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The Coming Kingdom

In our study to this point, the tribulation period has ended and Jesus Christ has physically returned with His Church to the earth. The Old Testament saints and tribulation martyrs have been resurrected, and the judgment of Israel and the nations have taken place. Now the world is ready for the culmination of human history – the time when the remaining prophecies of Scripture will finally be fulfilled.

We'll be talking about the Kingdom this morning, the one prophesied by the prophet Daniel. Satan will be bound and Jesus Christ will rule with absolute righteousness. Radical changes will take place, not only politically, but physically. People will again live hundreds of years and the effects of the curse will be greatly reduced. Mankind will live under ideal conditions and the world will finally be at peace.

The Kingdom in Prophecy

Daniel 7:27 tells us that “the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His Kingdom will be an everlasting Kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.” Revelation 20:1-7 tells us about the first part of Christ's eternal rule. Let's look at that passage together.

A Literal 1000 Years

John mentions a period of 1000 years on six different occasions. Notice in verse 4, that the righteous (we are included in that group) will reign with Christ for that time. Then, at the end of those 1000 years, Satan will be released. He will deceive many and a great revolt will take place. But, it won't last long. He will be thrown into the lake of fire, and the unsaved dead will be resurrected to appear before the Great White Throne. Those whose names are not found in the book of life will be thrown into the lake of fire as well. After that, Christ will continue His rule for eternity on a new and sinless earth.

Interpreting the Scriptures Literally

What I've just told you is based on a literal understanding of biblical prophecy. It's what you arrive at if you take the Bible at face value. There are over 300 prophecies in the Old Testament that refer to the Messiah. We are already familiar with many that have been fulfilled. For example, Micah 5:2 was very specific about which town the Messiah was to be born in - Bethlehem. And, He was. Zechariah 9:9 predicted that the Messiah would ride into Jerusalem on a donkey, and it happened. Zechariah 11:12 foretold that Jesus would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver. That happened too.

Psalm 22 and Psalm 34 tell us that the Messiah would be nailed to a cross, and none of his bones would be broken. Isaiah 53 describes his death and the effects of the scourging in detail. Everything pertaining to His birth, life, and death at his first coming literally happened just as they were predicted.

Following the Pattern

That sets an important pattern for us. If all the Messianic prophecies thus far have happened as predicted, then there's no reason to assume that it will be any different with the remaining prophecies. The Jews were promised a Messiah, who would come to earth, and rule in a literal Kingdom in Jerusalem for 1000 years. So, based on the existing pattern, we can be certain that those things will happen, just as predicted. What the Bible says, it clearly means.

The Kingdom in the Early Church

That's the way the early church understood it as well. During the first three centuries, men such as Papias, Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Hippolytus, and others, believed in a future literal 1000 year kingdom. For example, Justin Martyr, who lived between 100-180 A.D. once penned these words: “I and others, who are right-minded Christians on all points, are assured that there will be a resurrection of the dead, and a thousand years in Jerusalem, which will then be built, adorned, and enlarged as the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah and others declare... and further, there was a certain man with us whose name was John, one of the apostles of Christ, who prophesied, by a revelation that was made to him, that those who believed in our Christ would dwell a thousand years in Jerusalem." Remember, these men lived very close to the time of the Apostles. They were familiar with what John and the others taught.

However, the idea of a 1000 year kingdom began to change between 250-400 A.D. Through the writings of Augustine, the idea of a literal kingdom was lost. In the understanding of early Catholic theologians, Israel had been replaced by the church as God's chosen people. All the remaining promises made to Israel in the Old Testament were automatically applied to the church. They taught that the kingdom mentioned in Revelation 20 was merely spiritual in nature, and that the 1000 years could not be literal.

Amillennialism

This view is called Amillennialism or “no millennium.” It's the view of perhaps 2/3 of the Christian world today. It was adopted without question by most of the churches that came out of the Reformation. In particular, those of the Lutheran, Reformed and Anglican traditions, continue to reject the idea of a literal kingdom. It was what most Christians believed until pre-millennial teaching re-emerged over a century ago. It was actually a return to the original view of the early church, but it is often condemned as a modern day heresy that developed only about 100 years ago.

Amillennialists believe that the remaining promises made to the nation of Israel apply to the Church. The thousand years mentioned in Revelation 20 are simply symbolic of the time period between the Ascension and the 2nd Coming of Christ. They also believe that Satan is already bound and that Christ is already reigning as King. His “spiritual” kingdom is established where the Gospel is preached.

The Kingdom “within”

One of their favorite passages is Luke 17:20-21, where Jesus told the Pharisees: “The Kingdom of God does not come visibly, nor will people say, 'Here it is,' or 'There it is,' because the kingdom of God is within you.” One of the principles for interpreting Scripture correctly is to use the clear passages to understand the obscure. The Bible is replete with promises of a literal kingdom – we will look at them next week – so you can't ignore a large portion of Scripture based on one verse. That's just poor hermeneutics.

The Pharisees understood that there was to be a literal coming kingdom and they were to be a part of it. The problem was, they had already rejected the King. They didn't think they needed to be saved. They just needed someone to set up the kingdom for them to live in. Jesus reminds them that the key to the Kingdom was to first put their trust in Him. And he reminds them that the Kingdom – the King Himself – was standing right there in their midst.

Why the Change?

What was it that caused the church fathers in the 3rd and 4th centuries to reject the literal interpretation of prophecy? Why was it necessary to adopt what is called “replacement theology,” where the church replaces Israel as God's chosen people. Why would they conclude that the remaining promises to Israel were no longer valid?

Historical Origins

Beginning around 69 A.D., two ideas emerged that gradually affected the way Christians regarded the Jews. It was accepted thinking that the Jews alone were to blame for killing Christ. In addition, rumors circulated that the Jews were kidnapping, torturing and killing Christians and many believed them. Since they rejected His Son, it was believed that God had permanently broken his bond and covenant with the Jewish people.

Of course, Paul had warned Christians in Romans 11 not to boast about their present favor before God. Although the Jews are spiritually blinded for a time, and the Gentiles have been grafted into the tree of spiritual life, their hardness toward the Gospel will only last until the full number of Gentiles to be saved has been reached. Then, says Paul, God will again show His mercy to Israel and fulfill His promises to them.

However, church councils from the 4th to the 5th centuries ignored Paul's warning. The idea developed that since grace had superseded the Law, then the Old Testament was no longer valid. Church fathers such as Origin, Augustine, and Jerome promoted anti-semitic views. Chrysostom actually encouraged outright hatred. He wrote:

“The Jews...are worse than wild beasts...lower than the vilest animals. Debauchery and drunkenness had brought them to the level of the lusty goat and pig. They know only...to satisfy their stomachs, to get drunk, to kill and beat each other up...I hate the Jews...I hate the synagogue...it is the duty of all Christians to hate the Jews.”

In his thinking, the Jews had forfeited their rights to be God's chosen people. Now the new chosen people, the church, had every right to treat the Jews with contempt and righteous indignation. Those assumptions ultimately led to some serious consequences.

Modern Day Consequences

Antisemitism continued in various forms throughout the next 1000 years of church history. Reformers such as John Calvin, John Wycliffe and Miles Coverdale were all influenced by Augustine's replacement theology, as found in his work: The City of God. Calvin passed on that view to those of the Reformed tradition.

Luther and Nazi Germany

Martin Luther was also strongly anti-semitic; reflecting the view of the Catholic Church in his day. He believed Germany would be better off without the Jews. He once wrote that they should be deprived of “all their cash and jewels and silver and gold” and that “their synagogues or schools be set on fire, that their houses be broken up and destroyed...that they be put under a roof or stable, like the gypsies...in misery and captivity as they incessantly lament and complain to God about us.” Those instructions were literally followed to the letter four centuries later in Nazi Germany.

Amillennialism and the Jews

Now, I'm not saying that people who hold to the Amillennial view today are Jew haters. Not at all. I just wanted to show why the later church fathers came to the conclusion they did. Once they accepted replacement theology, they had a long list of prophecies that were no longer valid. Their solution was to find some other spiritual or figurative meaning to take their place. Israel became the church and the kingdom became figurative and spiritual, instead of literal.

Theological Chaos

Once you start interpreting the Bible that way, you open Pandora's box. You can make anything mean anything. Pope Gregory the Great, who lived two centuries after Augustine, once explained the book of Job by spiritualizing it. He said that Job's three friends referred to all the heretics in the world. His seven sons were the 12 apostles. The seven thousand sheep were God's faithful people, and the three thousand hump-backed camels were the depraved Gentiles. Do you see what can happen when you spiritualize things that are meant to be taken literally? It can lead to total chaos.

What's the Big Deal?

Some might ask what difference it makes if there is a literal Kingdom or not. Well, if it doesn't happen as God promised, His faithfulness is called into question. In 2 Samuel 7, God made an unconditional promise to David. It wasn't dependent on anyone's obedience. He said, “I'll do this for you and your offspring.” Period!

Listen to what he says: “When your days are over and you rest with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, who will come from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with the rod of men, with floggings inflicted by men. But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.' "

In order for the Amillennial view to be correct, God would have to break His promise to David. But, Paul reminds us in Romans 11:29 that His gifts and His call to the Jewish patriarchs are irrevocable. They won't and can't change. God promised that David's house and his kingdom would endure forever. Regardless of Israel's unbelief today, that promise of a literal kingdom has never been invalidated.

A Question of Faithfulness

Listen to what Jeremiah 31:35-36 says: “This is what the LORD says, he who appoints the sun to shine by day, who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar— the LORD Almighty is his name: Only if these decrees vanish from my sight," declares the LORD, "will the descendants of Israel ever cease to be a nation before me."

I like this comment from John MacArthur: “God will not change His promises to Israel. Spiritualizing them, wishing them away, can only be done if you make the church Israel, the future present, and you spiritualize all the prophecies. And then you have disallowed God's single greatest way to prove His faithfulness and His promises.” It's an example where theologians force their presuppositions on the Bible instead of allowing it to shape their theological conclusions.

When Jesus taught His disciples to pray “Thy Kingdom come,” they understood Him to be referring to a coming literal kingdom that had been promised to them. Think about that for a moment. Those who pray the Lord's Prayer today are actually praying for a future kingdom, yet at the same time, many of them insist it has already come. Do you see the contradiction?

Looking Ahead

I get excited when I teach about the Kingdom. It's one of the most fascinating studies you will ever encounter. Next week, we'll be looking at various Old Testament passages that tell about the glory of the Kingdom. It will be the closest thing to heaven on earth. No more inept politicians, crooked judges, or poverty. There will be little or no sickness, very few deaths, no war, great geological and climactic changes, and increased fertility of the soil.

Not only that, there will be unusual changes in the animal world. Imagine having vipers that no longer bite, lions that eat straw along with the ox, and you'll finally be able to hug one of those big, furry bears at the zoo, without becoming his lunch.

Conclusion

God hasn't abandoned His remaining promises to Israel. He will fulfill every last one of them, exactly the way He did the previous ones. That's not just good news for Israel. It also means that you and I have an awesome and exciting future to look forward to.