Introduction to Eschatology (Part 1)

Praise to the Sovereign King, hear, hear his people sing,

solely and wholly saving his own bride.

There where the Lamb has died,

washed by the blood of that great High Priest.

Hi there, welcome to Reformed Ex Mormon.

I am Pastor Braden.

I hope you're having a wonderful and blessed day today.

Today we're going to be beginning a multi -parted series on the topic of eschatology.

And we are going to, I hope, discuss the four major views within eschatology, within

Orthodox Christianity, discuss some of the interpretive principles that are used when

understanding Old Testament and New Testament prophetic word, but mostly focusing on

the Book of Revelation, and maybe discussing some of the differences between dispensationalism and covenantal

theology.

So if this is something that would be interesting to you, I would highly encourage you to subscribe to this YouTube channel as this

channel is for God's glory alone, for the preaching of the Gospel to the lost,

to calling them to repentance, as well as for the edifying of the saints.

And so that is what this channel is for.

So what is eschatology?

Eschatology is the study of end things, or the study of end times.

Eschatology, when that word is used, there's many different ideas and theological terms that get

grouped in with what eschatology is.

We can be talking about eschatology and death, the intermediate states, the millennial reign of

Christ, the tribulation period, the rapture, the binding of Satan,

all these kinds of things get grouped in with what eschatology means.

But today we're just going to be quickly defining the four major views within Orthodox

Christianity.

Now, why are these four differing views that contradict one another?

Why are they within Orthodox?

Well, it's because the Scripture isn't exactly clear on which one has to be correct, and

it doesn't say you have to believe in this or else you will die in your sins.

It is not essential in that sense.

But each one of these views of eschatology hold to an essential of Christianity, and therefore they are considered

Orthodox.

And that essential is that each one of these four use the Word of God as their

authoritative word, as their authoritative standard.

Each one of these four positions say that Christ came, died, was buried, and rose again physically.

Each one of these positions say that Christ is coming again.

Each one of them say, Lord, come quickly.

And therefore they're within the umbrella of Orthodoxy.

They're within the umbrella of Orthodox Christianity.

So I would encourage any one of the listeners of this video, whichever view you hold to,

to not anathematize a different view just because they use the

same Word of God as you do, the same exact text that you're looking at, but come to a different conclusion, different

interpretation of the text.

Do not anathematize them for it as they are not violating any essential of Christianity for

these different four views.

There are some of these things that come close to that guardrail of Scripture, and we need to be careful of those things.

But let us just read Revelation chapter 20, verses one through six, as we look at the four millennial

views and just defining those things.

But the four views get their terms based off of Revelation chapter 20, verses one through six.

And it says in here, and I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the abyss and a

great chain in his hand.

And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand

years.

Then goes on to say, and threw him into the abyss and shut it and sealed it over him.

So that he should not deceive the nations any longer until the thousand years were completed.

After these things, he must be released for a short time.

And I saw thrones and they sat upon them and judgment was given to them.

And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and because

of the word of God and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not

received the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand.

And they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.

The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed.

This is the first resurrection.

Blessed and holy is the one who has part in the first resurrection.

Over these, the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ

and will reign with him for a thousand years.

Now the four major views of eschatology without discussing all their nuances as there

are very, very many within each of these respective views.

But the four major ones is dispensational premillennialism, historic

premillennialism, amillennialism and postmillennialism.

Now defining these different views, we'll start with dispensational premillennialism.

Dispensational premillennialism would hold to a different view of Israel and church.

They would say that God has a different plan for the distinction of ethnic

Jew, ethnic Israel as he does for the church.

And that right now we're in this gap period, this great parentheses with the church

receiving this grace period.

And at the end of this grace period, the end of this church age, Christ is going to

rapture, secretly rapture, usually is what they would hold to, the church out of the world, followed by

a seven year literal period of tribulation.

Following that, there will be an establishment of Christ coming physically, literally to the earth and

setting up a physically literal millennial kingdom where Israel will receive

all the Old Testament prophecies that they have yet to receive is what a

dispensational premillennialist would hold to.

After which that thousand year period, Satan would then be released for a short period and

then there will be the final white throne judgment after the thousand year period.

This would be the common held belief of dispensational premillennialist.

A historical premillennialist would say that the church is

engrafted into the true Israel, that the church is receiving that

of the Old Testament prophecy and that there's not a distinction between ethnic Jew and

Gentile, that they're all one and the same as long as they believe in Yahweh,

Jesus, God, that they believe in that same God of the Old Testament and the New Testament.

They would say that there will be a future seven year tribulation or maybe that some of them wouldn't hold to a

literal seven year tribulation but a tribulation of some kind followed by the

rapture where the saints will meet Christ in the air and then they will come back

to earth right then and there and set up the physical literal reign of a

millennial kingdom, a thousand year period.

And not all of the historical premillennialist would say that it has to be a thousand year period but that is when Christ

will set up a millennial kingdom upon the earth where all those Old Testament

biblical prophecies that talk about this future reigning of peace that takes place, that is when that

will be.

Now, the amillennialist and the postmillennialist would agree with the historical premillennialist as far as the

distinctions of Israel and the church that the church is a part of the true Israel.

They are in Christ, they're in that body.

They are too because of Jesus being the seed of Abraham they have been engrafted into

this promise of the Old Testament.

So amillennialist and postmillennialist agree with the historical premillennialist in covenantal theology.

But amillennialists, that term is kind of a poor term for what amillennialists

believe in because ah would be the negation of millennial meaning that they would just believe

that there is no millennial reign of Christ which is as far from the truth of what an

amillennialist believes as you can get.

An amillennialist believes in a literal reigning of Christ but that is a literal reigning today

that at the ministry, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus

Christ he bound Satan in respects to not being able to deceive the

nations and because of that the gospel has gone out into the world and that Christ is literally physically

upon the throne right now at the right hand of the father.

He's sitting upon that throne ruling and reigning and that it is in the heavens that he

reigns over those that are physically on earth that are believers in

Christ, believers in himself and that he's also reigning in heaven with the deceased

souls of the saints.

So they would say that the millennium is now they would maybe even hold to a defining term of

inaugurated millennialism meaning that Christ inaugurated his millennium in his first

advent and that at the second advent of Christ he will make a completion of all things that

it is when he comes again that is the ending of the millennial reign where then there

will be a creation of the new heavens.

And the new earth.

And amillennialists would look and see those prophetic words in the ultimate testament

fulfilled spiritually or theologically symbolically within the church today in

this millennium period.

So that where the dispensationalists and the historical premillennialists say you have to be

fulfilled literally.

In the millennial kingdom.

And amillennialists would say they are being fulfilled in a theologically symbolic manner

within the Christian church of today.

Now the difference between postmillennialism and amillennialism is that an

amillennialist would have more of a pessimistic or a realistic view of what

the church will look like when Christ comes again.

Now postmillennialists would have what would be called possibly an optimistic

amillennialist meaning that Christ being post that he's gonna come after the

millennium.

So after this period of time right now starting at the inauguration of the millennium

being that at the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, Satan was bound and the powers of darkness

was restrained that the gospel has been going through this period of time slowly

or rather quickly in some sense overtaking the world and that it is

through the preaching of the gospel and the following of the great commission found in Matthew chapter 28 that the

world is going to be Christianized.

Depending on the postmillennialists they will have a different understanding of what Christianizing the world means.

Some would hold to what's called theonomy, some wouldn't but they would generally hold to that

which is found in the Old Testament as being prophecy of the millennial reign of Christ

as taking place during a future golden age a future time when the world has been

overtaken by that gospel then we will see those physical things that the dispensational premillennialists and

the historical premillennialists would hold to.

They would say that is going to take place prior to the second coming of Christ but it is still during this

millennial age that we will see those things take place.

So the amillennialists and postmillennialists differ in those areas but they are very similar in the placement of

Christ's second coming saying that he's coming after the millennium.

Now, once again, each one of these views have many different nuances that are within each

respected view and I will not be able to discuss all of them but my encouragement

for you the listener today is regardless of if you are established in your view of eschatology or

if you are coming to this without even knowing what these different terms and views are I would encourage you

to not trust anything I say but go to the word of God alone for your authority utilize

people like myself to help you understand what the text is saying but always fall back

on the text itself let it be your rock, let it be your guide let it be your guardrails do not go

past those things and I would encourage you that if you do already have an established eschatology view

that you would be respectful towards those that have differing views from yourself

and utilize resources, study tools, commentaries books, so on and so forth

to help you understand what the other view is thinking I think a well

-balanced Christian a solid Christian is going to be one that knows all the other

views and knows why the other person believes in those things and is respectful towards them

because they know why and where they're coming from and so these videos I truly hope will

help you to have that kind of perspective towards your brothers and sisters that are in

Christ.

I hope this video has been helpful to you and I hope that it blesses you and I hope that it drives you into the word of God

more to study more about these differences between dispensationalism, covenantal theology as well as the four different

views of the end times the four different views of the millennial reign of Christ

God bless and go in peace tell the world of this good news the death, burial and resurrection

of Jesus Christ that you and I have been saved by.