That we will eventually "lose". Ultimately the war will be won but I think the battle for Christianity in culture will be lost.
Discussion
A few thoughts:
His statement "We lose down here" seems heavy with fatigue. And I am burdened with him. The past few years were hard and all the more for a man who courageously stood against the torrent but did so largely alone (while most Big Eva guys buckled or *winsomed* their way through the storm).
That being said, the sentiment is true in one sense but not in another. It is true in the sense that in war, there are many losses and there are plenty of examples of defeat throughout Scripture. America and/or the West may only descend further until it is in utter moral and physical ruin. But that is not the same thing as "we lose down here" and all we, the Church, ever do or can do is lose. This perspective flows from a deeper eschatological view that is out of sync with the arc of Scripture. The arc of Scripture is one of victory, transformation, and ultimately a complete renewal of heaven and earth.
"They killed Jesus, they killed all the apostles, we are all going to be persecuted."
This likewise is true but only half true. Christ was the grand conspirator behind the conspirators. His death was entirely in his control. And upon his death, he bound the strong man. He put the spiritual powers to open shame. He broke the spiritual order of the ancient world and is now seated on his throne, reigning with a name above every name. He is King and he will not be mocked. The picture we get of his kingdom is not one of a bang and then a whimper, but of an ever-growing, ever-expanding, unstoppable force. The gates of Hell will not overpower it.
One obvious evidence of this is that there are more Christians in the world now than ever before.
MacArthur also seems to have a flat view of postmillennialism. There are a number of shades within that camp. And his speaking of postmillennialism and the prosperity gospel in the same breath is dissengenuous. They are not at all the same. You listen to Doug, Jim Jordan, or any of the promenant post mil guys and you won't find men who are under the impression that we will *waltz into the kingdom*. You more often find men who hold a shovel in one hand and a sword in the other. Listen to Brian Sauve and the guys at The Kings Hall podcast and you will hear them say that building a new Christendom is generational work.
There are ditches that posfmil folks fall into but it is certainly more robust and biblical a position than he makes it out to be.
Happy to engage further on this if you have push back or follow up thoughts.
No push back from me, I think you’ve got an elegant explanation of where I roughly fall.
I think JMacs pessimism is a product of his eschatology as a “leaky” dispensationalist.
On optimistic days I lean more “postmil” and see victory in the grass roots engagement of culture. Rather than a postmil that sees victory in the governmental sphere first
I agree. The church needs a much more robust political theology but that is a slightly separate subject. Ultimately politics is downstream of culture which itself is downstream of the pulpit. Christians need to be wisely engaged in politics on all levels but would do well to focus most on their local communities. As Michael Foster is keen to emphasize: county over country.
Christendom will not be rebuilt through political force but neither will it be rebuilt without wise political engagement.