How to talk to an Apostolic Full-Preterist, but only if you must

(Hi gang—the last few days have been quite busy as my wife and I are in the process of building our retirement home. God has blessed us mightily, allowing us to be nearly finished and without debt.)

Part Two


Here is a question for you. What do the left-wing attacks upon Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin have in common with the Apostolic Full-Preterist’s method of defending their doctrine? Just as the rabid left-wing liberals have been particularly demeaning in their personal attacks upon Palin, the Apostolic Full-Preterists have been equally demeaning in their personal attacks upon anyone that disagrees with them. I should know, having made several efforts to engage them in a civil intellectual discussion of their views.

A Presumptive Mindset

One must understand that the Apostolic Full-Preterist derives his doctrine from a presumptive mindset. Laboring under the thinking that ALL prophecies MUST be fulfilled with the destruction of Jerusalem, then every passage within the Scriptures MUST ALSO be interpreted with this assumption, regardless if this was the actual intent of the author.

In order to achieve a semblance of consistency of their view, some thorny issues must be “spiritualized” to a mystical explanation that defies logic and completely ignores the contradictions of other passages. As they presume that ALL prophecies were fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem, then the only explanation they will accept is one that supports that view.

The Second Coming of Christ

Apostolic Full-Preterists regard Matthew 24 as a prophecy of the demise of Jerusalem, the Temple, and the nation of Israel. The Coming of Christ as foretold in the chapter cannot be considered to be LITERAL as Christ did not LITERALLY come in 70 AD. Therefore, the Apostolic Full-Preterist claim that what occurred was a JUDGMENT COMING of Christ, using the Roman general Titus, to do His work.

The glaring problem that the Apostolic Full-Preterist has is that we are not left without a description of what the COMING OF CHRIST would be like. Luke wrote down the Angelic tidings that the Coming of Christ would be LIKE His Ascension.

Act 1:11 (Bible in Basic English) And said, O men of Galilee, why are you looking up into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven, will come again, in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.

Christ did not leave in a Judgment Going, but bodily ascended—literally—physically—and in a manner that could be VISIBLY observed.
Act 1:9 And when he had said these things, while they were looking, he was taken up, and went from their view into a cloud.

If the Coming of Christ was to be THE SAME WAY He left, then His Coming is to be literal, not figuratively, visible, and not mystic. The Apostolic Full-Preterists completely ignore this as it debunks their doctrine.


Absurdities in the Apostolic Full-Preterist Doctrine

The presumptive approach by the Apostolic Full-Preterist in defining their views leads to some extremely peculiar ideas. In order to keep consistency that ALL prophecy was fulfilled in 70 AD, Satan no longer deceives, devours, or accuses. He, according to the Apostolic Full-Preterists, was in 70 AD hurled into the fiery abyss we call Hell. Since that date there has been a cessation of demonic possession that you read about repeatedly in the New Testament. The Full Preterists in our Apostolic ranks can provide no explanation for the continued existence of evil and the testimonies of demons being cast out by our Apostolic fathers. Neither can they provide an explanation of who is leading the kingdom of darkness since Satan has been in the fiery abyss for the past 2,000 years.

Apostolic Full-Preterists also claim that the 1,000 year reign of Christ only lasted 37 years. They define the 1,000 years as to be figurative and should be defined as “many”, rather than a literal 1,000 years. Again, they ignore that 37 years is NOT considered to be MANY or A LONG TIME.

They also assert that the Jewish race no longer exists. (If only Hitler knew this—it would have spared 6,000,000 innocent people) Those that live in the nation of Israel today are not Jews, and cannot trace their lineage back to certifiable Israelites of the first century. They dismiss the reports of the Kohen gene and the claims of Jews who say that they can trace their lineage back to Ezra the Scribe. This is the same Ezra that was involved with the restoration of Jewish worship after the Babylonian captivity.

Apostolic Full-Preterist Method of Debate

What about the comparison of the left-wing attacks on Sarah Palin and the Apostolic Full-Preterist method of debate? Apostolic Full-Preterists do not take kindly to the disproving of their pet points. Their ire usually is shown in a ridiculing attack that mocks, insults, and demeans those that disagree. Rather than to intellectually defend their position, their preferred method is to “intimidate or anger” anyone that dares to challenges their doctrine.

How to talk to an Apostolic Full-Preterist—but only if you must.

If you wish to discuss the errors with a Full-Preterist, please keep the following things in mind.

1. They prefer to work in groups. Rarely do will you engage in a conversation with just one.
2. You must grow thick skin. Their motto—SHOOT THE MESSENGER. (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been told how “woefully ignorant” I was by an Apostolic Full-Preterist.
3. Stick to ONE issue at a time. Full-Preterists try to change the issue when they are being proven wrong. Their motto— “When Losing---Confuse the Issue.”
4. Do not be intimidated by their demand of sola scriptura in order to ignore history. THEY use history when it is to their advantage.
5. Do not be intimidated by their claims of being superior in SPIRITUALITY as they SPIRITUALIZE the meanings of the Scriptures. Demanding to determine the EXACT intention of the author in a passage does NOT make you CARNAL. It makes you intellectually honest.
6. Do not labor with the idea that you can convince the Apostolic Full-Preterist of his error. Such successes are extremely rare. It will take an encounter with God on their part to negate the delusion they labor under.

Apostolic Full Preterists have been known to attack Partial Preterists with the same vulgar behavior they use upon Futurists. No one is spared of their scorn or venomous tongue. Talk to them if you must, as they are completely wrong in eschatology. Just be careful as to not allow them to prod you into becoming of the same spirit they exhibit.