Somewhere Between Heaven and Earth (Part 2)

Dear Indiana,

In the "Preface" to Dual Citizens, Jason Stellman approvingly quotes Dutch theologian Geerhardus Vos, who "famously said that 'eschatology precedes soteriology." "But," Stellman continues, "I would go so far as to say that eschatology (looking at the present from the standpoint of the future) precedes everything." There is plenty of truth in this statement, not just in the fact that I think Stellman is absolutely correct in his belief that our view of the future colors everything we think and do in the present, but also in the fact that everything in Stellman's book is indeed an outworking of his own view of eschatology, i.e. amillennialism. In other words, the "Preface" is a disclaimer of sorts, one that should be included in the "Preface" of every theological work. Stellman admits that he sees the world as he does because of his view of the future; and it should be added that I do too, and so do you. Eschatology indeed "precedes everything."

It is Stellman's eschatological view—amillennialism—which forces him to make some of the strange divisions that he does. For instance, speaking of the situation immediately following Adam's Fall in the Garden of Eden, Stellman writes: "Once man declared his rebellious sovereignty, his kingdom became distinct from God's kingdom, causing an unnatural separation between cult and culture" (p. xx). Apart from the fact that this a physical impossibility—God's kingdom includes the entire created order—it seems to indicate that man's kingdom was now somehow outside of God's jurisdiction, a truly crazy notion. Stellman knows that this is not the case, because God still commanded men to live by His rules, and judged them when they disobeyed. If man's kingdom was truly distinct, God would have no say over how men lived in "their" kingdom. But it is this kind of divided thinking—what Stellman calls cult and culture, but what could also be referred to as sacred and secular, or spiritual and physical—that is forced by the "already but not yet" of amillennialism.

Although this review is not meant to be a primer on eschatology, a short summary of amillennial thought is necessary at this point. Although it is difficult to say exactly what flavor of amillennialism Stellman holds, I think he would basically agree with Anthony Hoekema, who summarized his own views this way...

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http://christianreader.typepad.com/christian_reader/2009/09/somewhere-between-heaven-and-earth-part-2.html

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