To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com
From: James Trimm
Subject: John Darby and the Pre-Tribulation Rapture
It was John Darby founder of the Plymouth
Brethren and creator of
Dispensationalism that greatly popularized the Pre-Trib rapture of the
Church.
During the 1820's and 1830's Darby
developed a new systematic theology
called "Dispensationalism." Dispensationalism has since become very
popular in Christendom. It is a fact that Dispenstionalism did not
exist until the nineteenth century. It has no roots in Judaism whatsoever
and did not even exist in Christianity until the 19th century.
Like most 19th century theologians John
Darby was an anti-nomian, he
believed that the Law of Moses had passed away at the cross. Darby was
disturbed however with certain problems created by that theology. Darby
noticed that during the seven years of Daniel's final week the offerings
are being made at the Temple. Since the Law of Moses was clearly being
kept during this seven year tribulation, Darby conluded that the Law comes
back into effect at the beginning of the tribulation. This train of
thought caused Darby to segragate biblical and prophetic history into
compartmentalized ages. Darby theorized an age of Law that ended at the
cross and an age of grace or church age that began at the cross. Then at
the seven year tribulation the age of Law kicks back in and the church age
of grace ends. This created a problem for Darby's theory. How can the age
of Law return if the Church is still here? Darby saw the age of Law as an
age in which God dealt with Israel and the tribulation as a return to God
dealing with Isarel. So what happens to the Church? Surely the Church
will not leave Grace and come under the Law of Moses. As a result Darby
adopted the idea of a pre-trib rapture. This idea had the Church leave the
earth at the beginning of the tribulation, leaving Israel behind to enter
the tribulation and the age of law's return. Darby now had another
problem. If the Church is raptured leaving Israel behind, then what about
so-called "Jewish Christians." Do they get raptured with the Church, or
stay behind with Israel. Darby proposed yet another solution:
Church/Israel dichotomy. This theory taught that a Jew who becomes a
believer in Messiah becomes part of the Church and is no longer part of
Israel. As a result no one can be both a part of the Church and Israel.
Jewish believers, according to this theory, stop being Jews and become part
of the Church of God, which he taught contained people that are not Jews or
gentiles.
Thus the three pillars of Dispensationalism are:
1) The Law is not for today
2) The pre-trib rapture
3) Church Israel dichotomy
Now Messianic Jews cannot accept that the Law is not for today or Church
Israel Dichotomy. The Pre-Trib rapture was only needed because of a belief
that the Law is not for today. The PreTrib rapture does not work without
Church/Israel Dichotomy which was created to solve problems created by a
Pre-Trib rapture. Two of the three pillars which must be present to
support Dispensationalism are noncompatable with Messianic Judaism.
Moreover the only remaining pillar cannot stand alone, it only exists to
solve a problem created by the Law not for today theory, and it cannot
stand without Church/Israel dichotomy. When examined in light of the
truths that Messianic Judaism has, the whole structure of Dispensationalism
comes crashing down. It is a late19th century invention of Christendom
with NO roots in first century Judaism at all.
James Trimm
>From Eddie:
**************
Some other
thoughts to consider .... when you examine
God's Covenant with Abraham which I wrote about in my book, "Who is
the Bride of Christ?"
(http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/2175/bridch13.html)
God's
promise to Abraham was passed to Isaac and then
to Jacob. Jacob name was changed to ISRAEL. ALL 12 tribes are
called the HOUSE OF JACOB (Exodus 19:3). Following the reign of
Solomon, the 12 tribes were divided into Northern Kingdom and
Southern Kingdom. The Southern Kingdom was called the House of
Judah. Today, the house of Judah is called Jews.
The
Northern Kingdom was called:
1) The House of Israel (I Kings 12:21, Jeremiah 31:31)
2) The House of Joseph (I Kings 11:28)
3) Samaria (Hosea 7:1, 8:5-6, 13:16)
4) Ephraim (Hosea 4:17, 5:3, 7:1)
The
Northern Kingdom is a type and is prophetic of
future Christianity. The Northern Kingdom under King Jeroboam set up
a "golden calf" system of worship (I Kings 12:26-32) which consisted
of the following:
#1) A substitute place of worship (Dan and Bethel rather than
Jerusalem) (I Kings 12:27-30)
Historically, the church has substituted Sunday for
the
Shabbat.
#2) A substitute priesthood (Priests who were not of the tribe of
Levi) (I Kings 12:31)
Historically, the church has ordained priests and
pastors
who have not been called by God into the ministry but
who
rather fulfill the requirements of a particular
denomination.
#3) Substitute holidays (Feast of tabernacles was celebrated on the
8th month the 15th day rather than the 7th month and
the
15th day) (I Kings 12:32, Lev 23:39-42)
Historically, the church has celebrated
Christmas (Dec 25th
is the birthday of the sun-god in Mithraism)
and Easter which
comes from Ishtar who was/is the goddess of sex
and fertility
rather than the Biblical holidays in Lev 23.
#4) The Northern Kingdom called the Torah a "strange thing"
(Hosea 8:12) while God calls the Torah GREAT
(Hosea 8:12),
HONORABLE (Isaiah 42:21), TRUTH (Psalm
119:142),
LIGHT (Proverbs 6:23) and HOLY (Romans 7:12)
etc.
Historically, Christianity has called the Torah
a "strange
thing" also.
The most direct connection in the Bible
of the Northern
Kingdom to Christianity is found by cross-referencing Hosea 1 and
I Peter 2:10.
In Hosea 1, God tells Hosea to
marry a whore named Gomer.
The book of Hosea is written to the Northern Kingdom. There were
three children born of this marriage which told of the prophetic
destiny of the Northern Kingdom.
#1) Jezreel which means in Hebrew 'God will sow or God will scatter'
(Hosea 1:4)
#2) Lo-Ruhamah which means in Hebrew 'NO MERCY'
(Hosea 1:6)
#3) Lo-Ammi which means in Hebrew 'NOT MY PEOPLE'
(Hosea 1:9)
However, God makes a promise that the people
that He would
call NO MERCY (Lo-Ruhamah / Hosea 1:6) and NOT MY
PEOPLE (Lo-Ammi / Hosea 1:9) would at a later time be called the
SONS OF THE LIVING GOD (Hosea 1:10).
I Peter 2:5, 10 (those who believe that
Yeshua/Jesus is
Messiah - Christians) is a direct reference back to Hosea 1 (the
Northern Kingdom) as it is written:
"Ye also as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy
priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by
Jesus Christ ... which IN TIMES PAST (Hosea 1) were NOT A
PEOPLE (Lo-Ammi / Hosea 1:9) but are NOW the PEOPLE OF
GOD (Hosea 1:10); which had NOT OBTAINED
MERCY (Lo-Ruhamah / Hosea 1:6) but now have obtained mercy"
This mercy came through
the Messiah. So, I Peter 2:5, 10
speaks of those who believe that Yeshua/Jesus is Messiah and is a
direct reference back to Hosea 1 (the Northern Kingdom).
So, the Northern
Kingdom is a type and shadow of future
Christianity. The Southern Kingdom is a type and shadow of future
Judaism.
The Northern
Kingdom is called the house of Israel. The
Southern Kingdom is called the house of Judah.
How does
this give us vital information in
understanding the rapture and the tribulation period?
Jeremiah
30:5-7 is widely accepted as referring to the
time of the tribulation period. These verses speak of the time of
Jacob's trouble. In Jeremiah 30:5-7 it is written:
"For thus saith the Lord: we have heard a voice of trembling of fear,
and not of peace. Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with
child? (a Hebrew idiomatic expression referring to the tribulation
period) wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as
a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness? Alas! for
that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of
JACOB'S TROUBLE; but he shall be saved out of it"
Who are these verses talking about
enduring Jacob's trouble
(the tribulation)?? In Jeremiah 30:4 is to whom Jeremiah 30:5-7 is
written. In Jeremiah 30:4 it says:
"And these are the words that the Lord spake concerning ISRAEL
(Northern Kingdom --- a type of Christianity) AND concerning JUDAH
(Southern Kingdom --- a type of Judaism)".
JACOB = ALL 12 TRIBES.
JACOB = Northern
Kingdom + Southern Kingdom
JACOB = Christianity +
Judaism
Jeremiah 31:15-22
speaks prophetically of Ephraim
(Northern Kingdom / Christianity). In Jeremiah 31:15-17, Rachel (the
mother of Joseph and Benjamin) is seen weeping for her children as it
is written:
"Thus saith the Lord; a voice was heard in Ramah (Ramah = Strong's
7414 which means a 'high place or seat of idolatry'' --- we also call
this in the Bible 'Babylon') lamentation and bitter weeping (bitter
water was the drink for one suspected of adultery (Numbers 5:11-31)
which spiritually is idolatry) refused to be comforted (a term for
the outpouring of the Ruach HaKodesh / Holy Spirit who is called the
Comforter ... John 16:7) for her children because they were not. Thus
saith the Lord; Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from
tears: for thy work (repenting and returning back to the Torah and
the Hebraic Roots of our faith) shall be rewarded, saith the Lord;
and they shall come again from the land of the enemy. And there is
hope in thine end saith the Lord, that thy children shall come AGAIN
to there OWN BORDER (the land of Israel)"
WHO will come again to their
own border? Only the Jews,
the house of Judah? Whom do these verses refer?
Jeremiah 31:18-20:
"I have surely heard EPHRAIM (Northern Kingdom / Christianity)
bemoaning himself thus; Thou has chastened me, and I was
chastened ... surely after I was turned I REPENTED (embraced Torah
and returned back to our Hebraic roots) ... is EPHRAIM my dear son?
is he my pleasant child? ... I will surely have MERCY upon him, saith
the Lord"
When is the
timing of this return? It is the time of
the wedding of the Messiah. In Jeremiah 31:22, it is written:
"How long wilt thou go about, O thou backsliding daughter? for the
Lord has created a new thing in the earth, a WOMAN SHALL COMPASS A
MAN"
The phrase
"a WOMAN SHALL COMPASS A MAN" is a reference
to the Jewish wedding when the woman will circle a man either 3 or 7
times.
So,
the sequence of events in this scripture is:
#1) Repenting
#2) Returning back to the land of Israel
#3) The marriage
The
same thought is communicated in the story of the
parable of the prodigal son. (Luke 15:11-32). In Luke 15:11 it is
written:
"A certain man (God the Father) has two sons (Judah and Ephraim). The
younger (Ephraim / Christianity which is 2000 years old) wanted to
have his inheritance early (because of what Yeshua/Jesus purchased
for us on the tree)".
But,
after a period of time, there was a famine in
the land (Luke 15:14). This famine was/is a famine of God's Word. In
Amos 8:11 it is written:
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine
in the land, not a famine of bread, nor of thirst for water, but of
hearing (SHEMA) the words of the Lord (the Torah)"
The
younger son (Ephraim / Christianity) was sent
into the fields to feed swine (Luke 15:15) which "swine" is a Jewish
way of saying that the younger son departed as far away from the
Torah as was possible (pig is seen by the Jewish people as the most
unclean of animals). At this point, the younger son (Ephraim /
Christianity) realized his journey and decided to repent (Luke 15:18,
Jeremiah 31:18-19).
When
the younger son repented (returned back to the
Torah or the Hebraic roots of his faith), the father was waiting for
this event. The father responed with the GREATEST PARTY --- a RING on
his finger and the BEST ROBE (a reference to the WEDDING).
It
can be clearly seen that the younger son
(Ephraim / Christianity) repented for not following the Torah because
the older son (Judah / Judaism) responded to the father with these
words in Luke 15:29:
" ... lo, these MANY years do I serve thee, neither trangressed I at
any time the COMMANDMENT (Torah): and you never gave me (this
party)"
Therefore,
to BRIEFLY conclude what should be MANY
HOURS of teaching on this subject, the Northern Kingdom is a type of
Christianity. The Southern Kingdom is a type of Judaism. The Northern
Kingdom was called the house of Israel and the Southern Kingdom was
called the house of Judah.
During
the time of Jacob's trouble (Jeremiah
30:5-7) (the tribulation), it is a time of trouble for BOTH Israel
(Northern Kingdom / Christianity) and Judah (Southern Kingdom /
Judaism). Therefore, these sciptures seem to indicate that Christians
will be present (the foolish virgins ??? / Matthew 25:1-13)) during the
tribulation. Food for thought and study.
Eddie
Chumney
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