The popular view of prophecy contends that a LITERAL interpretation is to be had in regards to the Old Testament Prophets, and that other views "spiritualize" these prophecies since they simply err in spiritualizing too much, generally speaking. Such accusers FAIL TO REALIZE THAT THE NATURAL AND SPIRITUAL ARE CONTRASTED in the Bible, and it's not an issue of the LITERAL AND SPIRITUAL being contrasted in some sort of prophetic error. Since it is a NATURAL and SPIRITUAL issue, it is incumbent upon us to spiritualizeWhat Are The Implications of difference of Timing?! The apostle Paul taught that we are to spiritualize the promises of God!

The reason they accuse us of error by saying we "spiritualize" everything too much, is because they are caught up in this incorrect premise that it's npot a matter of natural versus spiritual, but literal versus spiritual.

Even the bible says that the natural bent is the tendency for most people, since most people are naturally minded, and not spiritually minded. So the actual situation we have on our hands, here, is that our The teachers of popular prophecy are simply leaning towards the NATURAL MIND when they insist the LITERAL interpretation is the one to favour!

Paul flatly stated that ALL THE PROMISES of God are towards the SPIRITUAL SEED OF ABRAHAM.

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Gal 3:7
(7) Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.

Gal 3:29
(29) And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

2Co 1:20
(20) For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.

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Tell me, which promises are not our's if Paul said ALL THE PROMISES OF GOD ARE THE CHURCH'S?

It is plain, good old, apostolic teaching to contend that there is a NATURAL Israel and a SPIRITUAL ISRAEL. There is a NATURAL ZION and a SPIRITUAL ZION. There is a NATURAL JERUSALEM AND A SPIRITUAL JERUSALEM.

Galatains 4 teaches us that the two sons of Abraham, Ishmael and Isaac, represent the natural children of ABRAHAM (Natural Israel) as Ishmael, and spiritual children of Abraham (Isaac).

So to interpret the promises of BLESSING to refer to natural Israel (Israel after the flesh), is to DESTORY the entire prophecy! The promises -- all of them -- are to the TRUE seed of Abraham, the Church. Paul said so!

Gal 4:21-31 PROVES that ALL promises to Israel and Zion REFER TO THE CHURCH ALONE!

And Paul actually says, here,

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2Co 4:18
(18) While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

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Furthermore, many The teachers of popular prophecy incorrectly use the term "literal". "Literal" simply means, "according to the letter." And if the "letter" of the epistles is saying that we are to consider the blessings of God to pertain only to Spiritual Israel, then The teachers of popular prophecy are destroying the LITERAL interpretation! The literal interpretation is that we should not take the propheices "naturally" but "spiritually." Therefore, the only true contrast is not the literal versus the spiritual, but the natural versus the spiritual. And The teachers of popular prophecy are destroying the literal interpretation of Galatians 4:21-31!

The teachers of popular prophecy everywhere! If you will realize that Paul clearly taught how we must not look at things which are seen, but realize that things that Zion, Jerusalem and Israel are all explicitly noted to be in existence NOW IN THE SPIRITUAL REALM, as clearly taught in the epistles, and the unseen are therefore the true fulillments of the prophecies of old testament, you will not trip yourselves up with such a "natural" intepretation any longer.