How did Christ and the Apostles Understand Old Testament Prophecy?

We have seen the Redemptive Kingdom develop in various stages in the Old Testament. We have also seen some key narratives that have always been part of this Kingdom structure. Now it is time to start connecting the dots to see how those narratives develop towards God’s Kingdom’s in the New Covenant. Before we can get there though, we need to consider some basics in understanding Biblical prophecy. This will help us understand prophetic literature through the lens of Scripture itself. We need to understand Biblical prophecy as the authors of the New Testament did.

Eschatology Matters: Temporal Gain vs Eternal Reward

Postmillennials love to mock those who reject their carnal doctrine as pessimists. While I have demonstrated prior that this label has no basis [1], it would be pertinent to write about Christian motivation as far as this age is concerned under the shadow of eternity. If as the Scripture teaches, we are to not expect victory in this age along with the transformation of societies and nations, then it would seem like our efforts in this life are futile, especially with regards to things that don't have direct continuity in the age to come, like our work, marriage, children, etc. This is a charge often levied by the Postmillennials against those that hold to an Apocalyptic (Amill/Historic Premill) view of eschatology. However, the New Testament provides much motivation for the Christian to live his life faithfully under the shadow of the cross and in the light of eternity while rejecting the Jewish dreams of a carnal Kingdom of God.

Eschatology Matters: A Primer on Apocalypticism

In the past week, I've run across a surprising number of posts and articles by figures popular in the Dominionist stream of Christianity on the significance of eschatology. The central thesis of these writings is that Premillennialism and Amillennialism, having no optimistic theology of victory for this present age, do not produce in their adherents the right kind of attitude to win the "Culture War". Since Postmillennials look forward to the promised victory of the Christ in this age through the work of the Church, they are rightly equipped and motivated to engage the culture and take dominion for Christ. It is certainly true that our theological positions have serious practical implications. One need to look no further than the Hyper-Grace Christianity prevalent in Evangelicalism today. It has made having a "messy" Christian life normal and even ideal. Christians more often desire to associate with David's moral failings (ignoring the majority of his life) than with those who are called in Scripture perfect and upright, like Daniel, Joseph, Job and David (in the rest of his life apart from Bathsheba). Thus, the authors of these writings are absolutely right in pointing out that our theological positions affect our actions. Going beyond that though, it was unsurprising that these writings were full of optimistic presuppositions that have no basis in Scripture.