Different End Time Views

Over the last two millennia, people have come up with different ideas about the end times. When Christ promised to return people immediately began wondering when it was going to take place. Over time, three main views sprang up, premillennialism, amillennialism, and post millennialism, with premillennialism being broken up into historic and dispensational subcategories. Each have remained prevalent though they wax and wane with world events.

These four different views are discussed in the book The Meaning of the Millennium, written in 1977 by George Ladd, Herman Hoyt, Loraine Boettner, Anthony Hoekema, edited by Robert Clouse, and published by InterVarsity Press. After each view is explained in this book, there are responses from each of the other three views. The views in this book, although very different, are well presented and can help one understand a great deal more about the end times.

The first section in the book, historical premillennialism, discusses the view of a millennial reign of Christ happening in the Future. The basic features of historic premillennialism are as follows. When Jesus was here on earth, God was manifest through his ministry. When Christ ascended into heaven, he left the Spirit to work (who came at Pentecost) until the end of the age, which ends with Jesus coming back a second time. Right before the second coming of Christ there is to be a great tribulation of Christians.

When Christ returns, there will be a period of one thousand years in which Satan is bound and the kingdom, before just a spiritual one, Satan will be released and there will be a fight between Satan and all those who are still not loyal (even after a thousand years). When Christ is victorious again, there is the second judgment in which the dead are judged, followed by the creation of a new heaven and a new earth.

While similar in many respects, dispensational premillennialism really is a different system, looking more into "redemptive history." Despensationalists will argue that the Old Testament prophecies should be interpreted literally. In fact, if one just reads through Revelation and takes the events to happen in order that they appear, the result is a premillennialistic view. In dispensationalism it is argued that there are two plans, one for the nation of Israel and one for the church. While historical combines the nation of Israel and Christian Gentiles, Dispensationalists see them as two very separate.

One of these plans for the church includes the rapture of believers when Jesus takes them into heaven before the seven year tribulation begins. Israel, on the other hand, would have to go through all of the horrors of the Tribulation along with the unbelievers. However, 144,000 will become believers in Christ and be there when Christ comes the second time, this time as a conquering king who defeats the Antichrist's armies and binds him, Satan, and the false prophet for a thousand years. After the millennium, the great white throne judgment takes place, unbelievers are put into hell, and Satan is cast into the Lake of Fire.

Postmillenialism has a different view on things. Postmillennialists teach that the millennium isn't necessarily a literal one thousand years, and may be in the future, but also may to have already begun. However, what they all agree on is that there will be a universal acceptance of Christ and the kingdom of God will have complete victory over Satan as time goes on, ending in a "Golden Age." Israel will be converted most likely near the beginning of this "millennium".

According to post millennialism, Satan has been bound since the time that Christ died on the cross. However, at the end of the millennium Satan will be released and a period of great tribulation will occur, culminating with the Battle of Armageddon. In the post millennial view however, there is no one person who is the Antichrist. Rather, there have been many individuals of deception. After the Battle of Armageddon, Christ will return to judge the unsaved and create a new heaven and earth.

This view was very popular at the turn of the century when there was a great advance in technology and people thought the world was becoming a better place. Because the thought that the tribulation culminated in 70 AD with Nero, people thought that Christianity was making the world better, and soon that the whole world would follow Jesus. However, World War I basically squashed the optimism about the future of man.

The word amillennial literally means "no" millennium. However, a better term for this would be "realized" millennialism, since it argues for a real and present millennium, just one that is purely spiritual. This view holds that the covenants made in the Old Testament are fulfilled by the Church during our age. The millennium in this view is actually the time between the first and second coming of Christ. Satan is bound by God during this period in time (which is right now) and Christ is reigning in heaven during this time. The Word of God will spread throughout the world, but not very many will be saved, because they tribulation is said to be now, and it will grow progressively worse as time goes on.

At the end of this time Christ returns to judge all men in physical form. The resurrection occurs, those people are judged and a new heaven and earth are created. In most amillennial views Satan is unbound right before the return of Christ and there is a great evil that spreads over the world. In heaven, Christ reigns over the souls of believers who have died, as opposed to the postmillennialistic view of an earthly kingdom being ruled from heaven.

As diverse as the views of end times are, they all are in agreement in some points. The first and hopefully most important is that they all believe the Bible to be the inspired word of God, completely true and without fault. The also all agree that there was a first coming of Christ and that there will be a visible and awesome second coming of Christ, in which he will set the world right after Satan has his last s pree of evil.

This book is interesting because it can shows how the Bible can be interpreted many different ways even though it is the same words. In reading this, one can read more deeply into other Scriptures, not just reading at a shallow level. This book also encourages deep thinking, due to the diverse thoughts presented in it and helps put your own thoughts into perspective.