During the past few weeks, I’ve noticed that renewed attacks have been waged against the doctrine of the Lord’s second advent.  As to be expected, most of these assaults have been engineered by adherents of Preterism, a rationalistic school of theology which insists that the one “parousia” (second coming) of Matthew 24: 3 is a past event.  Having dealt extensively with Preteristic arguments, and become familiar with their tactics, I’ve come to the conclusion that as the age progresses to its end, these emissaries of darkness will pick up the pace and continue their attacks, not to be impeded until the Lord destroys them with the brightness of His coming (2 Thess. 1: 8-9; 2: 8).  They are not about to go away, but are in this debate for the long-haul.  Along with other defenders of the faith, I have learned to accept this fact.

  But what accounts for their rabid hatred of the blessed hope?  I believe that much of it has to do with their prevailing Anti-Semitism.  Preterists know that when the Lord returns, He will re-gather the Jews, restore them to their own land (Deut. 30: 4-5; Isaiah 27: 13; Matt. 24: 31), and make them head over all the nations (Isaiah 60: 14-16; Micah 4: 8; Zeph. 3: 14-20).  For centuries the Jews have been down-trodden by the governments of the world, and now it seems that they are finally reviving as a nation.  It is no coincidence that Preterism should step along at this time to deny them their future Messianic hope, and to try to prevent Christians from giving them aid.

  What it all boils down to is this:  If the Jewish restoration is correct, Preterists know that their theology will be discredited.  Preterists teach that A.D. 70 was the second coming of Christ, when the Lord returned in judgment against Israel, the nation which they denominate as the “great whore.”  At that time, say Preterists, God destroyed Israel and transferred His promises to the church.  Vicious stuff, eh?  Yet this form of Replacement Theology is taught by all the high-profile Preterist teachers, whether “Full” or “Partial.” 

   But what would happen if Preterist teachings were proven false?  If the timing is off by even a hair, and if Israel awaits a restoration, then she cannot have been divorced in A.D. 70, nor can the Lord have returned at the destruction of the temple.  Well, this would discredit Preterism’s teachings.  Therefore, Preterists find themselves battling against any Gospel which holds forth a future Jewish hope.

  The business of Preterism is to keep the Jews down-trodden, that Christianity may continue to exist in its present form.  In fact, it is no mistake to say that Preterists are the spiritual successors of the Christian kings and prelates responsible for Jewish persecution throughout the centuries.  Does such language seem strong?  Just remember that it was monarchs like King Canute and Edward I of England, and religious leaders like Tomas de Torquemada of Spain, who initiated the political persecutions for which organized Christianity is most notorious.  All of these persecutions were sanctioned by the Roman Catholic concept of “Replacement Theology.”  Now, just when the Jews have regained their rightful position as a nation to be treated with consideration, the  Preterists, with their neo-Caesarean dreams of world power, want to suppress them once more, and hurry the world back into the Dark Ages.

  And what are orthodox Christians supposed to do about it?  Certainly we are not called to sit on our hands and let this hatred go unchallenged.  As Dispensationalists, we believe in a future restoration of Israel, and therefore must do everything we can to alert people to the growing menace of Preterism on the internet.  The people who teach these things not only have no respect for the authority of the Word of God, but wilfuly twist its teachings to support their own selfish ends.   The Preterists know that they are lying against God’s word, but they refuse to repent: and this places them on a level with Simon Magus and Menander. 

  The trend we’ve seen in past months is disturbing, yet revealing.  After the outcome of the Presidential debates, when John McCain lost to Barak Obama, the Preterists fell silent for about a week.  They doubtless needed time to shore up their misspent energy and assess what damage (if any) was done to their schemes of Dominion.  When it appeared that life would be relatively normal for the next few months, they came back out of the woodwork and began their scoffings afresh.  What’s more, their anti-Jewish stance is now increasing.  Realizing this, they are now attempting to smokescreen their behavior by disarming public suspicion that they are Anti-Semites in theory and in practice.  And that’s where the matter now stands.

   Dear reader, please do not fall for any Preterist chicanery.  Next time you hear or read any Preterist teacher promoting the view that Christ returned in A.D. 70, make sure you get his position on the future of Israel, and a literal fulfillment of the Old Testament promises.  If he evades the issue, or claims that the promises of restoration and blessing have been abrogated, know that you are dealing with a virulent form of Anti-Semitism, and accordingly warn others to be on guard, knowing that the assaults will only increase as the time of our Lord’s second advent draws near.