We are continuing our series on platitudes that are frequently uttered intended to deflate our enthusiasm to study biblical prophecy, shutting down discussion of God’s Word about our Lord’s coming.
The second platitude is problematic on a few levels:
“There Are So Many Views Out There”
When someone utters this platitude, it is as if they are saying there are scores of views out there to sift through taking a lifetime to digest.
Not true.
There are only three views on this issue, not “so many views out there.” And if someone wants to include the defunct midtrib view, then there are four views.
When someone utters this, the pragmatic implicature they are intending is: Since there are “so many views,” we cannot be sure which one is the correct one. This reasoning is facile. There are more religions than there are rapture views, so according to their logic we cannot be sure that Christianity is the correct religion.
It is a non sequitur to assert that because a multiplicity of views exist, therefore we cannot know which one is correct. This epistemic relativism is unbecoming of the Christian. It is most disturbing that the individual is implicitly saying that God has failed to communicate his truth and the Holy Spirit is inactive. Perhaps the fault is not with God, but with the individual.
Next, the doctrine of the second coming is not the only doctrine with “many views.” The whole gamut of Christian doctrines have various interpretations—but that does not stop us from being Bereans by searching God’s Word for that little thing called…truth.
The fact that there exists alternative interpretations should be more of a reason to concentrate our attention on biblical prophecy—not by ignoring it!
Takeaway: Truth be told, this platitude is a pretext to avoid the time and effort in studying Scripture on this subject. Don’t be taken in by this superficial platitude.
