We are studying the signs of the times and we have Surveyed those that speak of God's grace and those that show human opposition to God We're now up to that group that speak of God's judgment Matthew 24 6 and 7 speaks of wars and in the same Place we learn of natural phenomena as well That speak of God's hand being turned against those human beings in opposition to him Matthew 24 and verse 3 as Jesus was sitting on the Mount of olives the disciples came to him privately Tell us they said when will this happen or what will be the sign if you're coming and of the end of Of the age he had just spoken of the temple buildings being thrown down Jesus answered watch out that no one deceives you for many will come in my name claiming I am the Christ and will deceive many You will hear of wars and rumors of wars but see to it that you are not alarmed Such things must happen, but the end is still to come So there we have nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom God's judgment will be evident upon the earth in great wars Among the nations of the world also there will be natural phenomena that Speak of God's judgment There will be famines and earthquakes in various places all these are the beginning of Birth pack birth pains The Lord says so Different types of signs of the times. I think hookahma has done a good job in that area The voting a couple of chapters to it in fact, so I'll leave that survey as sufficient and go on to the controversial matters of the millennium of Revelation 20 Versus 4 through 6 Let's turn to that passage Revelation chapter 20 has occasioned great discussion and difference of opinion in the verses that follow We read of the great white throne versus 11 and following and human beings standing before God in judgment We read of the last judgment in other words There's a lake of fire in verses 14 and 15 of that chapter Revelation 21 and 22 speak of the new heavens and the new earth Revelation 21 through 6 and I saw an angel coming down out of heaven Holding the key to the abyss Having the key to the abyss and holding in his hand a great chain He seized the dragon That ancient serpent who is the devil or Satan and bound him for a thousand years He threw him into the abyss and locked and sealed it over him to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended After that he must be set free for a short time I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded Because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God They had not worshipped the beast or his image And had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended This is the first resurrection Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection The second death has no power over them But they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years. Do you all have the charts Let's look at them as we go through the various viewpoints And I'll try to For each viewpoint investigate these five points What is the nature of the millennium the thousand years spoken of in the verses we just read What does it mean that Satan is bound number two What is the timing of Christ's return number three How is the second coming viewed in terms of is it one event does it have multiple stages And what about the resurrection how many Resurrections are there is the particular Question I'll mention advocates of the various views as we go through for Amalennialism Anthony Hukama and Lewis Birkhoff were both exponents of this view Are they are they jotted there in the notes or not? No Alongside Amalennialism right down a Hukama and El Birkhoff take out your first chart The millennium according to Hukama who espouses this view is the present reign of the souls of the deceased believers With Christ in heaven So in the pre-Malennial positions As a matter of fact in all the other positions The millennium is viewed as something In the future still In Amalennialism which has that prefix a Which means not or no Thus no millennium that's kind of a misleading designation and some have instead called it realized Millenarianism It means no millennium of the Of the other types no future earthly millennium The millennium is instead is the present church age viewed from the perspective of the deceased saints Raining with Christ in heaven now concerning truth It is a truth that Christ now reigns It is a truth that his people reign with him in heaven. They're certainly in glory and blessing and so forth So it's not truth that is at stake It is the understanding of the thousand years the millennium The latin words for thousand years put together is the arm of this millennium two words Millie annum thousand years put together is millennium What does that mean according to Amalennialism? Revelation 20 when it speaks of the millennium means this present reign Of the spirits of dead believers who are with the Lord the binding of satan spoken of in the passage During the thousand years so he no longer can deceive the nations means That he cannot prevent the spread of the gospel During the present age now once again It is not a point of truth that is at issue All Christians should acknowledge that Christ reigns now How can you read the end of Ephesians one and not hold that he is above all things And everything is underneath his feet he reigns In the great commission all authority in heaven on earth has been given the me and so forth So he reigns and it's no problem to say believers reign with him now for me. It's no problem to say that It is it is true that satan cannot prevent the spread of the gospel during the present age Oh, he's a real adversary But God is stronger than he is and the gospel conquerors. So that's the truth So it's not the theology that's debated at least it shouldn't be debated. It is the exegesis Of the words the binding of this the satan was bound in revelation 20. So I don't mean to minimize the differences But they are more exegetical than theological in nature The timing of Christ return if the millennium is the present age Then Christ comes back after the millennium The second coming is a single event Omelangalism doesn't divide the second coming up into a rapture For the saints in heaven and later a coming to earth In judgment and the resurrection is one general Resurrection you say wait a second that doesn't seem the square Because revelation 20 the end of verse 4 says they came to life And reigned with Christ a thousand years the next verse says The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended That sounds like Verse 7 when the thousand years are over Then the wicked are raised from the dead and appear before God in judgment if If the rest of the dead coming to life in verse 5 means Resurrection of the wicked Shouldn't resurrection Shouldn't they came to life and reign that the same words Just before that mean resurrection of the righteous bodily from the grave not according to the omelemnial view And it's considered a difficult a difficulty of that view by those who oppose it that they take the two words The concepts came to life in two different senses Although they're following one another and the four it means we're spiritually raised Hook him up points to John 5 as a precedent for this John 5 Where Jesus said a time is coming and has now come When the dead will hear the voice of the son of man and those who hear Will live and it certainly speaks of spiritual resurrection in light of preceding verse Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me Has eternal life and will not be condemned he has crossed over from death to life Couple verses later at the voice of the son of man those who are in their graves are going to come out So that's his precedent, but on the other hand Premils especially say that's not very convincing in revelation 20 You mean to tell me they came to life means they were spiritually raised and the next verse The rest of the dead did not come to life means they were physically raised that that goes down hard I don't want to make you rethink your theory What we're going to find is that no view is without its difficulties Here is an attempt at a chart for our millennialism Jesus died Was buried and rose again He ascended that's the the arrow going up the millennium according to the our millennial position or the position of the realized Millennium is the reign of Christ with his people and their reign with him in heaven now That's why millennium is up there in the air with me At the end of the thousand years. It's symbolic Let's not Push it literally revelation as all kinds of symbols That is probably a good point Jay Oliver buzzwell junior for whom our library is named and who was a Pre-mill a pre-millinarian pre-millanalyst He said it means a long long period of time that Christ is going to reign on the earth before the new heavens and new earth It could be longer or shorter than a thousand years it means a long period of time So people in the different position some of them at least are willing to admit that That it may not be literally only a thousand years or whatever Jesus comes back to earth This is supposed to show it's very imperfect that Living saints go up to meet the Lord in the air and then come down with him to the earth those who have died in Christ Are raised and according to 1 Thessalonians 4 They don't precede those who are alive the believers in Thessalonica were Sad they thought that all their number would be alive until Jesus came back Okay, they were better on their eminence passages than on their interval passages, so we say And maybe they need a little bit more emphasis on the ignorance passages anyway Some had died and they thought they were going to miss out No falseness The dead in Christ will be raised We who are alive will be changed will go up to meet the Lord in the air In this construction they go up and the Lord comes right back down. This is all one period of time. It's The separation here is unfortunate. I need to separate to show different things happening But they're they're not separated by any significant period of time The wicked dead are raised And here we have a last judgment issuing in the new earth and Which is eternal and eternal hell I might say this Hukama and other omils have shown what I regard some Healthy willingness to grow and change That ought to satisfy some of the pre-millennial concerns in this way They have Hukama admits in this book the Bible in the future that omilennialists have been Charged by others Of spiritualizing the Old Testament beyond measure. He says that's right. We have And so he understands some of the land promises concerning Israel and the Old Testament to be fulfilled not spiritually But literally in the millennium no in the new earth Okay, I regard that as a real point of progress. That is From a pre-millennial perspective if pre-millennialism is right Then the millennium is a little a little the end light of eternity a short Prelude to new heavens and new earth but in any case Christ will reign upon the earth and so will the people of God So there's more in common there than meets the eye Okay, comments or questions on the basic you can find variations on a theme. Oh my goodness I see hands like an evangelist tonight on the basic omelennial scenario. Yes It looks funny to some I don't know what your own training is and I don't even it's your own business question Is this a mini rapture here go to first as lowians four? I'll show you an interesting thing My first goal is to show is to try to represent the viewpoints fairly, okay? It will become obvious as we go along That I gravitate toward two of them rather than the others, but It's so hard to choose even in the other two that I don't endorse. I see some real strengths And again, I want to emphasize what they all have in common most of all First as aloneians four thirteen brothers. We do not want you to be ignorant About those who fall asleep or to grieve like the rest of men who have no hope First as aloneians Four thirteen doesn't say we shouldn't grieve But we don't grieve the way unsaid people grieve We believe that Jesus died and rose again And so we believe that God will bring with Jesus Those who have fallen asleep in him that means have died in him How's he going to bring them with him? Presumably he's going to bring back their souls or spirits And he's going to raise their bodies and get soul and spirit the body and soul together again According to the Lord's own word we tell you That we who are still alive Who are left till the coming of the Lord Will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep For the Lord himself will come down from heaven With a loud command with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God And the dead in Christ will rise first after that We who are still alive and are left We'll be caught up together with them in the clouds To meet the Lord in the air And so we will be with the Lord forever Therefore encourage each other with these words This expression to meet the Lord in the air It's interesting in his commentary on first Thessalonians in the Is it in the word series or the new international pre-test in the commentary i lost it but anyway ff Bruce's Solid commentary on first Thessalonians he shows that the same expression was used in first century life Of the people from a city greeting a dignitary and here's what they did it doesn't prove anything But it certainly shows that this is Compatible with first century usage. I don't know if it proves it But he said this idea of meeting meant the people and he's got other other uses outside the new testament They went outside the city and met the dignitary and turned around and immediately accompanied the person into the city It's the same language of welcoming a monarch And the notion is they come up as is fitting to where he is And come right back down with him to the earth. I don't know if that would be absolutely fatal To a dispensational scenario where these things are separated But it's it's it's sufficient to show that this is not impossible In terms of what they would understand by the word neat Because it Bruce argues they would understand it to mean Meet and then accompany To the to the destination of that person. Yes, sir Your Question on these maps. I know I should have gone to triple. I got my triptych Uh, they probably give you four different versions right maybe six Uh, does tribulation correspond the revelation 20 where it says and After the thousand years of devil was loose, right? I think I can say yes Because in this scenario There is a the consensus that we're moving toward a consensus of a time of rebellion Okay, that's what trib means here So I think so I think Jay Adams for example who argues this way in his book The time is at hand perhaps it was called He argues that there's going to be a terrible time of turning away and so forth Before the second coming. Yes Question is how would an omel understand this The language revelation 20 if the devil is loose to after the thousand years Uh in general omels are less literalistic than pre-mills The meaning is toward the end of the church age Things will go from bad to worse. They'll be intensification. They'll be the kind of things We've just talked about in terms of negative signs of the times Uh, so they usually omels work more with themes And where I've heard a outstanding omelennial scholar say this Who is very charitable and is willing to entertain the possibility of historic pre-millennialism On my own background is coming from the other way On my background is pre-mill I was taught dispensational pre-millennialism in bible college Gradually moved toward historic pre-millennialism and now I'm at the place where either omelennialism or historic pre-millennialism seem most Satisfactory although they have problems too And I like the post-trib emphasis on The victory of the gospel. I like that. That's that's healthy. I think Uh, so I don't know where I am Uh, just don't make me sign on the dotted line and we'll get along fine And emphasize what we do have in common and keep working on the differences Within a context of Romans 15 Accepting each other as Christ has accepted you Uh, thank the Lord that doesn't depend signing one's life away on one of these charts. Yes Question is the omelennial understanding of the binding of Satan Who comes as it better than I can say it? It certainly is true Pre-mills think it's almost trivial. It's not it's it's something more than that that's spoken of in revelation 20 Perhaps that goes count that counts as a couple of points toward the pre-mills side I do feel the force of the The two verses that speak of coming to life But nobody explains every verse in the simplest possible way. I'll tell you that So I think look at what did a sufficient explanation and by the way his understanding his explanation of the millennium is I don't know pretty reasonable. I thought I you know In general reform types have stayed away from this type of thing I think they're it's a knee-jerk reaction to dispensational over emphasis perhaps But that's no way to to avoid the truth I thought he had a pretty satisfactory explanation. Yes Uh, the reformers in general were omelennial There are problems with saying that they rejected pre-millennialism although they did Because the type of pre-millennialism they knew about for one thing they were concerned with some more urgent matters like What's the gospel right and uh, what's the authority in religion and so forth So it's not fair to say oh, I know for sure that if Calvin were lied today he would hold the blank view You know as some do on the other hand The pre-millennialism they knew about was a fanatical one Because some apocalyptic fanatics claim to be Moses and Elijah of Revelation He's 11 or 12. I've lost my place and took over cities in the name of the Lord And proclaimed the millennium had come and instituted patriarchal polygamy And announced that no earthly forces could stand against them They one thing they were wrong in that last point Because the kings came and wiped them out So Calvin and Luther thought this is giving the reformation a terrible name and it was So they re-coiled from that Now where they in contact with sober godly pre-millennial interpreters No, I don't think so But they were not pre-mill Uh, they would be in the in the omel camp although things have gotten much better defined In the last century advocates of post-millennialism Include these godly people Jack Davis of Gordon Conwell Seminary Of course Hukama and Birkhoff both taught at Calvin Jack Davis of Gordon Conwell Seminary Dick Gaffin of Westminster Seminary in Philadelphia Wonderful Christian men. They're all wonderful Christian men. I've chosen here deliberately And I suppose part of my uh Method is to say Be careful you don't misrepresent any of these people. Okay Davis has a book Christ Victorious Kingdom Man those what he's doing Notice in the post-millennial scheme notice The big things are the same as an omelennialism. I do think that's significant We really don't understand any of the views until we get them all on the table So let's keep working at that post-millennialism Top of 69 the millennium quoting Hukama the present age Will gradually merge into the millennial age as an increasingly larger proportion Of the world's inhabitants are converted through the preaching of the gospel Now be careful. I've heard at times Preachers especially Bible believing post-mills in a way that I thought was unfair and unkind Okay, there was historically Uh at the beginning of this century a secular optimism and a secular post-millennialism if you will Uh that that thought that modern science and technology would solve all the world's problems Okay, that is not which act Davis and the gaffinhold They hold the preaching of the gospel is going to solve a lot of the world's problems And they have a great confidence in the power of the gospel To convert the majority of mankind Okay, I like that optimism It is very attractive So let's be fair Biblical the biblical post-millennialists those who believe the Bible hold it is through gospel preaching That Christ's kingdom is extended. Oh, they don't insist on a literal thousand years especially but a great golden age Before the platinum age if you will the new heavens and new earth We're in There'll be great Righteousness because the gospel will have invaded every culture and majority of the human race living at that time Will know the Lord There are other positions on binding of Satan timing of Christ return Is after the millennium hence the name post-millennialism So they're already we see the names are given on a different basis Because our millennialism is also post millennial in that it holds Christ's coming is after the millennium But it gets its name because of this ah this no earthly millennium So already the titles are confused Pre and post speak of the coming of Christ with reference to the earth to the millennium earthly kingdom Ah says there's no earthly kingdom like that So under post-millennialism the name more accurately shows this timing of Christ return being after the millennium Second coming is a single event Resurrection is one general resurrection Here's our chart Jesus dies buried rises again as ends The millennium could be viewed as both the reign of Christ with the saints in heaven and
the reign of Christ on earth
As the gospel is victorious Increasingly You know part of us wants to say may this be right Lord granite other study passages like oh Second Timothy three Evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse And this themes naive I don't want to limit the Victory of Christ and the extent of the gospel I suppose Since I don't favor this view I would see that Progress of evil emphasized in many places To make this less likely although again I Love the gospel optimism of it Christ comes back His living saints are translated Is to see saints are raised they go to meet the Lord in the air come to the earth unbelievers are raised last judgment new heavens a new earth Could we say it's basically the same And it's large And it's big outlines they all are basically the same that way. I don't know how accurately I Do that did them the scale but if they were done perfectly you could light them over top of each other And the millennium would be in question, okay And some other details But the big things would be the same the thing the church has held Ever since the beginning and all the way through church history It would be proper to say that different periods in the development of the his theology of the church Have focused the church has focused on different issues So in the early centuries matters of Christ and the Trinity, okay time of the Reformation matters of recovering the gospel Nature are religious authority Nature of the church, okay, it would be fair to say in this century has been a century of concern about the Holy Spirit Also the Bible again because of attacks on the Bible and likewise matters of last things So it is possible that we understand better than in past ages It's not necessary that be the case, but it's possible That we understand some of those things Better Questions on post-millennialism yes, sir You know what I don't know if I can answer this one a good question is being asked concerning details of post-millennial Eschatology having to do with the losing of the devil and the tribulation I've got the tribulation over here If they stick to that then that would be a and some of those pastures would be interval passages That speak of Again since it works in cycles I suppose the church could live an expectation maybe soon now will come a great outpouring of the spirit and a great conversion of the nations I don't know How it actually works but That looks like that is the case Concerning the losing of the devil. I don't know I don't see why they couldn't say the same thing as the omils That refers to I see the gospel conquering and is being bound but how about him being loose to Is there another? I don't understand it that that one seems to be a problem Again by and large, I think they're less concerned about such details and are more concerned about broader brush Which Sometimes the pre-mills have not done as well with Then the pessimistic about the influence of the gospel in the world's cultures I think it's really a problem That we ought to seek to promote righteousness through the gospel And have it transform culture as much as possible and be in favor of that and not be so pessimistic But you raise some interesting questions. I don't have good answers. I need a proponent of Post-millanism who has worked it through in great detail. Yes sir It's a good question a real good question How do we determine in what age we're living according this chart looks like the millennium's already here And yet you read who come out looks like it's a future hope when the gospel conquers The student also acknowledged, you know, maybe it's not a you know a hard and fast line in world history or something But it'll be a gradual thing. I think this is probably misleading And I need more time in here I can see what they could say the saints with christmas in heaven already And that has begun in the first century the martyrs and so forth But that I don't know perhaps they have different estimations as to what constitutes the gospel I tell you what in certain cultures In eerie in jaya the gospel exploded It's the same with the tribulation I've heard some say if you lived in a certain context if you were a believer Under Mao's persecutions in china you would have interpreted the tribulation as having come and it would have come in the already sense Just a matter of when they already become them not yet does have to be global. I suppose that's the that's the thing but Good questions for which I confess I don't have good answers I'm sorry. I can point you to some good books Stanley grands has a book the millennial maze In which he fairly as a good title right in which he fairly examines the different viewpoints As he traces his own move from one to another position historic pre-millennialism is the position was the position of George lad Who taught new testament at fuller seminary and wrote in this area some helpful books And jay Barton pain who taught Old Testament at covenant seminary before he was killed In a mountain climbing accident how many years ago anybody know what that was 15 years ago something like that maybe more historic pre-millennialism If that title sounds like it pre-judges matters. I don't mean to do that It is I didn't make up the title This is in fact the pre-millennialism that was held when it was held then we have it very early in the early centuries some of the earliest writers hypothesis of Rome is one were pre-mills uh The refinements of dispensatialism are usually dated back to jay and darby at the turning of the 20th century Historic pre-millennialism the millennium is christ reign on the earth For a thousand years or if buzzwell was right for a long time after his return And before the eternal state. So his return is pre-millennial hence the title pre-millennialism Christ reach a christ reign on the earth if this view is right the earthy millennium is a prelude It's an introduction to the new heavens and new earth All the views have an earthly reign of christ for all eternity The two pre-millennial options have a prior golden age before the platinum age if you will And there are problems with that and hookamas very good at pointing out the problems You have resurrected glorified saints living next door to those who aren't glorified yet. I mean lots of problems like that The binding of satan means he will be unable to deceive the nations during the future millennium The timing of christ return is before the millennium as the title as the tag pre-mill implies The second coming is a single event You've got this going up to be with the lord and coming right down again business now You know don't reject that just because you never heard it before The two resurrections here's a difference All mills and post mills hold to one resurrection pre-mills hold to two resurrections hookamas says All the way along in the bible you have one resurrection a general resurrection Daniel 12 john five x 24 what's going on Those who hold to pre-millennialism say wait a minute now you believe in biblical theology in the unfolding of gods plan Here near the end of the bible we get further ramifications So it's not impossible that there will indeed be two resurrections They one thing It's the most natural way to interpret and they live they came the life in revelation 24 and five Uh, if I might we'll let me look at the chart first before I say what I think strengths and weaknesses are Okay, we're We're the same on jesus resurrection ascension pre-mills ought to admit ought to teach that christ reigns now Along with their omelennial brothers and sisters why don't we admit that that's true He does reign now You reigns in heaven over the world especially over his people Say why why especially because they bow before his reign So that ought to be a point of Omelennial teaching that is regarded as truth but pre-mills would insist that's not what revelation 20 means When I refers to the millennium maybe that's correct Omel's criticize and say wait a second though. You're complicating matters with these multiple resurrections. Oh not multiple just two As things have gone along now we see that indeed the believers are raised That believers are raised living believers are changed They go to be with christ he comes to the earth his it's his coming to the earth which is cataclysmic which initiates the millennium on the earth Following those thousand years or Long time there's a tribulation before there's another rebellion over here all wait a minute j atom says don't you get it These are not two different Rebellions These are not two different resurrections guys you've got your lenses confused Pick this lens up and put it over that one. It's the same thing the millennium is a church age atom says that might be right That might be right Pre-mills say no, it's not right There's another rebellion here Christ puts it down There's a resurrection of the dead the last judgment and then eternal new heavens a new earth and eternal hell Other things being equal it looks to me like pre-mills do a better job of interpreting interpreting revelation 20 Okay, on the basis of that passage. I incline toward Historic not dispensational but historic pre-millennialism On the basis of the rest of the bible. I incline toward omillennialist So I'm an omillennialist with a pre-millennial understanding of revelation 20. What does that leave me? I don't know But again Our fellowship in christ as independent born you're agreeing with me because I don't know if I agree with myself I'm a mixed-up camper. We need to take a break and come back remember your questions Please we need to break for the sake of our taping and so forth to keep things in manageable bites So let's break and come back and keep at it appreciate your your diligence