{"id":4255,"date":"2015-02-27T09:43:02","date_gmt":"2015-02-27T16:43:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/faithwalkers\/?p=4255"},"modified":"2015-02-27T09:43:02","modified_gmt":"2015-02-27T16:43:02","slug":"isis-and-left-behind-christians-a-big-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/faithwalkers\/2015\/02\/isis-and-left-behind-christians-a-big-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"ISIS and Left-Behind Christians: A BIG Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

I\u2019m not sure what to call them really.<\/p>\n

It used to be that I could use words like dispensational or pre-millennial and Christians would know what I meant. I\u2019m not so sure of that anymore. We\u2019ve grown averse to using multi-syllabic words in church these days and, it seems to me, are the worse for it. [See my post Why I Left Your Seeker-Friendly Church<\/a>]<\/p>\n

\"They<\/a><\/p>\n

I was raised in a church environment that embraced much of the apocalyptic view of the future we find in the The Left Behind Collection<\/a>\"\"\u00a0book series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins. Years of careful study of Scripture shifted my perspective to align with a more optimistic outlook about the success of the gospel in time and space. If you\u2019re interested in such a positive perspective, I suggest the following resources: An Eschatology of Victory<\/a>\"\"\u00a0by J. Marcellus Kik or The Last Days according to Jesus<\/a>\"\"\u00a0by R.C. Sproul.<\/p>\n

Now, by Left-Behind Christians, I am not referring to the vast majority of believers who really have no defined opinion about eschatology (the study of end times) but who generally believe that Jesus is returning soon. Nor am I referring to the many scholars and pastors who hold to pre-tribulation, pre-millennial views while continuing to be salt and light in the world right here and now. I know many such wonderful people and am always thrilled to work alongside them to expand God\u2019s Kingdom of grace.<\/p>\n

By Left-Behind Christians, I mean those who still embrace Hal Lindsay\u2019s perspective of The Late Great Planet Earth<\/em>. They are forever seeking to escape this present world and usher in the next as quickly as possible. They cheer when war breaks out in the Middle East because they believe that such chaos signals the eminent return of Christ. They celebrate the spread of evil because they believe wickedness is a sure sign that Jesus is about to touch down on the Mount of Olives and save the day. I assure you they are out there \u2013 and sincere in their beliefs.<\/p>\n

But they are not to be confused with the evil Islamic State movement \u2014 yes, they are evil \u2014 that also preaches a coming Armageddon and imminent return of Jesus to usher in a new heaven and new earth while creating an apocalypse to trigger the end of the world. See this article in The Atlantic entitled \u201cWhat ISIS Really Wants<\/a>\u201d to discover more of the beliefs that motivate them.<\/p>\n

ISIS and Left-Behind Christians<\/h3>\n

Some critics of religion in general may seek to bolster a case against all people who take their faith to \u201cextremes.\u201d There is, however, a BIG difference between ISIS and Left-Behind Christians, each of whom take their faith seriously. Yes, they both speak often of the end of the world being near. Yes, they both have an unsettling preoccupation with the occupation of Jerusalem and surrounding territory. Yes, they both believe that their actions may help usher in the end of the world and the advent of a type of millennial age. But how they go about it are radically different.<\/p>\n