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I’ve been hesitant to write about eschatology. I intensely dislike all things related to the end times and associated with a literal interpretation of the book of Revelation. In large part, this is due to the fact that I was raised in a church tradition that was hyper-focused on the end times.

The church my family attended for nearly 20 years was heavily influenced by dispensational theology. For those unfamiliar with this theological view, it is where we get the idea of ‘the rapture’ and the Christian fixation with Zionism.

The rapture is an ideology that believes in an event where Christians, dead and alive, are “caught up” (Latin ‘raptura’) or transported from earth to meet Christ in the air. This view is based on 1 Thessalonians 4:17. There are many Interpretive problems with this Thessalonians passage. Here are a few:

The idea of a rapture based on this text didn’t exist until the 19th century.
The word ‘rapture’ is nowhere to be found in the Bible. As noted above, the root word ‘raptura’ is Latin, not Greek.
The Greek word “caught up” or “carry off,” interpreted as rapture, actually means ‘meeting’ and is more suggestive of welcoming Jesus back in his second coming.

Essential to dispensational theology is pro-zionism. An infatuation with Zionism is because dispensationalists take the Bible, especially the book of Revelation, literally. As a result, they see God as having two ‘people of God;’ Israel and the church. Because of this, the current state of Israel is viewed as a prophecy fulfilled in the eyes of dispensationalists.

Where Dispensational Theology Comes From

Dispensational theology was popularized by John Nelson Darby in the 19th
century, shortly after the Civil War. Darby did not create dispensationalism; rather, he systematized and popularized it. Different elements of Darby’s view have existed since the 1600s.

Ironically, the majority of scholars agree that Darby’s dispensational system is a mystery. Some claim that Darby developed his system based on the visions of a 15-year-old girl from Scotland. Others claim the system was developed based on the speaking of tongues Darby witnessed in Edward Irving’s church. The truth is, both views may simply be speculation because we don’t know how the system was developed.

Despite not knowing how Darby developed his system, as of 2017, approximately 65% of evangelicals identify with premillennial dispensationalism. It would be an understatement to say that this theological perspective is entrenched in the American church and culture. Dispensationalism has taken root in seminaries like Dallas Theological Seminary and Liberty University. The Left Behind series sold 65 million copies in pop culture and reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller list.

Based on the scope and influence of dispensationalism, American Christians tend to fixate and obsess over eschatology or the ‘end times.’ By end times, we most often mean plagues, natural disasters, the rise of the anti-Christ, and the destruction of the world. Before diving into how this theology shapes our engagement with the world, let’s clarify what the word ‘eschatology’ means.

Clarifying the meaning of Eschatology

Due to the influence of dispensationalism, most Christians assume the word is synonymous with the end of the world. However, that’s not what eschatology means. Eschatology means ‘last things’ or the study of the last events.

It’s worth specifying that the last events do not mean the world’s end. Eschatology is not concerned with the destruction of the earth but its transformation. New Testament Scholar John Dominic Crossan explains;

Eschatology is not, of course, about the destruction of the earth, but about its transfiguration, not about the end of the world, but about the end of evil, injustice, violence — and imperialism.”

Eschatology shapes all of us. It is implicit for some and explicit for others, but it shapes how Christians engage the world. Here are three views that unpack the primary ways eschatology shapes how Christians seek the transformation of the world.

View One: Intercessory Eschatology

Intercessory eschatology relies on divine intervention to transform the world. The majority of evangelicals, especially those within the dispensational tribe, hold this view.

Proponents of this view believe that the most we can do to transform this world and manifest the kingdom of God that Jesus inaugurated is to pray and wait for God to show up. Deeply rooted in this view is a belief that the world is destined only to worsen. Ending racism, classism, sexism, and all the ‘isms’ is a fool’s errand because the transformation will only come when God destroys the earth and creates a brand new one free of injustice.

The intercession within this view is an act of God and not humanity. At most, our prayers may help alleviate some of the pain, grant a semblance of mercy for those suffering, or somehow force God’s hand in expediting God’s return.

View Two: Participatory Eschatology

In describing the interconnectedness between the divine and human, Desmond Tutu said:

“God won’t without us, and we can’t without God.”

Participatory eschatology embraces the interconnectedness Desmond Tutu describes. In this view, God is active, present, and willing to transform this world. It also believes human agency, actions, and cooperation with God and each other are essential to making a transformed world real.

Proponents of this view do not take the Book of Revelation literally. They also recognize that things within our world are not as they should be and that people are capable of all sorts of evil. Despite both of these realities, God created the world as good, and all of creation, including humanity, is inherently good, not broken, sinful, or depraved. Finally, adherents of this view see individual and social transformation as something God calls all people to as part of manifesting the kingdom of God in the world.

The participatory nature of this view emphasizes the interconnectedness and relationship between God and humanity in bringing about the tangible transformation of this world. This view takes to heart the words of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel;

“To pray with your feet.”

View Three: Abandoning Eschatology

Abandoning eschatology is as bad as it sounds. Adherents to this view do not see a relationship between the gospel and a transformed world. Proponents see only the gospel as applicable to individual sin and salvation.

Within this view, the only concern is salvation, which secures where the individual spends eternity in the next life. The world may be transfigured to manifest the kingdom Jesus inaugurated, or it may be on a one-way trip to destruction. Ultimately, neither scenario matters.

My Journey to Advocating for Participatory Eschatology

Growing up within a dispensationalist tradition, I swung between the first and third views for years. What is closely associated with dispensational theology is what Dietrich Bonhoeffer so eloquently called “cheap grace.” For many dispensationalists, salvation is exclusive to the individual and God. Some groups even go so far as to divide a believer in Christ and a disciple of Christ into two separate groups.

For the believer in Christ, this person has said a prayer, acknowledged the historical reality of Jesus’s life and work, and agreed that the Bible is the literal inspired and infallible words of God, and that’s about it. The person functionally has no relationship or connection with God. They have no desire to grow in love and compassion with themselves. But they would go to heaven because they said the prayer and acknowledged a specific dogma.

The disciple of Christ does the same thing as the believer in Christ. However, they desire a relationship with God and want to grow in love and compassion for themselves and others. The believer acknowledges Christ’s person and work, and the disciple actually follows him.

On bad days, I was content with being a believer, okay with my ‘fire insurance,’ and knowing I was going to avoid hell. On my more self-righteous days, I wanted to follow Jesus, though following Jesus had a very pious, hyper-spiritual bent. Following Jesus meant reading my Bible or a devotional, attending church and church events more regularly, praying using a goofy acronym (ACTS, anyone?), and avoiding all things ‘secular.’

It wasn’t until years later that I realized both the first and third views are rooted in self-centeredness. In view one, even if I wanted to see the world transformed and justice achieved, it wasn’t in my power to actually bring them about. In the third view, the world didn’t matter, so caring about its transformation was a waste of time.

The change for me came over time but was driven by how I couldn’t unsee God’s radical love, compassion, and heart for justice. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than in Christ’s life and teachings. The more I wanted to follow Jesus’s way, the more I experienced the beautiful dance God was calling me to participate in the transformation of this world.