BIG NEWS: David Chilton Said To Recant Full Preterism

David Chilton, author of many books, such as Productive Christians in an Age of Guilt-Manipulators: A Biblical Response to Ronald J. Sider (1981), Paradise Restored (1985), Days of Vengeance (1987), and The Great Tribulation (1987), Power in the Blood: A Christian Response to AIDS (1987) is known within FPism as one of the only "big names" to have embraced FPism.

Chilton was mentored by R.J. Rushdoony,  Greg Bahnsen, James B. Jordan, and Gary North.  North became the publisher of many of Chilton's books.

In the Foreward that Chilton wrote for Ed Stevens' FPists book, "What Happened in AD70?" (1997), Chilton said this:

"The more I pondered the awesome implications of Jesus’ words, the more I realized their truly revolutionary significance for eschatology. Without exception, every event foretold by the Biblical prophets was fulfilled within that generation, as Jesus said." "Scripture foretells a Second Coming – not a third!"

Thus, there is no doubt that Chilton had embraced FPism.

There are some, like ex-FPists Sam Frost who have attempted to downplay Chilton's FPism, claiming, "What he understood 'full' Preterism to be, and what it is today, are virtually two different things.. Chilton’s postmillennial aspects all remained intact." (ref), yet Chilton's words, such as the Foreward to Stevens' book speak for themselves.  But no one has doubted that Chilton, who died in 1997 died as a FPism...well, no one until along comes Frost's mentor; Kenneth Talbot.

Talbot, known for starting his own denomination and his own seminary, conferred upon Chilton 2 degrees for his work on books.  It is likely Talbot simply was attempting to hitch his reputation wagon to Chilton's stardom.  I mean, if Talbot's seminary could boast that one of its alum were the famous Chilton, how would that look.  Besides, Talbot has a history of giving free tuition to people he is attempting to use in his plans.  He did so with Dee Dee Warren and attempted to do so with me.

Anyhow, one of Talbot's followers, Sharon Nichol's (also a follower of Frost), posted on Facebook, Oct 3rd 2012:

"Dr. Talbot personally knows for a fact that David Chilton repented of any ideas of full/hyper preterism before he died."

Now, this is amazing and truly would have been big news back in 1997.  But no one until now has claimed this.  Talbot and his followers are claiming against all documented evidence that Chilton recanted of FPism on his deathbed.  As a matter of fact, Chilton died on March 7, 1997 but during a series of email exchanges up to March 4, 1997 Chilton gives no hint he was about to recant of anything (ref).  And in an email sent by North on March 4, 1997 even North says:

"We can and should pray for the restoration of his mind, but to debate with him [Chilton] publicly will almost certainly drive him deeper into this heresy. He will feel compelled to defend himself in public. Let him go in peace. It is not our God-given task to confront him at this point. That is for his local church to do. It is not as though he were some unknown church member who has stumbled into this heresy unknowingly. He is self-conscious, to the extent of a victim of a massive, brain-affecting heart attack can be self-conscious. He is not the man we used to know, as he has admitted here. That man died in 1994, he says. I agree. So, let us say now, David Chilton, RIP."

Where is the evidence?  Even North who would have rejoiced over the idea that Chilton recanted never says anything like what Talbot is claiming here -- not even AFTER Chilton's death does North claim this.  As a matter of fact, every effort has been made to HIDE the fact that Chilton was EVER a FPist.  Just check out the Wikipedia entry on Chilton.  There is nothing about his FPism. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Chilton

Further, FPist, Don Preston who had many personal and also DOCUMENTED interaction with Chilton said:

"Shortly after David’s untimely death, his wife called me. She strongly insisted that I withdraw the tape of the 1997 conference from the market, because it would hurt David’s name and harm the sales of his other material. And this is what is so important about that phone call: Not once did Mrs. Chilton say that David had changed his mind about his adoption of the full preterist view prior to his death. Not once did she say: “Yes, I know what he said at the conference, but he changed his mind.” The only issue in the entire conversation was that the tape would harm David’s name and hurt the sales of his other material. The issue was never that David had recanted or changed his views on full preterism." (ref)

So why is there this effort to re-write history, including keeping it off Wikipedia?  Preston says:

"The attempts to deny Chilton’s acceptance of preterism smacks of name dropping. If it can be shown that Chilton either did not actually accept preterism or abandoned it, then those who reject preterism feel justified somehow...Anyone denying that David Chilton openly stated that he had embraced full preterist eschatology is not telling the full truth. He espoused it before the conference. He affirmed it during the conference. He advocated it after the conference. And even his most ardent enemies believe that he continued to espouse full preterism until he died. It is mis-informed, at the very least, to deny these facts. At worst, it is a denial, distortion and manipulation of the historical facts to say otherwise."

Exactly, it is an attempt to reclaim Chilton as one of their own but what prompted this effort now? For a while now I have been pointing out that both Talbot and his proteges are attempting to present their own personalized form of FPism, called Realized Preterism.  They want to recast anyone who does not go along with their personalized form of FPism as the real "hyperpreterists".

This became the most obvious and desperate for the "Talbotites" when Talbot said that his Realized Preterism was "akin" to what Chilton was teaching.  Listen to the 5 second audio of Talbot saying it: http://thekingdomcome.com/sites/default/files/realizedpreterism_is_hyperpreterism.mp3

THIS is why the Talbotites are so desperate to recast Chilton, since if Realized Preterism is "akin" to what Chilton taught/believed, then Realized Preterism is simply another form of FPism.

Frost recently even said that he (personally) was working on making a "more consistent preterism".

"Can there be a more consistent Preterism? Certainly. I am working on it!" (ref)

People need to realize what is going on here.  Talbot and Frost and the "Talbotites" are trying to present their own form of FPism without calling it that.  FPists should be outraged and non-FPists should be appalled.  In this, all parties should shun the Talbotites who clearly are, well as Preston said are engaged in mis-information, denial, distortion, and manipulation.