Premillennialism, the Scriptures and Convergent Issues
Premillennialism, the Scriptures and Convergent Issues
A well-known seminary president has said that within ten years few evangelical organizations will retain their premillennial stance. That trend among evangelicals creates a powerful concern that in the abandonment of premillennialism much more may be surrendered than is immediately apparent. This essay reflects that concern.
To speak of premillennialism is to immediately identify oneself with traditional evangelicalism and with a fervent belief in the return of Jesus Christ. It is also to identify oneself with the Bible, particularly the book of Revelation, and implies a certain view of Scripture, in that the six biblical references to 1,000 years are all contained in Revelation chapter 20. (There are other biblical passages which support the concept of a 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ, but the twentieth chapter of Revelation is the key.)
Related issues to be addressed in this paper include definitions, history, hermeneutics and biblical authority as it interfaces with a number of biblical concerns. Some attention will also be paid to the positions of the Reformers and the era in which premillennialism emerged anew in the evangelical context. And strategic biblical arguments for the premillennial belief will be brought forward. Finally, the potential impact of amillennialism on the missionary mandate will be examined, and the propensity of amillennialism toward liberalism and evolution will be explored.
I. Definitions
A. Millennialism can be described as the belief that there will be righteous rule of 1,000 years on this earth: “Israel will be the center of that kingdom and Jerusalem will be the capital of it. All nations will come to worship at Mount Zion.”1 Implicit in the concept of millennialism is the idea that Christ the Ruler will return before the millennium as Revelation chapter 20 clearly indicates.
B. Premillennialism can therefore be described as the express belief that Jesus Christ
A well-known seminary president has said that within ten years few evangelical organizations will retain their premillennial stance. That trend among evangelicals creates a powerful concern that in the abandonment of premillennialism much more may be surrendered than is immediately apparent. This essay reflects that concern.
To speak of premillennialism is to immediately identify oneself with traditional evangelicalism and with a fervent belief in the return of Jesus Christ. It is also to identify oneself with the Bible, particularly the book of Revelation, and implies a certain view of Scripture, in that the six biblical references to 1,000 years are all contained in Revelation chapter 20. (There are other biblical passages which support the concept of a 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ, but the twentieth chapter of Revelation is the key.)
Related issues to be addressed in this paper include definitions, history, hermeneutics and biblical authority as it interfaces with a number of biblical concerns. Some attention will also be paid to the positions of the Reformers and the era in which premillennialism emerged anew in the evangelical context. And strategic biblical arguments for the premillennial belief will be brought forward. Finally, the potential impact of amillennialism on the missionary mandate will be examined, and the propensity of amillennialism toward liberalism and evolution will be explored.
I. Definitions
A. Millennialism can be described as the belief that there will be righteous rule of 1,000 years on this earth: “Israel will be the center of that kingdom and Jerusalem will be the capital of it. All nations will come to worship at Mount Zion.”1 Implicit in the concept of millennialism is the idea that Christ the Ruler will return before the millennium as Revelation chapter 20 clearly indicates.
B. Premillennialism can therefore be described as the express belief that Jesus Christ
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