Posts tagged ‘millennium’

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November 12, 2023

Time, History and Eternity

The above graphic depicts an understanding of the phrases “this age” and “the age to come”, in their biblical/historical context. This understanding underlies the proper perception of our present situation, and affects our eschatological outlook. Satan is NOT “the god of this age” that we are in now. He was “the god of this age” when Paul wrote 2 Cor. 4:4; Gal. 1:4; Rom. 16:20, etc. Jesus crushed Satan’s head and bound him in the first century, cf. Matt. 12:29; Luke 10:18; Rev. 20:2; etc. Not to say that the evil one is not still active other than in wholesale deception of the nations the way he was before, but the Lord Jesus Christ is reigning now! cf. Ps. 2; Ps. 110; Dan. 7:13-14; 1Cor. 15:25; etc.

An “age” is a period of time. There is no other age that will follow the present age of Christ’s mediatorial reign (what the New Testament, written prior to the termination of the Old Covenant age with the destruction of the temple, refers to as “the age to come”). We are now in the final age of time and history, as the ascended Lord Jesus Christ reigns in majesty on high at the right hand of the Father. 

Premillennialists claim that there will be another age after Christ’s Second Coming, when He will reign upon the earth for 1,000 years prior to the final judgment, with a variety of flavors espousing a rebuilt temple, multiple mass physical resurrections, etc., etc. which is all patently unbiblical. An older version of postmillennialism taught that there will be a separate “golden age” in time and history after the present age and before the Second Coming; proponents of that view may have acquiesced to the lack of scriptural warrant for it.

Against “the age to come” as eternity

Ephesians 1:
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age (aion) but also in that which is to come.* 22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. (NKJV)

*Note: the age “which is to come” in Ephesians 1 can hardly refer to eternity without conflicting with 1 Corinthians 15:

22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterwards those who are Christ’s at His coming. 24 Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. 25 For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. 26 The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. 27 For “He has put all things under His feet.” But when He says “all things are put under Him,” it is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted.
*28Now when all things are made subject to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.

The Ephesians passage presents the ages of time/history; the passage in 1 Corinthians presents the end: eternity. Jesus’ ascension took place in what were the last days of “this age” for the writers of the New Testament. In this final age now present (the “age to come” for the N.T. writers), Jesus is still reigning from on High and by His Spirit indwelling His people, living stones in a living temple, His body. He also rules over the nations with a rod of iron. This being the situation decreed for “not only in this age but also in that which is to come”, neither age can refer to the hereafter, as by contrast, in eternity, we shall eat and drink with Jesus Himself (cf. Matthew 26:29)! Our Forerunner will no longer be “far above”, having put an end to all rule and all authority and power; and we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is (1 John 3:2)! The position of Christ the head and his body/bride the church will, at the end (in the eternity of final glory), be manifestly changed from that of the here and now, the age of the church militant (referred to as “the age to come” in Ephesians 1).

Paul wrote in the last days of the old covenant age when the temple was still standing. The “age to come”, which was then at hand, is fully here now: the gospel age, the “millennium” of the mediatorial reign of King Jesus.

In those same last days of the old covenant age when the temple was still standing, shortly before He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried; rose again from the dead; and ascended into heaven, Jesus said to the high priest: “I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matt. 26:64) The hereafter our Lord foretold is the termination of the old covenant economy with the destruction of the temple in AD 70, the final end of that age, the outworking of AD 30 when Christ made the once-for-all sacrifice of Himself; which was also foretold by the angel Gabriel to the prophet Daniel:

“And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined. Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week; But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate, Even until the consummation*, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate.” (Daniel 9:26-27)

*i.e. the consummation of the ages, the transition from the Jewish to the Christian: the mediatorial kingdom of the gospel age, the final age before the end, the millennial reign of the risen, ascended Lord Jesus Christ as written of in Ephesians 1.


[click image to enlarge]

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April 23, 2023

Fallacious Notions – Temporal Displacement

What if the same controligarchs behind the gaslighting of the general populace have intentionally corrupted the Church’s understanding of the word of truth — the Holy Scriptures? Their objective being the establishment and popularization of distorted theology towards the advancement of their globalist agenda and neutering the church militant. It was largely achieved via the publication of a Bible with explanatory notes presenting delusory interpretations of the text:

“…Cyrus Scofield, a forger, felon and trained lawyer, had been hired by the Rothschilds to write this dispensational reinterpretation of biblical events and Christian doctrine.” …

”The writing and promotion of “Scofield’s Reference Bible” was a massive effort to subvert true Christianity to serve Zionist/NWO interests…

“Throughout the 20th Century and with incredible support from the Rothchild controlled Oxford Press, various editions of Scofield’s Bible would actually create a new religion, Christian Zionism (Judeo-Christianity), altering words and meanings through deceptive footnotes.”

– Merlin L. Miller1

First published in 1909 and still available today, the Scofield Notes have systematized a fanciful, invalid exposition of Scripture, serving the agenda of wicked globalists the likes of which are now being exposed more and more as the great democide of the 2020s unfolds.

One minister who broke with Scofieldism described it as a “subtle, intriguing heresy”.2

Thankfully, the unscriptural teaching of a literal, earthly Jewish kingdom, with all the associated temporal deceptions (e.g. inserting a “gap” of time in to the seventy weeks prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27) has come to be largely rejected. Even so, erroneous understandings of Bible prophecy, exacerbated by dispensational seminary teachings and media sensationalism, remain ingrained in the church at large, to the detriment of the gospel’s advancement.

Not rightly dividing the Scriptures in their historical context has led to a general “temporal displacement” in the understanding of eschatology, typically manifested by removing passages from their native context, i.e. the time period when they were written, and interpreting them as if they are written contemporaneously to the generation presently living.

Thus, in the minds of many, near-at-hand prophecies which were fulfilled accordingly in that 1st century generation, have remained unfulfilled and somehow continually imminent for almost 2 millennia now.

“The End is Near”

 “The end of all things” which was at hand when the apostle Peter wrote of it (1 Peter 4:7) refers, in its proper context, to the passing away of the old covenant as per Hebrews 8:13: In that He says, “A new covenant,”  He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. The civil state of the Jews, their sacrifices, temple, city and nation would soon be gone. Of course, physical death, which is indeed the end of all things in this world, is always near at hand to any particular person, but the literal end of the physical world was clearly not near at hand nor in view in this passage.

Neither can the apocalyptic language of the book of Revelation prophesying the days of vengeance on the Harlot (apostate Judaism) and the Beast (Rome) be rightfully construed as foretelling an end of the cosmos at the end of time, since the events were foretold shortly before they were to take place (Revelation 1:1; 22:6). Just like the apocalyptic imagery of judgment in 2 Peter 3:10-13, the prophesied events were near-at-hand then.

Furthermore, the end of time is not near now. In this gospel age, the present millennial reign of our ascended Lord will continue until He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet (1 Corinthians 15:24-25). We rightfully expect that the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea (Isaiah 11:9; Habakkuk 2:14) before the end.

“Heaven and Earth will literally pass away”

The Bible teaches that, at the end of this church age, the presently bound Satan will be released for a short time (Rev. 20:3) to deceive the nations again and mount a rebellious army which is crushed as, in the apocalyptic language of the vision, “fire from heaven came down and consumed them” (Revelation 20:9). This does not mean that the creation itself will be destroyed by being burned up! The creation itself is being redeemed from the curse, not headed for dissolution, as it is written:

For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. (Romans 8:20-21)

The crafty deception that the earth will be destroyed at the end of time is perhaps the most critical of all fallacious eschatological notions, and is at the root of many others.

Jesus’ statement that “Heaven and earth will pass away…” (Matthew 24:35) cannot be interpreted to refer to the physical cosmos without violating the analogy of faith, i.e. there can be no essential contradictions in the Scriptures. To wit:

The literal earth is determined to not pass away. In Psalm 104:5 David said that God “laid the foundation of the earth, that it shall not be removed forever.” And in Ecclesiastes 1:4 Solomon said, “One generation passes away, and another generation comes: but the earth abides forever.”

“And He built His sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth which He has established forever.” (Psalm 78:69).

“Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens… “He has also established them for ever and ever: He has made a decree which shall not pass” (Psalm 148:4,6).

God promised after the flood that He would never again “strike down every living creature as I have done.” (Genesis 8:21). This, it is thought, does not rule out God’s destruction of the entire world by fire someday, and that 2 Peter 3:10 teaches this. But no, with the phrase “as I have done” the LORD attests to His power and majesty in His manner of declaration, not to give Himself a “loophole” to smite everything living again but in a different manner, which might be a laughable consideration if not so irreverently preposterous.

It would be a blatant contradiction if God was to burn up the elements, meaning atoms & molecules according to the literalistic misinterpretation of the prophetic language of 2 Peter 3:10.3  Besides, the apocalyptic destruction Peter wrote of was near at hand when he wrote in the last days of the old covenant.

Thus in light of the full counsel of Scripture, our Lord’s statement that “heaven and earth will pass away” cannot be interpreted literally in the context of Matthew 24:35. Rather, especially in consideration of the prophetic idiom being used, the reference is to the old covenant and its temple system (the house left desolate) just as it is in 2 Peter 3:10.

Jesus had also said “…assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:18). The ceremonial ordinances were finally abrogated when the temple was destroyed, the Lamb of God having fulfilled all of the sacrificial typology.

Conclusively, the reference to the “passing away of heaven and earth” must be considered in light of the establishment of that same “heaven and earth” in Isaiah 51: 15-16:

”I am the LORD your God, Who divided the sea whose waves roared — The LORD of hosts is His name. And I have put My words in your mouth; I have covered you with the shadow of My hand, That I may plant the heavens, lay the foundations of the earth, and say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’”

The LORD was not depicting the original physical creation 3,000 years previously, but rather the establishment of the old (Mosaic) covenant upon bringing His people out of Egypt. (cf. Jeremiah 31:32).

“The Great Tribulation is Yet to Come”

Great tribulation may indeed be expected for present and future generations, especially as God’s people stand for the truth of God’s word in a culture of decadence and tyranny. Even so, Jesus’ prophecy that then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be (Matthew 24:21) was declared in no uncertain terms to take place before the generation then living would pass away.

The book of Revelation, which apocalyptically presents the undiluted wrath of God poured out on that wicked generation, was written by the apostle John as a fellow partaker in that tribulation with the original hearers of the letter (Rev. 1:9). From our historical perspective, the events which happened then manifestly align with the things signified to John in the Apocalypse shortly before they were to take place as per the “temporal bookends” of Rev. 1:1 and Rev. 22:6.

The works of Jewish historian Josephus document the events of the great tribulation which took place in the time leading up to and including the destruction and desolation of the old covenant temple in 70 AD.

For a concise, highly readable record of those now historical events see George Halford’s The Destruction of Jerusalem. Judgment fell heavily upon that generation in those “days of vengeance” in vindication of the Lord Jesus Christ.

“No one knows the day or hour”

When predicting His coming in judgment (via the Roman armies) on apostate Judaism, the Lord stated, “But of that day and hour no one knows…” (Matthew 24:36). This He declared not in reference to His Second Coming at the end of time, rather, in context, the reference is to the day and hour of His near coming in judgment of which He was prophesying.

No one knew exactly when the Temple would be utterly destroyed and the Jewish age of sacrifice finished. But they were given warning signs:  when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near (Luke 21:20) and more importantly, the general time by when it would take place: within that generation!

While it is true that the day and hour of the Second Coming of Christ (cf. Hebrews 9:26-28) remains unknown to mankind, the temporal markers in the text of the Olivet discourse in Matthew 24 (and parallels) do not authorize direct application of the saying to that great, final, end-of-time event which Christians ought to hopefully expect in accordance with God’s timetable, when all His enemies have been put under His feet, which may not happen within the lifetimes of anyone reading this now.

Not to dare prognosticate on this matter, but it looks like a long term proposition, as God gathers in the multitudes of His elect. Let us hasten the day by advancing the gospel that it may flourish in ours and future generations towards the final consummation of all things.

“Satan is the god of this age”

An “age” is a period of time. There is no other age that will follow the present age of Christ’s mediatorial reign (what the New Testament, written prior to the termination of the Old Covenant age with the fall of Jerusalem4, refers to as “the age to come”). We are now in the final age of time and history, as the ascended Lord Jesus Christ reigns in majesty on high at the right hand of the Father.

Satan is NOT “the god of this age” that we are in now. Satan was the god of an age that was passing away. He was “the god of this age” when the apostle Paul wrote 2 Cor. 4:4; Gal. 1:4; Rom. 16:20, etc. Jesus crushed Satan’s head and bound him in the first century (cf. Matt. 12:29; Luke 10:18; Rev. 20:2; etc.).

Not to say that the evil one is not still active other than in wholesale deception of the nations the way he was before, but the Lord Jesus Christ is reigning now and in the process of putting all His enemies under His feet (cf. Ps. 2; Ps. 110; Dan. 7:13-14; 1Cor. 15:25; etc.) and we are instrumental in the process.

Let us not let temporal displacement of the texts of Scripture be a rationale to expect defeat in time and history in the battle against evil, as we fight for and with the Way, the Truth and the Life.

For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. (1 John 5:4)

~

1 Christian Zionism – Scofield Rothchild Puppet

2 Why I Left Scofieldism

3 Passing Away… – A Study of 2 Peter 3

4 Before Jerusalem Fell

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April 9, 2023

Eschatology Between the Extremes

golden-city

Background

Bible students (as all reformed Christians are) must be careful to distinguish among New Testament prophetic references to ”coming” (Greek: parousia) –– whether applicable to the end of the age in which they were written, or applicable to the end of the world at the end of time.1 That is, whether the correct interpretation of each prophecy is in the past or in the future, with respect to us in the present. Prophecies, by definition, of course apply to what was then the future at the time they were prophesied; the question is: whether they were fulfilled in our past (already), or are still in our future (not yet).

The destruction of the city of Jerusalem and the Jewish temple in 70 AD was clearly the fulfillment of the Lord’s prophecy rendered in the Olivet discourse of Matthew 24 during the time of His humiliation. The desolation of the temple capped off the end of the old covenant age. Those were “…the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled” (Luke 21:22) 2. After having ascended to the right hand of God the Father almighty, the Lord’s “coming” of which He foretold was not in Person but via the Roman armies, in judgment against apostate Judaism including those who called so vehemently for His crucifixion (Luke 23:21). It was the sign of His exaltation; the vindication of His identity as Christ, just as He had foretold before being condemned to death (Matthew 26:64; Mark 14:62).

There can hardly be any doubt that the book of Revelation was written prior to 70 AD, as from our historical perspective, the events which happened then manifestly align with the things signified to John in the Apocalypse shortly before they were to take place (Revelation 1:1; 22:6). The questionable “evidence” of a quote attributed to church father Irenaeus simply does not sustain a later date of its writing, which has been propounded as the majority report.3

Even so, the 1st coming of Christ and His finished work on the Cross in 30 AD is the pivotal focus of all of Scripture. Our glorified Lord’s reign has continued since His Ascension, well beyond 70 AD to the present day, unless the “millennium”4 (the time of Messianic reign) was only 40 years. The Lamb of God rose from the dead 3 days after His crucifixion; 40 days after that the Son of Man ascended (“…came up to the Ancient of Days…” per Daniel 7:13 [NASB]) and has been reigning ever since. This selfsame divine Person (“…and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” –Isaiah 9:6), the King of kings and Lord of lords, Jesus Christ, is reigning now! He will continue to reign in heaven and by His Spirit in His people until “…the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all enemies under His feet. -1 Corinthians 15:24-25. The 2nd coming of the Lord which will happen then (the end of time) is still in our future.

The invisible “coming” of the Son of Man in wrathful judgment upon that wicked generation in 70 AD is certainly a frequent prophetic reference in Scripture as an outworking of the signal events of 30 AD; nevertheless “…it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” -1 John 3:2. A few verses earlier John exhorted believers to abide in the Lord with perseverance, so as not to be ashamed before Him at His coming (1 John 2:28). This is a clear reference to the yet to be fulfilled final judgment at the 2nd coming, when everyone must give account personally (cf Romans 14:10-12).

The Extremes

Rather than studying to arrive at an interpretive understanding of Bible passages according to context in light of the full counsel of Scripture, one extreme school of thought automatically relegates all “coming” passages to a preterist (fulfilled in our past) interpretation. At the other extreme, another school of thought presupposes “coming” passages to have a futurist (still in our future) interpretation. The all-preterist system can be called pantelism5; the hyper-futurist hermeneutic is adhered to in the system commonly known as dispensationalism.

Dispensationalism, considered to be “losing steam” more and more in recent decades, was propagated with the publication of the Scofield Reference Bible at the beginning of the 20th century. It refuses to accept at face value the text of Matthew 24:34: “Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place.” The events including the “great tribulation” (Matthew 24:21) and the coming of the Son of Man in judgment to destroy the temple (Matthew 24:30), which happened leading up to and in AD 70, are among “all these things” spoken of by our Lord in the text. Furthermore, dispensational futurism does not allow for the many time texts such as “soon”, “at hand”, “near”, “coming quickly”, etc., employed throughout the New Testament, to apply according to the standard usage of those terms. Rather, almost 2,000 years (so far) are arbitrarily added to the interpretations in order to keep the occurrence of the predicted events in our near future. This provides for a continuingly impending end times perspective that may be sensational, but it just doesn’t make good sense. Besides, any interpretation that makes the text to have been meaningless or misinforming to the original audience must be rejected.

Pantelism may be seen as an overreaction to dispensationalism. Pantelism presupposes that all prophetic passages must have a preterist interpretation, inclusive of references to the resurrection of the body and the final judgment. With pantelism, the end of the old covenant age was the consummation of all things, and we are in the eternal state now. According to this thinking, the Lord’s still future descent from heaven (when the dead rise and the living are caught up together with them in the clouds) written of in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, which corresponds to His Ascension depicted in Acts 1:11, somehow already happened and was not a physical event. There is a variety of explanatory particulars amongst the system’s adherents as to how that is reconciled with the Lord’s clearly physical Ascension, when the angels testified that He will come “in just the same way” (Greek hos tropos) as he was seen taken up.

Even recognizing the eschatology of the New Testament as predominantly preterist, elevating the events of 70 AD over and above the events of 30 AD in their redemptive-historical significance is problematical to say the least. Denial of the future, bodily 2nd coming of the Lord Jesus Christ to physically resurrect the dead and eternally judge all who ever lived puts pantelism outside the bounds of Christian orthodoxy.

While the outright erroneousness of both of these extremes may be apparent to seasoned students of Scripture, many of today’s Christians have grown up under dispensationalist teaching, which has been popularized in the modern culture by best-selling books and movies such as the “Left Behind” series. Others, who have become disenchanted with dispensationalism, may have been swayed by pantelism as a seemingly logical alternative; but while pantelism eviscerates the interpretive errors of dispensationalism, the arbitrary misconceptions inherent in pantelism are just as bad to the other extreme, and even worse.

Context Not “Consistent”

The interpretation of any particular passage of Scripture is informed by the context, over and apart from the understanding gleaned from the usage of similarly framed wording in a different context. To presume otherwise leads unswervingly to a fundamental misunderstanding of the Bible, which is certainly not so simplistic as to apply the same meaning for a word or phrase every time it is used. The same word(s) or phrase(s) may have differing meaning, usage and interpretation in different instances, dependent upon the context. This simple hermeneutical principle may seem to be very basic and easy to understand, yet the failure to grasp it, or to override it with a presupposition of forced “consistency” has become a stumbling block to deriving sound, balanced counsel from God’s word, which unavoidably leads to one erroneous extreme or another.

As noted above, in the Olivet discourse of Matthew 24, the Lord foretold in verse 34 that “all these things” would take place before the passing away of the generation then living. So contextually “all these things” must apply to those stated in the preceding verses of that discourse. This does not mean, however, that whenever the Lord spoke, sentences preceding must necessarily be interpreted according to a subsequent statement. There is no such viable application of “consistency”, yet it is claimed to hold by some interpreters of the passage in Matthew 16 beginning with verse 24 where the Lord’s “take up your cross and follow Me” teaching is recorded. In this passage, Jesus encourages His disciples to self-denial through sufferings, by comparing worldly afflictions with eternal life (cf Romans 8:18), and associating material gain with loss of immortal soul.

In that context, v. 27 sets forth the weighty consideration of His (2nd) coming to judge all men at the consummation of the kingdom: “For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.”

[*The author has come to understand that v. 27 references our Lord’s glorious ascension as depicted in Daniel 7:13-14. See this.]

Then, in v. 28 which follows, he assures them that His coming into His kingdom will be manifest before some of them die: “Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”

He does not give His disciples any time frame for the final judgment at His 2nd coming*, which we know from other passages of Scripture is at the end of time, but He foretells that some of them standing there would see the outworking of the Son of Man’s (1st) coming in His kingdom in the fullness of time and history, the kingdom announced by John the Baptist in the spirit of Elijah. The reference of v.28 to the Lord’s near term “coming” (as a sign of the ascended Son of Man in heaven per Matthew 24:30) does not automatically mean that His coming referred to in v. 27 was also near! The Lord was teaching His disciples that at the end of time (cf 1 Cor. 15:24), He shall come with final reckoning, in His Father’s glory with His angels; and that while some of them were still alive, He was to come in the power of the kingdom of His mediatorial reign with the destruction of Jerusalem which was fulfilled in 70 AD.

What awesome encouragement! Not only that all things will be set right by the Lord in the end, but that the process of putting all enemies under His feet (cf 1 Cor. 15:25) was at hand, and some standing there would live to see the powerful manifestation of it. Presumptuously absorbing v. 27 in with the interpretation of v.28, causes a drastic missing of the mark. There is no sound reason why both verses, even though adjacent to each other, must together be preterist, or futurist for that matter. Indeed hyper-futurists have an insurmountable problem with the clearly indicated time frame of verse 28. On the other extreme, to preterize v. 27 obviates the Lord’s vital teaching in this passage, brought out by Peter’s misplaced focus on temporal things, regarding self-denial, the immortal soul, and the eternal state of either misery or happiness to be dispensed to all at the final judgment. This is a legitimate application of 2 Peter 3:8 (…that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day)
as the Lord declares the end from the beginning. Contextual considerations, both before and after a particular verse, allow Scripture to provide the interpretation as it speaks for itself.

Notes

1 What was the “age to come” for the New Testament writers is the age we are living in now, the gospel age, the new covenant age which began as the old covenant age passed away. The New Testament was written in the “last days” of the old covenant. We won’t be in the eternal state until the end of the present age which will be the end of time & history.

2 The Lord here references Old Testament prophecies of the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, most notably Daniel 9:26 .

3 For a thorough, scholarly exposition in support of a pre-70AD date for the composition of the book of Revelation see Kenneth L. Gentry’s Before Jerusalem Fell.

4 The millennium is a reference to “a thousand years”, mentioned in Revelation 20 as the period of Christ’s interadvental reign. Postmillennialism (that the Lord’s 2nd Coming must be after His Messianic reign) is assumed here. Amillennialism is technically postmillennialism as far as timing; differing in the expected nature of the millennium. Premillennialism (that the Lord’s 2nd Coming must be before the millennium to set up His reign on earth) is the view routinely adopted by dispensationalists.

5 The term pantelism (from the Greek words for “all” and “fulfilled”) was coined by C. Jonathan Seraiah, who has written an excellent refutation of the viewpoint (see The End of All Things: A Defense of the Future). The label pantelism (instead of hyper- or consistent preterism) is a neutral term that does not use the pejorative “hyper” prefix nor define non-pantelist preterism as somehow “inconsistent”. Here is an excerpt from an editorial intro for Pastor Seraiah’s highly recommended book:

The easiest way to deal with false doctrine is to affirm its absolute opposite. Unfortunately, this opposite affirmation is often no less erroneous than the false doctrine against which it reacts-sometimes, it is worse. Most conservative Christians in the twentieth century have been obsessed with “the last days.” An absolute opposite answer has recently emerged in the form of what C. Jonathin Seraiah terms “pantelism,” the view that all final events had taken place by the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D.70. With one fell swoop, this viewpoint eviscerates dispensationalism. Unfortunately, it also undermines orthodox Christianity.

~

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April 5, 2023

Discerning the Times

It has been said that we must know where we have been in order to understand where we are going. The canon of Scripture provides us with a God-breathed historical record of His covenantal decree from creation to consummation. Exhibit A below visualizes this:


Biblical scholars have recognized distinct periods in the life and times of God’s people as chronicled in holy writ. The timeline shown below (Exhibit B) delineates fifteen historical periods:


As our understanding of time and history continues to grow, even as we grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the historical periods of the Bible may be expressed thusly, with sixteen historical periods leading to the eternal state, as per Exhibit C:


Exhibit B omits the historical period from the Lord’s ascension to the “days of vengeance” (cf. Luke 21:22) which is distinctly identified in the Scriptures (e.g. Daniel 9:26-27), and is the particularly frequent subject of New Testament prophecy. The omission of this period ignores the Lord’s prophetic focus on the generation then living. Dispensationalist / sensationalist influence may have led to extending those last days throughout the entire church age (millennia) up until the second coming, with the end of them somehow being continually imminent.

Exhibit C properly distinguishes the last days of the old covenant age with its animal sacrifices, etc., that finally passed away with the destruction of the temple in 70AD. The new testament corpus is irrefutably clear on this: the last days were then, as the end was at hand. Not the end of time as written of in 1 Corinthians 15:24 which takes place upon completion of the church/gospel age; but rather, the end at hand was the passing away of the “heaven and earth” of the old covenant age (cf. Isaiah 51:15-16).

Applying “last days” to the church age is more and more problematical as sensationalist predictions have failed to materialize for almost two millennia so far; besides which the Lord Jesus Christ, who is reigning now, must reign until all His enemies are under His feet (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:25) before the end comes.

This historical interpretation does not represent a novel understanding, and in no way denies or sets aside the creedal doctrines of the second coming of Christ at the end of time for the universal resurrection of bodies and eternal judgment for all who ever lived.  As the church continues to shuffle off the “we are now living in the last days” paradigm, the words expressed by astute theologians are beginning to gain traction towards this biblical understanding:

Here’s Albert Barnes from his commentary on Hebrews 6:5: …and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come…:

the powers of the world to come – Or of the “coming age.” “The age to come” was a phrase in common use among the Hebrews, to denote the future dispensation, the times of the Messiah…

Here it evidently refers to that period, and the meaning is, that they had participated in the special blessings to be expected in that dispensation – to wit, in the clear views of the way of salvation, and the influences of the Holy Spirit on the soul.

The word “powers” here implies that in that time there would be some extraordinary manifestation of the “power” of God. An unusual energy would be put forth to save people, particularly as evinced by the agency of the Holy Spirit on the heart. Of this “power” the apostle here says they of whom he spake had partaken. They had been brought under the awakening and renewing energy which God put forth under the Messiah, in saving the soul. They had experienced the promised blessings of the new and last dispensation; and the language here is such as appropriately describes Christians, and as indeed can be applicable to no other.

Here’s John M. Buttrey II from his brief commentary on Revelation:

The last days are not a future period of time leading up to the rapture of the church and the end of the world. Nor are the last days describing the full contemporary Christian era. It hardly seems consistent to associate the term “days” with two millennia of years! A closer look at the New Testament usage of the term will reveal that the last days represented a now historical period of time. It was a fitting description of the final days of the Old Covenant, a period lasting a little over forty years. The first century earthly ministry of Jesus ushered in these last days. In this way, the “last days” of the New Testament were actually the “first days” of the New Testament church.

And here’s Milton Terry, excerpted from Biblical Apocalyptics:

The period which preceded the coming of the Messiah was spoken of as this age; that which followed His [first] coming was the age to come.

…by this age they meant and could mean nothing else than the current period in which they were living, the then present age. The question of the disciples, as recorded [in Matthew 24:3], could therefore only refer to the pre-Messianic age, and its consummation was, as we have seen, associated in their thought with the overthrow of the temple. But even were it admitted that their notion of “the consummation of the age” was erroneous, the teaching of Jesus was emphatic beyond all rational question that that generation should not pass away before all those things of which they inquired should be fulfilled.

The age to come, the Messianic time, would accordingly be the period that would follow immediately after the termination of the pre-Messianic age. That time had not yet come when Jesus spoke. According to the whole trend of New Testament teaching that age and the Messianic kingdom were near or at hand. Christ’s ministry fell in the last days of an aeon.

Lastly here’s Ralph Bass, from his commentary on Revelation:

And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” The phrase, behold, I am making all things new (Rev. 21:5) is interpreted by most as the beginning of the eternal state. We posit a millennium, which moves the world increasingly toward this eternal state with the increasing victory of the Church, but does not ultimately confuse the one with the other. Symbolic language pictures our spiritual victories and looks forward to material benefits in earthly prosperity and health. But the earthly millennium is never to be confused with heaven itself.

The effectiveness of biblical apologetics as well as the fruitfulness of Christian cultural engagement efforts will be greatly enhanced by our increased discernment of the times, and our corresponding faithful witness to the truth of what has been, is now, and is to come; that the last days as written of in the New Testament are in our past, and that our commission as “the church militant” advancing the gospel under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, is clear.

The long haul to triumph will likely extend beyond the relatively short lifetimes of those of us alive today; there’s no time to waste. Let’s get busy using our talents in good and faithful service to our King (cf Matthew 25:23), leaving an example for future generations to follow. Keep the faith. Stand strong in the Truth.

~

Also see: Scripture References: The Gospel Age and The Eternal State

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May 27, 2022

The Last from the Past

The last days are not a future period of time leading up to the rapture of the church and the end of the world. Nor are the last days describing the full contemporary Christian era. It hardly seems consistent to associate the term “days” with two millennia of years! A closer look at the New Testament usage of the term will reveal that the last days represented a now historical period of time. It was a fitting description of the final days of the Old Covenant, a period lasting a little over forty years. The first century earthly ministry of Jesus ushered in these last days. In this way, the “last days” of the New Testament were actually the “first days” of the New Testament church.1

The prophet Joel described some miraculous activities that would characterize the last days (Joel 2:28-31). The apostle Peter used the prophetic words of Joel to explain the miraculous events that were occurring at that time (Acts 2:16-17). The fact that those events were ascribed as being a fulfillment of the words of Joel indicated that the last days had arrived. If the inspired prophet was referencing the entire Christian era from Pentecost until the present, would we not expect these same miraculous activities to still be genuinely occurring — “in the last days”?2

It is sometimes said that the whole period between the incarnation and the end of the world is regarded in the New Testament as ‘the end of the age’, but this bears a manifest incongruity in its very front. How could the end of a period be a long protracted duration? Especially how could it be longer than the period of which it is the end? More time has already elapsed since the incarnation than from the giving of the law to the first coming of Christ: so that, on this hypothesis, the end of the age is a great deal longer than the age itself.3

Those Last Days Now Past

“God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son…” (Hebrews 1:1)

A video presentation by a prominent creationist ministry, which promotes a biblical view of the earth’s age over and against the uniformitarian “millions of years” view, takes in to account the catastrophic effects of the global flood as recorded in the book of Genesis. However, the impact of the otherwise excellent production is weakened as the presenter states that today’s secular scientists whom disregard Scripture’s record of the Genesis flood are examples of the “scoffers” which the apostle Peter wrote would come in “the last days” (cf. 2 Peter 3:3-6). The devastating problem with this statement is that the inspired apostle wrote those words in the 1st century when the last days of the old covenant were at hand; so that the last days referred to were then, not now.

This is a major interpretive error made by modern-day Christians, which has become well ensconced in many hearts and minds, especially with the high volume of book sales along with seminary teachings by authors and professors based on the misapplication of the past to our present and near future. It is as if someone were to write in broad, non-specific terms about the last days of the Obama federal administration when they were (thankfully) nearing, and someone were to read it two thousand years or so from then, and assume the dynamics of the situation described to be directly applicable to the reader there and then, instead of relevant to the U.S.A. in the year of our Lord 2016.

When it comes to the Holy Bible which is the word of God, surely there is far-reaching application as well as eternal truth to be gleaned, but the correct interpretation must be gathered based upon the historical context and the understanding of the original audience. The last days from two thousand years ago cannot be the same last days today, or they would not have been the last days then. The realization that the “last days” were in the past, and that much of Bible prophecy (not all!) was fulfilled in the 1st century is key to sound discernment of the Scriptures.

Holy writ indeed informs us that the Lord Jesus Christ is reigning now. Peter also quoted Psalm 110:1 and said Jesus is exalted at God’s right hand (position of authority), to rule from the Majesty on High (cf Acts 2:34-36; Hebrews 1:3). Jesus Himself said, just prior to His ascension, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). Hence, He is now King at God’s right hand, just as the Psalm prophesied. The apostle Paul further expounded that He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death (1 Corinthians 15:25-26). This has not happened yet, and of course we cling to the blessed hope of the resurrection of the body when the end comes and Jesus returns bodily in final judgment and to usher in the eternal state. Until then, the almighty, Triune God we serve is certainly to be victorious in time and history.

So the Messianic kingdom has already been established, i.e. we are in the “millennium” now. The last days of the old covenant, including the great tribulation prophesied in Matthew chapter 24, were the days leading up to and including the destruction of the temple, the city of Jerusalem and apostate Israel when the Son of Man “came” with judgment in 70 AD. “The last days” are now in the past, and followed from the work that He “finished” in 30 AD (cf John 19:30). The once for all sacrifice of the Lamb of God has superseded the old system of animal sacrifices, and now its up to the church, with steadfast faith in the power of the Holy Spirit, to look forward to and work towards the building of the kingdom on earth as it is in heaven… for, also as it is written, the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14).

The effectiveness of biblical apologetics as well as the fruitfulness of Christian cultural engagement efforts will be greatly increased by our faithful witness to the truth that the last days are in the past. The long haul to triumph will likely extend beyond the relatively short lifetimes of those of us alive today; there’s no time to waste. Let’s get busy using our talents in good and faithful service to our King (cf Matthew 25:23), leaving an example for future generations to follow. Keep the faith. Stand strong in the Truth. The worst is past and the best is yet to come.

– – – –

1 John M. Buttrey II, The Book of Revelation – A Brief Commentary and study Guide
2 Ibid
3 James Stuart Russell, The Parousia – The New Testament Doctrine of Christ’s Second Coming*
*Russel’s work teaches that Christ’s Second Coming took place in 70 AD, at which time the dead saints were resurrected and caught-up to Heaven, and the living saints were bodily caught-up to Heaven 😮. Even while not concurring with that startling conclusion, one can appreciate the many astute observations Russell makes such as the “manifest incongruity” of the end of the age being longer than the age of which it is the end of; akin to the “last days” lasting for thousands of years.

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May 27, 2022

The End of the Last Days

Noun: End [​end]
-the point in time at which something ends;
-the concluding parts of an event or occurrence​;
​-the state of affairs that a plan is intended to achieve and that (when achieved) terminates
 behavior intended to achieve it​

In Acts 2:17ff the apostle Peter declares the fulfilment of the inspired words of the prophet Joel​: “And in the last days it shall be, God declares…”. The events foretold happened in those “last days.” The spectacular fire baptism by the Holy Spirit, daughters prophesying, etc. along with all the cosmic judgment language depicting the then at hand destruction of old covenant Israel all happened then, and is now over and done with. Your daughters are not prophesying any more, for example. As those last days ended and are in our past, I believe that we are not now still living in the last days.

Amillennialists such as James White maintain a concept of “this age, and the age to come”, that the age we are living in now is a continuation of the “last days” spoken of by the apostles, and the age to come is the hereafter, i.e. final glory. Surprisingly, postmillennialist Ken Gentry agrees that the last days, which began in the first century, continue through now and on into the future, until the end of time, which understanding requires that the “last days” have now lasted for approximately 2 millennia, so far. One wonders if Dr. Gentry, who anticipates a long period of Christian prosperity before the second coming, presumes that the “last days” will remain in effect all that time.

That there will be a triumph of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ manifesting in time and history should be the Christian’s faithful hope, according to His word; but it is a result of His first coming which ended the last days of the old covenant. “In that He says, ‘A new covenant,’ He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away” (Hebrews 8:13).

The old covenant age was from Moses until Christ. Christ brought in the new covenant, such that Dr. White’s “this age” was actually the old covenant age, which was passing away when the New Testament was written; and his “age to come” is actually the here & now of the new creation, the gospel age, the Messianic reign of the Lord Jesus Christ, the millennium of Revelation 20, the new Jerusalem, the new heaven & earth (in an already/not yet sense). Final glory is not an age in time & history, rather it comes after the end of the ages for us. The end of the ages for the New Testament writers was then.

​The Greek word aion is commonly translated as world, as in Hebrews 11:3 which the NKJV renders: “By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.” The Greek word there translated as worlds is aiones (plural of aion). This passage describes our faith in the providence of God in the works of creation. However aion can also mean “age”, and application of the wrong connotation can be the cause of considerable misunderstanding.

The apostle Paul, in referring to the old covenant, wrote “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come” (1 Corinthians 10:11). While Jesus’ first advent marked the beginning of the new covenant age, the old covenant age was finally swept away in AD 70. There was a transitional period of about 40 years (a generation) from AD 30 to AD 70 in which the two ages co-existed. Those were the “last days”. It was towards the end of this period when the apostle Peter wrote “The end of all things is at hand…” (1 Peter 4:7).​

The writer of Hebrews confirmed this in contrasting the types & shadows of the old covenant with redemption through the blood of Christ: “For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer Himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then He would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself (Hebrews 9:24-26).

​Jesus Himself mentioned the ages when he said “And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come” (Matt. 12:32). Surely the age He distinguished as “this age” had to be the old covenant age, under which He was born and was ministering; while the “age to come” was a reference to the new covenant gospel age which He came to bring in. The “age to come” as a reference to the hereafter makes no sense because everyone’s eternal state is fixed and it is too late for repentance and forgiveness for any sin.

Here’s Matthew Henry’s commentary on the unpardonable sin passage:

  • What the sentence is that is passed upon it; It shall not be forgiven, neither in this world, nor in the world to come. As in the then present state of the Jewish church, there was no sacrifice of expiation for the soul that sinned presumptuously; so neither under the dispensation of gospel grace, which is often in scripture called the world to come, shall there be any pardon to such as tread underfoot the blood of the covenant, and do despite to the Spirit of grace: there is no cure for a sin so directly against the remedy. 

Even so, in Luke 20:34-36 Jesus says “The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage. But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage. Neither can they die any more, for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.” The KJV properly renders aion as “world” in each instance where it appears in this passage, which is reasonably preferred over “age” as in modern translations (see NKJV). Translating aion as “age” in this context may have led to misunderstanding the New Testament writer’s “age to come” as the eternal state.

We must let context determine the correct connotation of words for sound interpretation of God’s infallible word. The sooner Christians embrace by faith that we are living under the better blessings of the new covenant age as distinct from the last days of the old covenant, which have ended, the sooner we will put off the expectation of defeat; and, walking by faith and not by sight, will trust, obey, pray, think and act accordingly towards advancing the kingdom of our reigning King of kings and Lord of lords, Jesus Christ, towards that end. Amen.


[See “Last Days” tab / sub-tabs above for timeline and graphical representations of the two-age model, with commentary beneath each]

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