#millenialism

2.      Dispensational Premillennialism

This is the belief that the Second Coming of Christ will precede the millennium and the “rapture” will occur before the tribulation (pre-trib rapture).

This belief is summed up by the following:

History is divided into several distinct dispensations, or ages in which God relates to mankind in a different way.

The most important distinction is between Israel’s Age of Law on the one hand, and the Church’s Age of Grace on the other.

Jesus failed to setup his kingdom and failed to assume the throne of David at his first coming because of the Jews’ rejection of him.

Dispensationalism is pretribulationist and premillennial.

The Second Coming of Christ will be in two stages, one secret and invisible, and one open and visible seven years later.

Jesus will come back secretly and resurrect the righteous dead and rapture the church up to heaven prior to the great tribulation on earth.

The Church Age ends and God’s plan for Israel resumes when the Church is raptured at the beginning of the tribulation.

Jesus comes back at the end of the tribulation to destroy the kingdom of the antichrist, bind Satan, and to set up his kingdom on earth for 1000 years.

The millennium is Israel-centered: It rules over all other nations and animal sacrifices are performed in the Temple as in the Old Testament.

At the end of the millennium Satan is loosed and gathers the nations to make war with Jesus Christ who destroys him and resurrects the wicked dead and casts them into the lake of fire.

3. Postmillennialism

This is the belief that the Second Coming of Christ will come after the millennium.

This belief is summed up by the following:

There is an increase in the spread of God’s rule in every area of life through the preaching of the gospel which ushers in a millennium of peace and justice.

Through the reforming effects of the gospel on men, Christ will return to an almost fully Christian world at the end of the millennium.

Some postmillennialists believe that the world will be reformed by bottom-up grassroots efforts of changing the hearts and minds of people.

Postmillennialists who subscribe to Christian Reconstructionism or Dominion Theology believe that the millennium will be commenced by a top-down approach in which Christian legal and political institutions will be set up. (This type of authoritarian pseudo theocracy would likely usher in the tribulation, rather than an age of peace and prosperity.)

4. Preterism

This is the belief that all prophecy, including the Second Coming of Christ, was fulfilled by 70AD.

Preterism teaches that all the events in the Olivet Discourse and the book of Revelation were fulfilled in the first century in the destruction of Jerusalem and in the persecution of Christians by the Roman empire.

5. Amillennialism

This is the belief that the millennium is the time period between the resurrection and Second Coming of Christ.

This belief is summed up by the following:

Satan was bound by Jesus Christ at His resurrection, at which time Jesus began reigning on David’s throne in heaven.

The millennium is figurative, representing the whole amount of time between the resurrection of Christ and the Second Coming of Christ.

The kingdom of God/heaven is the institution of the local church through which Christ reigns over the earth from heaven.

There will be one resurrection on the last day of both the righteous and the wicked.

Christ will return bodily, visibly, and audibly at the end of the millennium (at the end of time) and will completely destroy Satan and his kingdom, destroy the earth and heavens by fire, judge all men, cast the wicked into the lake of fire, take the righteous into glory, and create a new heaven and a new earth where the redeemed will dwell forever.

III. The need to properly interpret the Bible to come to a correct understanding of end time events.

The doctrines of Dispensationalism, Premillennialism, and Postmillennialism are all largely based on a faulty interpretation of Revelation 20 and of the OT prophetic books.

The book of Revelation is an allegorical book of signs and symbols.

The rest of the NT is characterized by great plainness of speech (2Co 3:12).

When a concept is expressed in figurative language, the meaning is hard to discern, and it therefore needs to be compared with parallel teaching in plain language (Joh 11:11-14; Joh 16:25-30).

Therefore obscure passages in Revelation and in the OT prophets need to be understood in light of plain passages in the NT.

We are told this in the opening verse (Rev 1:1).

Signify – 1. a. trans. To be a sign or symbol of; to represent, betoken, mean.

IV. The Biblical view of end time events (very similar to Amillennialism).

Rather than first spending time analyzing all the counterfeit positions on the millennium and end times, let’s first take some time to understand what the true, Biblical teaching is.

The following are the events of end times:

The first coming of Christ

The death and resurrection of Christ

The binding of Satan

The setting up of the “millennial kingdom” and the reign of Christ on David’s throne

The tribulation

The loosing of Satan

The Second Coming of Christ

The resurrection

The “rapture” (the word rapture doesn’t appear in scripture)

The destruction of the Devil and the armies gathered against Christ

The destruction of the heavens and the earth

The final judgment

The creation of the new heaven and the new earth

3.      The death and resurrection of Christ.

The death and resurrection of Christ dealt a deadly blow to Satan and his kingdom.

The devil and his minions didn’t know that crucifying Jesus would be their undoing (1Co 2:8).

They actually fulfilled the scriptures in orchestrating His condemnation (Act 13:27).

The defeat of Satan by Jesus Christ was prophesied about 6000 years ago (Gen 3:15).

When Jesus was crucified and raised from the dead He spoiled principalities and powers (Col 2:14-15).

Spoil – I. 1. a. trans. To strip or despoil (a dead or helpless person); esp. to strip (a defeated or slain enemy) of arms and armour.

Satan is the prince of the wicked principalities and powers (Mat 12:24).

Beelzebub – The Devil; a devil;

Therefore, Jesus spoiled Satan by His death and resurrection.

Jesus destroyed Satan and his works through His death (Heb 2:14; 1Jo 3:8).

4.      The binding of Satan.

In order for Jesus to spoil Satan, He must first have bound him (Mat 12:29).

Jesus is the angel who bound Satan at His first coming (at His resurrection) (Rev 20:1-2).

Jesus is called the messenger (angel) of the covenant (Mal 3:1).

Angel – 1. a. A ministering spirit or divine messenger

Jesus has the key of the bottomless pit (hell and death) (Rev 1:17-18).

Though Satan is bound, he is not completely immobilized.

A person can be bound and yet still have a measure of liberty, such as in the following cases:

This is the case with Satan; his binding is specific: “that he should deceive the nations no more” (Rev 20:3).

Paul in Roman custody (Act 24:23-27)

Joseph in prison in Egypt (Gen 39:22 c/w Gen 40:3-4)

Marriage (1Co 7:27)

The nations is synonymous with the Gentiles in scripture (Rom 15:10 c/w Deu 32:43).

Prior to the coming of Christ, God only dealt with one nation, Israel (Psa 147:19-20).

All the other nations were left to walk in darkness (Eph 2:12; Eph 4:17-18)

At that time the Gentiles were devil worshipers (1Co 10:20).

With Satan bound so that he could deceive the nations no more, the gospel then went to the Gentiles (Mat 28:19).

Prior to the coming of Christ, God turned a blind eye to Gentile idolatry, but now commands all men everywhere to repent (Act 14:16; Act 17:29-30).

With Satan bound, the Gentiles can be converted from the grip of his power unto God (Act 26:18).

Satan is said to be bound for 1000 years (Rev 20:2,7).

As was pointed out before, the book of Revelation is signified (Rev 1:1).

Therefore, the 1000 years is not necessarily to be taken literally.

The number 1000 is used figuratively elsewhere in scripture to refer to a large and complete number of something (Psa 50:10; Psa 105:8; 1Ch 16:15-17).

As will be proved later, the 1000 years during which Satan is bound is the period between the resurrection of Christ and the Second Coming of Christ, less “a little season” (Rev 20:3).

The coming King would be a descendant of David (2Sa 7:12).

The King and His kingdom would be setup and established when David was dead and sleeping in the grave (2Sa 7:12).

The King would be the Son of God (2Sa 7:14).

The King would build the house of God which would be associated with His kingdom being established (2Sa 7:13; 1Ch 17:12).

The house of God and the kingdom of God would be established forever (2Sa 7:16; 1Ch 17:14).

Therefore the first coming and resurrection of Jesus Christ perfectly and completely fulfilled the Davidic covenant given in (2Sa 7:12-16; 1Ch 17:11-14).

This is why He is now called the King of kings (1Ti 6:15; Rev 1:5) and will hold that title when He returns (Rev 17:14).

Jesus Christ was a descendant of David through Mary (Luk 3:23,31).

He was also a descendant of David through Joseph (though Joseph was not his natural father) (Mat 1:1,6,16).

Peter, preaching to the Jews on the day of Pentecost, identified when Jesus Christ was seated on the throne of David.

Peter began by identifying the fact that at the time he was speaking, David was dead and buried (Act 2:29), which is the time when Christ would be raised up to sit on David’s throne (2Sa 7:12).

David had written, “thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption” (Act 2:27 c/w Psa 16:10).

At first glance, it might appear that David was speaking of himself, but Peter reasons from the scriptures and concludes that since, 1) David was a prophet (Act 2:30) and therefore often spoke of the Messiah and future events and, 2) God had sworn that He would raise up Christ, one of his physical descendants, to sit on his (David’s) throne (Act 2:30 c/w 2Sa 7:12); David therefore was writing of Christ, not himself.

Peter then identifies exactly when Christ was raised up and seated on David’s throne in fulfillment of the prophecy: “He seeing this before spake of THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.” (Act 2:31)

When David saw before that God would raise up Christ to sit on David’s throne, he saw the resurrection of Christ (Act 2:30-31).

This happened when David was dead and in the grave, not at the beginning of the alleged millennium seven years after David had been resurrected at the rapture and was physically alive in his glorified body as the dispensationalists teach (more on that later).

God raised up Jesus at the resurrection and exalted Him at the right hand of God (Act 2:32-33) on David’s throne which is in heaven (Psa 89:35-37).

Jesus’ kingdom is not an earthly kingdom (Joh 18:36).

When the Jews tried to make him an earthly king, He hid Himself from them (Joh 6:15).

Jesus is reigning in heaven at the right hand of God on David’s throne until his foes are made His footstool (Act 2:34-35).

Jesus reigns in the midst of His enemies (not after they’ve all been destroyed) (Psa 110:1-2).

“For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.” (1Co 15:25)

Reign – 1. intr. To hold or exercise the sovereign power or authority in a state; to rule or govern as king

Jesus Christ became the Son of God when He was conceived by the Holy Ghost and the power of God and born of the virgin, Mary (Luk 1:35).

He was declared to be the Son of God by God the Father at His baptism (Luk 3:21-22).

But it was at His resurrection when He was declared to be the Son of God with power (Rom 1:3-4).

The resurrection of Christ was the fulfillment of the prophecy in Psa 2:7, in which God said: “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.” (Act 13:33-34 c/w Psa 2:7)

It was at the resurrection of Christ that God set Him as His King in the holy hill of Zion on David’s throne (Psa 2:6).

The fact that Jesus Christ was made King when He was raised from the dead and set at the right hand of God in heaven (Eph 1:20-22 c/w 1Sa 15:17) is undeniable, as Psa 2:6 was said between Psa 2:1-2 (which is a prophecy of Christ’s crucifixion (c/w Act 4:25-28)), and Psa 2:7 (which is a prophecy of the resurrection of Christ (c/w Act 13:33-34)).

Jesus built the house of God, His church, at His first coming (Mat 16:18 c/w 1Ti 3:15).

It was already proved that the church (the house of God) is the kingdom of God (Luk 22:29-30; Heb 12:28) which Jesus set up at His first coming (Luk 11:20). (See Section IV,5,A,v – p. 7-8)

As was before proved, the house of God (the church) and the kingdom of God were setup by Christ at His first coming and will last forever (Mat 16:18; Eph 3:21; Heb 12:28).

See Section IV,5,A,v – p. 7-8 for further proof of this.

Every born-again believer is currently reigning with Christ in His kingdom.

God hath made us kings and priests by Christ washing us with his blood and taking our sins away (Rev 1:5-6).

Being kings and priests, we reign on the earth (Rev 5:10).

This is why we are called a royal priesthood (1Pe 2:9).

Royal – I. 1. a. Of blood, etc.: Originating from, connected with, a king or line of kings. b. Of persons: Having the rank of king or queen; belonging to the royal family.

The saints now reign as kings in the church/kingdom (1Co 4:8).

Every born-again child of God reigns in life by Jesus Christ (Rom 5:17).

Every regenerate child of God is now raised up and seated with Christ in heaven where He is reigning (Eph 2:6 c/w Eph 1:20-22).

Every born-again believer is currently a priest of God.

As was just shown, the elect are currently a royal priesthood (1Pe 2:9; Rev 1:6)

Church members are a holy priesthood which offer up spiritual sacrifices (1Pe 2:5).

Those spiritual sacrifices include the sacrifices of praising God and communicating (giving) to Him (Heb 13:15-16).

Therefore the “millennial” reign of Christ in Revelation 20 where the saints live and reign with him as priests for 1000 years is currently happening and has been since Christ’s resurrection (Rev 20:4-6).

As was pointed out before, the book of Revelation is signified (Rev 1:1).

Therefore, the 1000 years is not necessarily to be taken literally.

The number 1000 is used figuratively elsewhere in scripture to refer to a large and complete number of something (Psa 50:10; Psa 105:8; 1Ch 16:15-17).

In the days of the Roman empire (Luk 3:1-3), John the Baptist and Jesus came preaching that the kingdom of heaven (Mat 3:1-2; Mat 4:17) and the kingdom of God (Mar 1:15) were “at hand.”

At hand – Within easy reach; near; close by.

Jesus said that “the time is fulfilled” (Mar 1:15); the days of the Roman empire were present and the promised kingdom was within easy reach.

As a letter fulfillment of the prophesy of Daniel which said that “the God of heaven [would] set up a kingdom” (Dan 2:44), the kingdom was called the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven (Mat 4:17 c/w Mar 1:15).

There is absolutely NO DOUBT that the kingdom of God was set up at the first coming of Christ (Luk 11:20).

The kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven are the same thing.

The phrase “kingdom of heaven” is exclusively used in the Matthew’s gospel.

The phrase “kingdom of God” is used a few times in Matthew and John, and extensively in Mark and Luke.

A simple comparison of parallel verses in Matthew, Mark, and Luke show beyond question that the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God are interchangeable terms. For example:

Matthew himself uses the terms interchangeably (Mat 19:23-24).

Also compare Mat 19:23-24 with (Mar 10:23-25 c/w Luk 18:24-25).

The mystery of the kingdom of heaven/God (Mat 13:11 c/w Mar 4:11 c/w Luk 8:10).

The parable of the mustard seed (Mat 13:31-32 c/w Mar 4:30-31 c/w Luk 13:18-19).

The parable of the leaven (Mat 13:33 c/w Luk 13:20-21).

It is obvious that these are two different names for the same kingdom: God is in heaven; therefore it is called the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven.

If it was suspected that these were two different kingdoms, the fact that they are described identically in parallel passages demands that they are the same kingdom.

Things that are both equal to something are equal to each other.

This is a classic “double horn” argument, in that it proves that the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven are the same kingdom, whether it is at first conceded that the terms are synonymous, or whether they are at first held to be two different kingdoms which are then shown to be identical.

The kingdom of God is not an earthly, material kingdom.

The kingdom of God is the church.

The kingdom of God/heaven is not material, but spiritual (Luk 17:20-21).

Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world (Joh 18:36).

The Jews wanted to make Jesus an earthly king and He ran from it (Joh 6:15).

The prophecy of the kingdom of God in Daniel stated that the stone that smote the Roman empire became a great mountain and filled the whole earth (Dan 2:34-35).

Jesus built the church upon Himself, the chief corner stone (Mat 16:18 c/w Eph 2:20-22).

The church will never be destroyed (the gates of hell shall not prevail against it) (Mat 16:18).

The kingdom of God is entered into by baptism (Luk 7:29-30 c/w Mat 21:31-32; Luk 16:16).

The apostles ate and drank at Jesus’ table in His kingdom (Luk 22:29-30).

Jesus Christ is the stone that shattered the Roman empire (Mat 21:42-44 c/w Psa 2:6-9).

The great mountain the stone became is the kingdom of God (Dan 2:34-35 c/w Dan 2:44).

The church is called Mount Sion (Heb 12:22-23).

Therefore, the church is the kingdom of God which is the great mountain which fills the whole earth (Psa 48:1-2).

There will be glory given to God in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end (Eph 3:21).

Therefore, the church is the kingdom of God which shall never be destroyed (Dan 2:44 c/w Heb 12:28).

The church is entered into by baptism (Act 2:41).

Therefore, the church is the kingdom of God.

The Lord’s table is the communion table which is found in the church (1Co 10:16,21).

The Lord’s supper (eating and drinking with Jesus) is the communion service which is observed in the church (1Co 11:20,23-25).