Improved and reformed social institutions and culture will bring about the Kingdom of God. This teaches that the world is getting better by natural process. It must be said, of course, that there is a humanistic, evolutionary, so-called, postmillennialism. Postmillennialism is that view of the last things which holds that the Kingdom of God is now being extended in the world through the preaching of the Gospel and the saving work of the Holy Spirit, that the world eventually will be Christianized, and that the return of Christ will occur at the close of a long period of righteousness and peace commonly called the Millennium. Simply put it is the idea that Christ will come after (post) the millennium. The first view of the millennium at which we look is called POSTMILLENNIALISM. With us, they believe that those who are righteous in Christ will enjoy eternity with Him but those without that righteousness will know eternal condemnation in hell. With us, they believe that each person who has ever lived will be given a resurrection body - some unto glory, some unto contempt - and will stand before the judgment seat of Christ. With us, they believe that there will be a future, visible, personal coming of Jesus Christ. With us, they believe that the penal, substitutionary atonement of Christ fully satisfies for sin. Differences arise because of the distinctive methods used to interpret what God says. With us, they believe that the Bible is God's Word and therefore authoritative. Evangelicals, though they differ on the details, still believe the basic truths of the Christian Faith. This does not mean, however, that evangelicals who hold to other understandings of the millennium are outside of the Christian fold. Attempting that would become too lengthy and quite confusing.Ĭertainly, we have a responsibility to take a position on the return of Christ, and we therefore must say that one understanding of the millennium is correct and the others are in error. Obviously, to explain each position means that we cannot possibly look at all the variations. However, it ought to be remembered that within each of these basic positions there are variations, too. Each of these views will be sketched for you. Each one of these has a somewhat different scheme of the events connected with Christ's return. This definition is general enough so that what are usually called postmillennialists, premillennialists, dispensationalists and amillennialists can find themselves in it. The millennium is the period of time represented by the thousand years of Revelation 20, which is supposed to be characterized by a special prosperity and happiness for the church either on earth or in heaven, or both. Thus, the only place where we read of the thousand years in relation to the events of Christ's return is found in Revelation 20.īecause there are different ways of understanding the millennium, perhaps a general definition of it is in order. Now, obviously, this use of the thousand years has nothing to do with a period of time as is expressed in Revelation 20. In reality, He has not forgotten it at all. It only seems as if God has forgotten His promise. However, God is longsuffering - Christ will not return until every one of the elect has come to repentance. It may seem a long time, even interminable. don't let this escape you) that a thousand years are as a day to the Lord, and a day as a thousand years. Undoubtedly these words have brought great grief to you, and I want you to know - FORGET NOT (i.e. Peter's argument here is substantially this: False teachers have argued that since Christ has not yet come - and it has been a long time since He departed - He is not coming again. The application of this is found in a passage dealing with the return of Christ. The principle is that God does not measure time as we do nor is the Creator of time subject to it. The principle taught in Psalm 90 is applied in 2 Peter. In only two other passages besides Revelation 20 do we read of a thousand years, Psalm 90:4 and 2 Peter 3:8. The term, itself, is not found in Scripture but it has become the name for the thousand years which we read about in Revelation 20. The word millennium is composed of two Latin words mille and annus, meaning literally thousand years. Since this millennium is central in understanding the scheme of things, we must now turn our attention to it. The disagreement is over what is normally called the Millennium. Comforting as the return of the Lord Jesus Christ is for the believer, it is not a subject regarding which all believers agree.
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