Eschatology
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Amillennialism |
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Amillennialism
(which literally means ‘no millennium’) is a doctrine according to which the
thousand years of Revelation 20 extend from the first coming of Christ to
just before His second coming, when Satan will be loosed for a short time.
Amillennialists hold that Christians who are now living are enjoying the
benefits of this millennium since Satan has been bound for the duration of
this period. When was Satan ‘bound’ according to Amillennialists? He was
bound at the time of the first coming of Christ. Jesus bound the devil when
He triumphed over him in the wilderness, and Jesus’ casting out of demons was
evidence of this triumph. However, the fact that Satan was bound does not
mean that Satan can do no harm whatever while he is bound. It means only that
while Satan is bound he cannot deceive the nations in such a way as to keep
them from learning the truth of God. In other words, it means that throughout
the gospel age in which we now live the influence of Satan, though certainly
not annihilated, is so curtailed that he cannot prevent the spread of the
gospel to the nations of the world. Because of the binding of Satan during
this present age, the nations cannot conquer the church, but the church is
conquering the nations. |
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According
to Amillennialism, the first resurrection is not the physical or bodily
resurrection which is yet to come, but rather the transition from physical
death to life in heaven with Christ. For the words “they came to life and
reigned with Christ a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4 – NIV) mean that the
souls of people who have died – martyrs for the faith and other Christians
who have remained true to Christ to the very end of their lives – are enjoying
life in heaven in fellowship with Christ; it follows that the thousand-year
reign is a reign with Christ in heaven of the souls of believers who have
died. This reign is not something to be looked for in the future; it is going
on now, and will be until Christ returns. However, it must be said also that
to some Amillenialists the first resurrection is the spiritual resurrection
experienced by Christians at the time of their water baptism or conversion. |
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As
for the rest of the dead who “did not come to life until the thousand years
were ended” (Revelation 20:5 – NIV), they are the unbelieving dead who did
not live or reign with Christ during this thousand-year period. Whereas
believers after death enjoy a new kind of life in heaven with Christ in which
they share in Christ’s reign, unbelievers after death share nothing of either
this life or this reign. |
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As
for the resurrection which will take place at the end of the thousand-year
period, it refers to the general resurrection, both of believers and
unbelievers, which will occur at Christ's second coming when Satan is finally
defeated. The general resurrection will be followed immediately by the one
general Judgment and then the eternal state (the "new heavens and new
earth"). |
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The
Roman Catholic Church, the |
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Among
Amillennialists we find the following men: Dr. Louis Berkhof, Systematic
Theology (Revised Edition, 1941); Dr. Geerhardus Vos, The Pauline Eschatology
(1930); Dr. Albertus Pieters, Studies In The Revelation of St. John (1937),
and The Seed of Abraham (1950); Professor Floyd E. Hamilton, The Basis of
Millennial Faith (1942); Dr. George L. Murray, Millennial Studies (1948); Dr.
William H. Rutgers, Premillennialism in America (1930); Dr. Abraham Kuyper,
Chiliasm or the Doctrine of Premillennialism (pamphlet); Dr. Martin J.
Wyngaarden, The Future of the kingdom (1934); Dr. William Hendriksen, More
Than Conquerors (1939); Dr. William Masselink, Why Thousand Years?; Rev.
William J. Grier, The Momentous Event (1945); and Prof. Everett I. Carver,
When Jesus Comes Again (1979). Prof. Anthony Hoekema, ‘Amillennialism’, in
The Meaning of the Millennium (1977). |
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Confutation |
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The
apostle John wrote: “And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the
key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon,
that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan,
and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked
and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations any more until
the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short
time. I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority
to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their
testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped
the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or
their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (The
rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.)
This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who have part in
the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they
will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand
years. When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his
prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the
earth – God and Magog – to gather them for battle. In number they are like
the sand on the seashore. They marched across the breadth of the earth and
surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down
from heaven and devoured them. And the devil, who
deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulphur, where the beast
and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night
for ever and ever” (Revelation 20:1-10 – NIV). |
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Therefore,
in the light of what John saw and wrote we are bound to reject Amillennialism
for the following reasons. |
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1)
John says that Satan was bound with a great chain for a thousand years and thrown
into the Abyss, which was locked and sealed over him to keep him from
deceiving the nations any more until the thousand years were ended. This
means that when Satan is bound and thrown into the Abyss, he will not be able
to seduce those who live on the earth for a thousand years. John did not say
that the devil will not be able to continue deceiving the nations the way he
did in the past, but he said that he will not be able to deceive them. The
meaning of the words of John is very clear. Now let me put you this question,
‘Is Satan deceiving the nations now in the Gospel era?’ Of course he is. For
there are billions of unbelieving people all over the world whose minds have
been blinded by Satan, the god of this age, as it is written: “But even if
our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds
the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the
gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them”
(2 Corinthians 4:3-4 – NKJV). Why is Satan called
“that serpent of old who deceives the whole world” (Revelation 12:9 – NKJV)?
Is it not because he is very active in this present world and by his
craftiness he deceives all those who are not in Christ? Why is Satan called “the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2 – NKJV)? Is
it not because he is the one who prompts all those who do not obey the Gospel
to commit all kinds of sins? Therefore, we can’t say that Satan was bound at
the time of the first coming of Christ. If Satan had been bound by Jesus
Christ and thrown into the abyss, he could by no means deceive the whole
world as he is doing now. Why is there so much wickedness in this world? Why
are there so many false prophets and false teachers who teach damnable
heresies? Why are there millions of idolaters, fornicators, adulterers,
homosexuals, slanderers, blasphemers, liars, people who are involved in astrology
and occultism and spiritism, etc. all over the world? Is it not because Satan
is the prince of the power of the air and he is deceiving all the nations? In
the light of what the Scripture says about the work of the devil, which can
be clearly seen with our own eyes, therefore, we conclude that Satan is not
bound at all, but rather he is ‘free’ to accomplish his evil purposes. The
fact that the Gospel is preached all over the world and that there are people
who turn to Christ, does not prove that Satan was bound at the time of the
first coming of Christ, but rather proves that God is stronger than Satan and
thus He is able to snatch people out of Satan’s hands. God does whatever He
wants in this world, and Satan can’t prevent Him from saving people. Nor can
he prevent the Gospel from being preached all over the world, for God will do
all His pleasure. I said before that Satan deceives all those who do not obey
the Gospel, however the Scripture says that in these last days he deceives
even some believers, for the apostle Paul says: “Now the Spirit expressly
says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to
deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having
their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and
commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving
by those who believe and know the truth” (1 Timothy 4:1-3 – NKJV). Therefore
Satan, by these deceiving spirits, who are under his power and direction, deceive
even some believers. We are sure then that he tries to deceive all of us who
have believed in the Lord. That’s why we are commanded to be sober and
vigilant; because he walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may
devour (cf. 1 Peter 5:8). Therefore, once again I say that we can’t affirm
that Satan has been bound, for the binding of Satan will occur when Jesus
Christ returns from heaven. When he is bound, he will not be able to deceive
the nations for a thousand-years. |
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2)
John says that he saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of
their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God; they came to life
and reigned with Christ a thousand years. These words of his mean that John
saw that those souls were reunited with their resurrected bodies. In other
words, John saw the resurrection of those people who had been beheaded
because of their testimony and because of the word of God, who had not
worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark. That John saw
their bodily resurrection and not their transition from physical death to
life in heaven with Christ is evident from the following words of John
concerning those who did not take part in that resurrection: “The rest of the
dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended” (Revelation
20:5 - NIV), and also from the following ones: “This is the first
resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first
resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be
priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years”
(Revelation 20:5-6 – NIV). I would like you to note the following thing.
Amillennialists affirm that the words “they came to life and reigned with
Christ a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4 – NIV) mean that the souls of
people who have died – martyrs for the faith and other Christians who have
remained true to Christ to the very end of their lives – are enjoying life in
heaven in fellowship with Christ. However, it can’t be so, for John wrote: “They
came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years,” which means that
before they came to life those people were dead, their bodies were lifeless
on this earth while their souls were in heaven, but at a certain point they
were raised from the dead, that is, their souls were reunited with their
resurrected bodies, and they reigned with Christ on earth for a thousand
years. And this is confirmed by the fact that John immediately after says
that the rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were
ended and that this is the first resurrection. Now let me say something about
the interpretation given by Amillennialists to these verse “the rest of the
dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended”. They say that
these words mean that the unbelieving dead did not live or reign with Christ
during this thousand-year period. However, if it were so as they say, that
would mean that the unbelieving dead will live and reign with Christ after
this period has ended. Whereas the Scripture says that the unbelieving dead
will never live and reign with Christ, for when they die they go to hell and
when they are raised from the dead they will be cast into the lake of fire
(cf. Revelation 21:8). |
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In the light of what I have said, the millennium
spoken of in the twentieth chapter of the book of Revelation is a literal
thousand-year period which will begin when Jesus comes back. The millennium
will be preceded by the resurrection of the just (the first resurrection) and
followed immediately after by the resurrection of the unjust. All arguments
according to which the thousand years are symbolic of the period which
extends from the first coming of Christ to the second coming of Christ are
vain. Reject them and expose them. |