A "Grain Of Wheat" Ministries publication

Written by David W. Dyer

INDEX

Chapter 1: THE MILLENNIUM LOST

Chapter 2: ARE WE IN THE MILLENNIUM TODAY?

Chapter 3: MORE SIGNS?

Chapter 4: SOME SPURIOUS ARGUMENTS (Current Chapter)

Chapter 5: FOCUSED ON HEAVEN

Chapter 6: WHY IS THE KINGDOM IMPORTANT?

Chapter 7: "OUTER DARKNESS"

Chapter 8: OTHER SCRIPTURES

Chapter 9: SOME REALLY BAD THEOLOGY

Chapter 10: REAL TRANSFORMATION

Chapter 4: SOME SPURIOUS ARGUMENTS

Those who believe we are now in the millennium insist that when Jesus taught about the destruction of Jerusalem and the time of the end (Mt 24, Mk 13, and Lk 21), He was merely teaching about what was going to happen in 70 AD.

It was then that the Roman general Titus destroyed Jerusalem and the temple. From that time until recently, Jerusalem has been under the control of non-Jewish people. There are many similarities between the chapters in these three Gospels describing future events.

Many people do not realize that the disciples asked Jesus two different questions, which He was answering. We read in Matthew 24:3: “Tell us, when will these things be and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

Jesus' explanation then included two different sets of events. One of them was what would happen to the temple and Jerusalem. The second was what would be the signs of the end of the age and His coming.

It may be that His hearers did not realize that there were two different scenarios being described: the time of the destruction of Jerusalem and the time of the end. Therefore, those who wrote down Jesus' words did not distinguish between them. Although these events have their similarities, they are not the same. Yet Jesus was speaking about both events in the same discourse.

It must also be noted that many prophecies both in the Old and New Testaments have an earlier and later fulfillment. Many are not just one-dimensional. So, some of the things Jesus was saying could have, and in fact do have, an earlier and later fulfillment. One was on the date of 70 AD and another later one will be shortly before His coming. Therefore, some of the things Jesus taught us in these passages can and probably do refer to similar events which will occur at two different times.

Yet the amillennialists point to these chapters and insist that they are only speaking about the events related to the destruction of the temple, Jerusalem, and the dispersion of the Jews. Therefore, for them, everything was fulfilled in 70 AD by General Titus and his armies.

One of their main reasons for this belief is Jesus saying: “This generation will not pass away until all these things are fulfilled” (Mt 24:34; Mk 13:30; Lk 21:32). They insist that Jesus meant the generation to which He was speaking. This is one of their principal arguments. It is one upon which a lot of weight is placed. Consequently, for them everything Jesus predicted had to happen during the lifetimes of those who heard Him.

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

But in Luke 21:24 Jesus says something quite significant. We read: “And Jerusalem will remain under the dominion of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.” Then later in verse 32 He says: “This generation will not pass away until all these things are fulfilled.” Here we find a huge elephant in the room which everyone pretends not to notice.

This cannot refer to the generation to which Jesus was speaking at that time! They saw Jerusalem destroyed but did not see Jerusalem returned to Jewish dominion. Jerusalem was only restored to Jewish control in 1967.

There is no way to misunderstand this verse. To “remain under the dominion” or “be trodden underfoot” by the Gentiles means to not be under Jewish control. This was to be “until” some spiritual event called “the times of the Gentiles” was finished.

Nothing like this occurred around 70 AD. To be sure, Jerusalem fell under the control of the Gentiles, but the rest of this prediction did not happen for almost 2,000 years.

This is extremely significant! To which generation was Jesus then referring? The one to whom He was speaking or the one which would see certain signs? Or perhaps both? One of these signs is Jerusalem being restored to the Jews after being possessed by the Gentiles! In this case, the phrase “this generation” cannot apply to those to whom He was speaking. It can only be a much later generation, which could be understood to be our generation.

Before Israel became a nation in 1948 it is understandable how some Bible scholars could not see this elephant. But today, this huge sign is right in front of us, as big as life. This “elephant” testifies to the fact that everything was not fulfilled in 70 AD. The phrase “this generation” cannot mean only the people who heard Him speak.

NO JERUSALEM OR ISRAEL

The lie that we are now in the millennial kingdom has roots that go back many hundreds if not over one thousand years. Perhaps one reason for this is that Jerusalem was destroyed by Titus, the Roman general. Shortly thereafter, the nation of Israel ceased to exist.

So, people trying to understand the prophecies concerning the kingdom in the Old Testament were faced with a challenge. How could these prophecies be fulfilled literally without having a nation on the earth called “Israel”?

These prophecies demand a literal country, full of Jews, in the same place as it was before. But how could that be possible? The land was in the possession of other people and the Jews were dispersed widely around the globe. So, the easiest thing was to just “spiritualize” the promises to not have a literal fulfillment. This then “resolved” the problem of how these holy predictions could come to pass. I suspect that amillennialism has its roots in just such unbelief.

This is what the “we're in the kingdom now” people do. They make everything have a “spiritual” fulfillment. Any need for a literal fulfillment is removed. Everything is explained as really referring to heaven.

But God has done wonderful things. Jesus taught us that: “…Jerusalem will remain under the dominion of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled” (Lk 21:24). In 1967 a miraculous thing happened. The ancient part of the city of Jerusalem came into Jewish hands after almost 2,000 years. This is an event that many Bible scholars from the past thought to be impossible. Unfortunately, because of such thoughts, they altered their theology to make a literal fulfillment unnecessary.

Yet God did it! He has restored the land of Israel to the Jews. Regardless of what you think about this from a political point of view, it is something unprecedented. Never before in the history of the world has a people lost their nation and then, after almost 2,000 years, come to the same place and reestablished their nation again.

Now all the Old Testament prophecies can and will have a literal fulfillment. There is no need to spiritualize them. There is no need to explain them away. Jesus will come back to Jerusalem and to a land filled with the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

THE MOUNT OF TRANSFIGURATION

Some other passages which the amillennialists use to try to prove that the kingdom of God came in 70 AD are the ones where Jesus says: “Verily I say unto you, there are some standing here, which shall not taste of death, before they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom” (Mt 16:28; Mk 9:1; Lk 9:27 NIV). So, they insist for this to be true, Jesus has to come and set up His kingdom during the lifetime of those to whom He was speaking.

To repeat this idea, they say that at least some of the people who heard Jesus say these words would have to be alive when His kingdom came. Therefore, His kingdom had to have come shortly thereafter and the events of 70 AD provide for them a possible solution to this.

However, this idea really doesn't hold much water. In fact, it's very leaky.

It may be of some help for us to take a look at the Greek word translated “see” here. Jesus says that some will “see” the Son of man coming in his kingdom. This Greek word can mean “see” but it can also mean: “to experience any state or condition,” “to perceive, notice, discern, discover,” “to know, i.e. get knowledge of, understand, perceive” and other similar concepts.

Therefore, an actual, physical “seeing” is not required. All that this verse really requires is that some of Jesus' hearers have an experience through which they perceived or gained knowledge of what His coming and kingdom would look like.

In all three gospel accounts, immediately after Jesus' pronouncement, this “seeing” happens in the next verses. He takes three of His disciples up on a mountain and there they see Him transfigured along with Moses and Elijah. This obvious connection between His saying these words and the disciples' experience immediately thereafter cannot be ignored.

It must be that when Jesus comes in His kingdom He will come in His glorified body. Since He has now been glorified, He will not become “unglorified” to reign on the earth.

On the mountain, the disciples learned what He would look like in His kingdom. We read in Luke 9:29: “And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered and his garments became brilliant white and radiated light.”

Furthermore, the Old Testament saints will participate in this kingdom. The three disciples also saw this. Therefore, there is no demand here, none whatsoever, that some of the people who heard Him say these words would see the coming kingdom physically on the earth. In fact, what these three disciples saw was far more impressive than what we are seeing today which some claim to be “the kingdom.”

End of Chapter 4

Read other chapters online:

Chapter 1: THE MILLENNIUM LOST

Chapter 2: ARE WE IN THE MILLENNIUM TODAY?

Chapter 3: MORE SIGNS?

Chapter 4: SOME SPURIOUS ARGUMENTS (Current Chapter)

Chapter 5: FOCUSED ON HEAVEN

Chapter 6: WHY IS THE KINGDOM IMPORTANT?

Chapter 7: "OUTER DARKNESS"

Chapter 8: OTHER SCRIPTURES

Chapter 9: SOME REALLY BAD THEOLOGY

Chapter 10: REAL TRANSFORMATION