Dangers of Doomsday Theology

Coming soon to a theatre near you (again) is the remake of Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkin’s first book in the multi-volume series Left Behind. These 16 stories convey their biblio-fictional interpretation of how John’s vision of the end of the world, as described in the book of Revelation, might play out in a twenty-first century context. But many readers and moviegoers may not understand the larger backstory conveyed in these books and movies.

I think we evangelicals have not fully considered the impact this brand of theology has made in terms of marginalizing, and even ignoring, the more holistic vision of life in the kingdom of God that Jesus came to teach and demonstrate. As a result, some of these end-times dogmas can actually work against the overarching message of Christ, unintentionally weakening the overarching biblical perspective on the moral life, holiness, witness, and Christ-like transformation.