From Virgil’s clarifications and Andrew’s comments (and from my own ignorance) I have a question.

It appears that Preterism does not claim that “the perfect” has come and at the same time says that the parousia has happened (perhaps at/around AD 70) and concommittantly that the Judgement is also over at/around the same time but that ‘the perfect’ is yet to come. So apparently we are in an in-between state where we are to discover, as Andrew puts it, what it means to be a ‘new creation’, ‘new humanity’.

Virgil says that the specifically “miraculous” gifts of the Spirit should have also ceased. Where that leaves us is in a place where a lot of the teaching of the gospels and the epistles is preparousia i.e. belongs to the Suffering Servant theme while post parousia (Christus Victor) is what we are now living.

Now we are left without much in the way of real scriptural guidelines - our theology and our exegsis will have to start from scratch and without sources.

Virgil has to derive the purpose of the church from: “Now where does this lead the Church today? What is the purpose of the Church? I look at the picture of the New Jerusalem for answers – I believe the Church is here “for the healing of the nations”… but apart from a vague creational idea and some fulfilment of some selective prophecies, where is the continuity with the bulk of NT teaching and (more importantly) the life and teaching of Jesus?

Important questions, not only anout the gifts but also about the nature of discipleship and the fate of Jesus preaching of the good news of the kingdom of God - the gospel - are thus left a bit in limbo. We have a New testament which largely no longer applies.

To quote Peter: “I’m still left puzzled as to what the church has to offer the world today if it is not the gospel. What kind of healing are we to give the nations, if it is not access to the Father by the Son through the Spirit? Is that not the heart of the gospel? Does that not depend on the same willing response now as it did 2000 years ago, through the presentation of the same means - the death of Jesus on the cross, his resurrection, and the conferring of the Spirit on those who believe?”

Live to serve : Serve to live