Welcome to the February 2008 edition of Strong Tower
Publishing's e-newsletter.
IN THIS ISSUE:
* Prewrath Conference Update
* Is the Great Winepress Armageddon?
* New Prewrath Speaker Added
* Book Review: “Lamb of God and the Seven-Sealed Scroll”
* Website Updates: E-Newsletter Archive, Rapture Recommends
Updated
PREWRATH CONFERENCE UPDATE
On a warm
winter evening in central Florida, dozens of prophecy students
gathered to hear the leading lights of the prewrath movement
expound the scriptures. There were 73 registered attendees and
135 present for the Friday night banquet at the Prewrath
Resource Institute Conference held January 10-12 in Lake Mary,
Florida, north of Orlando. Unlike the other prophecy
conferences, this one included a broad spectrum of ages; it was
not limited to those over 50 like some are.
Registration opened on time. Thursday afternoon and saw a slow,
steady stream of eager conferees joining the group in the broad,
elegant hallway of the Marriott. Food was plentiful and plenty
tasty. No buffeting our bodies for this crowd! We began with a
dessert reception that featured chocolate cake, apple pie, and
the always-expected-in-Florida key lime pie.
Those of us who attended the Rapture Riddle training in
September 2005 were quick to re-connect with one another. One of
our own, Allen Hadidian, had brought his labor of love, The
Prewrath Chart, to share with us. It's colorful, complicated,
and detailed, but have no fear - it comes with its own manual,
so you won't be totally in a daze. Those who missed the
conference can find it for preview and sale on Pastor Hadidian's
website, www.theprewrathchart.com.
Dennis Lyons was an excellent choice for MC, as he has a great
commitment to the Word of God, a marvelous sense of humor, and
an exceptionally loving heart. At the opening session, Dennis
introduced us to Roger Best, “the creative force behind The Sign
Ministries.”
It was Reverend Best's idea to add the address and 800 # to The
Sign when the first edition went to press in July 1992. This was
a stroke of genius, as it enabled them to connect with people
who might otherwise have rejected the position because of an
unclear passage or a complicated concept. He has taught prewrath
rapturism in countries all over the world, including Argentina,
Uruguay, the Philippines, and India. We enjoyed hearing about
his journeys and his time ministering with Robert Van Kampen,
Charles Cooper, and Marv Rosenthal.
Friday morning our host, Dr. Charles Cooper, founder of the
Prewrath Resource Institute, gave us his set of signs to watch
for to determine that the end is near and also a preview of the
startling new theories he develops in his book.
Friday afternoon, attendees chose between Dr. Cooper's session
“How to Teach the Book of Revelation,” Reverend Best's session
“How to Teach the Prewrath Position,” and seminarian Alan
Kurschner's session “1 and 2 Thessalonians.” Kursch has promised
to post his PowerPoint slides in the Prewrath Rapture Dot Com
site for those of us who missed his session.
That evening, the Voices of Praise Choir from Macedonia
Missionary Baptist Church in Eatonville, Florida, made a joyful
noise between the lavish banquet meal and the keynote speech.
They were quite enthusiastic and energetic, and they received a
standing ovation.
Marv Rosenthal opened his speech with the sobering comment that
the doctrine that we have studied at this conference is a
critical one, and this is a critical hour of history. He
encouraged us that we have not a vague wish, but a sure hope, in
Jesus' return.
Dr. Rosenthal explained how he met the late Robert Van Kampen,
whose persistent questions about biblical prophecy got him
questioned his pre-trib beliefs. This led to Dr. Rosenthal's
book The Pre-Wrath Rapture of the Church, as he put aside
commentaries and notes and studied the Word alone.
This conference and the keynote speech were both titled,
“Pre-Wrath - Fifteen Years and Beyond!”
Why is 15 years of interest? In 1990, Marv Rosenthal predicted
that prewrath rapturism would become a major position within 15
years. In 2007, just a little over 15 years later, he was given
a contract by Zondervan to write the prewrath rapture view for a
revised version of Three Views of the Rapture. This demonstrates
that prewrath rapturism is now a major player. The scholar
representing the pre-tribulation view is four months late
delivering his portion of the manuscript - and, as Marv noted to
approving laughter - is in danger of being left behind. The book
should be out later this year.
Dr. Rosenthal exhorted us that we are rocketing quickly toward
the end. We must, therefore, act quickly and with all our might.
He received a standing ovation for his encouragement to us and
for the stand he has taken all these years for the truth (at
great cost to himself and his family). He and Dr. Cooper are
examples of men who have stood for the truth against great odds,
regardless of the consequences. They are to be honored and
emulated.
Next came the highly anticipated book signing. Charles Cooper
made a gift of his new book, God's Elect and the Great
Tribulation, to every family unit present. He wrote a personal
note in each copy. This was a joy-filled line and quite possibly
the highlight of the conference.
Allen Hadidian exhorted us during the closing session on
Saturday morning. Pastor Hadidian served as an associate pastor
at John MacArthur's megachurch, preaching there when MacArthur
was away. He shared with us the two major themes of God's Word,
God's glory and our joy, and he challenged us with ten
convictions and commitments those who study and teach end times
prophecy need to adopt. It was an encouraging, upbeat ending to
our time together.
Keep the second and third weeks of January open from now on for
the Prewrath Resource Institute annual conference. The speakers
and topics will vary year to year. Sign up at
www.prewrathrapture.com to receive updates on future conferences
and other PRI happenings.
As a blessing to Charles Cooper and the prewrath movement as a
whole, consider purchasing as many copies of Dr. Cooper's first
book God's Elect and the Great Tribulation as you can afford in
the next three to four months. This is a critical time as sales
now will determine whether a major publishing house is willing
to take a chance on his next two titles, which are already
written. God's Elect is available either through the PRI site (www.prewrathrapture.com)
or at the Strong Tower Publishing site
(www.strongtowerpublishing.com).
Save the date and buy books in '08!
- reported by Mo Dardinger, Sixth Seal Ministries
To view pictures from the conference, as well as view this
article online, visit www.strongtowerpublishing.com/prewrath_conference.htm.
IS THE GREAT WINEPRESS ARMAGEDDON?
Is the Great Winepress described in prophetic scripture the
same as Armageddon? Many prophecy teachers believe so, but
longtime prewrath proponent Mo Dardinger, founder of Sixth Seal
Ministries, does not. At the Prewrath Conference, she unveiled
her booklet, The Great Winepress Is Not Armageddon (112
pages. $12.95), which was published by Sixth Seal Ministries and
is being resold by Strong Tower Publishing on its website.
Traditionally, the biblical passages Dardinger interprets as
belonging to the Great Winepress conflict have been variously
identified as describing the battle of Armageddon, an overview
of the seven bowl judgments, the Sheep and Goats Judgment, and a
failed attack by an Assyrian king. In the pages of The Great
Winepress Is Not Armageddon, however, Dardinger argues that
they are none of the above but are a distinct attack against
God's holy city Jerusalem during the time of Jacob's trouble (Jer.
30:7-9). Yet it is this very time of intense trouble that
finally drives Israel to cry out for rescue by the Messiah she
has so long rejected, the Lord Yeshua (Jesus). God's plan works
and the Jewish people say, as predicted, “Blessed is He who
comes in the name of the Lord” (Hos. 5:15, Matt. 23:39).
The Great Winepress, Dardinger concludes, signals the reception
of the Lord's anointed as the King of the Jews, and it proves
God's faithfulness to His besieged and downtrodden people. What
their enemies meant for evil, their divine Protector means for
their eternal good.
For more information: /www.strongtowerpublishing.com/winepress_is_not_armageddon.htm
NEW PREWRATH SPEAKER ADDED
A new prewrath speaker has been added to Strong Tower
Publishing's list of prewrath resources, including speakers,
websites, and prewrath churches:
Pastor Jim Rhodes
Strait Gate Ministries
5880 Jordan Village Rd.
Poland, IN. 47868-7161
812.829.2582
To see all of the prewrath resources listed on the site, visit
www.strongtowerpublishing.com/prewrath.htm.
BOOK REVIEW: “LAMB OF GOD AND THE SEVEN-SEALED SCROLL”
In "The Lamb of God and the Seven-Sealed Scroll," Dr. R.
Gnanaharan gives a defense of his transition from a pretrib to
what he calls the "prewrath" position on the rapture of the
church. This is not a detailed analysis or defense, but rather,
a personal testimony and exhortation to holiness and preparation
in advance of the coming of the Lord. For the most part, avid
students of the rapture, and especially the prewrath position,
will not find much new here, but it is an impassioned plea that
lends yet another public voice to the rising chorus of prewrath
believers.
I say "prewrath" with some qualification, however. Dr.
Gnanaharan holds some views that put him outside the classic
prewrath camp. He believes, for example, that the fifth seal
occurs in the first half of Daniel's 70th Week and that the
great multitudes seen in Revelation 7 are not the raptured
church, but rather, the martyred believers during the great
tribulation. Gnanaharan sees the rapture in Revelation 14,
occurring after the trumpet judgments. Although this places him
in a posttrib prewrath camp, his path to getting there is
different from other posttrib prewrathers I've read.
Other than these points, Gnanaharan presents a fairly classic
prewrath interpretation of scripture, but until the very end of
the book, there is not much new. He lays out the well-known
dispensationalist positions on Danielic prophecies, the rebirth
of the nation of Israel, and likely fulfillment of the Revived
Roman Empire in the European Union. He walks though the New
Testament teaching on the Second Coming from a predominantly
(with the stated exceptions) prewrath perspective.
My biggest nit with the book is that Gnanaharan casts a very
wide net, covering a massive array of material, but in most
cases, he only provides it an inch deep. He presents the reader
with his interpretation of these extremely complex prophecies,
but he does not acknowledge the vast diversity of other
interpretations or explain how he came to his own conclusions.
Normally, in books of this type, the reader would want to find
references to a variety of scholars, reflecting the author's
command of the subject matter; either this or very in-depth
scholarship in which the author draws his conclusions based on
his own expertise. In Gnanaharan's case, there is neither.
In this, Gnanaharan creates challenges for his own argument.
These are complex prophecies, and the challenges that face
interpreters are not to be taken lightly. For example,
Gnanaharan glosses over the challenges associated with
identifying Peter's "day of the Lord" / Joel 2:31 fulfillment
sermon from Acts as yet future, the length of the Day of the
Lord, and the future nature of the beginning of birth pangs,
among many others. All of this works perfectly well as a
personal testimony or explanation of his view, but it won't do
much to change minds among those who hold a different opinion.
The author is at his best in the latter half of the book, where
he begins to discuss broader theological issues, such as the
delay in Christ's coming fitting into the God's plan being
fulfilled in "the fullness of time" or his exhortation to
holiness, watchfulness, and preparation in light of his
presentation of a timeline of fulfilled prophecy in this
generation. I also enjoyed his discussion of the meaning of the
seven-sealed scroll in Revelation as the title deed to the earth
(a view also brilliantly articulated by Renald Showers in
Maranatha Our Lord, Come!).
At the very end of the book -- the last 60 pages or so --
Gnanaharan finally begins to present conclusions of real "meat"
to his prophecy discussion. This is also where he diverges from
the classic prewrath camp, presenting his argument for the
rapture at the end of the trumpet judgments and seen in
Revelation 14. Here, at last, Gnanaharan does make some
interesting points that are worthy of discussion. The challenge
is that it took 180 pages to get there, and for the people who
would be interested in that debate, the presentation is enough
to spark discussion, but not enough to settle it.
E-NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE AVAILABLE
Just a reminder to those who might have missed the
announcement a few months ago, all of Strong Tower Publishing's
e-newsletters are now available in an online archive. If you
missed an issue or if you want to refer a friend to an article,
all of the issues can be found online at
www.strongtowerpublishing.com/newsletter_archive.htm. Issues go
all the way back to September 2005!
One of the most popular features of the Strong Tower Publishing
website is its “recommended reading on the rapture” page. This
page has now been updated to include twice the number of
recommendations. The page is divided into prewrath reading,
reading on other rapture positions, comparisons of other
rapture/end-times frameworks, and great additional resources for
study. These lists are not intended to be comprehensive, but
rather to be vetted representations of their kind.
