Kuyperian Commentary

On March 21, 2024 By Kuyperian In Culture 3

Postmillennialism: A Biblical Approach; A Response to Jeremy Sexton

Guest Post by Rev. Ralph Smith

Jeremy Sexton, a fellow minister in the CREC and a man whom I count as a friend, has written an article titled “Postmillennialism: A Biblical Critique.”^a Sexton’s work on another subject, Biblical chronology, is truly helpful, in my opinion.^b However, what he offers as a “Biblical Critique” of postmillennialism, in my opinion, falls far short of his title. With respect to his eschatology, Sexton’s most basic problem, as I see it, is that he misses the forest for the trees. With scholarly attention, he concentrates on details — many of which seem less than relevant — while missing the big picture. I believe that only the postmillennial view does justice to the larger framework of the Drama of History in the Bible, fitting into the Biblical worldview.

In response to Sexton, three issues in particular are important. One, there is a “preterist mood” in the entire New Testament that is typically misunderstood and misinterpreted. Two, the Great Commission defines a program for this age, the age that began with Jesus’ resurrection and ascension and ends with His second coming. Three, 1 Corinthians 15:20-28 outlines the Biblical view of history — the metanarrative from Adam to the second coming of Christ that depends upon the vision defined by the Great Commission.

I. The Preterist Mood of the New Testament

The first book of the New Testament to be written was almost certainly the Gospel of Matthew and it was probably written in 30 AD. Following James Jordan,^c I have argued for this in other places —— so I will not here repeat the arguments for that view.^d But, in the essay footnoted, I argue that the fact that the Gospel of Matthew is very early, widely distributed, and profoundly influential in the apostolic church is one of the most important issues in understanding the apostolic era.

In Matthew’s Gospel, there are five discourses or sermons — the Sermon on the Mount (5-7), the Mission Discourse (10), Parables of the Kingdom (13), Instruction about the Church (18), the Olivet Discourse (23-25). There is very little parallel in Mark for the Sermon on the Mount and Luke’s Sermon on the Plain, though it has much material similar to the Sermon on the Mount, which was given at a different time and place.^e The Mission Discourse and the parables of the kingdom find some parallel in Mark and Luke. The instruction about the church finds little parallel in Mark and Luke.

The Olivet Discourse, however, is largely repeated in Mark and Luke and all three synoptic Gospels include the important words: “Amen, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” (Matthew 24:34-35; Mark 13:30-31; Luke 21:32-33). Jesus spoke these words in AD 30. If the wilderness generation of Israelites provides us with a good Biblical model for understanding a “generation” — and I think it does — then Jesus was saying that “all these things” will “take place” by AD 70. In saying that the generation would not pass away, He did not define the year exactly, so there is some ambiguity about the timing, but the limit — this generation — is clear.

Thus, Jesus’ most well-known sermon set the eschatological “mood” for the first generation of Christians.^f The apostolic church was the church of the Olivet Discourse, waiting for Jesus to come in judgment against Jerusalem and the temple. Ezekiel, the “son of man” prophet^g before the coming of Nebuchadnezzar, denounced the evil of his generation and predicted the destruction of the temple in 586 BC. The Son of Man, Jesus, was a prophet like Ezekiel, exposing the sins of His generation and predicting God’s coming judgment on Jerusalem and the temple. Though heaven and earth would pass away, Jesus’ prophetic condemnation of His generation would not pass away. It was burned into the minds and hearts of the apostolic generation.

Therefore, New Testament epistles speak repeatedly of Jesus’ imminent coming. Paul, Peter, John and all the leaders of that day not only had Jesus’ words in mind, but taught their churches to watch and pray for the coming judgment on Jerusalem, warning the churches as Jesus Himself had warned the disciples that Christians would face tribulation and persecution so severe that the love of many would grow cold (Matthew 24:9-12). Though no one knew the day or hour, early Christians counting from 30 AD knew as the years went by that the end was approaching rapidly.

Peter’s two epistles, for example, were written specifically to strengthen Christians who would soon see the fulfillment of Jesus’ most concrete prophecy, a prophecy that publicly demonstrated His Messianic credentials.^h Note: for us, the language Peter and others use may sound like “end-of-history” language but it is not. Though, yes — the end of the old covenant era was, in one sense, an end of history, the end of a long era of history “in Adam.” That is why Jesus and the apostles use language that sounds to us like they are speaking of the end of earth history. The end of any covenantal era is a major turning point in history and “an end” that typologically points to “the end,” This is most especially true of the judgment in AD 70, because it was the end of the old world in Adam. Thus, the New Testament atmosphere of eschatological anticipation was not anticipation of the final end of earth history. Rather it is anticipation of the fulfillment of Jesus’ words, Jesus’ imminent coming to judge Jerusalem and the temple, bringing a full end to the old covenant era, including its structures, symbols, and ordinances.

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All quotations from Sexton come from “Postmillennialism: A Biblical Critique” in Themelios 48.3 (2023): 552–72. (back)
See: Jeremy Sexton, “Who Was Born When Enosh Was 90? A Semantic Reevaluation of William Henry Green’s Chronological Gaps” in WTJ vol. 77, (2015): pp. 193-218 and “Evangelicalism’s Search For Chronological Gaps in Genesis 5 and 11: A Historical, Hermeneutical, and Linguistic Critique” in JETS 61.1 (2018): pp. 5-25. (back)
James B. Jordan, “Chronology of the Gospels” in Biblical Chronology Vol. 4, No. 12 December, 1992. (back)
https://theopolisinstitute.com/dating-matthew-1/ https://theopolisinstitute.com/dating-matthew-2/. https://theopolisinstitute.com/matthew-the-tax-collector/ https://theopolisinstitute.com/conversations/rethinking-the-dates-of-the-new-testament/ (back)
I agree with J. C. Ryle, who wrote: “The discourse of our Lord, which we have now begun, resembles, in many respects, His well-known Sermon on the Mount. The resemblance, in fact, is so striking, that many have concluded that St. Luke and St. Matthew are reporting one and the same discourse, and that St. Luke is giving us, in an abridged form, what St. Matthew reports at length. There seems no sufficient ground for this conclusion. The occasions on which the two discourses were delivered, were entirely different. Our Lord’s repetition of the same great lesson, in almost the same words, on two different occasions, is nothing extraordinary. It is unreasonable to suppose that none of His mighty teachings were ever delivered more than once.” J. C. Ryle, Luke Volume 1: Expository Thoughts on the Gospels. (back)
For an extended commentary on the Olivet Discourse, see James B. Jordan, Matthew 23-25: A Literary, Historical, and Theological Commentary (Powder Springs, GA: The American Vision, Inc., 2022). (back)
Ezekiel is called “son of man” over 90 times in his book. When Jesus calls himself “Son of Man,” He is clearly identifying Himself as a prophet like Ezekiel. Perhaps the disciples missed it when He was with them, but after Pentecost, reflecting back on the Olivet Discourse, they must have learned why He used that expression. (back)
See Peter J. Leithart, The Promise of His Appearing: An Exposition of Second Peter (Moscow, ID: Canon Press, 2004). (back)

On March 21, 2024 By Bill Smith In Theology, Worship 1

Palm Sunday: The King. The Healer.

“Would that there were kings in Gondor, as there were once upon a time, they say! For it is said in old lore: The hands of the king are the hands of a healer. And so the rightful king could ever be known” (The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Book 5, Chapter 8, emphasis original). After the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, Faramir, the new steward of Gondor, lay at the point of death and was being grieved by an old wife, Ioreth, the eldest woman in the houses of healing. She longed for a king because kings had the ability to heal. To her surprise, the king arrived. He didn’t have the appearance of a king, but his kingship was revealed in his healing powers.

Some believe Tolkien references Medieval lore that English and French kings had healing powers. Others posit that he is making an apparent reference to the kingship of Jesus. Even if Jesus’ kingship wasn’t at the forefront of Tolkien’s mind, Aragorn’s healing powers as king are an echo of the Great King.

When the blind beggar, Bartimaeus, cries out for healing, he calls out to the Son of David, the king of Israel, to heal him (Mk 10:47). Why would he call for the king of Israel to heal him? Because he knew that the hands of the king were the hands of a healer. Isaiah prophesies that the servant of Yahweh, the king, will heal the land, open the eyes of the blind, and unstop the ears of the deaf (Isa 35:1, 4, 5; see also 42:7). The king is revealed by his healing powers.

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On March 9, 2024 By Joel Ellis In Culture 1

The Centrality of Daily Worship

There never seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done that needs to be done. Most of us have a lot on our to-do list and our wish-to-do list. Those things are not unimportant, even if they may sometimes seem to be. Whether it is a mundane chore or a major project that will revolutionize the world, those daily, weekly, and yearly tasks are a means of Christian fruitfulness that brings glory to our Lord. But the primary work we are made for is the activity we may be most likely to neglect when other duties are pressing upon us. We were made to worship, whatever else we have been gifted and called to do in this world.

Worship is primary. It is the basic human function. Fear God, and keep his commandments, for this is man’s all (Ecc. 12:13). Human beings are literally made to work and pray. As important as the rest of our ordinary labors are—and they are very important—everything flows from and returns to God’s altar. We pray that we may work, and we return from our work to give thanks for what has been done. Rightly understood, all the activities in our lives are an exercise of worship (Rom. 12:1). Our daily activities are not the same as the explicit and formal worship we offer in the hours of prayer: our private devotions, family worship, and the Church’s corporate assemblies. But God is praised, nonetheless. We are to approach all of our tasks with gratitude to God for his mercy and goodness to us and do whatever we do to the glory of his Name.

Nevertheless, when busyness overtakes us, we are most likely to neglect the worshipful aspect of our lives. There is no time for morning prayer and Scripture reading—we have too much to do! We cannot take time to meditate gratefully on God’s gift of our labor—we are too consumed by trying to get it done so that we can move on to something else! Work spills over into the Lord’s Day, we become cranky and resentful, and rather than glorifying God we dishonor him by neglecting that which is of first importance (Lk. 10:41-42) and by working with a selfish and ungrateful attitude.

The Lord’s Day begins the week on the right note, with the proper frame of mind. We work from grace, not for it. Unlike our Jewish fathers prior to the coming of Christ, our week begins with rest rather than culminating in it. The joy and peace of redemption accomplished and applied forms the foundation of our weekly labor. We labor not in messianic anticipation but with the joy of those who belong to the Regeneration. We know that Christ is on his throne, ruling us, defending us, interceding for us, and overcoming all of his and our enemies. We begin the week by worshiping around the throne of our glorious Lord, and as we are sent forth in the benediction and commission so that worship spills out into the world, driving away the darkness and filling creation with the knowledge of the glory of God.

On March 7, 2024 By Bill Smith In History, Politics, Theology Like

As Far As The Curse Is Found

“… and through him to reconcile all things to him, making peace through the blood of his cross, through him whether things upon earth or things in the heavens.”
~Colossians 1:20

The question of the extent of the effects of the atonement has been a point of debate in the church for quite some time. Did Jesus die to make salvation possible for everyone (general or universal atonement), or did Jesus die to secure salvation for God’s elect alone (particular or limited atonement)? This debate got hot and heavy in the seventeenth century when a group called the Remonstrants developed five articles concerning salvation that included universal atonement. The Synod of Dordt responded with what has come to be known as the five points of Calvinism, which includes limited, definite, or particular atonement. (Somewhere between these two were the Amyraldians, who were “four-point Calvinists” because they couldn’t buy into the limited atonement.)

Whenever the extent of the atonement is debated, the focus is usually on individuals’ salvation. But if we only think of the atonement and its effects in terms of individual salvation, what Paul says in Colossians 1:20 is quite confusing. Within Paul’s hymnic poem of Christ, “all things” consistently refers to the cosmic order, things upon earth and things in the heavens, visible and invisible, thrones, lordships, rulers, or authorities (see 1:16). Christ makes peace with the entire created order through the blood of his cross.

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On February 29, 2024 By Bill Smith In Church, Discipleship, Theology, Worship 1

The Cosmic Church

What is the church? Is it really all that important? If you ask evangelical Christians in America, you will get a variety of responses. In one survey, when evangelicals were asked whether or not every Christian has an obligation to join a local church, thirty-six percent of the respondents said, “Yes,” and fifty-six percent said, “No.” In another survey, a similar fifty-six percent agreed that worshiping alone or with one’s family is a valid substitute for regularly attending the worship of the church. Many professing Christians see the church as a good but non-essential part of the Christian life. The church is an aid to my personal relationship with Jesus, but my participation in the church has little to no bearing on my relationship with God and eternal destiny.

Paul disagrees.

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On February 28, 2024 By Rick Davis In Podcast Like

KC Podcast – Episode 127: The Savage Church

On February 28, 2024 By Rick Davis In Podcast 1

KC Podcast – Episode 126: A Revolutionary Reading of Romans 13

On February 15, 2024 By Bill Smith In Discipleship, Theology, Wisdom, Worship 1

The Powerlessness of Fasting

Fasting is on the minds of many Christians around the world at this time because we have entered the season of Lent, a time in the Church Year that, among other things, focuses on Jesus’ forty-day fast in the wilderness. Fasting is encouraged as the church disciples her members to take up their crosses and follow Christ.

Fasting has a long and sometimes muddled history. God has always approved of fasting if it is done within the boundaries and for particular purposes. It can be argued that a form of fasting existed before the fall as God forbade the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil for a time. This pre-fall fast was a practice in patience, praying and waiting for the time God would allow them to eat and move into another stage of glory.

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On February 14, 2024 By Rick Davis In Podcast Like

KC Podcast – Episode 125: Pessimistic Postmillennialism

On February 13, 2024 By Uri Brito In Culture Like

A Shrove Tuesday Homily

Shrove Tuesday is a glorious excuse to feast like the Hebrews, swim in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory guilt-free, and do what hobbits were made to: have a second breakfast. Christians should be notoriously bold about eating, and they should be notoriously known for getting together to eat. As a matter of fact, eating together is the virtue that toppled empires. While the Egyptians ate at elaborate banquets, God sent locusts to consume and eat their banquets. Of course, God will not allow competing parties in his world. If they attempt to compete for Banquet Hosts, God will consume them.

So, how do we enter into God’s banquet? Where do I RSVP? The requirement for entrance to this banquet is not acute taste buds or a culinary degree; it is the badge of love. “Better a dinner of herbs with love, than a fatted calf with hatred and disobedience,” says the Lord.

In our evangelical attempts to outdo the ascetic movement, we often talk timidly about the extra slice of pizza we had, or we say even apologetically, “I sure ate a lot last night!” But in the Bible, apologies about eating can seem outright tasteless. We don’t have to dig too far in the Bible to see that the idea of “fatness” carefully considered is a good thing. For example, the word “anointing” means to “make fat.” The Hebrew word Dashen means to be fat, grow fat, and become fat.

In fact, Psalm 23, a favorite to many, uses that precise language. In Hebrew, it reads: “You fatten my head with oil and my cup overflows.” Shrove Tuesday is an additional opportunity to criticize our sensitivities, wash away the grammar of cultural pietism, and embrace the fatty bacon like a gift from God.

God is not stingy about butter, and under ordinary conditions, as Elisha asked for a double portion of the Spirit, children of the living God should ask for a double portion of pancakes.

And this leads me to my final point in this brief but fat-filled exhortation, and that is that we only abuse the gift of food when we forget that food is a blessing to a forgiven community. Unrepentant communities don’t know how to eat correctly, and as a result, their food is merely consumed and not celebrated.

On the other hand, the Church’s table is good and right and wholesome and beneficial because it is covered by the blood of God’s Lamb, Jesus Christ. Jesus was food for us, and now we eat the food of the table with the hearts of forgiven saints. Solomon says, “He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.” The mercy of confession is what makes food glorious and delicious.

Tomorrow, we are going full-steam into a 40-day culture of repentance. For many, this will mean fasting and meditating and focusing in greater detail on our lack of gratitude for the gifts of God. We have eaten without understanding, communed without confession, watched without discernment, entertained ourselves without the table, and found refuge in feeble fortresses made by human hands. We have rebuked our children for their lack of love while we have been unloving to our spouses and our own children.

We have 40 days to flesh this out, but tonight, eat well, laugh goodly, and love your neighbor like God loved the fat of the lambs in Israel’s sacrifices. Don’t be shy! Jesus gave his life for the abundant table we share tonight!

Let us pray:

O, Lord, how beautiful these last days have been! Prepare us now on this last day of Epiphany for the gifts of your table. When we forget you, we forget life itself; therefore, give us the fat of Israel’s sacrifices, yay more, give us the fulfillment of Israel’s sacrifices, Jesus himself. For the riches of Solomon’s house and the banquets of Pensacola do not come close to the glory of the marriage Supper of the Lamb. As we stand at the end of Epiphany and the entrance gate to the Lenten Season, may our hearts long for the kneeling bench of forgiveness, the peaceful ethos of a clean conscience, and the benediction of a loving God. Cleanse our hearts that we may eat as unto the Lord and may live as unto the Lord, for we pray unto the Lord of forgiveness who declares our hands clean to eat and drink, amen!