Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411Pre-Advent Judgment in Daniel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423

CHAPTER 35 l THE GOOD NEWS OF THE PRE-ADVENT JUDGMENT. . . . . . . 427

Day of Atonement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427Pre-Advent Judgment in Hebrews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428Revelation Corroborates Daniel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431The Good News About the Pre-Advent Judgment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436

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CHAPTER 36 l THE MILLENNIUM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438

The Kingdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439Postmillennialism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440Dominion Theology—A Form of Postmillennialism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441Amillennialism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444Dispensational Premillennialism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446Historic Premillennialism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 448Why the Millennium Is in Heaven, and Not on Earth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450A Closer Look at Revelation 20. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 452The Purpose of the Millennium . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453The Everlasting Kingdom Reign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 455References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 455

CHAPTER 37 l HOW TO HAVE ASSURANCE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458

The Good News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 459Christ in You . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460Devotion to Christ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461

PART TWO l THE JOURNEY

CHAPTER 38 l IT’S THE END-TIME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465

Look What’s Coming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465Gathering for the Journey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466Where Should We Begin? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467So Let’s Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 468The Other Road . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469What Happened Next . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475

CHAPTER 39 l SATAN’S FINAL PUSH FOR WORLD DOMINATION . . . . . . . . . 476

Behold the Lamb . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 476A Gathering Under Way. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478The Christian Front and Sunday. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480The Sunday Battleground . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481Satan’s Final Takeover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483

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CHAPTER 40 l ALL THE WORLD WONDERED . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484

The Sea Beast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484America in the End-time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 486Strategy of the Christian Coalition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488Look Out—It Could Happen Again . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489Another Trap. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 490Fire From Heaven. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 490Where Are We Now? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491The Bottom Line. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 494

CHAPTER 41 l THE EARLY TIME OF TROUBLE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 495

The Holy Spirit in Charge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 495Coming Pentecost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 496The Stealth Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 498The Thief in the Night . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 498The Holy Spirit Resisted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500How Many Adventists Will Experience the Thief in the Night?. . . . . . . . . 501How to Prepare for the Latter Rain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502How the Disciples Prepared for Pentecost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503Enoch as Mentor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 504Results of the Coming Pentecost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 505References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506

CHAPTER 42 l A DOUBLE GATHERING UNDER WAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 507

Two Gatherings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509Another Vital Context . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515Elijah a Type of the End-time Saints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517

CHAPTER 43 l THE GREAT TIME OF TROUBLE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518

Too Late . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518Probation Closes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 519Satan’s Final Fling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521Where Are the Saints? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 522Why the Great Time of Trouble? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 522Time of Judgment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 524The Larger View of the Great Time of Trouble . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 526

21

Other Events in the Great Time of Trouble . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530The Great Time of Trouble as Remembered by Christ’s Bride. . . . . . . . . . 535References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 536

CHAPTER 44 l THE GREATEST RESCUE OF ALL TIME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538

The Importance of Calvary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 539Can Humans Delay the Advent? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 540Threefold Dimension of Last-day Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 542Two Pictures of the Second Advent. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 544Armageddon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 545The Book of Esther. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 552

CHAPTER 45 l THE OTHER JOURNEY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553

The Great Divide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553The Mysterious Hand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 554The Second Coming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 554Homeward Bound. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 555Heaven at Last . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 557How Could He Do It?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558An Unforgettable Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558The 1,000-Year Vacation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 559Going Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 559Armageddon, Part II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 560The Final Revelation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 560An Empty Heaven?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 562Calvary Forever . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 562References. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 563

BIBLICAL INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 565NAME INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 577TOPICAL INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 583

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Our planet rushes toward its ren-dezvous with destiny. Time isrunning out. Will we make it tothe third millennium? One thingis certain. People around the

world sense that something is coming.Never before have people around theworld had so many angel encounters.Never before have there been so manyapparitions of the virgin Mary. Neverbefore have psychics become so widelyaccepted. Never before has spiritualismhad such a worldwide impact, as seen inthe New Age and charismatic move-ments. Never before has the CatholicChurch had such global influence.Never before have Christians been in aposition to dominate American politicsas in the Christian Coalition. Somethingis going on behind the scenes.

Planet Earth moves like a planeon a transoceanic flight. It has been along time since takeoff, and the triphas been bumpy at times. Yet lookahead. A dreary, dark, dense skythreatens. Black, surly storm cloudsgather along the whole horizon. Theybegin to surround and shake the

plane. No detour offers an escapearound the storm. Planet Earth mustmove into it. The most stupendouscrisis of all time is about to unfold.The early time of trouble, the greattime of trouble, and the time ofJacob’s trouble loom large ahead.Even now turbulence batters theplanet as it enters the fringes of thecoming storm.

Recently, near the beginning of thesemester, I took a survey of some stu-dents at Southern Adventist Universitywho were studying last-day events.The results showed that 49 percentworry about the present pre-adventjudgment, 56 percent are scared of last-day events (in fact, 41 percent wouldrather die than go through last-dayevents), 37 percent believe they gainentrance to heaven through Christ’ssacrifice plus their human efforts, 50percent are not sure they would besaved if they died today, and yet 88percent claimed they know Christ as apersonal friend.

That is a stunning revelation, whenyou realize they represent a cross sec-

Introduction

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24

tion of Seventh-day Adventist youthfrom all over the United States andother countries, studying a variety ofmajors. They are among the final gen-eration, yet many do not want to be partof it. Something is radically wronghere. And who could say that the re-sults would be any better if we re-searched older people?

To be afraid of last-day events ishuman. Who wants to exchange a com-paratively normal existence for what isjust ahead? Yet it will be our finest hour,one we’ll speak about forever in eter-nity, as we shall see later. It is the timewhen Satan faces resounding defeat. Heknows this and is out to take over notonly the world but Christians too!

As never before, Christians needfaith: a faith that keeps a steady gazeon the coming Christ beyond the crisis.Christ, and not the crisis, should oc-cupy their minds. For not so much whatis coming as who is coming should oc-cupy the mind. The outcome of a foot-ball game is not over until the fourthquarter. Satan causes havoc in finalevents, but Christ will have the lastword. But that’s not all. Christ will bewith His people through those finalevents. He promised, “Never will Ileave you; never will I forsake you”(Heb. 13:5). His presence will meaneverything to His followers. He will dofor them what they could never do forthemselves. Many people look at finalevents as if they have to go throughthem alone. No wonder they remainpetrified! But Christ longs that Hispeople look to Him. Jesus asked ifwhen the Son of man returns, would Hefind faith in the earth? (see Luke 18:8).

Perhaps here is the problem. Few willhave the necessary faith. Faith in Himwill make the decisive, determiningdifference for the journey through end-time turbulence.

In this book we will look frankly atthe coming crisis, but not apart from thepresent and coming Christ. As we rapidlymove toward the third millennium, it istime to let Christ liberate us from theshackles of fear. Do you long to hopeagain? Or even for the first time?

Since 1960 college and seminary stu-dents have taken my last-day eventsclass. It has been a joy to proclaim thegood news about final events throughthese classes and seminars in differentparts of the world. My conviction is thatmany Christians are far too scared offinal events. But when they hear of com-ing events in their Christ-centered con-text, fear falls away. “Then you willknow the truth, and the truth will set youfree” (John 8:32). For nearly 40 yearsI’ve rejoiced to see thousands of personsbegin to hope again. I have written thisbook so that you too may stop fearingcoming events. Satan is in the business ofgetting Christians fixated on what iscoming instead of on Christ.

By the way, I surveyed those stu-dents at the end of the semester. Ninety-six percent had lost their fear of last-dayevents. What a dramatic changewrought by Christ! They gained free-dom to rejoice in Him and now facefinal events as their privileged destiny.So can you! May God bless you andgive you freedom too. lNorman R. Gulley, Ph.D.Professor of Systematic TheologySouthern Adventist University

Bookshelves bulge with last-day-events books that claim to predictthe events awaiting us. Theyspeak about the new world order,the New Age movement, the se-

cret rapture, the alleged role of Israel inthe end-time, Armageddon, and the mil-lennium. Other books supposedly tell usabout life after death, with alleged re-ports from resuscitated human beingsreturning to speak about what they ex-perienced. More books report on thecoming one-world government, the mil-lennial kingdom, and America’s role infinal events. Reconstructionists, dispen-sationalists, and historicists all havetheir own ideas.

We need to know what is out thereand how to evaluate it. This book doessome of that for you. Above all, we needto see what Satan’s strategy is throughsuch movements. He is using the NewAge movement, the charismatic move-ment, spiritualism, channeling, the Chris-tian Coalition, and dominionists to takeover the planet. As Christ’s followers, weneed to know how the concept of processtheology undermines final events.

This book also looks at ideas thathave a definite bearing on final events.Satan will use Sunday sacredness andthe state of the dead as two pillars in theend-time. We will evaluate them.Today many people question the con-cept of hell, the view of the immediatesurvival of the soul at death, andDarwinian evolution. As Christians, weneed to know about such debates andthe biblical answers to them. All ofthese impact on last-day events. The is-sues of death and hell will form a partof final events for most Christians.Catholics add purgatory to the contro-versy. The proponents of all three con-cepts present them as final events forthe individual in a way that grabs thefocus from coming global or cosmicfinal events. What does the Bible speakabout them? We need to know, so thatwe have an answer to give our Christianfriends as well as having protection forourselves. In an unprecedented way inthe end-time Satan will confrontChristians with what seems to be theirdead loved ones.

Evolution challenges the first

Preface

CHRIST IS COMING!

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angel’s message of the book ofRevelation. Sunday directly attacks thethird angel’s message. Both messagesplay a central role in final events.We’ll study their meaning and exposethe counterfeits launched against them.And we will explore the real issue inthe coming Sunday law and examinethe deeper meaning of the Sabbath forsurvival through those final events.This book will consider the importanceof the pre-Advent judgment. All thesethings are vital to a preparation forfinal events and to give us insight to

face them unafraid.After looking at how to interpret

end-time events and evaluate end-timemovements and end-time doctrines, wethen take the journey through finalevents. If you want to skip to the jour-ney and take that first, then come backto the other sections, that is fine. Butmuch in the earlier material will helpmake the journey clearer and equip youfor the real journey just ahead. l

Unless otherwise stated, I have used the NewInternational Version of Scripture throughout.

Part One

Information for the Journey

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Hope for Postmoderns

Chapter 1

Today we’re in the midst of a pro-found transition from whatscholars call modernity to a newperiod they label as postmoder-nity. The human race has en-

tered a new era that presents unpre-cedented challenges and opportunitiesto our study of end-time events.

Many have attempted to describepostmodernity. “A massive intellectualrevolution is taking place,” DiogenesAllen says, “that is perhaps as great asthat which marked off the modern worldfrom the Middle Ages. The foundationsof the modern world are collapsing, andwe are entering a postmodern world.The principles formed during theEnlightenment (c. 1600-1780), whichformed the foundations of modern men-tality, are crumbling.”1

Leith Anderson says, “We are ex-periencing enormous structural changein our country and in the world—change that promises to be greater thanthe invention of the printing press,greater than the Industrial Revolution,and greater than the rise and demise ofCommunism. Our world is changing so

quickly that we can barely keep trackof what is happening, much less figureout how to respond.” 2

DefinedWe begin with a simple fact:

Postmodernity comes after modernity.The seventeenth-century Enlighten-ment, which dominated human questfor knowledge and understanding for200 years, launched the intellectual pe-riod we call modernity. Scientificmethod brought multiplied technologi-cal benefits, but it also negatively af-fected global ecology as well asbringing the human race to the brink ofa nuclear holocaust. As a result, its ear-lier belief in knowledge as inherentlygood came to a shattering end. Thus,early in the twentieth century thinkersbegan to challenge the modern world-view, and it continues to be questioned.

Postmodernity is also antimodernity.The modern worldview included the ac-ceptance of humanity’s inevitableprogress, often based on evolutionarytheory. We have now come to a genera-tion that for the first time does not see

any inevitable better future. The opti-mism of the Enlightenment, with itsvaunted belief in human reason, hasgiven way to pessimism and meaning-lessness. It is as if the world has suddenlyawakened to a reality check. Whereasscientific method, reason, and universalobjectivity influenced the modern world-view, postmodernity rejects scientificmethod, reason, and universal objectiv-ity. The collapse of a unified, rational,and meaningful worldview has thrownthe human race into a period in whicheach person approaches reality from hisor her own particular presuppositions andassumptions. No single worldview pro-vides a meaningful assessment of reality.“Defining the idea of postmodernism,”Gary Phillips writes, “is a bit like nailingdown Jell-O.”3

Differences Between Modernityand Postmodernity

When it comes to comparingmodernity and postmodernity, a radi-cal discontinuity overshadows the con-tinuities we do find. First, let us look atan example of continuity. The modernantipathy to metaphysics and the tran-scendental continues in postmodernity.“While modernism categorically de-nies the transcendent and spends agreat deal of time and effort attempt-ing to prove that the transcendent doesnot exist,” William E. Brown says,“Postmodernism confronts the tran-scendent with a yawn.” 4

Postmodernity especially champi-ons liberation causes. If we have notranscendent God, then human beingsthemselves have to become revolu-tionaries to bring change in their ownstrength and in their own way. The

new worldview defends the marginal-ized. Yet at the same time, as Carl F.H. Henry notes, “religion is marginal-ized and trivialized,” 5 and “Postmod-ernists have genuinely given up on theidea of absolute truth.” 6 What a para-dox—they have an absolute mission orright (to liberate), yet without an abso-lute mandate or truth, which leavesone wondering how even liberationcan be an absolute truth for them!

Modernistic philosophy shut Godout of our part of His universe. Itsclosed continuum worldview rejectedany inbreaking of the supernaturalwithin the normal operation of causeand effect. Huston Smith suggests thatthe modern mind thought that “seeingfurther in a horizontal direction wouldcompensate for loss of the vertical.”But modernistic philosophy failed torealize that human vision on the hori-zontal plane is still confined within aclosed universe and is thereforetrapped in its own subjectivity. Smithillustrates this vision with a line silhou-etting the Himalayan range. Modernitygrabbed both ends and pulled it into astraight line.7

Also modernity flaunted humanreason as the savior of all human prob-lems. Such extreme rationalism wasnot enlightened, although it was aproduct of the Enlightenment. Post-modernists rightly question such intel-lectual arrogance, but go too far byrejecting reason altogether.8 The solu-tion lies between the two extremes,employing a proper use of reason underthe guidance of Scripture to arrive atsolutions. After all, the God of all truthinvited humanity, “Come now, let usreason together” (Isa. 1:18).

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Difficulties in Postmodernityfor the Study of End-time Events

Postmodernism raises major diffi-culties when presenting end-timeevents. If we are to be relevant to ourgeneration, we must pay full attentionto the challenges that postmodernityposes. The first thing we must keep inmind is that we must think throughend-time events in light of the currentgeneration, not one that has alreadygone. We must present final eventsafresh for every generation. This doesnot change the content, but it maychange the way we communicate it.

1. Opposed to SystemHow can one present a systematic

presentation of the journey through end-time events when postmoderns reject thevery concept of such systems? We mustrealize it’s one thing to reject a system,and another thing to live a muddled life.Often the very ones rejecting such sys-tems still organize their day, plan theirvacations, and work in a routine manner,arriving at appointments on time.Modern life demands schedules,whether for travel, business, or listeningto the evening news. We find an inbuiltorderliness in air flights (sometimes),television programs, and the publicationof Reader’s Digest, National Geo-graphic, and U.S. News and WorldReport, to name a few examples.

Postmoderns oppose systems onlyon the theoretical level, not everydaylife. Yet there is no advantage to rejectsomething at the theoretical level thatproves eminently workable in ordinaryliving. We can understand why post-moderns want to discard the stricturesof modernity, the science that led to

ecological and nuclear threats to theplanet, but modernity has more to itthan that. It has a good side that contin-ues in postmodernity, because life ismore orderly than the theory of post-modernity allows.

2. Opposed to a CenterAlthough postmoderns reject the

idea of a center in every theory, theycannot live out the concept in practice.If God is not the center of a person’slife, then someone or something elsewill be. The Ten Commandments dealwith the problem up front. The veryfirst commandment says, “I am theLord your God, who brought you out ofEgypt, out of the land of slavery. Youshall have no other gods before me”(Ex. 20:2, 3). The Deuteronomy ac-count repeats it (Deut. 5:6, 7).

Humans are incurably worshipers,an important fact to remember, becausethe end-time confrontation will involveworship, and all humanity will partici-pate. The fact that human beings wor-ship stems from their creation by God(Gen. 1:26-31; 2:7, 20-25). God madethem for Himself. If they do not wor-ship God, they will worship some othergod or gods, which is why religion occurs in every culture, however primi-tive or advanced. Creation has pro-grammed human beings to seek a centerto their life, to give it meaning and se-curity. Postmodernity has not lessenedthe number of die-hard football andbaseball fans. Basketball still draws thecrowds, as do tennis, golf, and car rac-ing. People still seek after Hollywoodstars and praise them on Oscar nights.And work is often central to those want-ing to get ahead, whether in profes-

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HOPE FOR POSTMODERNS

sional or business life. Thus worka-holism didn’t recede with the advent ofpostmodernity. The effects of Creationand modernity still live on in spite ofpostmodernism’s decentering theory.

3. Opposed to Any WorldviewUnlike all prior ages, postmodernity

has no overarching worldview. Yet wecannot possibly live up to this theoreti-cal position. Postmodernity is a revoltexpressed in many different ways. Oneway occurs through liberation theology,a quest for political power influenced byMarxism. But even liberation theologyhas a worldview, seeing God as in thebusiness of liberating marginalized peo-ple. Thus the concept of liberation holdsthe center of this worldview. This is butone example of how a movement evenwithin postmodernity does have aworldview in practice.

Modernity had both a center and aworldview. Postmodernity has neither.Yet, paradoxically, postmodernity findsitself in a shrinking world that thinksmore in global terms, ranging fromeconomy to ecology. At the very timewhen philosophy seeks to throw order tothe winds, a global village has emerged,demanding even greater order. To thisextent, in many areas of life, a world-view has been thrust upon the very rev-olution that abandoned all worldviews.

4. RelativismBy rejecting any system, center, or

worldview, the only option left to post-modernity was relativism. But rela-tivism means that every individual hasa right to his or her own view. Thelocal situation has replaced the broadercontext, situation ethics usurped the

moral code, and personal preferencepushed aside values. “If it feels good”substituted for an objective norm.Order gives way to chaos, hope to nihilism, and the future to the ever-present. Reality has no goal, purpose,or fulfillment. Humanity has becomeless than human.

Such dysfunctionality cannot sus-tain a viable human existence. Wewant meaning in our lives. Post-moderns are desperate for meaning anda future. More than ever, they need toknow the good news about final eventson Planet Earth.

Postmodern Theory Cannot Be Lived

Having already noticed that it isimpossible to actually live out somepostmodern theories, we now take acloser look at this fact. FriedrichNietzsche (1844-1900), father of post-modernism, proclaimed God as deadand promoted nihilism, or meaning-lessness. Yet he discovered meaning ina social movement of his time and pro-moted it with gusto, thus demonstrat-ing that he could not practice his owntheory. Jean-Paul Sartre’s (1905-1980)world was one of meaninglessness, aworld without morals. Yet he couldn’tlive up to his theory when he signed theAlgerian Manifesto, “taking a positionas though morals have real meaning.” 9

A. J. Ayer suggested that onlymathematico-logical truths and empiri-cal truths are meaningful. All otherstatements that we cannot verify bysense data are “nonsense.” Thus allbiblical statements are meaningless.Such a view immediately confinestruth statements, or statements of

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meaning, to a very narrow slice of life.It forces us to renounce poetry, music,religion, and art. But how can anyonelive in such a narrowly prescribedworld? Furthermore, the theory couldnot stand under its own test for a truthstatement. After all, how can we possi-bly test a theory of language that ac-cepts only mathematico-logical andempirical statements by that standard?

René Descartes (1596-1650), thefather of modernity, used the methodof doubt. David Hume (1711-1776)took it to its ultimate conclusion, and itplunged him into utter skepticism.David K. Clark said that “Hume’s phi-losophy left him completely in the darkabout what to think, whom to trust,what cause to defend, or what activityto pursue. Given modern requirements,reason could not dispel his doubts. Buthe noticed that the company of friendsput him in better spirits. So he turned todining and backgammon to heal hisepistemological depressions. His phi-losophy, however, proved utterly im-potent to avoid skepticism.”10 Humeneeded relief from his theory, for itsimply could not be lived.

Jacques Derrida claims that “all in-terpretations are misinterpretation,” andthat a text has no clear meaning. But hejettisoned his theory once when he wasmisunderstood in a debate with JohnSearle. “Believing that Searle’s exposi-tion of his position had been unfair tohim, Derrida could not resist saying, atseveral points in his reply, that Searlehad misunderstood him and misstatedhis views, even adding at one point thatwhat he, Derrida, had meant shouldhave been clear enough and obvious toSearle. This is indeed a very far cry

from the claim that Derrida’s essentialposition cannot be stated as others can(or that a reader should not try to graspthe author’s intent!). Derrida thus aban-dons this position, just as others do,when he feels the need to replace a mis-statement of his view with an adequatestatement of it.” 11

Stanley Fish is “one of the most in-fluential literary theorists”12 and “radi-cal” reader-response theorists, focusingon meaning in the reading communityrather than in the biblical text itself.13

Reader-response is an important part ofthe postmodern scene. Fish goes so faras to maintain that “the text as a formalentity does not exist apart from thereader’s interpretive act.” 14 In fact,reader-response theorists believe thatreaders are coauthors with the biblicalwriters, and they give to the text themeaning it should have. That is, the texthas no real meaning in and of itself.

How could life operate on Fish’stheory? It would destroy any agree-ment on the American Constitution, forexample, or any other document, sothat every citizen could interpret it ashe or she chose. It would put the veryconcept of governance in jeopardy.Traffic signs would have no standardmeaning, and driving would be haz-ardous. Some may choose to drive onthe opposite side of the road, otherscould agree that red traffic lights indi-cate that you should drive straightthrough the intersection and that stopsigns would mean you have the right-of-way. Contracts would be impossibleand would bring business to a grindinghalt, for the same wording would implydifferent things to different people.

If a text has no meaning in itself,

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but only in the mind of the reader, thenno language would have meaning inand of itself either. It would exist onlyin the mind of the hearer. Life wouldsimply break down hopelessly on theseterms, for no one could ever be surethat he or she could communicate.How could one order from a catalogover the phone? How could any TVstation present the evening news? Whatpurpose would weather reports have?What would an emergency 911 call ac-complish? What meaning would a doc-tor’s diagnosis have? What woulduniversity teaching accomplish? Thelist is endless. It is simply impossible toaccept Fish’s reader-response theoryand make sense out of life.

Limits to PluralismThe pluralism of postmodernity

also causes chaos. As Mortimer J.Adler reminds us in his book Truth inReligion, “a stable and peaceful societycannot exist under the domination oftwo or more competing governmentsunless one is subordinate to theother.”15 Adler shows that pluralismhas always existed when it comes tomatters of taste and is tolerable in thatcontext, but not in the context of truth.16

He notes that “anything that is trans-cultural is clearly in the sphere oftruth.” Thus the pluralism endemic inpostmodernism cannot survive in prac-tice in certain contexts.

Opportunities in Postmodernismfor Truth

Despite all its problems, however,postmodernism does give opportunityfor truth to regain what it lost to mod-ernism. Too often the church capitulated

to the threat from modernism instead ofresisting. The modern worldview hadmore influence than the biblical world-view, and the church surrendered to it.The tragedy is now obvious as the mod-ern worldview has itself retreated beforethat of postmodernism.

1. Christianity’s Capitulation to Modernism

Postmodernism has called mod-ernism into question. Yet it is the verymodernism to which the church oftensurrendered to keep its intellectual re-spectability. Since the 1960s, in thepost-Vietnam era, many people haveturned away from the materialism ofthe West to the mysticism of the East.Some of them are seeking for whatthey sense is missing in the West.Turning to the East for fullness, theyexplore Hinduism and Buddhism.“Those dissatisfied with secularmodernity most often turn to the Eastor to the distant mythic past,” saysWilliam C. Platcher. “One reasonseems to be that Christianity cannotcriticize our culture very effectively ifit has already accepted many of the as-sumptions of that culture as the price ofintellectual respectability.” 17

The fact is, as Stanley Grenz reminds us, “most major Protestant de-nominations” “ ‘defected’ to ‘mod-ernism.’”18 Unsure of their own biblicalfoundation, they caved in to science andto culture. But the collapse of mod-ernism demonstrated the limitations ofscience. Science cannot deal with ulti-mate or existential meanings.“Theology need cater to our prevailingstyles of thought only if it wishes to,”says Huston Smith. “Nothing in the way

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of evidence requires that it do so.”19

With respect to culture, I concur withWilliam C. Platcher that “Christianitycannot criticize our culture very effec-tively if it has already accepted many ofthe assumptions of that culture as theprice of intellectual respectability.”20

Accommodation closely accompaniesthe desire for acceptance. To confineScripture to a cultural artifact is a case inpoint. Then Scripture ceases to be theWord of God to culture. Culture judgesScripture instead of the reverse.

2. More Room for ReligionModernism stifled religion by

closing the door to the transcendentwith its rejection of metaphysics. Itconfined the parameters of possiblethought and study to a closed contin-uum of cause and effect, so that it ineffect removed God from the realm ofhuman history. Science limited realityto the observable, so that the religiousdimension of human experience couldoccupy only an interior substitute forobjective reality. Now the collapse ofthis modern worldview has radicallyquestioned such strictures.

“In a way that has never been possi-ble in modernity, one can find philo-sophical or rational space for ‘giving anaccount for the hope that is in you,’”Don R. Stiver comments. “In otherwords, there is no philosophical hin-drance that a priori calls such a responseinto question. And given the importanceof reason in modernity, this renewedsense of the rationality of religion opensup a new social and cultural space forreligion. In other words, if the opportu-nity can be seized, postmodernity al-lows conceptual space for religion’s

stretching its arms and walking about ina way not possible in the cramped quar-ters allowed for it since the onset ofmodernity. The danger is that it maycontinue to pace back and forth in its all-too-familiar constricted confines, notknowing that the surrounding bars havelong ago rusted away.”21

3. Intellectual Strength of Christianity

Diogenes Allen, in his bookChristian Belief in a Postmodern World:The Full Wealth of Conviction, speaks of “a new openness for faith.” He re-minds us that Christianity has been onthe defensive intellectually during mod-ernism. During that period many havedeclared that the post-Christian age hasdawned, “on the basis of physics, biol-ogy, philosophy, psychology, sociology,and anthropology.”22

We are now in an age when philos-ophy and science, once used to attackChristianity, now find themselvesunder siege. During the reign of mod-ernism, Christianity came under severeattack for the first time. This was a re-volt against the authority found inchurch and Scripture. Human beingsbecame their own authority, andhuman reason ruled supreme. The his-torical-critical methods of biblicalstudy did their devastating work on thebiblical documents. Evolutionary the-ory radically called into question theGenesis account of Creation, and geol-ogy doubted the universal Flood story.Human reason elevated itself above di-vine revelation, thus bringing God’sWord captive to humanity. But thisworldview is now collapsing.

As Allen notes: “No longer can

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