Fencing the Bible with the Creeds

Gary concludes his response to a recent video discussion about his eschatological views.

What does the New Testament say about when Jesus would come to judge the living and the dead? Jesus’ ascension and session are historical facts as are the other creedal statements. He came “again with glory to judge the living and the dead.” Did Jesus come “again” before that first-century generation passed away? Both creeds, and the later Athanasian Creed (451), state the biblical fact of Jesus’ coming in the same way the New Testament states that Jesus was “born of the Virgin Mary.” They are statements of biblical fact. If the creeds are understood in terms of what the New Testament states as fact, then the creeds got it right like they got it right that Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate!

Unfortunately, we read the creedal statements about Jesus’ coming and argue that they refer to an additional coming after the coming Jesus said would happen in the generation of His day. The creeds make no such distinction even though the New Testament is filled with statements that Jesus’ coming was near for the generation that was alive when He mentioned His coming (e.g., Matt. 16:27-28; 24-25; Mark 13; Luke 21; James 5:7-9) as many commentators going back centuries agree…

In fact, a good argument could be made that there are more passages dealing with Jesus’ coming in that generation than there are passages that might refer to another (additional) coming. Instead of acknowledging this, critics appeal to historical sources for support that rarely mention preterist exegetical arguments.

New Testament Eschatology

Since the futurist perspective has been promoted as an early church reality by so many for so long, few question it. New Testament Eschatology challenges this prevailing futurist view with a careful study of the historical record. The evidence shows that many early church writers understood the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 to be the end of the Old Covenant world.

Buy Now

Gary concludes his response to a recent video discussion about his eschatological views. The host references a book that refers to the creeds and confessions as “guardrails” that keep biblical exegesis within the “bounds” of orthodoxy. In reality, they are elevating the creeds (at least the ones they recognize as authoritative) above what the Bible actually says.

Click here for today’s episode

Click here to browse all episodes of The Gary DeMar Podcast

American Vision’s mission is to Restore America to its Biblical Foundation—from Genesis to Revelation. American Vision (AV) has been at the heart of worldview study since 1978, providing resources to exhort Christian families and individuals to live by a Biblically based worldview. Visit www.AmericanVision.org for more information, content and resources