Understanding The Bible |
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BY THE AUTHOR
Dr. Clarence E. Mason, Jr.
Philadelphia College of Bible
1970
Edited by Dr. Clarence E. Mason, Jr.
SECTION I
INTRODUCTION
Premillennialism designates that teaching which maintains that
Christ's second advent precedes, and is the basic factor in, the
establishment of the predicted glorious 1000 year kingdom of righteousness
and peace upon the earth. During that time Christ, with His saints, will
exercise His kingly authority over the earth from Jerusalem (cp. Isa.
11:1-9; Jer. 23:5-6; Micah 3:8-4:5; Rev. 19:11-20:10). This view is based
upon the literal, grammatical, historical method of interpretation of
Scripture, which is the normal method of interpretation.
The word Premillennialism is derived from the Latin words (mille,
thousand; annus, year) meaning a thousand years, to which the prefix pre-
(from Latin, meaning before) and the suffix -ism (from Greek, denoting a_
doctrine) have been added. Therefore, the word designates the belief that
Christ's second coming will precede the millennium or the 1000 years
mentioned in Rev. 20:1-6. (In the early Church this view was called
Chiliasm, based on the Greek word for thousand.)
Of course, the kingdom to be established by Christ will be an everlasting
kingdom, for the millennium is just the first phase of that eternal
kingdom. The word premillennial merely pinpoints the time of the predicted
second coming of Christ to the earth as related to the establishment of
that kingdom.
Postmillennialism is the teaching that Christ's second coming will be
after (post-) the millennium has been established through the preaching of
the gospel or through human ability, or after that kingdom has run its
course of a thousand years. The keynote of postmillennialism is progress.
According to post millenarians, the millennium is not ushered in by a
cataclysmic coming of Christ, but through human endeavor, which includes
but is not limited to the preaching of the gospel. This view is not widely
held today.
Postmillennialism is based upon a figurative method of interpretation
which is called spiritualization.
Amillennialism is a theological position which denies that Christ will
reign personally upon the earth for a thousand years following His second
coming. It views the present period between the two advents as the
millennium and holds that Christ is now fulfilling His kingly office as He
rules from heaven over the saints on earth. The binding of Satan (Rev.
20:1-3) is taken to mean that Christ through His work on the cross has
broken the power of Satan over man. Amillennialists are not optimistic
about man's ability to convert the world through the gospel. They believe
that a period of tribulation will precede the second coming and that
following His coming there will be a general resurrection and a general
judgment which will conclude time and introduce the eternal state.
Amillennialism would be better described as non-millennialism. (The a at
the beginning of the word is a Greek way of making it negative.) The
position is also based upon a figurative method of interpretation.
"Before the times of the ages" (ages of time) | "during the times of ages" (ages of time) | "NOW" in this present time |
"Saved. . .called... given in Christ" 2 Tim. 1:9 | "NOW made manifest by appearing of JX" 2 Tim. 1:10 | |
"eternal life... promised" Titus 1:2 | "in due time manifested. .. His word" Titus 1:3 | |
"kept secret in times of the ages" Rom. 16:25 | by "my gospel.. .NOW made manifest" Rom. 16:25-26 "NOW revealed" | |
"in other generations not made known..." Eph. 3:3-11
(vv.3-5) "from the ages hid in God" Eph. 3:9 |
"As it is NOW revealed" Eph. 3:5 "NOW... might be known" Eph. 3:10 |
|
"hid in generations and ages" Col. 1:26 | "NOW made manifest' Col. 1:26 |
This is not the case. Actually the only conditional covenant (the
Mosaic) has no cut-off point brought about by human failure, for human
failure took place even before Moses brought down the tables of stone
from the mount, nor to mention (lie continual declension and ultimate
apostasy of the northern and southern kingdoms. Calvary was God's
appointed time for the cut-off of the Mosaic Covenant. Israelitish
failure did not and could not bring the covenant to an end. God
disclosed that the covenant was to be in force "until the Seed should
come ... when the fullness of the time was come" (Gal. 3:19; 4:4).
Thus, again it is emphasized that the distinction between the
conditional and unconditional covenant is the method of its institution
by God, rather than the content of the covenant itself or its
implementation in human experience.
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