BigOleROB: hey, roger!
BigOleROB: how's it going?
Bro Roger Taylor: Fine, how are you?
Bro Roger Taylor: I just thought you were at home.
Bro Roger Taylor: I did not know you had a computer
BigOleROB: i'm at my girlfriends
Bro Roger Taylor: Oh, I see
BigOleROB: i'm good
Bro Roger Taylor: Are you still taking Revelation?
BigOleROB: yep
Bro Roger Taylor: I am enjoying getting ready for the course I am going to teach. I will look forward in hearing which way your professor interprets the book.
Bro Roger Taylor: The Textbook I am using is written by a former professor in the New Testament department at Western.
BigOleROB: what's his name?
Bro Roger Taylor: Robert Mounce
Bro Roger Taylor: It is a great text
BigOleROB: cool.
Bro Roger Taylor: very thorough

Bro Roger Taylor: covers all the theories
BigOleROB: i'm pretty sure that my professor will interpret quite opposite that you will
Bro Roger Taylor: Maybe that will be the book you will use
BigOleROB: i actually don't know if we'll use a book
Bro Roger Taylor: Why would you think that??
Bro Roger Taylor: You think he will just fly by the seat of his pants.
Bro Roger Taylor: Are you going to be at Western on Monday or will you wait and go the next week.
BigOleROB: i had him for new testament last semester, so i know his views...he's writing his own book on it
BigOleROB: i won't be there monday i don't think
BigOleROB: later on next week i'll be there i think
Bro Roger Taylor: I see
Bro Roger Taylor: I wanted to check out some books from Western's library
Bro Roger Taylor: Did not know if I was going to have to have you to help me or not.
Bro Roger Taylor: Carol is taking a New Testament class and is going to write a paper on Revelation.
Bro Roger Taylor: I was going to go to Western and see what kind of books they had in their library.
Bro Roger Taylor: Are there very many books in their library for their New Testament studies.
BigOleROB: probably...i've never really had to look before for new testament books
BigOleROB: they should have plenty
Bro Roger Taylor: I have very authoritative books on Revelation. Walvoord, Pentecost, Larkin. You mean you have not had to write any papers, etc. to have references.
Bro Roger Taylor: I do not want to send Carol my books since I will be referring to them. Would your teacher be a pre-tribulationionist or premillinialist
BigOleROB: i didn't have to write papers for new testament...it's only a 100 level class
BigOleROB: amillenialist
Bro Roger Taylor: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh hhhhh
BigOleROB: i pretty much agree with him on most things
BigOleROB: sorry to burst your bubble
Bro Roger Taylor: You think we are in the millenium right now. It is not my bubble I would be concerned about.
BigOleROB: yeah, a symbolic millenial reign of christ
BigOleROB: i don't really accept the tribulation and rapture and antichrist stuff
Bro Roger Taylor: ???

Bro Roger Taylor: You mean we are in the tribulation right now or it has already been
Bro Roger Taylor: The tribulation is in Revelation isn't it.
BigOleROB: neither...i don't believe it will happen at all
Bro Roger Taylor: why?
BigOleROB: i don't think it's scriptural...i think jesus will come back and that will be that...i just don't see anything like a rapture when you read the bible in its historical context
Bro Roger Taylor: Interesting?
Bro Roger Taylor: That is a theory
Bro Roger Taylor: It would be interesting to see you get into some of the other textbooks that teach all the theories. Wished you had Mounce's book
BigOleROB: yeah, but it makes more and more sense the more i read the bible
Bro Roger Taylor: he handles all the theories
Bro Roger Taylor: Really, he uses allthe theories.
Bro Roger Taylor: You are correct
Bro Roger Taylor: There is a historical significance for why Revelation was written
Bro Roger Taylor: for that day
Bro Roger Taylor: but there is also there within the book
Bro Roger Taylor: a need to see things in the future.
BigOleROB: yeah, i believe it is all about the resurgeance of emporer worhsip
BigOleROB: yeah, the future of they world....new heaven, new earth and stuff
Bro Roger Taylor: Don't get mad at me for saying this but think about it awhile. If you have not referred to other books in the library even on the subject and you are going on what your professor has told you, you are still not informed enough to make a decision on that. If you read allthe books and study all the theories and translate Revelation form that context then maybe you might believe the same.
BigOleROB: oh, i've studied a lot of the other theories...i'm not ignorant of them...i'm not one of those people who just goes by what their professor says. I used to be a big premillenialist...i have all the left behind books. I even had a whole section of my website devoted to proving the premillenial theory true.
Bro Roger Taylor: Left Behind series is not authority on this subject
Bro Roger Taylor: I am glad you have studied the premillenialist view
BigOleROB: i started studying different views about post-trib and mid-trib too and it made me question the pre-trib
BigOleROB: no, i don't consider the left behind books authoritative, but most ppl go by them
Bro Roger Taylor: If it is worth believing it is worth quesitioning and there is nothing wrong with that.
Bro Roger Taylor: Miriam loves to read them but I never have. We discuss the ideas within them and do not always agree on the fiction involved. Again they are fiction.
Bro Roger Taylor: I want people to understand the context with which it was written in that day and I also want them to understand why it was written for us.
BigOleROB: yeah, i've just found the amilennialist view most accurate from my perspective
Bro Roger Taylor: I can respect that. Some people can not hear other people's belief but I do have one problem with your acceptance of it.
Bro Roger Taylor: You are saying there is no tribulation and no rapture, etc? You will have a problem proving that part.
BigOleROB: how's that?
Bro Roger Taylor: I think some time this semester it would be great to check out Mounce's book on Revelation. He was a professor and authority and has great credentials.

BigOleROB: i will try if i get time
Bro Roger Taylor: He taught there at Western so they are certain to have his book, if the New Testament study division did not take it out.
BigOleROB: for our revelation class, we have to use a revelation commentary to write a 20 page paper on it and compare it with things we study in class
Bro Roger Taylor: I tried to schroll up
BigOleROB: they told me they always disprove Tim Lahaye's stuff....it will be interesting
Bro Roger Taylor: So by using the textbook the professor assigns you which is probably his view and then writing a paper giving his views certainly does not give you a broad vision of any other interpretation
Bro Roger Taylor: I schrolled up to see if you remember you saying something
Bro Roger Taylor: You did say you did not believe in tribulation right?
BigOleROB: right
Bro Roger Taylor: You said how so
BigOleROB: yeah
Bro Roger Taylor: You have two many scriptures to explain away if you do not believe in the tribulation.
BigOleROB: i think we will cover other views and theories...Trafton is very thorough with letting his students see the other theories before his
Bro Roger Taylor: It is always easier to interpret the Bible literally when it can be interpreted literally and if it can not you can interpret figuratively. Believe me there are too many verses you must interpret literally for you to say there is no tibulation.

BigOleROB: i'm not so sure about that....are you referring about stuff in daniel about the tribulation or other places?
Bro Roger Taylor: I am saying all the way from Daniel to the Revelation. I am saying through the gospels and in Paul's writings.
BigOleROB: but i think a lot of what people think is rapture or tribulation stuff is a verse taken out of context or not understood what the author is trying to show
Bro Roger Taylor: There are too many verses to have to deal with that are right in context.
Bro Roger Taylor: You would have to be figurative in your interpretation to say no tribulation at all.
BigOleROB: maybe, i'll have to get back to ya on that...and probably talk about it in person
Bro Roger Taylor: You lose a great deal of literal context
BigOleROB: it's easier in person than typing
Bro Roger Taylor: yes, that would be better but I am going to really give you some more tothink about before you go to seminary.
BigOleROB: i'm not going to seminary, i'll be going to grad school
BigOleROB: what gets me is that people assume that the premillenial view has always been there since the beginning, but it's ONLY 150 years old
Bro Roger Taylor: one last thing. I wanted to know what your professor believes and got curious and thought I would check on his text. It is Revelation 28.95 written by Boring and published by Westminister.
Bro Roger Taylor: Are you going to teach Relgious Studies?
BigOleROB: yep
BigOleROB: how did you know what text he's using?
Bro Roger Taylor: If you go to grad school to learn about Relgious studies and you have no seminary background. All the studies will be will be 'RELIGIOUS" AND NOT CHRISTIAN.
Bro Roger Taylor: I have been to the book store.
Bro Roger Taylor: Rob, I have a professor friend at Western.
BigOleROB: oh
Bro Roger Taylor: We are good friends and we have discussed the New
Testament department several times. At one time, Western had a good department that was fairly biblical. That has not been the case in past years. I want to always be your friend but I am concerned you will not have an opportunity to really be in God's word unless you go to seminary. What your getting at Western is not even close to being on the same page that I am on.
BigOleROB: that's not completely true that it will be religious and not christian, although it will not be completely christian, true
BigOleROB: i'm not going to be a minister, but a teacher of ancient christianity
BigOleROB: well, if you're saying that that WKU doesn't teach baptist doctrine, then you're correct...of course not
BigOleROB: but i don't agree with some baptist doctrine
Bro Roger Taylor: We might have to agree not to discuss things but I will be honest if you are feeling led of the Lord in His work. I want you to pray some more about training. Our seminaries will give you a better footing. Now some of them will hold to the amill position maybe but very few and they will explain it differently than you jsut did. You just told me that the premill belief if only 150 years old. THAT IS A LIE. If you teach ancient christianity, please get a better footing. NO, I am not just talking about
Bro Roger Taylor: baptist doctrine.
BigOleROB: but there are some really good evangelical professors at wku...it's really quite a conservative school compared to most
Bro Roger Taylor: maybe, it once was, I know that
Bro Roger Taylor: Even in our seminaries we are not always on the same page
Bro Roger Taylor: I am concerned about relgion
Bro Roger Taylor: If you teach religion
BigOleROB: what did you mean if i am led by the lord in his work? i'm not going to be a minister or anything.
Bro Roger Taylor: you will still have to interpret the Bible literally to be Christian.. Not that you have to never use figurative language but only in context to the historical and literal.
BigOleROB: a lot of times i think seminaries are more constrictive and don't allow for other alternative views....because of course baptist seminaries are going to teach baptist stuff
BigOleROB: i know
Bro Roger Taylor: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Bro Roger Taylor: See you are listening to someone and need to hear me say that
Bro Roger Taylor: Southern Seminary did not teach me one view
Bro Roger Taylor: and many still disagree
BigOleROB: well, i meant they mostly teach about the same kinda stuff, but not as wide a variety as a secular institution
BigOleROB: i know they let other denominations into seminary
Bro Roger Taylor: never constrictive. Seriously, I am wanting to go to the seminary now and get in the library and do some research and yet you have not been in your library checking out books on studies and your thinking of teaching it.
Bro Roger Taylor: Do you know we have been encouraged before to go to secular institution to work on our masters.
Bro Roger Taylor: Is Drafton from a seminary
BigOleROB: i read lots of books, but just not from wku's library
BigOleROB: no, trafton got his phd at duke
BigOleROB: a lot of time i don't have much time to read much leasure books in my free time during school
Bro Roger Taylor: i mean Trafton, I see
Bro Roger Taylor: We will pick this up at another time not any time soon. I will pick you up sometime when we can talk again about it. Just pray about some of the things I told you. Are you going tomorro? Are you going to be able to come back home for ordination.
BigOleROB: okay, yeah i'm going to BG tomorrow and i should be back for the ordination
Bro Roger Taylor: I had better get back to my sermon, instead of preaching to you. ha take care. We will see you then
BigOleROB: you too...thanks for talking...not many people enjoy talking about this stuff, hehe
BigOleROB: cya later
Bro Roger Taylor: bye