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Question:
"What is amillennialism?"
Answer: Amillennialism is the name given
to the belief that there will not be a literal 1,000-year reign of Christ.
The people who hold to this belief are called amillennialists. The prefix
"a" in amillennialism means "no" or "not."
Hence, amillennialism means no millennium. This differs from the most
widely-accepted view called premillennialism (the view that Christ’s second
coming will occur prior to his millennial kingdom, and that the millennial
kingdom is a literal 1,000-year reign) and from the less-widely accepted view
called postmillennialism (the belief that Christ will return after Christians
(not Christ Himself) have established the kingdom on this earth).
However, in fairness to those who are amillennialists, they do not believe
that there is no millennium at all. They just don't believe in a literal
millennium—a literal 1,000-year reign of Christ on earth. Instead, they
believe that Christ is now sitting on the throne of David and that this
present Church age is the kingdom over which Christ reigns. There is no doubt
that Christ is now sitting on a throne, but this does not mean that it is
what the Bible refers to as the throne of David. There is no doubt that
Christ now rules, for He is God. Yet this does not mean He is ruling over the
millennial kingdom.
In order for God to keep His promises to Israel and His covenant with David
(2 Samuel 7:8-16; 23:5; Psalm 89:3-4), there must be a literal, physical
kingdom on this earth. To doubt this is to call into question God’s desire
and/or ability to keep His promises, and this opens up a host of other
theological problems. For example, if God would renege on His promises to Israel after
proclaiming them to be “everlasting,” how could we be sure of anything He
promises, including the promises of salvation to believers in the Lord Jesus?
The only solution is to take Him at His word and understand that His promises
will be literally fulfilled.
Clear biblical indications that the kingdom will be a literal earthly kingdom
are:
1) Christ's feet actually touching the Mount of Olives prior to the
establishment of His kingdom (Zechariah 14:4, 9);
2) During the kingdom, the Messiah will execute justice and judgment on the
earth (Jeremiah 23:5-8);
3) The kingdom is described as being UNDER heaven (Daniel 7:13-14, 27);
4) The prophets foretold of dramatic earthly changes during the kingdom (Acts
3:21; Isaiah 35:1-2; 11:6-9; 29:18; 65:20-22; Ezekiel 47:1-12; Amos 9:11-15);
and
5) The chronological order of events in Revelation indicates the existence of
an earthly kingdom prior to the conclusion of world history (Revelation 20).
The amillennial view comes from using one method of interpretation for
unfulfilled prophecy and another one for non-prophetic Scripture and
fulfilled prophecy. Non-prophetic Scripture and fulfilled prophecy are
interpreted literally or normally. But according to the amillennialist,
unfulfilled prophecy is to be interpreted spiritually, or non-literally.
Those who hold to amillennialism believe that a "spiritual" reading
of unfulfilled prophecy is the normal reading of the texts. This is called
using a dual hermeneutic. Hermeneutics is the study of the principles of
interpretation. The amillennialist assumes that most, or all, unfulfilled
prophecy is written in symbolic, figurative, spiritual language. Therefore,
the amillennialist will assign different meanings to those parts of Scripture
than the normal, contextual meanings of those words.
The problem with interpreting unfulfilled prophecy in this manner is that
this allows for a wide range of meanings. Unless you interpret Scripture in
the normal sense of how written language is interpreted, there won't be one
meaning. Yet God, the ultimate Author of all of Scripture, did have one
specific meaning in mind when He inspired the human authors to write. Though
there may be many life applications in a passage of Scripture, there is only
one meaning, and that meaning is what God intended it to mean. Also, the fact
that fulfilled prophecy was fulfilled literally is the best reason of all for
assuming that unfulfilled prophecy will also be literally fulfilled. The
prophecies concerning Christ's first coming were fulfilled literally.
Therefore, prophecies concerning Christ's second coming should also be
expected to be fulfilled literally. For these reasons, an allegorical
interpretation of unfulfilled prophecy should be rejected and a literal or
normal interpretation of unfulfilled prophecy should be adopted.
©
Copyright 2002-2008 Got Questions Ministries.
http://www.gotquestions.org/amillennialism.html
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Question:
"What is premillennialism?"
Answer: Premillennialism is the view
that Christ’s second coming will occur prior to his Millennial
Kingdom, and that the Millennial Kingdom is a literal 1,000-year reign.
In order to understand and interpret the passages in Scripture that deal with
end times events, there are two things that must be clearly understood: (1) a
proper method of interpreting Scripture, and (2) the distinction between Israel (the
Jews) and the Church (the body of all believers in Jesus Christ).
First, a proper method of interpreting Scripture requires that Scripture be
interpreted in a way that is consistent with its context. This means that a
passage must be interpreted in a way that is consistent with the audience to
which it is written, those it is written about, whom it is written by, and so
on. It is critical to know the author, intended audience, and historical
background of each passage one interprets. The historical and cultural
setting will often reveal what the correct meaning of a passage is. It is
also important to remember that Scripture interprets Scripture. That is,
often a passage will cover a topic or subject that is also addressed
elsewhere in the Bible. It is important to interpret all of these passages
consistently with one another.
Finally, and most importantly, passages must always be taken in their normal,
regular, plain, literal meaning unless the context of the passage indicates
that it is figurative in nature. A literal interpretation does not eliminate
the possibility of figures of speech being used. Rather, it encourages the
interpreter to not read figurative language into the meaning of a passage
unless it is appropriate for that context. It is crucial to never seek a
“deeper, more spiritual” meaning than is presented. This is dangerous,
because when it takes place, the basis for accurate interpretation is placed
in the mind of the reader, rather than coming from the Scriptures. In this
case there can be no objective standard of interpretation, but instead,
Scripture becomes subject to each and every person’s own impression of what
it means. 2 Peter 1:20-21 reminds us “… that no prophecy of the scripture is
of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the
will of man: but holy men of God spake [as they were] moved by the Holy
Ghost.”
Applying these principles of Biblical interpretation, it must be seen that Israel
(Abraham’s physical descendants) and the Church (all the believers) are two
distinct groups. It is crucial to recognize and understand that Israel and
the Church are distinct, because if this is misunderstood, Scripture will be
misinterpreted. Specifically, passages that deal with promises made to Israel (both
fulfilled and unfulfilled) are prone to be misunderstood and misinterpreted
if one tries to make them apply to the Church, and vice versa. Remember, the
context of the passage will determine to whom it is addressed, and will point
to the most correct interpretation!
With those concepts in mind, a look will now be taken at various passages of
Scripture that deal with the Premillennial view. Let’s start in Genesis, with
chapter 12, verses 1-3. They read, “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get
thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house,
unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation,
and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and
in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”
God promises Abraham three things here: that Abraham would have many
descendants, that this nation would own and occupy a land, and a universal
blessing will come to all mankind, out of Abraham’s line (the Jews). In
Genesis 15:9-17, God ratifies His covenant with Abraham. In the way this is
done, God places sole responsibility for the covenant upon Himself. That is,
there was nothing Abraham could do or fail to do that would void the covenant
God made. Also in this passage, the boundaries are set for the land that the
Jews will eventually occupy. For a detailed list of the boundaries, see
Deuteronomy 34. Other passages that deal with the promise of land:
Deuteronomy 30:3-5 and Ezekiel 20:42-44.
2 Samuel chapter 7 deals with Christ’s rule during the millennium. 2 Samuel
7, verses 11-17 record a promise made by God to King David. Here, God
promises David that he will have descendants, and out of those descendants
God will establish an eternal Kingdom. This is referring to the rule of
Christ during the Millennium, and forever. It is important to keep in mind
that this promise must be fulfilled literally, and has not yet taken place.
Some would believe that the rule of Solomon was the literal fulfillment of
this prophesy, but there is a problem with that: The territory over which
Solomon ruled is not held by Israel
today, and Solomon does not rule over Israel today, either! Remember
that God promised Abraham that his decedents would possess a land forever,
which has not happened yet. Also, 2 Samuel 7 says that God would establish a
King who would rule for eternity. Solomon therefore could not be a
fulfillment of the promise made to David. Therefore, this is a promise that
has yet to be fulfilled!
Now, with all this in mind, examine what is recorded in Revelation 20:1-7,
“And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless
pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old
serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And
cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him,
that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be
fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. And I saw
thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and [I
saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for
the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image,
neither had received [his] mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and
they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead
lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This [is] the first
resurrection. Blessed and holy [is] he that hath part in the first
resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be
priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. And
when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his
prison.”
The thousand years which is repeatedly mentioned in Revelation 20:1-7
corresponds to Christ’s literal 1,000-year reign on the earth. Recall that
the promise made to David regarding a ruler had to be fulfilled literally,
and has not yet taken place. Premillennialism sees this passage as describing
the future fulfillment of that promise with Christ on the throne. God made
unconditional covenants with both Abraham and David. Neither of these
covenants have been fully or permanently fulfilled. A literal, physical rule
of Christ is the only way the covenants can be fulfilled as God promised they
would.
Applying a literal method of interpretation to Scripture results in the
pieces of the puzzle coming together. All of the Old Testament prophecies of
Jesus’ first coming were fulfilled literally. Therefore, we should expect the
prophecies regarding His second coming to be fulfilled literally as well.
Premillennialism is the only system that agrees with a literal interpretation
of God’s covenants and end times prophecy.
©
Copyright 2002-2008 Got Questions Ministries.
http://www.gotquestions.org/premillennialism.html
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Question:
"What is postmillennialism?"
Answer: Postmillennialism is an
interpretation of chapter 20 of the biblical book of Revelation which sees
Christ's second coming as occurring after (Latin post-) the
"Millennium", a Golden Age or era of Christian prosperity and
dominance. The term subsumes several similar views of the end times, and it
stands in contrast to premillennialism (the view that Christ’s second coming
will occur prior to his Millennial Kingdom, and that the Millennial Kingdom
is a literal 1,000-year reign) and, to a lesser extent, amillennialism (no
literal millennium).
Postmillennialism refers to a belief that Christ returns after a period of
time, but not necessarily 1,000 years. Those who hold this view do not
interpret unfulfilled prophecy using a normal, literal method. They believe
that Revelation 20:4-6 should not be taken literally. They believe that 1,000
years simply means a long period of time. Furthermore, the prefix
"post" in postmillennialism denotes the view that Christ will
return after Christians (not Christ Himself) have established the kingdom on
this earth.
Those who
hold to postmillennialism believe that this world will become better and
better—all evidence to the contrary notwithstanding—with the entire world
eventually becoming "Christianized." After this happens, Christ
will return. However, this is not the view of the world in the end times that
Scripture presents. From the book of Revelation, it is easy to see that the
world will be a terrible place during that future time. Also, in 2 Timothy
3:1-7 Paul describes the last days as “terrible times.”
Those who hold to postmillenialism use a non-literal method of interpreting
unfulfilled prophecy, assigning their own meanings to words. The problem with
this is that when you start assigning meanings to words other than their
normal meaning, a person can decide that a word, phrase, or sentence means
anything they want it to mean. All objectivity concerning the meaning of
words is lost. When words lose their meaning, communication ceases. However,
this is not how God has intended for language and communication to be. God
communicates to us through His written word, with objective meanings to words
so that ideas and thoughts can be communicated.
A normal, literal interpretation of Scripture rejects postmillennialism and
holds to a normal interpretation of all Scripture, including unfulfilled
prophecy. Concerning the interpretation of prophecy, we have hundreds of
examples from Scripture of prophecies being fulfilled. Take for example the
prophecies concerning Christ in the Old Testament. Those prophecies were
fulfilled literally. Consider the virgin birth of Christ (Isaiah 7:14;
Matthew 1:23). Again, consider His death for our sins (Isaiah 53:4-9; 1 Peter
2:24). These were fulfilled literally. This is reason enough to assume that
God will continue in the future to literally fulfill His Word, His prophecies
of future events.
©
Copyright 2002-2008 Got Questions Ministries.
http://www.gotquestions.org/postmillennialism.html
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