As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
There are at least five reasons that progressive dispensational (PD) represents a departure from a normative hermeneutic (literal grammatical historical) and reading of the Bible. The first two pertain to methodology in arriving at conclusions, and the latter three have to do with theological conclusions which are not exegetically derived.
Read Part 1.
Fazio sees a cyclical aspect to this type of philosophical swing and believes that a commitment to literal interpretation might also move to another point on the globe, such as African nations or other developing countries.
Have the blessings God promised to the Chosen People of Israel been redirected to all believers in the church? Will the church receive the prophetic future God promised the Jewish people repeatedly throughout the Old Testament?
People who answer yes to these questions hold to a position referred to as Replacement Theology, or Supersessionism.1 This influence is growing today; and it’s important to ask, “What should we who love Israel—and God’s future plan for Israel—do about it?”
“We all know generally how language ‘works,’ and for this reason communication is possible. In so arguing, I admit that my hermeneutical cues do not come immediately from the Bible itself, and this, my critic suggested, constituted a ‘direct assault on the sufficiency of Scripture.’” - Mark Snoeberger
“I carefully began looking up every appearance of ‘all’ in Romans. Guess what? ‘All’ (unsurprisingly) often refers to every single one in Paul’s letter to the Romans, but sometimes it doesn’t.” - Kenneth Berding
“Throughout most of history, people have considered the author to be the locus of meaning…. But in recent decades the discussion has progressed beyond the exclusion of the author—and even beyond the exclusive focus upon the text itself.” - Kenneth Berding
“ChatGPT metaphorizes and individualizes Scripture without a clear method for when and why, without warrant, and often in direct contradiction to the text itself. Second, the bot’s interpretations are ignorant of the interpretive traditions that produce them.” - CToday
“God is not pleased by the herculean efforts some people go to look so hard for hidden meanings—whether linguistic or allegorical or what have you—that they miss the simple point of what he said.” - Mark Ward
“Times have certainly changed since the 70s when speculation was in vogue. Do you know how many pastors and preachers today refuse to open Revelation for sermons?” - Denison
Read the series.
In the previous installment, I primarily addressed the need for the leaders of dispensational churches—including pastors and all members of the congregation—to take their roles more seriously.
Discussion