Postmillennialism

Postmillennialism is very close to Amillennialism except Post Milllenialists believe The forces of Satan will be gradually defeated, good will triumph over evil gradually, then Christ will come after the 1000 year millennialism. They believe the millennial kingdom has already begun and Christ will come unexpectedly.

Beliefs:

• The New Testament church becomes the Israel of God (agrees with Amillennialism)
• The Kingdom of God is a present reality. (agrees with Amillennialism)
• The Kingdom of God is essentially redemptive and spiritual in character rather than political and physical. (agrees with Amillennialism)
• The Holy Spirit will gradually bring about a period of virtual triumph of true Christianity before Christ returns. (opposes Amillennialism)
• The millennium will close with the second coming of Christ. (agrees with Amillennialism)
• The Resurrection will be general--all people at the same time. (agrees with Amillennialism)
• The general judgment will follow. (agrees with Amillennialism)
• Then the eternal kingdom will begin. (agrees with Amillennialism)

 Postmillennialists believe that Jesus established the kingdom of God on earth during His first advent. Mark summarizes what Jesus preached: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand" (Mark 1:14). From His exorcism of demons Jesus authoritatively concluded: "the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Matthew 12:28). Jesus is now despoiling Satan's house (v. 29), as the kingdom slowly grows in the earth (Matthew 13:31-32), and every enemy is brought in submission under His feet (Hebrews 1:13; 10:13). He must reign until all opposition is defeated, and then He will deliver up the kingdom to the Father -- at His second coming, which is "the end" of history (1 Corinthians 15:24-25).

Postmillennialists believe that the victorious advance of Christ's kingdom comes about by means of the preaching of the gospel and the powerful work of God's Spirit in regeneration and sanctification. That is, it is the pursuit of the Great Commission, rather than the use of violence or military confrontation, which peacefully secures the widespread conversion of the world and brings it to obey all that Jesus has commanded (cf. Matthew 28:18-20).

While most postmillennialists look forward to a 'golden age', a period of spiritual prosperity, this does not mean that every person will be a Christian or that all sin will be abolished (Boettner 14). This period of spiritual prosperity comes about gradually "as an increasingly larger proportion of the world's inhabitants are converted to Christianity"(Boettner 19).

However, the process through which the kingdom grows involves an intense spiritual battle, with its ensuing afflictions, persecutions, hardships and suffering for God's people. The ultimate victory which shall come through the struggle does not cancel the pain and sorrow which attends that struggle. The Apostle John spoke of himself as a "companion in the suffering and kingdom... that are ours in Jesus" (Revelation 1:9). Paul called on Timothy to "be a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel" (2 Timothy 1:8), realizing that "if we suffer [with Him], we shall also reign with Him" (2:12).

Biblical Evidence of a "Golden Age"

Matthew 13:31-33: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all other seeds; but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." (Jesus) spoke another parable to them, "The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till it all was leavened."

According to Loraine Boettner, the parable of the mustard seed and that of the leaven "teaches the universal extension and triumph of the Gospel, and it further teaches that this development is accomplished through the gradual development of the Kingdom, not through a sudden cataclysmic explosion" (Boettner 27, 131).

Mt 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

In recent years communication has increased greatly. Now you can fly to the other side of the world within hours where in the past you have to take a boat, where you will arrive in your destination months later. Now there are well built roads which leads to most of the provinces villages, where before people had to travel in footpaths. Now there are telephones, computers, internet where the gospel travels in seconds. With the invention of the internet the gospel does not have any closed doors. If you take an example of our own website we see countries getting into our website which we have never heard of.

Internet opened the floodgates for the false gospel to penetrate to the uttermost parts of the world. The wheat and the tares will both grow but at the end God will separate his elect.

Mt 13:30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

There are presently nearly 6 billion people living in the world. The best information available reveals that nearly 50,000 people die each day without ever having heard the Gospel message!

"Go into all the world and preach the Gospel!"

We don’t know who are the elect but our call is to preach the gospel to all.