1-15-12 Outline - Community Bible Church

The Apocalypse:
A Global Unveiling
Revelation 20
The Millennium
Pastor Bob DuPar
January 15, 2012
Millennium is the Latin word for 1,000 years. This is the only passage in the
Bible that specifically refers to this time as being 1,000 years.
Prefixes with regard to the tribulation & the millennium have to do with the
timing of Christ’s return: before, during or after.
Dispensational premillennialists hold that Christ will come before a sevenyear period of intense tribulation to take His church (living and dead) into
Heaven. This view is called premillenialism because it places the return of
Christ before the millennium and it is called dispensational because it is
founded in the doctrines of dispensationalism.
Historic premillennialists place the return of Christ just before the millennium
and just after a time of great apostasy and tribulation (post-tribulational).
Postmillennialists believe that the millennium is an era (not necessarily a literal
thousand years) during which Christ will reign over the earth, not from a literal
and earthly throne, but through the gradual increase of the Gospel and its power
to change lives. After this gradual Christianization of the world, Christ will
return and immediately usher the church into their eternal state after judging the
wicked. This is called postmillennialism because, by its view, Christ will return
after the millennium.
“A” in front of a word means the opposite or the negation of that word:
amillennialist means those who don’t believe in a literal millennium. Amoral
describes someone without morals…etc.
Amillennialists believe that the Kingdom of God was inaugurated at Christ’s
resurrection when He rose victorious over both Satan and the Curse. Christ is
even now reigning at the right hand of the Father over His church. After this
present age has ended, Christ will return and immediately usher the church into
their eternal state after judging the wicked. The term “amillennialism”
interprets Revelation 20:1–6 non-literally. Most adherents of this view base
their position upon Augustine’s work, The City of God.
Preterism rejects the idea of a future earthly millennial Kingdom in which
Christ physically reigns, and also holds that much of the the Last Days (or End
Times) prophecies were fulfilled in the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the
Jewish state in A.D. 70. Consequently, Preterists are usually Amillennial or
Postmillennial in their eschatology. The term “preterism” comes from the Latin
word praeter, meaning “past.”
**Charts on Daniel’s 70 weeks (Daniel 9:24-27)
What Revelation 20 reveals about the Millennium:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Notes
Satan is kept from deceiving the nations during this time
Tribulation martyrs will resurrect & reign with Christ
The unbelieving dead will not resurrect until after the M
Those part of the 1st resurrection will reign with Christ
After the 1,000 years are over, Satan will be released
There will be one final revolt against God & Christians
which will result in complete destruction.
vs. 3
vs. 4
vs. 5
vs. 6
vs. 7
vss. 8-9
Dispensationalism
Overview - The Seven Dispensations
Creation
Fall
Innocence
Abraham
Noah
Conscience
Human Government
Moses
Promise
Christ
Law
Christ’s Second
Coming
Judgement
The Age of Grace
The Kingdom
(The Church Age)
(The Millennium)
Where we are
The Final
Judgment
Christ’s Second
Coming (Bodily)
Christ
The Rapture
The Nations
Revolt
7 yrs of
tribulation
The Age of Grace (The Church Age)
God deals with Gentiles
The Kingdom (The Millennium)
God deals with Jews and National Israel
Signs of the
End Times
Jesus’ offer of
a Messianic
Kingdom
to Israel
- Israel becomes a state
- Roman empire reborn
(the E.U.)
- Impending invasion of
Israel by Russia and
Arabs
The Eternal
State
- Repopulation of the earth by the
144,000 Jews and new Christians
- The secret return of Christ
- The Gentile Church is
removed from the earth
- The antichrist is waiting for
the removal of the church to
begin his terror on Israel and
new Christians
This time includes the
conversion of the
144,000 Jews
- The Kingdom of God is fully
manifest on earth. Glorified
believers will rule with Christ during
His reign over all kingdoms
- Return to Old Testament temple
worship
Dispensational Theologians:
(start) J.N. Darby; John Walvoord, Charles Ryrie,
J. Dwight Pentecost, Norman Geisler and Charles Feinberg
Writers and Pastors:
Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins, Dave Hunt, Jack Van Impe,
John Hagee and Hal Lindsey
Historic Premillennialism
Jesus’
Birth
Return
of Christ
The Ascension
Kingdom of
God is manifest
Kingdom remains
through the Holy Spirit
The Final
Judgment
The New Heaven
and New Earth
The Millennium
- Satan is bound
Apostasy and
Tribulation break out
The First
Resurrection
- The Kingdom is consummated
The Second
Resurrection
- Satan is loosed
- Massive
rebellion led by
Gog and Magog
Historic Premillennial Theologians:
George Eldon Ladd, John W. Montgomery, J. Barton Payne,
R. Laird Harris, Henry Alford, Theodore Zahn, James Boice
Postmillennialism
Start of
Millennium is
Debatable
Christ’s Return
The Millennium (literal or not)
The New Heaven and New Earth
- Tremendous expansion of Christianity
- Increased peace and prosperity in the world
- Beginning of the Millennium
is either abrupt or gradual
- Could already have started
or be entirely yet to come
- Large numbers of ethnic Jews will come to
faith in Christ
- Resurrection
- Final Judgment
A short time
of apostasy
If it is yet to come - some
possible start times:
- Conversion of Israel
- Binding of Satan
- Defeat of the antichrist
Postmillennial Theologians:
Charles Hodge, A.A. Hodge, B.B. Warfield,
John Jefferson Davis
Amillennialism
Christ’s Birth
Christ’s Second Coming
Christ’s Resurrection
and Ascension
The Millennium (This Present Age)
The New Heaven and New Earth
- Christ is presently reigning in Heaven
Satan Bound
First Advent
Evident by the spread of the
gospel and Satan is no longer
able to deceive the nations
- Triumph of the spiritual kingdom of
God in the midst of the rise of evil in
opposition to Christ and His kingdom
Second Advent
- Promises made to Abraham, Israel
and David are fulfilled by Christ or His
church
Satan is released
and apostasy
breaks out
- General Resurrection
- Final Judgment
Amillennial Theologians:
Geerhardus Vos, Herman Ridderbos, Anthony Hoekema,
Cornelius Venema, Meredith G. Kline
Close to Amillennial Theologians:
Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Calvin