In this episode, Pastor Mike clarifies the controversy in Romans 8 over the “Redemption” of creation.

He explains the two general views and how they relate to the End Times. Then he explains where he lands on the topic.

1. Immediately upon the 2nd Advent of Christ the earth is destroyed and then enters the New Heaven and New Earth.

OR

2. Beginning at the 2nd Advent of Christ, the earth through a process is being redeemed which culminates with it being changed rather than exchanged into the New Heavens and New Earth.

Both views naturally lead to more questions:

If there is a period of redeeming/restoring the Earth; can Christ reign and sin still be present?

What about the matter of time restraints in the Bible? How should we view the timing words used in the text? Do they express immediacy? Is there a reasonable way to understand the timing of end-time events?

The inquisition: How have your views on eschatology changed over the years?

Tune in today! We discuss these questions and more.

In this episode, Pastor Mike lays open the landscape regarding the issues with premillennialism, in two parts. PART 1 - False Caricatures of this position. Or, in some cases, human reasoning problems about biblical concepts as opposed to… PART 2 - Difficult textual issues. These are genuine issues with the exegesis, not just conceptual problems with the theory of the case. This is where we spend more time.

PART 1 - False Caricatures: Dispensationalists are all semi-pelagian or Arminians. Early dispensationalists were in fact reformed in their soteriology. They taught unconditional election. Many were 5-point Calvinists. Lewis Sperry Chafer, who founded Dallas Theological Seminary, was a Presbyterian minister.

What is an example of a human reasoning problem? Or a gap between what God (as the Creator) has said, verses how man (who is the created) understands?

Ezekiel 40-48 - The temple in the Millennial Kingdom. Some say, “I can’t grasp why this would need to be in the Kingdom, therefore it will not be in the kingdom.” Pastor Mike explains this perspective in more detail.

PART 2 - Genuine Exegetical problems: Jesus destroying all his enemies at the end of Revelation 19, and then Jesus destroying death in 1 Corinthians 15. In this episode, we only deal with Jesus destroying all of his enemies at the end Revelation 19.

Why is this a problem? How does it impact the premillennial understanding of the Kingdom? What does the text actually say? Revelation 19:11-21

Notice Jesus is striking down the nations. But then in verse 18 “all” men both small and great are killed. What is going on here? How is “all” being used? What about the future tense of “He will rule” in verse 15? What impact does that have on this discussion?

How does a premillennialist answer these hard questions about the exegesis of the text?

What does Pastor Mike think about this topic specifically? He brings up Revelation 19:20 where the beast and false prophet are thrown into the lake of fire. Then Revelation 20:10 where the devil is added to the lake of fire with the beast and the false prophet. What is the impact of these two verses on our understanding about this topic?

The Inquisition: Can a woman officiate the Lord’s Supper? Could she officiate it with just women at a ladies Bible study, for instance?

Tune in today! We discuss these questions and more.

In this episode, Pastor Mike continues the discussion on amillennialism.

Considering the recapitulation theory of the book of Revelation, we must acknowledge that the chapter divisions are not inspired. They were added by Wycliffe in the 14th century.

Therefore the transition from chapter 19 to 20 verse 1 should be considered. Does it tell us this is a new section starting another recapitulation or does it lead the reader to believe the following events are sequential?

As we consider the answers, it leads us to another point. Where does theology come from? If people in foreign lands only had the Bible, what would they think on this topic? What conclusions would they come to? If they need a systematic theology to enlighten them, is that a problem?

Specifically in Revelation 20:1-3, we see that Satan will be bound for 1,000 years. In the amillennial position, this 1,000 years is symbolic for a long time which constitutes the church age. Is it intellectually honest to say Satan is bound in the current age? How do the amillenials deal with this text?

Some suggest that when John writes Satan is bound, “so that he might not deceive the nations any longer…” (Rev 20:3), John literally means Satan cannot deceive nations in the church age.

Peter, speaking about the current age, says Satan is roaming around like a lion looking for someone to devour. How do they bring these two thoughts together?

What are some other exegetical issues with the idea that Satan is bound, or at least bound from only deceiving the nations in this current age?

Look, our goal is to be exegetically consistent. If that makes us theological orphans, it’s ok. Our loyalty is to the text. Next week we will deal with some of the hurdles of premillennialism.

Amillennialism has an issue with the resurrection of Revelation 20:4-6. For their theory of the case to make sense, this cannot be a reference to a physical bodily resurrection. However the Greek word in all contexts is used exclusively to speak about the bodily resurrection.

They maintain that this is speaking of regeneration. How does that work? What are the arguments for it? What is the logic against taking that symbolic reading?

Finally for the inquisition: How are there degrees of suffering in hell? Modern evangelical thought seems to teach people go to hell for the one sin of not accepting Jesus.

Tune in today! We discuss these questions and more.

In this special addition Pastor Mike talks about the current mystery facet of the kingdom in relation to the Revelation 20 millennial kingdom.

He talks about the mistake that many people make by either insisting that all of the kingdom of God is the future Revelation 20 millennial kingdom, or insisting that we are currently living in the Revelation 20 kingdom.

How can we avoid this confusion? Tune in to find out!

In this episode, Pastor Mike defines Amillennialism and some of its variations, graciously discussing some benefits and some biblical difficulties.

Why does any of this matter? Pastor Mike goes over the purpose of our latest series. He talks about the importance of all the different views meeting together in the public square to stand up for truth.

Next Mike explores general similarities between the three major views of the Millennial Kingdom, as well as the primary differences. All the views run into some exegetical difficulty. What are they and how can we make sense of what the Bible talks about regarding the kingdom? Mike offers the idea that seeing the kingdom as multifaceted helps remove very real exegetical problems.

What are the exegetical problems with Amillennialism? Why do they view the book of Revelation, especially chapter 20, as a recapitulation of the church age?

Some would break down the chapters of Revelation into 7 groups: chapters 1-3, 4-7, 8-11, 12-14, 15-16, 17-19 and 20-22. If that is the case, why is the local church only mentioned at the beginning of the book?

Does the recapitulation theory fit with the outline of the book of Revelation in chapter 1 verse 19? How do some Amillennialists explain that verse? We will discuss some of the other exegetical issues next episode.

For the inquisition, Pastor Mike answers: In our study of Matthew, the parables seem to emphasize Christ’s current kingdom program growing, or the church advancing. If this is the case, why should believers be active in politics at all, or even vote?

Tune in today! We discuss these questions and more.

In this episode, Pastor Mike defines postmillennialism and we discuss why some are inclined toward this eschatology of hope. What is the impact of Doug Wilson and James White on this view? How has that created a revival in this eschatological viewpoint, especially as it relates to the culture war?

As an eschatology of hope, does that mean variations of the other views are not hopeful? Is postmillennialism the only victorious view of the end times? If the golden age comes before Christ returns, is everyone saved?

How has this doctrine developed throughout church history? What are some of the biblical problems of this view? Does the destruction of the temple in 70 AD create a problem for this view? Does the date of the book of Revelation matter? Pastor Mike talks about the external (extra-biblical) evidence for the late date of Revelation and the internal (Biblical, from the text) evidence for the late date.

The fan favorite, the Inquisition, is back! Does the ancient document called the Didache lay out a clear eschatological position?

Tune in today! We discuss these questions and more.