Who will enter the Millennium? What will be the state, human abilities and character of those who do? What will the varied citizenry of that age do? What groups will there be? What kind of government will be in existence? Will it be a one world government under Christ? Will there be nations with their own leaders? Will there be cities and towns? How will people, both mortal and immortal, live from day to day? Will there still be work, recreation, fun and games, etc.? Will there be a legal and criminal justice system? An economic system? A social system? An education system? A religious and philosophical system? A health system?
How will criminals be dealt with? How will children be deterred from following baser emotions? How will social problems be dealt with? How will human nature be deterred from doing evil?
Many of these questions we have already addressed, in whole or in part. We have seen how the prophecies of "new heavens and earth" in Isaiah's prophecies are fulfilled in the thousand years of the reign of the risen and glorified Christ, with his people, and the apostles, on the present earth. As stated previously, there is a kind of "double exposure" of the pictures of the new heavens and earth by Isaiah versus that pictured by either John or Peter.
There are two major parts of "the age" (aion) or "the world" (cosmos) that is destined "to come" in the thousand year reign of Christ in new heavens and earth. One concerns the changes that will occur to the environment and the other to the changes in the human race or to the social world. We have seen how the prophecies of that world speak of both categories of transformation.
In what ways will life on earth be different than now? In answering that question, it is good to first ask - "In what ways was life different before the flood of Noah compared with afterwards or now?"
Three Worlds & Ages
There are three worlds, or ages, focused upon in the scriptures. The first is the age of the world from Eden to Noah and the flood. The second is the age of the world from the flood till the coming millennial reign of Christ. Peter speaks of the first saying "the world that then was being overflowed with water perished" (II Peter 3: 6-7). Paul speaks of the second saying that the Lord has "delivered us from this present evil age" (Gal. 1: 4). He also spoke of "the world to come" (Heb. 2: 5; 6: 5; etc.).
Life before the flood found men working in various fields, such as in farming and agriculture, in mining for ore and in making metals, in making musical instruments, and such like. (Gen. 4: 20-22) They had families, married and were given in marriage just as people after the flood. (Matt. 24: 37-39) They were more alike than different. However, the antediluvian age saw people living to near a thousand years, and to have, therefore, extremely large families and clans. Yet, after the flood, the lifespan of people greatly diminished. The heavens and earth were dramatically changed.
It too seems that the pre-flood world was psychic, a time when people were able to have contact with angels and with the spirit world, and who lusted after magic and mystery. This is well described in the Book of Enoch. There were less boundaries between the physical world and the spirit world.
They also became very licentious, violent, lawless, diabolical, and so much so that God destroyed them all except for a few, a remnant who would be the seed and foundation of a new human race and a new world. (Gen. 6: 1-8)
There is also little doubt among many bible teachers that the world before the flood was different as respects the heavens (atmosphere) and the earth (or land and water). Things were much larger and fruitful in the earth and in the atmosphere of the antediluvian age. Animals were gargantuan, as woolly mammoths, megaladon, etc., demonstrate. Even humans were much bigger and stronger in that primitive age.
In that age, human females, through intercourse with fallen angels, produced a hybrid race of giants, or monsters, and these fallen angels and their offspring taught many magical and metaphysical ideas. This also is described in the Book of Enoch. This was the age of beginnings and inventions. It was not primitive in the sense of irrational cavemen, for evidence exists which shows that they were fast learners, knowledgeable and wise. The oldest inhabitants of that age, going back to Adam and the first family, were skilled astronomers and mathematicians, and mapped the constellations, naming them and their leading stars (by which they communicated a great understanding of the story of redemption or of the gospel), and building great buildings from mammoth stones, cutting them more finely than can be done today, and lifting and moving them with little difficulty, with a power and tools with which we know nothing.
That age and that world, however, God saw fit to destroy and replace it with another. We are living in the age after the flood. It is true, however, that the antediluvian age, like the present age, may be subdivided into smaller units of time, into smaller ages and dispensations. So, many Dispensationalists see seven dispensations. The bible writers also divided up history, especially Israel's history, into smaller segments. Paul spoke of the time "from Adam to Moses" (Rom. 5: 14). So Luke wrote:
"So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations." (Luke 1: 17)
We also speak of the time before Christ and the time after Christ. Still, the bible recognizes the time before the flood as a different age and cosmos than we have now; And it affirms that the thousand years of the reign of Christ, yet to come, is different from the ages that preceded it. In all three ages we see how some things are the same and some things different. Paul, as we observed in an earlier chapter, spoke of "the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints." (Col. 1: 26) Here Paul sees more than one "age" (aion) as having preceded the age in which he lived and wrote.
One of the hardest questions to consider is how a human race can exist where sin and evil calamities are not possible. Some believe it is not possible because the divine gift of "free will" makes sin not only possible, but in many cases makes it highly probable, if not certain. Since humans will always have free will, they may at any time choose to rebel against God and eternal life be taken away. With every person having freedom to sin, a world where no one sins is an impossibility.
"Some people think they can imagine a creature which was free but had no possibility of going wrong, but I can't. If a thing is free to be good it's also free to be bad. And free will is what has made evil possible. Why, then, did God give them free will?"
"Because free will, though it makes evil possible, is also the only thing that makes possible any love or goodness or joy worth having."
With creatures forever having freedom to sin, then it seems that no one is unconditionally guaranteed to be kept from sinning, the being kept from sinning being a violation of man's free will, which being given by God, must be respected by God and not interfered with.
Pelagius, the British monk, of the fourth and fifth centuries, and one who promoted "Pelagianism," taught that death was not the result of sin, but natural, and that Adam and Eve probably would have died even if they had never sinned. His views are expressed by this author who wrote (emphasis mine):
"Because he was a creature, Adam's body was mortal. That is to say, it was Adam's destiny to die physically whether or not he ever sinned. Physical death, therefore, is not a penalty for sin passed on to Adam's posterity, but is rather an inevitable corollary to man's essential character as created." (As cited here)
But, this contradicts so many direct statements of scripture. Romans chapter five teaches that death, physical, spiritual, and moral, results from sin. Paul speaks of "death by sin" and affirmed that "death passed upon all men for all have sinned" (vs. 12). He also makes this summary statement in chapter six: "for the wages of sin is death." (vs. 23) Death is not natural then. So, had Adam and Eve never sinned, would they have died? If not by disease, why not by being killed by an accident, or by a wild animal, or by some other calamity? Further, in the ages to come, will those who inherit the new heavens and earth possibly die by accidental death? How will such be prevented? How would God have prevented Adam and Eve and their sinless offspring from dying by accident?
We know that angels were employed to prevent, if necessary, any accidental death coming to the sinless Christ. Recall these words of the Devil to Christ in his temptation by him in the desert:
"5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." (Matt. 4: 5-7 kjv)
Imagine that this is the case with Adam and his descendants (in a world where sin had not yet occurred). I can see why death by earthquakes and tornadoes would be non existent, for the providence of God would not allow such to occur. But, what would keep a person from dying by a fall? Would each person be saved by angels? If yes, then what would prevent people from tempting God by flirting with death? If I am a rock climber, would I fall on purpose just to see angels catch me?
Another hard question to answer is this: "if Christ and Christians were now put in charge of the world, what would they do to make it a perfect world?" Or, "how would the world had been different had Adam and Eve not sinned and brought a curse to the race and to the world?"
Today there is talk about how many Christians want to make America into a Christian theocracy. The Postmillennialists also believe that they will, by the preaching of the word of God and the gospel, and by taking over all governmental, social, and business leadership positions, bring in a time of global peace and prosperity under the rule of the saints, all before Christ comes again. So, what prescription for a perfect society do we as bible believers put forth? Or, in other words, how will Christ make the world free of social problems? Or, another question is whether a utopia and immortality are even possibilities.
In the next chapter, we will continue this line of thought.
No comments:
Post a Comment