Bad Theology?
Is it just me or does there seem to be an increase of pessimism among Christians concerning politics lately. Yes, I know that the elections last November weren't exactly a victory for Christian values. But hey! God wasn't dethroned, it was just one election. But I have sensed a kind of "give up" feeling in the ranks. I suspect that this attitude is, at least in part, due to what I would deem a faulty theology.

I grew up in a southern "Bible Belt" community where dispensational theology and its interpretation of the future was, for the most part, thought to be the only interpretation that existed. But as I began to study more on the issue, I learned that the dispensational view was not historically popular and barely existed before the mid 1800's.

Now you may be asking, "What is Dispensational Theology?"  It is a fancy theological word for a way of explaining biblical history by breaking it into several eras or spiritual "economies." There are several variations of it and much more to it than can be explained here. And, I should also insert here that dispensationalism includes many solid  biblical concepts. But I will address three of its more common points that should be questioned.

• First is the idea of the Antichrist. Dispensationalism teaches that godlessness will increase until the Antichrist gains power, establishes a global government, and sits in a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem proclaiming himself to be God. 
• Second is the teaching that The Great Tribulation will come near the end of the age which will basically throw the entire world into chaos. 

These two concepts above naturally give us a very negative view of the future which would surely produce a state of mind that could only be described as despair, if it were not for a third common point of dispensationalism. 

• The third point is the teaching that Christians will escape the great tribulation by being supernaturally and bodily removed from the planet at the rapture. 

Though the hope of escaping the great tribulation may provide relief from personal despair, it does nothing to change the hopeless political scenario laid out in the dispensational model. Therefore, the dispensational view lays a solid foundation for political pessimism in the Christian community. It is no wonder that many Christians have a lack of determination and give up so easily when it comes to politics. After all, we aren't supposed to win!

But Did You Know...?
Did you know that the great tribulation that Jesus spoke of was most likely referring to His judgment on His dealings with Israel and the end of the Old Covenant. Though it was obviously a future event at the time Jesus spoke of it, the prophecy about the great tribulation, if referring to the end of the Old Covenant with natural Israel, was fulfilled in the Roman siege of Jerusalem and the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D.

Note: This is not to say that tribulation in general has no place in our future. Some statisticians estimate that of millions of believers who have been martyred in the past 2000 years, over 50% were killed in the last century. Persecution and tribulation is and always has been a present reality.

Did you know that the early reformers and many others including, John Wycliffe, John Huss, Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox, Huldreich Zwingli, William Tyndale, Sir Isaac Newton, John Wesley, John Cotton, Cotton Mather, Jonathan Edwards and many more believed the Antichrist to be, not a future figure, but one that was current or fulfilled? They believed that the Antichrist was fulfilled in the corrupt papal leaders of the dark ages. 

I grew up hearing that the "abomination of desolation standing in the holy place" spoken of in Matthew 24:15 and Mark 13:14 was the Antichrist and the holy place was the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem. However, this is a misinterpretation. Luke's record of Jesus' teaching about this makes it clear what this abomination is.

But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. -Luke 21:20 (NKJV)

Jerusalem was surrounded by the armies of Rome in 70 A.D. Gentiles in general, but particularly the Roman Gentile Army, was considered an abomination by the Jews. Jerusalem was called the Holy City, or the "holy place." Therefore, the "abomination of desolation" was the Roman army that would make Jerusalem a desolation.  This is exactly what Luke 21:20 says and it is exactly what happened.

Did You know that the Bible never says we are leaving the planet? In fact it teaches just the opposite. Proverbs says, "For the upright will dwell in the land, And the blameless will remain in it; But the wicked will be cut off from the earth, And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it." (Proverbs 2:21-22 NKJV). This is what Jesus taught in the parable of the tares saying that first the wicked will be gathered from among the righteous and then the righteous will shine forth as the sun" (see Matthew 13:30, 43). 

Jesus also compared the end times to the days of Noah. In Noah's day, the wicked were removed from the earth and righteous Noah remained. Proverbs again says: "The righteous will never be removed, But the wicked will not inhabit the earth." (Proverbs 10:30 NKJV). 

Then there is Jesus' prayer that directly contratdicts the escape rapture teaching. He prayed to the Father: "I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one" (John 17:15 NKJV). 

Too Controversial?
Many people avoid talking about these issues, feeling that they are unimportant and just create controversy. But I take issue with that excuse. Understanding the future is very important because we all make plans based on our perception of the future. Therefore, a wrong perception of the future will result in wrong decisions in the present. That is why there is such a great spiritual battle, a campaign of misinformation, aimed at clouding our understanding of the future and thereby controling our present strategy. 

Yes, the issues raised here may be controversial, but important issues almost always are! To steer away from controversy in this life is to relegate oneself to mediocrity and insignificance. Granted, no one sees the future perfectly, but the Bible is pretty clear on some things. Someone once said: "The Bible is so clear on some issues that we need theologians to cloud our view."  This may be the case for the points above. 

Conclusion
Many good Christian people have a heart to see righteous leaders elected to office in our great nation. They seem to know intuitively that, "When the righteous are in authority the people rejoice." (Proverbs 29:2). But, when the battles get tough or when the Christian cause suffers a setback in the political arena, we often lose hope and become pessimistic about the political future of our nation and the world. Many simply give up on political involvement because they don't think there is any use. 

If this sounds like you, then ask yourself if your theology about the future may be part of the problem. If so, take off those complicated theological glasses and read the Bible again. I believe you will find that all authority has been made available to us, in heaven and on earth, and that we should expect to make disciples of the nations, teaching them to observe the things that Jesus taught. 

We cannot establish the kingdom of God on earth, that will only happen when Jesus returns. We cannot have a visible kingdom without a visible King. But as we look forward to that day, let us cast off the weights that beset us. Let us be the salt that halts corruption and the light that displaces darkness. Let us take a bold stand for righteousness and believe as David who said: I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living. -(Psalms 27:13 NASB)

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