The Problem
For years, Gary DeMar of American Vision has made comments that have left people wondering if he has strayed from orthodox Christian teaching on the second coming of Christ, the bodily resurrection of all, and the final judgment on the last day. When asked for clarity, Gary would ignore or talk down to people. Because some people asking for clarity were considered ‘nobodies,’ it didn’t get much attention. Things changed, however, when it got Dr. Kenneth Gentry’s attention. DeMar occasionally defended hyper-preterists, who deny the three doctrines mentioned above, on some of Dr. Gentry’s critiques of hyper-preterism, prompting Dr. Gentry to ask DeMar to clarify his position. Dr. Gentry asked DeMar three questions:
1. Do you believe in a future bodily return of Christ?
2. Do you believe in a future physical resurrection?
3. Do you believe in a future final judgment that brings an end to temporal history so that sin will be judged and wholly removed from the universe?
Gary DeMar REFUSED to answer the questions, despite many attempts. And, of course, this made people more suspicious.
After refusing to affirm Christian orthodoxy, Dr. Gentry and others formed a private FB group to discuss how to engage DeMar. As a result, they sent DeMar a private letter asking him those questions, and DeMar refused to answer. So they sent the letter again. While these men were waiting for DeMar to respond to their private request, he started a brand new podcast with Kim Burgess called Covenant Hermeneutics and Biblical Eschatology. Kim has since revealed himself as a hyper-preterist, though he claims he is not. He has also called those who uphold the ancient Christian creeds “know-it-all creedalist idolators,” “naive,” “goats,” creedolators,” and not “Reformed.” And Gary still refused to answer the letter. Finally, after almost three months of avoidance, the letter was made public. By this point, 14 names were attached to the open letter.
Jason L Bradfield, Uriesou Brito, Ardel Caneday, Jeff Durbin, John Frame, Sam Frost, Ken Gentry, Phillip Kayser, Brian Mattson, Andrew Sandlin, Keith Sherill, Jeffery J. Ventrella, James R. White, Douglas Wilson
The signers also came up with the idea of creating a website containing a statement against Unorthodox Eschatology giving visitors the option to sign in support. It must be noted that while the idea for the site came out of this drama with Gary DeMar, the website is not directed at him. Nowhere on that site is he mentioned.
DeMar responded to the open letter and website with five podcast episodes (almost 5 hours worth) and gave every excuse in the book for not answering the questions. Though, many would argue that he did answer because the more he talked, the more unorthodoxy he revealed. DeMar says he believes in an “end” but has no idea what that involves, and neither does anyone else. This alone would suggest that he denies all three doctrines. Further, he has explicitly rejected a bodily resurrection on the last day. (See this and this) He frequently speaks of the “coming of Christ” in 70AD but has not affirmed a future, visible, bodily return of Christ. And as for a final judgment, he offers the alternative that people will be judged immediately at death when they receive their new “spiritual body.”
Take it from someone who propagated hyper-preterism for seven years…this is hyper-preterism.
Gary has since gone on a few Facebook rants against some of the signers, even falsely accusing the late Dr. Kenneth Talbot and Whitefield Theological Seminary of being the masterminds behind the whole “attack” yet winking at hyper-preterism in the past. He has blocked several people from being able to respond to false accusations and narratives. He has lied about some things, told half-truths about others, and still refuses to answer the questions directly.
Most of this has occurred on Facebook, which can be challenging to track. So I have decided to archive things here.
- Jason Bradfield