God And His Word - A Question And Answer Approach To Understanding The Bible

-------- What Do the Interpreters Say? --------

lennialists believe that the Rapture of the Church will occur at the Second Coming of Christ at the end of the Tribulation. Nor does this position find Scripture to substantiate that the Church will not go through the Tribulation, which is generally thought to be just before the Millennium. The late George E. Ladd summarized this position in The Blessed Hope, a book considered the classic statement of this approach: The vocabulary of the Blessed Hope knows nothing of two as pects of Christ's coming, one secret and one glorious. On the con trary, the terminology points to a single indivisible return of Christ. Scripture says nothing about a secret coming of the Lord. 3 The historic and dispensational premillennialist positions both believe in a literal Millennium. The dispensational position makes the Millennium a time of renewing national Judaism; the historic position, in contrast, sees this period as the glorious expression of the full redemption of God's people (both Jew and Gentile be lievers), society and the natural creation. Historic premillennialism stresses the present and future as pects of the Kingdom of God. Christ now sits on the throne of David, the Kingdom of God is now active in the spiritual life of the Church (composed of both Jews and Gentiles), and the prop agation of the Gospel is the Church's present agenda. Yet, the full, literal expression of the Kingdom will take place in the Millen nium or the age to come. The Church is considered the present day expression of the people of God, and it is composed of all Jews or Gentiles who believe in Jesus Christ. Reading That Promotes the Historic Premillennial (and Post tribulational) View • Beasley-Murray, George R. Jesus and the Last Days: The Inter pretation of the Olivet Discourse (Hendrickson, 1993). A thor ough discussion of the Olivet Discourse as presented by Mark. • Conner, Kevin J. The Foundations of Christian Doctrine (Bible Temple, 1980). Conner believes in a literal Millennium that is Christian rather than Jewish in nature.

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