8/12/2019 1992 Issue 4 - Cross-Examination: Objections to Postmillenialism - Counsel of Chalcedon

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Each month the

Cross- Examina-

tion

column presentsasummarystate

ment of a Reformed and Recon

strUctionist conviction in theology or

ethics, and

then

offers brief answe S

to

common questions, objections or

con

fusions which people have about that

belief.

Send issues or questions you

wouldlikeaddressedby

Dr.

Bahnsen

to

the editor.

We

Believe

According to evangelical,

Bible

believingpostmillennialism,fal1enman

is

utterly incapable

of

entering or

ad

vancingthekingdomofGodinhisown

effort, wisdom, or accomplishment.

God's

kingdom

comes

not by human

work, but by the redemptivemission of

Jesus Christ cf. Colossians 1:13-14)

and according to the

gracious

power of

the Holy Spirit.

As

Jesus said

to

Nicodenrus:

Unless

one is born

again,

he cannot

see

the kingdom of

God

(john 3:3).

Postmillennialists

believe

thatJesus

established the kingdom of

God

on

earth during His

first

advent.

Mark

summarizes whatJesus preached: The

time is

fulfilled,

and the kingdom of

Godisathand CMark1:14). FromHis

exorcism of demons

Jesus

authorita

tively concluded: the

kingdom

of God

has

come

upon you

(Matthew 12:28).

Jesus

is

now

despoiling Satan's

house

(v. 29),

as

the kingdomslowly grows in

the earth

(Matthew

13:31-32), andev

ery 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

cOlIling,

which

is

the

end of

history (1 Corinthians 15:24-25).

Postinillennia1ists believ'e that the

victorious

advance

ofChrist's kingdom

comes

about

by

means of the preaching

of

the gospel

and the

powerful

work of

God's

Spirit in regeneration and sanc

tification.

Thatis, it

is

the pursuitofthe

Great Commission,

rather than

the

use

of

violence

or

military

confrontation,

whichpeacefullysecures thewidespread

conversion of the world and brings it to

obeyall thatJesushas commanded cf.

Matthew

28:18-20).

However, theprocess throughwhich

the kingdom grows involves an intense

spiritual battle, with

its

ensuing

afflic-

4 THE COUNSEL

of

Cbalcedon

t

April, 1992

tions,

persecutions, hardships andsuf

fering for God's people.

The

ultimate

victory which

shall

come through

the

struggle

does not

cancel the

pain and

sorrow

which

attends

thatstruggle.

The

Apostle

John spoke of himself as a

~ c o m p n i o n

in the

suffering

and king

dom

.. that

are ours in Jesus (Revela

tion1:9). Paul called on

Timothy

to be

a partaker of

the

afflictions of the

gos

pel (2

Timothy

1:8), realizing that if

wesuffer[withHitnl,weshallalsoreign

with

Him

(2:

12).

xamination

Question lmtisn'tpostmillennialism

a

form

of naturalism and humanism,

arrogantly

trusting in m n and earthly

politics

to establish

God's

kingdom in

the

world?

Answer:

Absolutely

not, although

many

opponents of theposition, either

out of misconception or malice, have

triedOver and over

again to

pOrtray it

as

such.

In fact, though, Bible-believing

posnnillenniali.sIil is the diametric op

posite and mortal enemy of naturalism .

and humanism, for it

teaches

the need

for God's sUpernatural

intervention in

human affairs and in huIilan hearts in

order

for His

kblgdom

to

come.

Postmillennialism,

as can be seen from

what was said

above,

humbles

Irian's

pride and accomplishments bydeclar

ing

the necessity

of

God's

grace in order

for

anyone

to

enter thekingdomofGod.

Question

Postmillennialists are

dangerous, though, because they have

the

idea

that theyand theirfollowers

are

going to

bring in the kingdom of God,

and

they

are going to do

so

through

political

compulsion .and

even

armed

conflict.

Answer

That kind of remark is

nothing

less

than slander,

which

falls

under the wrath and CUISe of God

(cf.

Proverbs 6:16-19).

I realize that this

8/12/2019 1992 Issue 4 - Cross-Examination: Objections to Postmillenialism - Counsel of Chalcedon

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amounts to a shatp reply to the

com

ment, but such a rebuke is morally

required - for the glory ofGod and

the

good of the verbal

abuser.

''He who

utters a slander is a

fool"

(Proverbs

10: IB)whowillnot beallowed to dwell

with Jehovah (Psalm 15:3). Theolo

gians and

Bible

teachers are even

more

responsible

to

guard what

they

say than

others (cf. James 3:1) -- so theyespe

cially must take care and

realize

that

the tongue is a restless

evil,

full of

deadly poison" (v. B).

Teachers who oppose post

millennialism have no

right to distort and mis-

represent what it stands

for. Postmillennialists

most surely do not hold

thattheyaregoingtobring

in God's kingdom. Their

procl:aIDation, to the very

opposite effect, is that

Christ has already estab

lished is own kingdom

Himself

And He didsoat

His first advent.

Postmillennialists insist

that Christ not be de

prived ofHis glory. He

is

the opposite

is

to

malign

them and the

truth.

Question But don't post

millennialists overlook the dimension

of suffering and weakness in the

Christian ife? Atleastthatiswhatlhave

read and been told. Posunillennialists

are

called

"triumphalists" who forget

the theology

of the

cross.

Answer: This too,like the

cases

seen

above,

is

a rhetorical distortion. By

using

language

like this the

critic

in

sinuates false

accusations

and

com-

Charles

Hodge, the postmillennial

dean of theologians at Princeton

Seminary

in the last century, wrote in

hiscornmentary on2 Corinthians4that

We constantly illustrate in our person

the sufferings of Christ.. [being] ne

glected, defamed, despised,mal-

treated ... This is hardly consistent

with the

charge

that postmillennialists

forget the theology of the cross

Both postmillennialists and

amillennialists not

to mention

premillennialists) recognize the inevi

table hardships and persecution which

believers

lIDdergO

in

this

world. That

is

not what

separates them. Post

millennialists trust the

word of the wrd

that,

even when contrary to

outwardappearances, our

sufferings in

this

world

eventuate in a greater

manifestation of Christ's

savingruleonearth,nota

diminished one. Wesuf

fer

to be sure, but it is a

suffering-unto-victory,

rather

than a suffering

-lIDto-defeat.

the

King

. He

is

the one in

a ;;;=======;;;;;

Further Investigation

whom

victory comes.

We are only

servants of the King.

Moreover, posunillennialists

do

not

advocate political compulsion or

vio

lence as the means by which Christ

works through ils to establish His do

minion or kingdom throughout

the

world. As Paul

says,

the weapons of

our warfare are not of

the

flesh" --

and

for that reason are "mighty

before

God"

for casting down strongholds (2

Corinthians

10:4).

Christ's kingdom

does not originate from this world,

which is the explanation for

the fact

that

is servants do not fight00hn 1B:36).

Postmillennialists look

to

the Great

Commission, not political revolution,

for the

victory

ofChrist's cause.

To

say

municares unfair connotations about

the postmillennial position, without of

fering details or objective proof. You

will

find

that it is much

easier to

make

these kinds of claims than to demon

strate them through responsible analy

sis and

scholarship.

Postmillennialists do not

deny,

try

to

evade, or downplay

the constitutive

dimension

of

suffering

and scrrow in

the Christian

life or in the history

of

the

church. One can hardly imagine that

the Scottish

theologians Symington

or

Brown had somehow forgotten the

"killing

times"

of theCovenanterswhen

they expressed their postmillennial

confidence.

CovenantTapeMinistry(24198Ash

Court, Auburn, CA 95603) distributes

a four-part lecture series entitled

Eschatology oj Optimism, which in

cludes a critique of dispensationalism,

premillennialism, and amillennialism.

The cost is $17, including postage.

A number of opportunities for edu

cation inethics, apologetics or theology

are available through the ministry of he

Southern California CenteI"

for hris-

tian Studies, where

Dr. Bahnsen

is the

scholar- in-residence. Write andask to

beplacedontheirmailinglist(P. O. Box

18021, Irvine, 92713), and you

will

receive

the

free

monthly newsletter,

Penpoint.

April,

1992

THE COUNSEL ofChalcedon 5