Now what I mean here is impossible, or implausible, in secular terms. That it could happen based on our observable contemporary situation. If
you think it's impossible for a Biblical reason that's different.
Chris
White is someone I discovered only a few months ago. I find many of
his arguments good, they've helped me make new insights. Ironically,
how well he argues for his Pre-Wrath position makes me more secure in my
Mid-Trib position.
I like his approach even when expressing
views I disagree with. But one annoyance I have with hearing him argue
against certain popular views on Bible Prophecy is how much time he
devotes to saying something couldn't happen, or is highly improbable to
happen.
Sometimes he does this arguing against views I also
don't agree with. Like viewing The Pope as The Antichrist or The False
Prophet. The former I consider completely invalid, the latter highly
unlikely. I'm against using that argument even in those cases, I want to be consistent.
He also uses it when arguing
against the view that the Southern Conjecture/Al-Kas Fountain view of The Temple's location is correct, and that the Third Temple will be rebuilt with both the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of The Rock still standing.
He claims that even if neither the Mosque or the Dome
would have to be damaged, that Muslims still could never accept having a
Temple where animal sacrifices are going on exist even within the
vicinity of those sites. So the only way for The Temple to be rebuild
is for Muslims to completely lose the ability to have any say in the
matter. [Update: turns out he was wrong on ANimal Sacrifice in Islam]
Well the problem is for most of the Church Age (around 500 A.D. to WWI) even the
basics of the End Time scenario seemed impossible to ever happen. It
seemed impossible Israel would ever be given their land back, much less
rebuild The Temple. That's why the mainstream approach all through
those periods was to allegorize everything, even the most basic stuff. It was only after the Protestant reformaiton that any dissenters insisting Israel will be established began to emerge. But they were the minority even among Protestants.
And
even without considering for the Supernatural, in Geo-politics things
that seemed impossible have happened many times. The United States of
America has a Black President right now, only 10 years ago that still
seemed an impossibility.
I'd say it's an inherent sign of a lack
of Faith if the only Prophetic predictions you think are valid are the
ones that are plausible. Indeed every Prophecy for which both the
foretelling and fulfillment is recorded in Scripture seemed laughably
unlikely to the Kings the Prophets gave them to.
So I don't care
how impossible some think it is that any Muslims would accept the
arrangement of The Temple being rebuilt between the Mosque and the Dome.
I believe that's the picture The Bible paints. No it's not clearly
laid out in one single passage, but neither is The Trinity, or Israel
fleeing to Edom. It fits various Biblical clues all put together like a
perfect puzzle, and all the other explanations of each of those verses
fails in my view.
So therefore I have faith that it WILL happen,
no matter how Impossible it is. If things happen differently that won't
phase me because it doesn't effect the Gospel. I'm Dogmatic on only
the most indisputable things, like that The Temple must be rebuild, and
the Abomination of Desolation will happen. But of all the conjectural
views of Bible Prophecy I have, this is the one I view as the most
solid.
No matter what Antichrist theory turns out to be true, this
scenario I think this is compatible. In terms of Chris White's False Christ claiming to be messiah Ben-Joseph theory. There is no reason to rule out such a figure trying to to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict peacefully before he's forced to wage war on them.
As far as why it's implausible to
Christ White. Well I don't necessarily think all Muslims will accept
it, I think there will still be lots of Middle East tension during this
time. All The Willful King's Wars recorded in Daniel 11:40-45 I think
will likely happen while the Third Temple is standing and it's
sacrifices being carried out during the first half of the 70th Week.
But
it's the Jordanian Hashamite dynasty who actually controls the Mount,
and their pretty moderate right now. Their very cooperative with the
U.N.. and the Club of Rome. And the West constantly forces things on
the Muslim world they should know better then to think they'd be OK
with.
Frankly the greater obstacle to me is getting the leading
Jews in Israel to accept that the official view of where The Temple
stood is wrong. To me the official view is Biblically impossible for
many (non eschatological) reasons. But none the less all the Rabbis in
Israel are emotionally married to it.
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