“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” — Romans 1:16
Welcome to The Peoples Gospel Hour!
The Bible reveals two ways which people are following to get into heaven. One way, the true way, is God’s way. God’s way into heaven is the way of peace and truth and righteousness. It is the only way approved of God. This way centers in the Lord Jesus Christ who said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me” (John 14:6). The Bible declares that there is another way. “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Prov. 14:12).
There are so many popular ways today filled with lost multitudes all over the land, such as the way of morality, the way of respectability, the way of religion, the way of churchianity, the way of baptism, the way of christening, the way of confirmation, the way of penance, the way of confession, the way of “doing the best I can”, the way of self, the way of education, the way of philosophy, the way of false isms and cults that crowd the street. Little wonder then when we speak to people about the way of salvation, that so many have asked, “How can I know which is the true way? There are so many different ideas and so many religions.”
But there is ONE difference between God’s way of salvation and man’s way, and that difference is found in a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ. You will notice that man leaves Christ out of the center of his way. You will discover that the modern false cults and isms demote Christ to a mere man and add something to what He has already done for your salvation and mine. We become children of God through a supernatural birth. Jesus said to Nicodemus: “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Jesus also said, “Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again” (John 3:7)
“May the Lord bless you, and make you a blessing!” – The PGH Staff.
TPGH Headquarters in Halifax, NS
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A-Millennialism And The Curse of Covenant Theology – III
(The Present Day Prophetic Confusion)
” Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles,
nor to the church of God.” 1st Corinthians 10:32
Since Genesis 3 when Satan became active in the mind of men, the world has become flooded with the deception and confusion in relation to the plan and purpose of God. There has ever been a fierce battle to maintain a clear view as to the Divine purpose both in relation to the first and second coming of Christ. Satan’s basic means of deception was that of injecting doubt as to what God has said, “ Yea, hath God said?” “ God does not mean what He says. God does not mean you will really die. “ Ye shall not surely die….,” (Genesis 3:4)
Humanity has never recoverd from that terrible bias and blight, therefore there has been confusion and conflict, on the first coming of Christ, because of the refusal of the Jewish nation to accept the literal interpretation of God’s revealed word. For example, take Isaiah 53. “……… surely he has born our griefs and carried away our sorrows, and yet we esteem him stricken and afflicted of God. But he was wounded for our transgression, and he was bruised for our iniquties, and the chastisment of our peace was upon him……… All we like a sheep have gone astray, we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all…..”
So when “He came unto His own, His own received him not.” John 1:12. Likewise there is the same confusion and conflict as to the second coming of Christ. Many friends, we have among the dear brethren who have swallowed the persuasive arguments of the recently invented thought known us A-millennialism. The teaching of A-millennialism, is denying the millennial reign of Christ upon the earth; and is now so widespread in theological circles, we feel that Christians who believe and accept the literal Word of God should be forewarned about this erroneous teaching, for to be forewarned is to be forearmed! This school of thought contradicts the Word of God and makes out of it a fabric of untrustworthy decelerations. So, it is no longer sufficient to declare the truths of the Pre-Millennial coming of Christ. Today one has to warn people concerning the ways and means where by the truth is being undermined. This is the result of so-called learning and scholarship.
Post-Millenial view of our Lord’s retun:
This is, the view that the second coming of Christ is after the Millennium, at the end of the world. While Post-Millennialists accept the idea of a Millennium of peace and righteousness upon the earth, they relate it to this present dispensation in spiritual or allegorical sense, and affirm that it precedes the second coming of Christ. They hold that the Kingdom of God has been in existence from the beginning of the world, that Christ’s first coming simply revealed it more clearly and extended it in a slow growth by means of the preaching of the Gospel, and that this growth will continue until the whole world will be leavened by Christianity.
Not that evil will be eradicated or every single person be saved, but there will be a great harvest with some tares. They believe there will be a short period of wickedness at the end. But the real difficulty with this view is that it has no support from Scripure. That Satan and his evil spirits are very much at large, and not in the abyss, as we read in 1st Peter 5:8. If Satan is chained as they tell us, then as someone suggested it must be a long chain giving him plenty of freedom.
And yet the Apostle Paul tells us that he occupies the heavenlies heading and directing the rulers of darkness of this world. (Ephesians 6:12) and by his deception is destroying the nations. Revelation 20 affirms that during the millenium Satan will be bound and cast into the abyss that “he should deceive the nation no more, until the 1000 years expire...” not until 2000 years be finished!
What A-millennialism teaches:
This teaching denies the return of Christ to reign on the earth, and denies the literal fulfillment of the prophecies concerning the Jewish nation, as to their return to their own land, their conversion to Christ and the restoration of the nation of Israel to God. It is obvious that A-millennialism denies a future renewed and glorious earth as prophesied throughout the Old Testament.
A-millennialism takes all the promises that God has made to Israel the nation, ‘spiritualizes’ them, and applies them to the “church”. It teaches that the promises God made to Israel in the Old Testament were not made to Israel the nation at all, but were “spiritual” promises made to the church – even though prophecies like Ezekiel 37 are being fulfilled before their very eyes.
A-millennialism contradicts the statement of Romans 11:1 and 2 which The Apostle Paul by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit asks the question, “I say then has God cast away his people? God forbid…..” and in verse 2 affirming his statement i he reiterates, “God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew…” and down in verse 28-29 he clearly delineates the same truth by saying, “As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are the beloved for the fathers’ sakes. For the gift and calling of God is without repentance.”
In the light of these verses the A-millennialists say that, God has cast away His people, that He has completely finished (done away) with the nation of Israel permanently. It teaches that the “Old Covenant” – the law, was given to the Jews, but that the “New Covenant” – the Gospel, is given to the church, and that with the giving of the New Covenant all God’s dealings with the Jews were finished and that God has abandoned the Jews as a nation.
To the Jew First:
The A-millennialists fail to realize that both those covenants “ the Old” and “ the New”, were given to the Jews First. Jesus said in John 4:22, “ …Salvation is of the Jews…”. The gospel was given first to the Jews. The Apostle Peter on the day of Pentecost addressed saying in verse 39, “For the promise is unto you and your children…” which speaks of both the present and the future. The Apostle Paul every where he went on his missionary journey, seek out the Jews first in every place he went and address them as “men of Israel”.
For the first eight years the Gospel was preached only to the Jews. We read in Acts 11:19, “Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only.” and for the first eight years the church was comprised solely of Jews; but God in His grace and mercy brought salvation to the Gentiles also, and in Christ the Gentiles were also allowed inside the fold, and became one with the believing Jews; being made “joint heirs with Christ”.
But now with this spirit of A-millennialism, some of the “grafted in” branches are denying the tree into which they have been grafted and the root that supports them. This is the very attitude that Paul warned the Gentiles believers in Romans 11. “… if some branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them… and partaker of the fatness of the olive tree; Boast not against the branches….thou wilt say then, the branches were broken off, that I might be graffed in….. be not high minded, but fear….. on them which fall severity; but toward thee goodness,….. they also if they abide not still in unbelief they shall be graffed in……”
Verses 25 and 26 is where the A-millennialists ran out of steam, and stumble for explanation, “For I would not brethren that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles become in.” and in verse 26 and 27 we read, “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, ‘ There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob… when I shall take away their sins.”
The A-millennialist folks do not realize that, apart from the book of Job and the ‘poetical’ books by Solomon, the whole of the Scriptures from the calling of Abraham (Genesis 12) to the Conversion of Cornelius (Acts 10) were written to the Jews, for the Jews and about the Jews or concerning the Jews- the Jewish nation exclusively.
Any Gentile nations, or people or individuals mentioned , were incidental, as they came in contact with Israel. “Who are the Israelites?” asked the Apostle Paul in reiterating their significance in Romans 9:4 and 5, “….to whom perttaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises, whose are the fathers, and of whom concerning the flesh Christ came…” Yes, Israel still remains Israel, and God had not abandoned and finished with them and cast away His people which He foreknew.
Two Separate Kingdoms: The A-millennialists can not discern between the spiritual and the literal kingdom.The Scripture teaches us there are tow separate kingdoms. One is the spiritual kingdom and the other is literal kingdom. The spiritual kingdom concerns the believers position in Christ. The earthly kingdom concerns Israels position on earth and among nations. The spiritual kingdom is the present kingdom into which all born-again believers have been placed- transformed from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of His dear Son. (Colossians 1:13). and God “made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:6). Whereas the earthly kingdom of a future kingdom, where all the promises to the nation of Israel will be fulfilled, and where Christ will reign over a renewed and glorious earth.
To be Continued…………………………………….
From The Peoples Gospel Hour Staff