Premillennialism in the New Testament: Five Biblically Doctrinal Truths
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Bible, Prophecy & Covid-19
BIBLE, PROPHECY & COVID-19 WHAT IS THE CHURCH AGE? • The Church age is the current period we are living in. It is also referred to as the age of grace RAPTURE ETERNITY MILLENIAL CHURCH AGE ETERNAL STATE PAST KINGDOM CREATION PENTECOST TRIBULATION WHAT IS THE RAPTURE? • When Believers will be instantaneously taken up to heaven. Rapture is the Latin translation of the New Testament Greek word harpazo found in 1Thess 4:13-18. RAPTURE ETERNITY MILLENIAL CHURCH AGE ETERNAL STATE PAST KINGDOM CREATION PENTECOST TRIBULATION WHAT IS THE TRIBULATION • The Tribulation is a future seven-year period when God’s wrath finally comes to judge evil in the world after a long period of grace. • This is distinct from the trials and tribulations that we all face in a fallen world. WHAT IS THE MILLENNIUM? • The millennium is a future 1,000 year period that begins after Christ’s return to Earth at the end of the tribulation. WHAT IS ETERNAL STATE? • This is the state of the final condition of the universe that results from the creation of a new heaven and a new earth with absolute perfection lasting for eternity. WHO IS THE ANTICHRIST? • The antichrist is a future world ruler who will rise to power during the tribulation • The false prophet is a world religious leaders who will unite the people of the earth and cause them to worship the antichrist. WHAT IS THE APOCALYPSE? • In scripture, it means the revealing or unveiling. • The Book of Revelation is the unveiling of God’s future plans WHAT IS ARMAGEDDON? • This refers to the hills of Megiddo. -
How John Nelson Darby Went Visiting: Dispensational Premillennialism In
University of Dayton eCommons History Faculty Publications Department of History 2000 How John Nelson Darby Went Visiting: Dispensational Premillennialism in the Believers Church Tradition and the Historiography of Fundamentalism William Vance Trollinger University of Dayton, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://ecommons.udayton.edu/hst_fac_pub Part of the Comparative Methodologies and Theories Commons, History of Christianity Commons, History of Religion Commons, Other History Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons eCommons Citation Trollinger, William Vance, "How John Nelson Darby Went Visiting: Dispensational Premillennialism in the Believers Church Tradition and the Historiography of Fundamentalism" (2000). History Faculty Publications. Paper 8. http://ecommons.udayton.edu/hst_fac_pub/8 This Book Chapter is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of History at eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in History Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Contents Introduction ............................................... ............ .. .... ....... .... .............. .. .. .. .. ......... 7 PART ONE: BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVES 1 Making Prophecy Come True: Human Responsibility for the End of the World, JAMES E. BRENNEMAN .... .............................................................. 21 2 Lions and Ovens and Visions, 0 My! A Satirical -
The City: the New Jerusalem
Chapter 1 The City: The New Jerusalem “I saw the holy city, the New Jerusalem” (Revelation 21:2). These words from the final book of the Bible set out a vision of heaven that has captivated the Christian imagina- tion. To speak of heaven is to affirm that the human long- ing to see God will one day be fulfilled – that we shall finally be able to gaze upon the face of what Christianity affirms to be the most wondrous sight anyone can hope to behold. One of Israel’s greatest Psalms asks to be granted the privilege of being able to gaze upon “the beauty of the Lord” in the land of the living (Psalm 27:4) – to be able to catch a glimpse of the face of God in the midst of the ambiguities and sorrows of this life. We see God but dimly in this life; yet, as Paul argued in his first letter to the Corinthian Christians, we shall one day see God “face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12). To see God; to see heaven. From a Christian perspective, the horizons defined by the parameters of our human ex- istence merely limit what we can see; they do not define what there is to be seen. Imprisoned by its history and mortality, humanity has had to content itself with pressing its boundaries to their absolute limits, longing to know what lies beyond them. Can we break through the limits of time and space, and glimpse another realm – another dimension, hidden from us at present, yet which one day we shall encounter, and even enter? Images and the Christian Faith It has often been observed that humanity has the capacity to think. -
The Fifth and Sixth Trumpets (Rev 9)
THE FIFTH AND SIXTH TRUMPETS (REV 9) Read Revelation 9:1-21 (NIV) **What Scholars Say** REV 9:[1] The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I (John) saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. THE FIFTH TRUMPET (9:1-11) VERSE 1 - REV 9:[1] The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I (John) saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. "A star" sometimes signifies one in a high position or even a supernatural being. “There shall come a star out of Jacob" (Num 24:17); Angels are called "stars" (Job. 38:7); in Isa 14:12 we have Satan referred to as “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!" The star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. It seems, therefore, that Satan himself is referred to by this symbol. The words he in verses 2 and king in verse 11, show that this is a person rather than a literal star. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. Satan or this demonic angel was given a key to the shaft of the Abyss or the bottomless pit. The Abyss or bottomless pit is a place in the depths of the earth where evil spirits were thought to be imprisoned (Luke 8:31). Satan then is pictured as opening the lid or the door (that can be closed or locked) to this Abyss, so that demons can be released to inflict men and women on the earth. -
Visions of the End? Revelation and Climate Change
Visions of the End? Revelation and Climate Change By The Revd Professor T.J. Gorringe; a chapter from Sebastian Kim and Jonathan Draper (eds.) Christianity and the Renewal of Nature, SPCK, 2011; reproduced with kind permission of the author and publisher. Rev 8: 1 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. In chapter four of Revelation the author tells us that the song of praise before God ‘never ceases’ (4:8), but now there is silence. ‘Heaven seems to hold its breath because of what is about to happen on earth’. Perhaps the author is thinking of the passage in 2 Esdras where the world returns to its “original silence” as “at the beginning of creation” when nobody will be left alive (7:30 cf.6:39)i. It is an intensely dramatic image which has caught people’s imaginations all the way from the first century to Ingmar Bergman. It could speak about the fear we feel about the possible effects of climate change as represented by James Lovelock in The Revenge of Gaia, or Mark Lynas in Six Degrees. But the silence does not last. Seven trumpets are given to seven angels. These may be the seven archangels found in Jewish tradition and in this tradition trumpets are used to warn or to call. “All you inhabitants of the world, when a trumpet is blown, hear!” says Isaiah(Is.18:3) It is the task of prophets as watchmen to call the people to “give heed to the sound of the trumpet”, to hear the warning says Jeremiah (Jer 6:17 ). -
Introduction to the Millennial Kingdom
What Must Take Place After This (The Millennial Kingdom & the Great White Throne) Text: Revelation 20 Main Idea: When Christ returns He will defeat His enemies, have Satan bound, and set up His throne in Jerusalem and reign for a thousand years on the earth. At the end of the millennial reign Christ will defeat Satan, who will be released, and an army of unbelievers. At that point the whole earth will be destroyed, and all the unsaved through the ages will be resurrected and given bodies to stand before the Great White Throne Judgment and will be cast into eternal hell to be tormented forever and ever. Introduction to the Millennial Kingdom The Three Major Positions: • Amillennialism: The “a” means without. This is misleading because those who hold this position do not reject the concept of an earthly millennium, a kingdom. They believe Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah’s kingdom, but believe that those prophesies are being fulfilled ______currently__________, either by the saints reigning in heaven with Christ, or by the church on the earth. Amillennialists believe that the millennial kingdom is happening right now spiritually. But they do deny a literal reign of Christ on the earth. The hermeneutic of the Amillennialist forces them to interpret everything spiritual. • Postmillennialism: “Postmillennialism is in some ways the opposite of premillennialism. Premillennialism teaches that Christ will return before the Millennium; postmillennialism teaches that He will return at the end of the Millennium. Premillennialism teaches that the period immediately before Christ’s return will be the worst in human history; postmillennialism teaches that before His return will come the best period in history, so that Christ will return at the end of a long golden age of peace and harmony….That golden age, according to postmillennialism, will result from the spread of the ______Gospel___________ throughout the world and the conversion of a majority of the human race to Christianity. -
NB 377 Transcript
Naked Bible Podcast Episode 377: Revelation 9 Naked Bible Podcast Transcript Episode 377 Revelation 9 May 22, 2021 Teacher: Dr. Michael S. Heiser (MH) Host: Trey Stricklin (TS) Episode Summary Revelation 9 reveals John’s vision of the fifth and six trumpet judgments. Several interpretive issues are immediately apparent. What is the nature of the angel with the key to the bottomless pit (Rev 9:1)? Is this angel the same or different than that in Rev 9:11 or Abbadon/Apollyon? Who or what is being released from the bottomless pit (Rev 9:3-11)? These questions take the reader into the wider question of whether Revelation’s apocalyptic descriptions should be read in terms of modern analogies. In this episode we discern how the release of evil supernatural beings from the bottomless pit has clear connections to how Second Temple Jewish texts and 2 Peter describe the imprisoned Watchers, the sons of God of Genesis 6:1-4 infamy, and how the odd descriptions of those beings in insect and animal form have clear, abundant antecedents in the Old Testament. Transcript TS: Welcome to the Naked Bible Podcast, Episode 377: Revelation 9. I’m the layman, Trey Stricklin, and he’s the scholar, Dr. Michael Heiser. Hey, Mike! What's going on? MH: Well, I have a pug update. The pugs have now been introduced to the pool properly. TS: With life jackets? MH: With life jackets, of course. And their attitude toward the pool has moved from hysteria to mild hysteria. [laughter] They didn’t like it. -
A Re-Examination of the Millennium in Rev 20:1–6: Consummation and Recapitulation
JETS 44/2 (June 2001) 237–51 A RE-EXAMINATION OF THE MILLENNIUM IN REV 20:1–6: CONSUMMATION AND RECAPITULATION dave mathewson* i. introduction The question of the so-called millennial kingdom in Rev 20:1–6 continues to be a source of fascination in evangelical discussion and dialogue.1 The purpose of this article is to re-examine the question of the millennial king- dom as articulated in Rev 20:1–6. More specifically, this article will consider the meaning and function of 20:1–6 within Revelation as it relates to the contemporary debate about whether this section is best understood within a premillennial or amillennial framework. Hermeneutically, most of the de- bate has centered around how literally the reference to the one thousand years in 20:1–6 should be taken and, more importantly, the relationship be- tween 20:1–6 and 19:11–21. Does the thousand year period in 20:1–6 re- fer to a more or less literal period of time?2 Or should it be understood more symbolically? Does 20:1–6 follow 19:11–21 chronologically, with the one thou- sand years featuring a Zwischenreich (premillennialism), or does the final battle in 20:7–10 recapitulate the battle in 19:11–21, with the reference to the one thousand years in 20:1–6 extending all the way back to the first coming of Christ (amillennialism)?3 * Dave Mathewson is instructor in New Testament at Oak Hills Christian College, 1600 Oak Hills Road SW, Bemidji, MN 56601. 1 Cf. R. -
Reading the Book of Revelation Politically
start page: 339 Stellenbosch eological Journal 2017, Vol 3, No 2, 339–360 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17570/stj.2017.v3n2.a15 Online ISSN 2413-9467 | Print ISSN 2413-9459 2017 © Pieter de Waal Neethling Trust Reading the Book of Revelation politically De Villiers, Pieter GR University of the Free State [email protected] Abstract In this essay the political use of Revelation in the first five centuries will be analysed in greatest detail, with some references to other examples. Focus will be on two trajectories of interpretation: literalist, eschatological readings and symbolic, spiritualizing interpretations of the text. Whilst the first approach reads the book as predictions of future events, the second approach links the text with spiritual themes and contents that do not refer to outstanding events in time and history. The essay will argue that both of these trajectories are ultimately determined by political considerations. In a final section, a contemporary reading of Revelation will be analysed in order to illustrate the continuing and important presence of political readings in the reception history of Revelation, albeit in new, unique forms. Key words Book of Revelation; eschatological; symbolic; spiritualizing; political considerations 1. Introduction Revelation is often associated with movements on the fringes of societies that are preoccupied with visions and calculations about the end time.1 The book has also been used throughout the centuries to reflect on and challenge political structures and 1 Cf. Barbara R. Rossing, The Rapture Exposed: the Message of Hope in the Book of Revelation (Westview Press, Boulder, CO., 2004). Robert Jewett, Jesus against the Rapture. -
Amillennialism Reconsidered Beatrices
Andrews University Seminary Studies, Vol. 43, No. 1,185-210. Copyright 0 2005 Andrews University Press. AMILLENNIALISM RECONSIDERED BEATRICES. NEALL Union College Lincoln, Nebraska Introduction G. K. Beale's latest commentary on Revelation and Kim Riddlebarger's new book A Casefor Ami~~ennialismhave renewed interest in the debate on the nature of the millennium.' Amillennialism has an illustrious history of support from Augustine, theologians of the Calvinistic and ~utheran confessions, and a long line of Reformed theologians such as Abraham Kuyper, Amin Vos, H. Ridderbos, A. A. Hoekema, and M. G. line? Amillennialists recognize that a straightforward reading of the text seems to show "the chronologicalp'ogression of Rev 19-20, the futurity of Satan's imprisonment,the physicality of 'the first resurrection' and the literalness of the one thousand years" (emphasis supplied).) However, they do not accept a chronologicalprogression of the events in these chapters, preferring instead to understand the events as recapitulatory. Their rejection of the natural reading of the text is driven by a hermeneutic of strong inaugurated eschatology4-the paradox that in the Apocalypse divine victory over the dragon and the reign of Christ and his church over this present evil world consist in participating with Christ in his sufferings and death? Inaugurated eschatology emphasizes Jesus' victory over the powers of evil at the cross. Since that monumental event, described so dramatically in Rev 12, Satan has been bound and the saints have been reigning (Rev 20). From the strong connection between the two chapters (see Table 1 below) they infer that Rev 20 recapitulates Rev 12. -
The Background and Meaning of the Image of the Beast in Rev. 13:14, 15
Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Dissertations Graduate Research 2016 The Background and Meaning of the Image of the Beast in Rev. 13:14, 15 Rebekah Yi Liu [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations Part of the Biblical Studies Commons Recommended Citation Liu, Rebekah Yi, "The Background and Meaning of the Image of the Beast in Rev. 13:14, 15" (2016). Dissertations. 1602. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations/1602 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ABSTRACT THE BACKGROUNDS AND MEANING OF THE IMAGE OF THE BEAST IN REV 13:14, 15 by Rebekah Yi Liu Adviser: Dr. Jon Paulien ABSTRACT OF GRADUATE STDUENT RESEARCH Dissertation Andrews University Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary Title: THE BACKGROUNDS AND MEANING OF THE IMAGE OF THE BEAST IN REV 13:14, 15 Name of researcher: Rebekah Yi Liu Name and degree of faculty adviser: Jon Paulien, Ph.D. Date Completed: May 2016 Problem This dissertation investigates the first century Greco-Roman cultural backgrounds and the literary context of the motif of the image of the beast in Rev 13:14, 15, in order to answer the problem of the author’s intended meaning of the image of the beast to his first century Greco-Roman readers. Method There are six steps necessary to accomplish the task of this dissertation. -
Four Views of Revelation
Four Views of Revelation Dr. Patrick Zukeran presents a summary of four of the major approaches to interpreting the book of Revelation and its meaning for the end times: the idealist, the preterist, the historicist, and the futurist views. For each, he presents the basic approach, strengths of the approach and weaknesses of the approach. Recognizing that God is the central mover in all of these, he encourages us to keep these questions from dividing Christians in our mission of sharing Christ with the world. The Debate One of the most intriguing books of the Bible is the book of Revelation. The imagery of the cosmic battle in heaven and on earth makes it a fascinating book to study. However, much debate surrounds the proper interpretation of this apocalyptic work. Is this book a prophecy of future events yet to take place, or have the prophecies of this book been fulfilled? Two popular authors highlight the debate that continues in our present time. In his hit series Left Behind, Tim LaHaye writes a fictional account based on his theological position that the events of Revelation will occur in the future. Popular radio talk show host Hank Hanegraaff responded by attacking the theology of LaHaye. In his book The Apocalypse Code, Hanegraaff asserts that the events of Revelation were largely fulfilled in AD 70 with the fall of the Jerusalem Temple. He criticizes theologians like LaHaye for taking a hyper-literal approach to Revelation.{1} The debate has raised some confusion among Christians as to why there is such a debate and how we should interpret the book of Revelation.