The Promiscuous Premise of Hyperpreterism

You have heard people call for Christians to be more “open-minded”. Well, who wants to be considered “closed-minded” or “narrow-minded” so, often when a Christian is accused of being so, they will quickly try to show how they too are “accepting”. But does the Bible actually call us to be “open-minded”…when it comes to beliefs & ideology?

 

When people hear the word “promiscuous” it typically makes them think of loose sexual behavior. A definition of the word is:

characterized by or involving indiscriminate mingling or association…consisting of parts, elements, or individuals of different kinds brought together without order…casual; irregular; haphazard (source)

This is really what many people mean when they appeal for a Christian to be more “open-minded”. They want the Christian to indiscriminately “accept” some idea or belief or premise. They must try to push for this acceptance, otherwise their own views will be considered outside the norm for what is historically considered Christian. For example, with the entire homosexuality debate — homosexuals must first try to get people to accept the premise that homosexuality is natural or even that people are “born that way”. If you will not accept this premise they will call you what? “close-minded”, “narrow-minded”, “bigoted”, “hate-filled”. Sometimes they will even say you have some personal motivation for “hating” & not accepting homosexuality as legitimate.

In this same way, we have recently been seeing hyperpreterists try to play this card. They claim we won’t “accept” hyperpreterists simply because we “hate” them. They claim we are operating from “genetic fallacy”.

This is just more attempts to claim the reason we won’t accept the hyperpreterist premise is because it comes from hyperpreterists. It is a circular argument that we do NOT make. We do not accept the hyperpreterist premise because it is a false premise based on a faulty foundation. The foundation of hyperpreterism, as I’ve illustrated other times is this:

Hyperpreterism MUST claim that the Sovereign God failed to preserve & guide His people, His Church — especially in the area of eschatology (endtimes).

This really is the prime starting point for any person to accept hyperpreterism. They may not consciously advocate this, but they MUST assent to it in principle. Why do you think that most of the hyperpreterist “leaders” (Max King, Tim King, Don Preston, Terry Hall, William Bell, Jack Scott, Virgil Vaduva & Ed Stevens — originally) have all been from the denomination of “church of Christ” (coC)? This is no coincidence. The coC has within the fabric of its being, the notion that the true Church & true Gospel had failed. They come from an era called “The Restortation movement”.

Restorationists were not content with mere cooperation between denominations. The leaders of these movements did not believe that God intended to simply fatten the old institutions and perpetuate the old divisions with the revivals. They perceived the new religious awakening as the dawn, or at least the harbinger, of a new age. Restorationists sought to re-establish or renew the whole Christian church on the pattern they held to be set forth in the New Testament. They had little regard for the creeds developed over time in Catholicism and Protestantism, which they claimed kept Christianity divided. Some even claimed the Bible suffered from ancient corruption, which required correction.

Restorationism is based on a belief called the Great Apostasy, that traditional Christianity has departed so far from the original Christian principles that it is not redeemable. Because of its divisions, errors and compromises with the world, the claim is that the corrupted church fell out of line with the church founded by Jesus. If there were no apostasy-at-large and a church on the true-and-legitimate pattern was present, there would be no need for a Restoration. Thus, diverse Restorationists share with one another the conviction that there has been an apostasy from the true faith, which they have undertaken to correct. (source)

This is EXACTLY THE SAME premise of hyperpreterism, but to take it a step further they MUST get other people to accept the premise…& so they do. It doesn’t matter how much a hyperpreterist may deny his or her adherence to this premise or knowledge of coC precepts — in principle they MUST accept the erroneous premise that the Church failed before they can accept hyperpreterism.

So, we get to the meat of this article — the promiscuous premise of hyperpreterism. Hyperpreterists often try to get a Christian to accept them, to join with them as “brothers”. It is analogically the same as a prostitute standing on the roadside beckoning, enticing & batting her eyes as if to say, “Look, I’m nice, I’m dressed up, I just want to ‘love’ you”. To lie down with such is to defile yourself & your testimony. Don’t give into the appeal of “but we’re just trying to have a conversation”. What is worse than a prostitute that sells herself for money is a whore that beckons all to come & lay with her. This is what hyperpreterists do…ideologically.

To conclude, I give these verses that show God & the Bible do NOT teach us to just accept everything:

Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? (1 Cor 6:14)

And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? (2 Cor 6:15)

For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it! (2 Cor 11:15)

We are NOT supposed to just “accept” someone coming to us preaching some DIFFERENT GOSPEL — something that is unlike ANYTHING that has ever been considered historically Christian — even if they are claiming to “restore” us back to the true Gospel. We are not to “whore” our minds & beliefs out just because someone tries to make us feel “unloving” or guilty for not treating them like a “brother” when everything they say is NOT like anything Christianity has EVER said.

It is my hope that some hyperpreterists or those flirting with that harlot along the theological roadside, will consider what I have written here. I know it is difficult, especially for those hyperpreterists who have invested so much of themselves into their relationship with the ideas & people within the hyperpreterist movement. But there comes a time when it is time to be discriminate & not let your affections go out to just everyone & everything. Stop allowing the hyperpreterists pimps to dupe you.