Moreover, John, as again stated by Papias, ascribed the origin of millenarianism to Christ . This makes two distinct judgmentsone for Christians and one for non-Christians after the millennium. (Both MacArthur and Barry Horner, though, do teach the biblical covenants, point 1 above.) He made them in the past, when He didnt know what He now knows, because what was going to happen hadnt happened. There was a clear majority position among the earliest church fathers on the relationship of Israel to the church. The reformers had it right on most issues. Even His promises may not be valid, because He made them with inadequate information. "Why Every Self-Respecting Calvinist is a Pre-Millennialist." For those of you who don't know, this was a statement, among others, that John MacArthur was recorded as making at the recent Shepherd's Conference 2007 at Grace Community Church, Sun Valley California. "[45] Doctrinal Statement Student Testimonies TMS for your Family Academics Academics Overview Master of Divinity Master of Theology Doctor of Ministry Doctor of Philosophy Bachelor of Theology Diploma of Theology Center for Israeli Studies Distance Education Academic Calendar Faculty Admissions & Aid (Matt .25:31-46; John . It is often post-tribulational, meaning that the rapture of the church will occur after a period of tribulation. Reformed theology has made a monumental comeback in this culture, and thankfully so, because it is biblical. The alpha privative in the Greek language means a negative, so there is the view that there is no millennium; that what John is writing about in Revelation 20 is very vague, may refer to nothing other than a long time in which the church flourishes on earth, simply referring to that kingdom which is spiritual - that is, the rule of Christ over those who belong to Him while on earth. Ive preached through many of the books of the Old Testament, the first eleven chapters of Genesis through Daniel, Zechariah, the minor prophets, and pieces and bits of Isaiah and others in the Old Testament. But, in any case - and by the way, postmillennialists and amillennialists differ as to the details of these kinds of things. We who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus shall we always be with the Lord. Heres the application: Therefore - do what? Have you ever heard of that? Im unwaveringly committed to that. Among our elders, all four of the end-times views are representedhistoric premillennialism, dispensational premillennialism, amillennialism, and postmillennialism. Mathewson, Dave L. We understand that when you have a prophecy in the Bible that has not yet come to pass, not everything will be clear. Thats a hard sell, frankly. Theyve been refined, clarified, expanded, enriched through these 50 years, but I was convinced when I started. Premillennialism: This view sees a chronological sequence as Satan is bound in the future when Christ returns and before Christians receive their reward, and then the millennium commences, hence the name, "pre". I like to call amillennialism negative, and postmillennialism positive. After this period of fulfillment of divine wrath, He shall then return to rule from a holy city ( i.e., the New Jerusalem) over the earthly nations for one thousand years. He is currently the chancellor emeritus of The Master's University in . . Now, the only thing that I ask is that you read it, and the only reason I ask you to read it is so that you may be what? Did He do it and somehow muddle it so hopelessly that the high ground for Bible students and the high ground for theologians is to recognize the muddle and abandon the perspicuity or the clarity of Scripture on that subject? Premillennialism, in Christian eschatology, is the belief that Jesus will physically return to the Earth (the Second Coming) before the Millennium, heralding a literal thousand-year golden age of peace. That the conversion of the Jews will not be till this present state of the world is near unto its end. The preconception is that we cant allow this to happen. Enter your email address and we will send you instructions on how to reset your password. You have nothing to fear, nothing to worry about. Why? Log In Eusebius Pamphilius: Church History, Life of Constantine, Oration in Praise of Constantine", "Bible Basics Study 5.5 - The Millennium", "Definitions and Observations Concerning the Second Coming of Christ", "Episode 132: D.A. Dionysius of Alexandria stood against premillennialism when the chiliastic work, The Refutation of the Allegorizers written by Nepos, a bishop in Egypt became popular in Alexandria. Throughout the 19th century, premillennialism continued to gain wider acceptance in both the US and in Britain, particularly among the Irvingites,[46] Plymouth Brethren, Christadelphians,[47] Church of God, Christian Israelite Church. "MacArthur calls himself a "leaky dispensationalist"--meaning he rejects any and all "dispensational" soteriological innovations, holding to classic Reformed (i.e., Protestant, not "covenantal") soteriology. I have dragged you through virtually every verse in the New Testament. So, this is a classic perfect fit for Arminian theology. Relax; set all that aside. One says moving toward the coming of Christ there will be no kingdom. Tell us about the future. They were in a very hopeless situation, having very little in life. Acts 2:17 And in the last days it shall . And by what authority? Now, if you want to get the future right, youve got to get Israel right, and youve got to get Gods sovereign electing purpose right. In keeping with his view of faith, MacArthur denigrates "facts," "doctrine," "intellectual assent," and so on. Premillennialism is distinct from the other views such as postmillennialism which views the millennial rule as occurring before the second coming. The "millennium" refers to the period of 1,000 years mentioned in Revelation 20:3, "He threw Satan into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years were ended. He assigned each age to a particular person of the Trinity as the guiding principle of that era. As soon as you abandon that, then its fair game for anybodys craziness. It makes no sense. We know that, so our ambition is, when we get to that place, to be rewarded because we are pleasing to Him. I was talking to one of our missionaries just this same week I gave this talk to the pastors, and he was coming back from China and he said, Theres only one view in the church in China and its the premillennial view. Of course, because they just take what Scripture says. John MacArthur laid down the gauntlet on the issue of prophecy in his opening talk at the 2007 "Shepherds' Conference" that was titled "Why Every Self-Respecting Calvinist Is a Premillennialist." He was emphatic that only premillennialism takes the prophecies concerning the future of Israel seriously. As one prominent amillennialist said when asked, What is the biblical significance of the existence of Jews in their land? and he said, It has no significance at all. Really? May we be faithful to take it, to interpret it as you intended for us to, so that it can yield to us the wonderful rich blessings that You have promised. [25] In accordance with this view, Augustine divided history into two separate dispensations, first the church age (the current age of 6,000 years), and then the millennial kingdom (Sermon 259.2). Show it to me. But in both cases it will be the flow of history under the influence of the church, so theyre really looking at the same thing. They believe God elects nobody to salvation. What is meant whe That is to say, while they understood that someone would come, they understood whatever it was that had been revealed to them, the timing was not clear, and the precise personages were not clear. In the world, things will get better and better and better as the church becomes more powerful and more influential. John MacArthur's first message at the Shepherds' Conference set off shock waves throughout the reformed evangelical church by upholding Premillennialism as being the only consistent position for any person who holds to the doctrine of sovereign electing grace. This article is about Premillennialism in Christian eschatology. [49] The Lutheran ChurchMissouri Synod explicitly states, When Christ returns, 'new heavens and a new earth' will be created (2 Pet. Amen. All right. "[31], Augustine's later amillennial view laid the eschatological foundation for the Middle Ages, which practically abandoned premillennialism. The sting of death is sin, the power of sin is the law, thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.. John MacArthur claims to be a Dispensationalist in both The Gospel According to Jesus (GAJ) and The Gospel According to the Apostles (GAA). No kingdom on earth ruled by Christ before He gets here, and no kingdom on earth ruled by Christ after He gets here. Regarding this Dr. Timothy Jones writes, "Dispensationalism emphasizes the differences and discontinuity between the physical descendants of Abraham and followers of Jesus [2]. First John 3 verse 2: Beloved - 1 John 3:2 Now are we the children of God. Now, next time Im going to take you through a series of about five questions that were going to ask and see how this plays out on the pages of Scripture, okay? Turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 9; 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 9: We have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, - that is, whether in heaven or here - to be pleasing to Him - to be pleasing to Him. The assembly and the circumstances of the assembly must be distinguished. [18] Although Origen was not always wholly "orthodox" in his theology, he had at one point completely spiritualized Christ's second coming prophesied in the New Testament. John MacArthur's Defense of Dispensationalism Monday, December 8, 2008 by Gary DeMar In 1988, John MacArthur wrote The Gospel According to Jesus, a controversial book in certain circles because he relied heavily on the views of Calvinistic writers to deal with the lordship salvation controversy. The beliefs of Premillennialism are far from "rightly dividing the word of truth"! I recently read this great article and would recommend every professing Calvinist to give it a read, I believe John MacArthur's arguments for Pre-Millennialism are biblically irrefutable, mainly because the traditional Reformed view (Amillennialism) does away (Replacement Theology) with future Israel (God's Elect) and that is far from the truth And that was over the gospel, and over the nature of Christ, and over salvation by grace through faith and over the authority of Scripture. And in line with that, I want to try, at least, in the next couple of Sunday nights to establish a foundation for our understanding. Well see more about how that works. XVII., condemns the Anabaptists and others who now scatter Jewish opinions that, before the resurrection of the dead, the godly shall occupy the kingdom of the world, the wicked being everywhere suppressed."[35] Likewise, the Swiss Reformer Heinrich Bullinger wrote up the Second Helvetic Confession, which reads "We also reject the Jewish dream of a millennium, or golden age on earth, before the last judgment. They explain, "As a refinement of dispensational premillennialism, futuristic millennialism affirms a futuristic view . ", Among the Apostolic Fathers Barnabas is the first and the only one who expressly teaches a pre-millennial reign of Christ on earth. So, heres how to get the foundation for a good sound eschatology: get election right, get Israel right, you got it. Macarthur writes "Futuristic Premillennialism is the result of an understanding and application of the prophetic texts in a way that is consistent with the normal, literal approach to interpreting Scripture." This is how the authors come to their Futuristic Premillennial view. Single. But we now have pure Israelites. . . This belief claims that human history will continue for 6,000 years and then will enjoy Sabbath for 1,000 years (the millennial kingdom), thus all of human history will have a total of 7,000 years prior to the new creation. I have never moved away from my conviction about these two things. Those are the views. That, after the Jews conversion there will be a glorious day for the elect upon earth, and that this day shall be a very long continuance."[44]. Since Scripture speaks of the Millennium as a time of great prosperity for the kingdom of God, post-mills are inherently optimistic. It's now taught by influential theologians such as Walter Kaiser, John Macarthur, John Walvoord, and popular authors Tim LaHaye and Hal Lindsey. You never met a Hittite, an Amorite, a Hivite, a Jebusite, or any other ite. They have long since morphed into the melee and the mix of the races. For the last century, the belief has been common in Evangelicalism according to surveys on this topic. Dr. James M. Boice Makes An Excellent Case For Premillennialism. And theres the main verb in the sentence are in varying degrees of disinterest in applying their skills to the end of the story, and rather, content to be in happy if not playful disagreement in regard to the vast biblical data on eschatology, as if the end doesnt matter much - period. John F. MacArthur, Jr. is a United States Calvinistic evangelical writer and minister, noted for his radio program entitled Grace to You and as the editor of the Gold Medallion Book Award winning MacArthur Study Bible. They taught that the kingdom of God would be visibly manifest on earth after the second coming of Jesus. Whether you are a pessimistic amillennialist, or an optimistic amillennialist - thats a postmillennialist - you dont know what to do with prophetic truth, because if you interpret prophetic truth in the same normal, natural way you interpret all the rest of the passages of Scripture, youre going to end up a premillennialist; its inevitable. Blessed. Now, frankly, its too late for John Calvin to fix his work, although he is now a premillennialist in heaven. And there are a lot of people who get the first one right - they get election right - and they dont get Israel right, and they are lost when it comes to eschatology. John MacArthur is the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, president of The Master's College and Seminary, and featured teacher with the Grace to You media ministry. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue's new systematic theology titled Biblical Doctrine has many positive aspects. But let me tell you something: normal, natural, literal interpretation is the only way to stop abuse of Scripture. Historic premillennialism taught that the Antichrist would appear on earth and the seven-year tribulation would begin. Death, where is your sting? And Ive gone back after I preach, and Ive written commentaries - now I think 26 or 27 volumes on the New Testament - back through the same material again and again and again and again and again, so that this understanding of eschatology has had to stand the acid test of every text. Also, they believe the millennium has already begun. But not us, who live and breathe the rarified air of sovereign grace and election; it makes no sense to me. There are a number of viewpoints of what the Bible means when it speaks of future events. Marcion opposed the use of the Old Testament and most books of the New Testament that were not written by the apostle Paul. Because when you understand Gods purpose for Israel, you now have the foundation for all eschatology; all eschatology. That is a large part of evangelical Christianity, the Wesleyan movement, Charismatic movement, Methodists, etc., etc., many Baptists. But there is a growing influence of amillennialism, because amillennialism has been a part of reformed theology. . And when the church has brought about the dominating influence of Christ across the world, He will then come and end everything, and establish the new heaven and the new earth, which is the eternal state. Wannabee Obi Wan Kenobi Oct 27, 2007 #9 No to Scofield. For Joachim, year 1260 was to mark the end of the second and the beginning of the third and final golden age of earth's history. Why, then, if we are so committed to protecting the text of the beginning in its literal nature, are we so fast to give up the texts of the end and their literal nature? The church will have an increasing influence in the world. He doesnt know the future because it hasnt happened. So, if you say the promises of the Old Testament that refer to Israel really meant the church, you have no precedent for such an interpretation. Theological Method of Premillennialism" in A Case for Historic Premillennialism: An Alternative to "Left Behind" Eschatology, ed. You can choose Him and then not choose Him, and then choose Him again and then not choose Him, and you make the decision; and so, all of the promises of God are conditional on you. Short Response to Dr. MacArthur's statement. From this point on he dedicated much of his energy to ridding the church of this belief. Forfeited all its privileges, forfeited all those things that God declared in covenant that He would give to them in the future; and they forfeit it by their disobedience to the Mosaic Covenant, by their apostasy from true religion and by their rejection of their Messiah. And I went there and I spoke for a week, and they finally said to me, When are you going to tell us the good part? and I said, Well, whats the good part? They said, We want to know about the future; we want to know about the future. Let me give you a theology lesson here a little bit. Postmillennialists hold to the view that the Second Coming will happen after the millennium. (5.28.3).[8]. For this perishable must put on the imperishable, this mortal must put on immortality. And then he goes on to talk about the fact that in that moment, in that event, Death is swallowed up in victory. Registered User 2023 Grace to You. Theres a recovery of premillennialism in the modern era, and the recovery of premillennialism in the modern era came from two very unlikely sources. Isaiah 65 - really, the whole chapter is about Israel, Gods elect - verse 22: My elect again shall enjoy long the work of their hands. Israel repeatedly called Gods elect; we know what that means. Please respond to confirm your registration. Return the sovereignty of God in election to its rightful place, return the nation Israel to its rightful place, and your eschatology will unfold in beautiful clarity. There are two great elect people in the Bible: Israel and the church; and Israel is elect, as the church is elect - the New Testament is full of comments about the church being the elect. Kingdom on earth after the second coming will happen after the second coming happen. Too late for John Calvin to fix his work, although he is currently the chancellor emeritus of the as! 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