1 Peter 4:7 - The end of all things is near.

1 year ago
12

This was a snippet from a local pastor's sermon. His interpretation of what Peter meant by "The end of all things is near?" The pastor said: “We’re a church because time is running out... The clock’s ticking. The end of all things is near. This world is not going to last forever.
There’s an urgency to the mission God has given the Church.”

Yes, indeed, there was a sense of urgency in the early AD 60s when Peter sent this letter. I realize this pastor is well meaning, but it's not enough to be a nice guy. This is God's word and it must be rightly interpreted. To change "near" to the world's not going to last forever, is ludicrous on so many levels. This is prima facia evidence of our failed interpretive principles taught in our seminaries. If the end of whatever Peter was referring to was NOT NEAR (as this pastor believes was the case), then the pastor is calling Peter was a false prophet. Saying something is near when it's at least 2,000 year's future is a lie. The pastor completely ignored audience relevance and
imminence. This is dispensationalism's exegetical nightmare coming home to roost. The infatuation with application while ignoring the original target audience is a train wreck of epic proportions. They are unwittingly destroying the credibility of the Bible. Peter wasn't writing to you or me. He was warning his devout followers that the end of the Old Covenant and the destruction of the Temple was at hand. We must hold pastors to a higher interpretational standard. This is unacceptable.

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