historic premillennialism and the judgment seat of christ

This is referring to the rule of Christ during the millennium and forever. Here, God promises David that he will have descendants, and out of those descendants God will establish an eternal kingdom. In 2 Samuel 7:10-17, we see the promise made by God to King David. Other passages that deal with the promise of land are Deuteronomy 30:3-5 and Ezekiel 20:42-44. For a detailed list of the boundaries, see Deuteronomy 34. Also in this passage, the boundaries are set for the land that the Jews will eventually occupy. That is, there was nothing Abraham could do or fail to do that would void the covenant God made. By the way this is done, God places sole responsibility for the covenant upon Himself. In Genesis 15:9-17, God ratifies His covenant with Abraham. God promises Abraham three things here: (1) Abraham would have many descendants, (2) this nation would own and occupy a land, and (3) a universal blessing will come to all mankind out of Abraham’s line (the Jews). I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.’”

I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. Genesis 12:1-3: “The LORD had said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you. With those concepts in mind, we can look at various passages of Scripture that produce the premillennial view. Remember, the context of the passage will determine to whom it is addressed and will point to the most correct interpretation. Such promises should not be applied to the church. Especially prone to misinterpretation are passages that deal with promises made to Israel (both fulfilled and unfulfilled). It is crucial to recognize that Israel and the church are distinct because, if this is misunderstood, Scripture will be misinterpreted. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”Īpplying these principles of biblical interpretation, it must be seen that Israel (Abraham’s physical descendants) and the church (all New Testament believers) are two distinct groups. Second Peter 1:20-21 reminds us that “ no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. Then, there can be no objective standard of interpretation instead, Scripture becomes subject to each person’s own impression of what it means. Spiritualizing a passage is dangerous because it moves the basis for accurate interpretation from Scripture to the mind of the reader. It is crucial to never seek a “deeper, more spiritual” meaning than is presented. Rather, it encourages the interpreter to not read figurative language into the meaning of a passage unless it is appropriate for that context. A literal interpretation does not eliminate the possibility of figures of speech being used. It is important to interpret all of these passages consistently with one another.įinally, and most importantly, passages must always be taken in their normal, regular, plain, literal meaning unless the context of the passage indicates that it is figurative in nature. That is, often a passage will cover a topic or subject that is also addressed elsewhere in the Bible.

It is also important to remember that Scripture interprets Scripture.

The historical and cultural setting will often reveal the correct meaning of a passage. It is critical to know the author, intended audience, and historical background of each passage one interprets. This means that a passage must be interpreted in a way that is consistent with the audience to which it is written, those it is written about, whom it is written by, and so on. In order to understand and interpret the passages in Scripture that deal with end-times events, there are two things that must be clearly understood: a proper method of interpreting Scripture and the distinction between Israel (the Jews) and the church (the body of all believers in Jesus Christ).įirst, a proper method of interpreting Scripture requires that Scripture be interpreted in a way that is consistent with its context. Premillennialism is the view that Christ’s second coming will occur prior to His millennial kingdom, and that the millennial kingdom is a literal 1000-year reign of Christ on earth. I will answer this question on why I am a Historic Premillennialist in 5 Parts: This Blog is really a continuation of my Previous Blog “ Why Israel Has a Future in God’s Plans – Romans 9–11 and the People of God” By Michael J.

Historic premillennialism and the judgment seat of christ