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Hoyte Nelson's Poems/ Reflections & Biblical Essays
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Millennium Theology, and the Mystery about the Church Hoyte E. Nelson (Scripture highlighted for emphasis, NASV
unless otherwise indicated; Also, some scripture references repeated for
emphasis.) In my
retirement years I have been able to give a great deal of time in the study of
the scriptures - especially doctrinal matters that are related to my own faith.
As a result of this, I have come to see Jesus Christ as the center of all
God’s purposes, redemptive and otherwise - the ultimate fulfillment of all
prophetic truth (Luke 24:27). Consequently, I began to view Israel from a
different perspective – that is, I see Israel as the channel (conduit, if you
please) through which God’s eternal purposes are, in Christ, through the
gospel, fulfilled (Ephesians 1:21-23, etc.). It is
true that in God’s elective purposes, Israel has occupied a very special place
in the heart and plans of God. It was through them that we have the scriptures,
and through the scriptures the Messianic hope through the gospel; nevertheless,
this hope was never intended to be fulfilled through a nation, but through a
person, the Lord Jesus Christ, e.g. the promise given to Abraham was not to Israel, but through
Israel, that “all the people of the world might be blessed;” subsequently,
all promises are fulfilled in Jesus Christ. (Galatians 3:29). The apostle Paul gives us this explanation: “But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: ‘through Isaac your descendants will be named.’ That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants” (Romans 9:3-8). “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone” (Ephesians 2:18-20). The People
Called Israel: “So
the Lord gave Israel all the land
which He had sworn to give to their fathers, and they possessed it and lived in
it. And the Lord gave them rest on
every side, according to all that He had sworn to their fathers, and no one of
all their enemies stood before them; the Lord
gave all their enemies into their hand. Not one of the good promises which the Lord
had made to the house of Israel failed; all came to pass” (Joshua 21:43-45). I once accepted the premise that the nation of Israel as
a nation would always have a special place in God’s future
economy, and that future economy included the millennium. I now believe that all
prophecies, not already fulfilled, will be fulfilled, either through the gospel,
or, at the Second Coming of Christ. It is true that there are many Old Testament passages concerning what is sometimes called the “golden age” prophecies: Isaiah 2,11,27,49,65; Jeremiah 23,3,31;Ezek. 34-36,37; Joel 3:3; Amos 9; 12- Zechariah 12- 14, and Malachi 3-4; however, the question to me is this - are we looking for the restoration of the nation Israel in the millennium, or, are we looking to him “whom they have pierced” [at the cross], and is coming again just as He went away – “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen” (Revelation 1:7). It was the
prophet Zechariah who prophesied: “And in
that day I will set
about [that is, one day] to
destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. “I will pour out on
the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit
of grace and of supplication, so that
they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one
mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter
weeping over a firstborn” [lost opportunity]
(Zechariah 12:9,10). The apostle Peter has written: “As to this salvation, the
prophets who prophesied of the grace that would
come to you made careful searches and inquiries, - seeking
to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within was indicating as He
predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow” 1 Peter
1:10,11). What are the glories that follow the cross save the gospel, and the
glorious resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? The apostle Peter, addressing the people after Pentecost,
has also written this: “Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the
patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to
this day. “And so, because he was a
prophet and knew that God had sworn to
him with an oath to seat one of
his descendants on his throne, he
looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He
was neither abandoned to Hades, nor
did His flesh suffer decay.
“This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.... “Therefore
let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and
Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified” (Acts 2:29-32,36). The apostle Paul affirms this same truth at Antioch in
Pisidian when he said to the Jews in the synagogue there,
“And we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers,
that God has fulfilled this promise
to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the
second Psalm, ‘You are My Son; today i have begotten You.’ (Acts 13:34-36 One of the problems that I have with the Pre-millennial
system is that the millennium has become a catch-all
in the interpretation of many Old Testament prophecies i.e., prophecies that
were not already fulfilled in the OT scriptures are often ascribed to the
millennium, rather than the gospel age - and, or the “new heaven and the new
earth” at the end of this present age (2 Peter 3:12,13).
For example, Jeremiah was a prophets proceeding the
Babylonian captivity, and not only prophesied about the seventy years of their
sojourn there, but also make this prophetic statement: “Then I Myself [Jesus, through the gospel] will gather the remnant [See:
Romans 9:27] of My flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and
bring them back to their pasture, [the Church] and they will be fruitful and
multiply [souls saved]. “I will also raise up shepherds [pastors] over them
and they will tend them; and they will not be afraid any longer, nor be
terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.
“Behold, the days are coming,”
declares the Lord, “When
I will raise up for David a righteous Branch [Jesus], And He [Jesus] will
reign as king and act wisely And do justice and righteousness in the land
[world]. In His days [the day of the Church] Judah will be saved, and Israel
will dwell securely [Romans 11:25-28]. And this is His name by which He will be
called, ‘The Lord our righteousness’” (Jeremiah 23:3-8). This passage of Scripture has often been identified as
being fulfilled in the millennium, but the millennium passage, makes no such
claim! Furthermore, the key to the understanding of this prophecy is the
reference to the patriarch David:
“Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he
both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. “And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God
had sworn to him with an oath to seat one
of his descendants on his throne,
he looked ahead and spoke of the
resurrection of the Christ...,“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for
certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you
crucified” (Acts 2:30,36). What a revelation: “Let all the house of Israel know for certain, that God has made Him both Lord and Christ,” This
prophecy is obviously fulfilled in the resurrected Christ (Acts 2:30,36; Act
13:32-36). “The Israel of God”The apostle Paul asked the question: “What if God,
although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured
with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction [speaking of
Israel]? And He did so to make known
the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for
glory; even
us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among
Gentiles.” Again
the apostle wrote: “that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery,
as I wrote before in brief....to be
specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body,
and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel”
(Ephesians 3:3,6). “As He says also in Hosea [said the Apostle Paul], I will
call those who were not My people, ‘My
people,’ And her who was not
beloved, ‘beloved.’ ”
“And it shall be that in the place where it
was said to them, ‘you are not My
people,’ There they shall be
called sons of the living God’”
(Romans 9:25,26). The
Apostle Paul, grieved for the lost sheep of the tribe of Israel, said this:
“For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated
from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh,
who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the
covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple
service and the promises, whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ
according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. But it is
not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; nor are
they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: “through
Isaac your descendants will be
named.” That is, it is not the
children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise
are regarded as descendants” (Romans 9:3-8) Paul says again, “Now the promises were spoken to Abraham
and to his seed. He does not say, ‘and to seeds,’ as referring
to many, (Israel), but rather to
one (Jesus), ‘and to your (Abraham’s) seed,’ that is, Christ.” Then he
said, “There is neither Jew nor
Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female;
for you are all one (Jew and Gentile), in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to
Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise”
(Galatians 3:16,28,29). This truth is consummated in chapter 6 of the Galatians
letter where Paul ends this discourse with these words: “For
neither is circumcision anything, nor un-circumcision, but a new creation. And
those who will walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God” (Galatians 6:15,16).
This old Olive tree no longer stands as an emblem of the nation
of Israel because there has now been grafted into this old tree a people
that were once “stranger form the covenant of promise,” but now is made one
in Christ. “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow
citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole
building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together
into a dwelling of God in the Spirit” (Ephesians 2: 11-22). The Question Concerning Israel?“I say
then, God has not rejected His people,
has He? May it never be! For I too am
an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin... In the same
way then, there has also come to be at
the present time a remnant according to God’s
gracious choice. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works,
otherwise grace is no longer grace. What then, what Israel is seeking, it
has not obtained, but those who were chosen [in Christ] obtained it, and the
rest were hardened...; But if some of the
branches were broken off, and you,
being a wild olive, were grafted in among
them and became partaker with them of
the rich root of the olive tree, do
not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember
that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports
you. And they also, IF they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in,
for God is able to graft them in again” [but only through faith in the risen
Lord, THE MESSIAH (Romans 11, selected verses).
According
to the Hebrew scriptures, the nation called Israel, chosen of God as priests to
the world [conduits, if you please, through which the redemptive message was to
flow] were called from the cradle, nursed as a mother cares for her child;
nevertheless, forsook the God of their fathers who had cradled them, and thus we
read: “So the Lord was very angry
with Israel and removed them from His sight; none was left except the tribe of
Judah” (2 Kings 17:18). According
to prophecy, Judah also, having fulfilled her mission when the Messiah came, was
rejected just as was prophesied: “The scepter [Messiah] shall not depart from
Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until
Shiloh [the sent] comes” (Genesis 49:10a). Notice that this prophesy
concerning Judah was unconditional (contextually): “The Lord
said, ‘I will remove Judah also
from My sight, as I have removed
Israel. And I will cast off
Jerusalem, this city which I have chosen, and
the temple of which I said, ‘My name shall be there’” (2 Kings 23:27).
This evidently happened about seventy AD!
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I have, in this essay, sought to establish a background for the presentation of my views on the subject of the church, not a millennium, as the fulfillment of the Davidic Kingdom. Remember the question the disciples asked Jesus, “will you at his time restore the kingdom to Israel (Acts 1:6b)? Although the disciples could not have comprehended such a thing before Pentecost; nevertheless, the kingdom was, at that time, restored - but not as they expected, it was not an earthly kingdom, but a spiritual kingdom. Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18”36a). Therefore, I ask again this question: Where in the prophetic books of the Bible is there a single reference to a millennial kingdom in reference to the restoration of Israel? And secondly, where in the millennial passage is there a single reference to this earth - Jew or Gentile, or for that matter, Israel? (Revelation 20:4-6)? Remember, the prophets, when prophesying about the future, always spoke of an
eternal kingdom. This is what Daniel said about the future kingdom that awaited
God’s people: “I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with
the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the
Ancient of Days, And was presented before Him. And to Him was given dominion,
Glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve His dominion is an everlasting
dominion Which will not pass away; ...And His kingdom is one Which
will not be destroyed... ‘But the
saints of the Highest One will receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom
forever, for all ages to come’” (Daniel 7:13-14,18). I believe that
the prophecy of the restoration of David’s kingdom was the establishment as
the Church of Jesus Christ, affirmed first by Peter in Pentecostal message,
saying, “Brethren, I may confidently say
to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his
tomb is with us to this day. “And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God
had sworn to him with an oath to seat one
of his descendants on his throne,
he looked ahead and spoke of the
resurrection of the Christ, that He
was neither abandoned to Hades, nor
did His flesh suffer decay”
(Acts 2: 29-36); Fulfilled Prophecies: (copied form article: “Cutting a
straight line) For example: These Old Testament Prophecies were all
essentially fulfilled in New Testament Scriptures: I. Abraham, and the Abrahamic Covenant: 1). The prophecy: “Now the Lord
said to Abram, Go forth from your country...,To the land which I will show you;
And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse.
And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed” (Genesis 12:1,3). 2).
The prophecy fulfilled: “Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his
seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as referring
to many, but rather to one, “And
to your seed,” that is, Christ. And if you belong to Christ, then you are
Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise” (Galatians 3:16,29). II.
Moses, and the Mosaic Covenant:
1). The prophecy: “Only be very careful to
observe the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord
commanded you, to love the Lord
your God and walk in all His ways and keep His commandments and hold fast to Him
and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul” (Joshua 22:5).
2). The prophecy fulfilled
“Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come
to abolish but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17).
“But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all
sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:25,26). III.
David, and the Davidic Covenant: 1).
The prophecy: The Lord has sworn to
David A truth from which He will not turn back; Of the fruit of your body I will
set upon your throne” (Psalm 132:11). 2).
The prophecy fulfilled: “Brethren, I
may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David that he both died and
was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. “And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one
of his descendants on his throne,
he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He
was neither abandoned to Hades, nor
did His flesh suffer decay.
“This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. “Therefore
let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and
Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified” (Acts 2:14-16,21,29-36). So, IV. The
Temple restored - more glorious and eternal: 1).
The prophecy: “The Lord said, “I will remove Judah also from My sight, as I
have removed Israel. And I will cast off Jerusalem, this city which I have
chosen, and the temple of which I said, ‘My name shall be there” (2 Kings
23:27). 2).
The prophecy fulfilled: Then the apostle James responded, saying, “Brethren,
listen to me. “Simeon [Peter] has related how
God first concerned Himself about taking from among the Gentiles a people for
His name. “With this the words of the
Prophets agree, just as it is written, ‘After
these things I will return,
[speaking of the first advent] And
I [Jesus] will rebuild the tabernacle of David
which has fallen, And I will
rebuild its ruins, and I will
restore it, So that the rest of mankind
may seek the Lord. And
all the Gentiles who are called by My name,’ Says the Lord, who
makes these things known from long ago” (Acts 15:12). Therefore, the apostles, gathered together at the Jerusalem conference,
believed that the “Tabernacle of David” had, at that time, been restored.
Remember this: “Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days
I will raise it up. The Jews then said, “It took forty-six years to build this
temple, and will You raise it up in three days, But He was speaking of the
temple of His body” (John 2:20,21). The apostle Paul also confirms this truth
when he wrote: “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that
the Spirit of God dwells in you? If any man destroys the temple of God, God
will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and
that is what you are” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). Remember the prophecy, “The Lord
said, “I will remove Judah also from My sight, as I have removed Israel. And I
will cast off Jerusalem, this city which I have chosen, and the temple of which
I said, ‘My name shall be there” (2 Kings 23:27). But a new day had dawned.
The old Temple made of wood and stone, as glorious as it might have been, is no
more. However, a better one, a more glorious one, is now restored as the body of
Christ, waiting for the New Heaven, and the New Earth, about which we have been
told by the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 65:17). Conclusion: “On
that Day” I believe the scriptures affirm that there will be a
climatic time (day) when all of the different promises concerning the end-time
will be fulfilled “on that day”
(the Second Coming of our Lord), as ascribed by the apostles Paul when he wrote
about the end-time, saying, “These
will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord
and from the glory of His power, when He comes to be glorified in His saints
on that day, and to be marveled at, among all who have believed—for our
testimony to you was believed” (2 Thessalonians 1:9,10). The apostle Peter, speaking of this same subject, says, “
looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because
of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt
with intense heat! But
according to His promise we are looking for new
heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:12,13).
In the acts of the apostles, we have this affirmation:
“...Behold, the days are coming,”
declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign
as king...and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. And this
is His name by which He will be called, ‘The Lord
our righteousness...’ And so, because he was a prophet and knew that God
had sworn to him with an oath to seat one
of his descendants on his throne,..”
(Jeremiah 23:5...,” “...because He
has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man
whom He has appointed, having
furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead” (Acts 17:31). [The
above is one of several examples where we see prophetic
OT prophecy, fulfilled in NT times
that could never be understood except through the eyes of apostolic revelations e.g.,
the prophecy concerning King David, fulfilled at the resurrection of Jesus as
confirmed by the apostle Peter on the day of Pentecostal Acts 2:29-32)]. The question then is this, what about Israel, is there yet
hope? “But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, [Gentile] being a
wild olive, were grafted in among them
and became partaker with them of the
rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you
are arrogant, remember that it is not
you who supports the root, but the root supports
you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be
grafted in. Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand
by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; for if God did not spare the
natural branches, He will not spare you, either. Behold then the kindness and
severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if
you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also,
if they do not continue in their unbelief,
will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again” (Romans 11:17-23).
The apostle Paul carried a great burden for his people, and he offered them the
same promise that God gave to Abraham – Jesus Christ! (Galatians 3:29). But what about the millennium passage, is there an earthly promise for the restoration of Israel found in this passage?
“ Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them.
And I saw the souls of those who had
been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of
God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not
received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and
reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to
life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection.
Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these
the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and
will reign with Him for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4-6). See: Last things: The
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