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1689 Baptist Confession Chapter 31: Of the State of Man after Death and Of the Resurrection of the Dead - Commentary

Simon Wartanian | 26,946 views | 63,926 words | 5:35:37 hours | 06 March 2015 23:27

...illennial views.

The Millennial Views

I admit that I consider myself in no way an eschatology expert, nor have I read various books from various views. I became a convinced Amillennial when I read Sam Storm’s Kingdom Come, up to that point I was unconsciously a Dispensationalist. That which follows I believe to be an accurate and general description of the various millennial positions to the best of my knowledge. There will obviously be some nuances with certain people, obviously. My purpose is not to give a detailed description, but a general description.

Historic Premillennialism

The word “pre” means before and the Latin word Millennium means a thousand years, therefore, Premillennialism means before the thousand years. But, what is before the Millennium? The answer to that question is the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus. Premillennialism teaches that the Lord Jesus will bodily come back to earth before the Millennial Kingdom.

Premillennialism teaches that there will be a one thousand year reign of Christ on the earth where He will reign with His saints according to Revelation 20. The Millennium is a time of peace and a time when many Old Testament passages about the restoration of Israel and peace will be fulfilled. The Millennium is not a time when sin or death will not exist, rather, their effects will noticeably be decreased as Satan will be bound for a thousand years.

Premillenniarians agree with Covenant Theology or New Covenant Theology that the Church is basically the Israel of God. God does not have two peoples, Israel and the Church, but only one people made up of both believing Jews and believing Gentiles, who are known as the Israel of God and the Church (in contrast to Dispensationalism). They believe that there will be a restoration of the Jews prior to the Millennium and Coming of the Lord Christ.

They believe that the believers, the Church, will go through the Great Tribulation which an indefinite time of persecution prior to the Rapture and Coming of the Lord. At the Rapture, Christ will come with all saints from heaven with resurrection and glorified bodies, and He will transform all living believers on earth so that they would have glorified and resurrection bodies. This is the first resurrection of Revelation 20:4-6. After this, Antichrist will be destroyed by the true Christ and Satan will be bound for a thousand years (Rev. 20:1-2). Then Christ will usher His reign upon the earth for a thousand years of peace and prosperity. But remember, sin and death are not eliminated, but significantly reduced in effect and power.

The Millennium will be populated by saints who came with Christ from heaven (both from the Old Testament and up to the coming of Christ), the saints who were transformed at the coming of Christ, unbelievers and those who have turned to Christ after His coming. There is a discussion among Premillenniarians as to the time of resurrection for those who came to faith after the first resurrection, I have heard that some say that they are directly raised after their death, or that they will be raised prior to the Final Judgment.

After the Millennium, Satan will be let loose and will try to destroy the Church, but God will intervene and send him to Hell and thus save His people. Then the wicked will be raised, and then all will stand before God in the Final Judgment after which comes the New Heavens and New Earth, although some believe that the New Heavens and New Earth start with the Mille...

Extensive review of Jonathan Menn's Biblical Eschatology

Simon Wartanian | 3,430 views | 12,397 words | 1:05:40 hours | 09 February 2022 21:11

Book Reivew Jonathan Menn Eschatology Amillennialism Dispensationalism Millennium

...

“in the NT parousia essentially is a technical term for the eschatological coming of Christ in glory.” (p. 51)

Revelation: apokalupsis; apokaluptō and appearing: epiphaneia; phaneroō; horaō

Another important phrase is “the day of the Lord” with its various designations which is carried over from the Old Testament but now is connected with Christ.

In amillennialism, the second coming of our Lord is connected with the resurrection, the judgment and the renewal of creation. There are no tribulations or Millenniums intervening. Dr. Menn summarizes the biblical data as follows (partially citated):

The following passages speak of Christ’s second coming as entailing the resurrection of the just and unjust alike: Matt 13:30, 40–41, 48–49; 25:31–32; Luke 17:22–37; John 5:25–29; Acts 24:14–15.
The following passages speak of the second coming of Christ as entailing the judgment of all people, believers and unbelievers alike: Matt 13:24–30, 36–51; 16:27; 24:42–51; 25:14–30, 31–46; Luke 12:35–48; 17:22–37; 19:12–27; 21:26–28; John 5:25–29; 1 Cor 4:5; 2 Thess 1:6–10; 2 Tim 4:1; Jas 5:7–9; Rev 11:18; 19:11–21; 20:11–15; 22:12.
Christ’s second coming brings with it the destruction or cleansing of the present world and the restoration of creation: Acts 3:19–21; Rom 8:17–25; Heb 1:10–12; 2 Pet 3:3–15.

The Bible furthermore “teaches that there is one general resurrection, and one general judgment, of both believers and unbelievers” (p. 55). Dr. Menn explains:

The day of judgment is always spoken of in the singular, e.g., “day of judgment” (Matt 10: 15; 11:22–24; 12:36); “that day” (Matt 7:22; Luke 10:12); “the judgment” (Luke 10:14; 11:31); “a day in which he will judge the world” (Acts 17:31); “a day of wrath” (Rom 2:5); “a day of judgment” (2 Pet 3:7); “the day of judgment” (1 John 4:17); “the great day of their [God’s and the Lamb’s] wrath” (Rev 6:17); “the time for the dead to be judged” (Rev 11:18); “the great day of God” (Rev 16:14). That day—which in- volves both resurrection and judgment—takes place on “the last day,” the “end of the age.”

…

The universality of the judgment is specified in the following passages: Acts 17:31 says, “He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.” Jesus says in Rev 22:12, “I am coming quickly, and my reward is with me, to render to every man according to what he has done.” Acts 10:42; 2 Tim 4:1; 1 Pet 4:5 all speak of Christ who will judge “the living and the dead.”

…

The presence of believers and unbelievers being present together is made clear in the following passages which speak of those who are vindicated and those who are condemned at the same judgment:
...

Review of Dean Davis' The High King of Heaven on Amillennialism

Simon Wartanian | 12,615 views | 8,095 words | 0:42:03 hours | 13 April 2015 23:31

Review Book Review Dean Davis The High King Of Heaven Amillennialism Eschatology Reformed Eschatology

...m (Kingdom Come, The Bible and the Future, The Case for Amillennialism), it dares to go and try to interpret the difficult texts in support of premillennialism. It is anti-premillennial as well as, but in lesser tone against Postmillennialism. This is all done in a tone of brotherly love. I enjoyed that aspect of the interaction.

Amillennialism

This book lays out the classic view of Amillennialism which is Dean Davis^[1] believes (as others also do) is the classic eschatology of Church History and the Reformation.

The word amillennialism means no Millennium. However, amillennarians do not deny the existence of a Millennium, only that it begins after the Parousia and that it will last for a literal thousand years. Instead, they teach that the thousand years of Revelation 20 symbolize the present Era of Proclamation, during which time Christ reigns with (the departed spirits of) his saints in heaven. Amillennarians are, then, “present-millennarians.” Pages 23-24

Basically, Amillennialism teaches that the Millennium of Revelation 20 started from the cross and will end at the Second Coming of our Lord, spanning over 2 millennia up till now and is thus to be interpreted symbolically, rather than literally. The Millennium is the Gospel Era, or as Dean likes to call it, the Era of Proclamation.

This is a simple chart laying out the Amillennial vision of Salvation History.

The Kingdom of God

One of the very ups of this book was the extensive study of the Kingdom of God in the New and Old Testaments. My understanding of the Kingdom of God was really expanded.

A Definition of the Kingdom of God

Dean Davis defines the Kingdom of God as:

In essence, the Kingdom of God is the direct reign of God the Father, through the Son, by the Spirit, over his redeemed creatures; creatures who have been rescued from every spiritual and physical enemy, and restored to every spiritual and physical friend that God planned for them in the beginning. Also, the Kingdom is the blessed realm that this redemptive reign creates, and over which it forever rules. Page 65.

This he does not merely assume, but ably goes to prove it from the Bible, here is a summary of his five points:

The Kingdom is the direct reign of God the Father (Mt 6:10)
The Kingdom is a sphere of wholeness and blessing (Mt 9:35; 10:7-8; 12:28)
The Kingdom is mediated by the Son of God (John 5:19, 30; 6:38; 8:28; 12:49; 14:10)
The Kingdom is effected by the Spirit of God (Mt 12:28; Acts 1:4-8)
The Kingdom is a realm beneath a reign (Mt 13:41-42; Rev 11:15)

Thereby is indeed the definition that he gives is justified and satisfactory.

The Two-Staged Kingdom

Amillennarians see the Kingdom of God coming in two stages, separated by the Parousia of our Lord:

The Kingdom of the Son (already, the present Era of Proclamation)
The Kingdom of the Father (not yet, the future World/Age to Come)

Now, the terminology used here is not meant to give the idea that the Son has no share in the second stage of the Kingdom or that the Father has no share in the first, but rather is taken from 1 Corinthians 15:24-28 where we learn that at the Coming of our Lord, the Lord Jesus will deliver His Kingdom, His consummated Kingdom to God the Father and will be subjected to Him. Thus, seeing a difference between the present Kingdom of the Son (which is to be delivered up to the Father) and the coming Kingdom of the Father (which is the eternal W...

1689 Baptist Confession Chapter 1: Of the Holy Scriptures - Commentary

Simon Wartanian | 26,900 views | 35,236 words | 3:04:25 hours | 04 March 2015 20:52

The 1689 Second Baptist Confession Of Faith Confession Commentary Reformed Baptist Chapter 1 Holy Scriptures Bible Canon Inspiration Authority Inerrancy Infallibility Apocrypha Old Testament New Testament Canon Sufficiency Sola Scriptura

...inerrancy of Scripture concerns the original autographs, which the original writers of Scripture, penned by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Only they were incapable and free from all error. The extant manuscripts do, in fact, contain errors in the variants, but these variants were always known to the church and not because of modern biblical criticism. The church has also known the existence of textual variants because the transmission of the New Testament texts was a free transmission. This means, that it was people, like you and me, who copied the Scriptures, and not government officials or professionals. Add to that the fact the way in which the New Testament was written in the first Millennium. It was written uncial form, which is all capital letters with almost no space or punctuation. In such a setting, where you see a long string of letters, which are multiple words, it is no wonder that scribes would make some mistakes. Add to that the fact that anyone who was able, did copy the Scriptures. In other words, not all the copyists of Scripture were professional scribes. In light of this, it is easy to see how textual variants have crept into the NT text. These textual variants are not hidden from the public but are well known. Most New Testament scholars know these variants and have a plausible explanation for how they might have crept into the text. But the fact remains, as Dan Wallace says, that although we have some errors (i.e. textual variants), we still have the original words there. It is like a puzzle of 1000 pieces, but we have 1100 pieces. You cannot go wrong. Furthermore, and contrary to popular opinion, these textual variants are insignificant and do not affect the doctrines of the New Testament. For more on this stuff check out Daniel Wallace and James White (his book The King James Only Controversy is likewise good) on YouTube.

Returning back to our discussion of inerrancy, we said that the original autographs are what were infallible, not the extant copies. But all scholars admit that the original autographs are no longer with us. Therefore, is it not a waste of time to talk about the inerrancy of Scripture? That will stand only on the supposition that the originals vary radically from the extant manuscripts, which is false. As we said above, we have not lost the original reading of the New Testament because when copies were made, the manuscripts from which the copies were made, were obviously not destroyed. So, although the scribe may have made some mistakes in his copy, we have not lost anything from the original text, but we have gained some textual variants. In other words, what we have is not 900 pieces for a 1000 piece puzzle, but 1100 pieces of a 1000 piece puzzle. There is not a loss of data to the NT, but an addition of data, which means that the original is still in the body of New Testament manuscripts. Using various criteria of authenticity scholars are able to determine which readings belonged to the original writers of Scripture. There is not a variant which affects any doctrine of the New Testament. Therefore, the Christian should not be afraid to believe in the complete truthfulness of Scripture. Dr. Greg Bahnsen, in a very fine article, writes that

restricting inerrancy to the autographa enables us to consistently confess the truthfulness of God – and that is quite important indeed! Inability to do so would be quite theologically damaging. Only with an inerrant autograph can we avoid a...

1689 Baptist Confession Chapter 7: Of God's Covenant - Commentary

Simon Wartanian | 37,030 views | 65,864 words | 5:42:00 hours | 04 March 2015 21:27

The 1689 Second Baptist Confession Of Faith Confession Commentary Reformed Baptist Chapter 7 God's Covenant 1689 Federalism Westminster Federalism Presbyterian Covenant Theology Covenant Of Works Covenant Of Redemption Covenant Of Grace Nohaic Covenant Abrahamic Covenant Mosaic Covenant Old Covenant Davidic Covenant New Covenant

.... 3:17; 4:19; Gen. 50:20; Acts 21:11-14). He is sovereign over their adversaries and He can stop them, yet He does not. Not because He is powerless to do anything, nor because He must respect the free will of man or some other nonsense, no. It is because He has morally sufficient reasons to decree their sufferings. Those who suffer according to God’s will and love Him are assured that all things work together for their good (Rom. 8:28-30; Gen. 50:20).

Jesus is King Now!

Many of our Dispensational brothers and sisters will not agree with the fact that Jesus is King now upon David’s throne. Often they say that Jesus will be King finally in the Millennium where He will visibly reign. I heartily disagree and argue that Jesus reigns now as King of kings and Lord of lords and further, upon the throne of David! Jesus will not be King; He is the King.

All authority

Before His glorious ascension, the Lord Jesus tells the following to His disciples:

Matt. 28:18-20 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

So, why are we to go and get all the world for King Jesus? Because all authority, not only in heaven but also on this earth, is given to Him. He reigns and all things are given to Him. He, as God and Lord, is in control of all things. All authority means every single power and authority, whether in the glorious heaven or on this cursed earth is given to Him. Heaven and earth are under His power and word. The Lord Jesus, further, even before the cross, claims to already have all authority!

Matt. 11:27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.

See also: John 3:35; 5:27; 13:3; 17:2.

Not only the salvation of people is in His hands, but everything that God the Father exclusively controls (all creation) is handed over to Him! As a last example of King Jesus having all authority is a prophecy in Daniel 7:13-14.

Dan. 7:13-14 “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14 And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.

This concerns the ascension of our Lord when He came into Heaven again as the conquering Lord and Savior. He was rewarded by the Father for His perfect work in His humiliation on the earth and the bearing of God’s peoples’ sins upon Himself and in obeying the Father in every point. He is given the Kingdom that all people should serve Him. If we see this we may get the idea that it is a one-moment event, but if we look earlier in Daniel we will see that this Kingdom is represented as a rock which grows into a mountain which fills the whole earth (Dan. 2:35, 44-45). Meaning that its expansion is progressive. Further confirmation of this fact is that the Lord Jesus, about 80 times, referred to Himself as the Son of Man, Who is a divine-human figure and does not mean merely a ...

1689 Baptist Confession Chapter 22: Of Religious Worship and the Sabbath Day - Commentary

Simon Wartanian | 33,223 views | 73,377 words | 6:24:05 hours | 06 March 2015 19:29

The 1689 Second Baptist Confession Of Faith Confession Commentary Reformed Baptist Chapter 22 Christian Sabbath Sabbath The Lord's Day Fourth Commandment Day Of Worship Day Of Rest Sunday Religious Worship Church

...with joyfulness, the day also on which Jesus rose again from the dead. And when He had manifested Himself, He ascended into the heavens.

[Scriptural references were added and the footnote references taken away.]

This is certainly interesting in many ways. The author begins by pointing to the Sabbath of the Decalogue and he connects that with the Sabbath at the creation, on the seventh day and God’s rest thereon. And then he says something very weird, namely, the idea that the world will be finished in the seventh Millennium after the creation. The idea is that the world shall last as long as the days of creation lasted: 6 days work, 1 day rest. Therefore, the seventh Millennium is the eternal state (this passage is in no way supportive of the Premillennial scheme of things. Notice how the judgment and the end of the world is connected with the coming of Christ, which is not so in the Premillennial scheme of things.). This he connects with Psalm 90:4 and 2 Peter 3:8. This may be one of the first abuses of this expression. How many times do we hear this expression used in the creation debate by old-earth creationists to justify that the days of the creation were no ordinary days. The original context of the passage has nothing to say on the topic of creation, neither of the Sabbath or when the world will end, but it has been abused in every way possible.

What the author argues is that it was impossible to keep the Sabbath in the way that it was intended. This he says in the words, “ If, therefore, any one can now sanctify the day which God hath sanctified, except he is pure in heart in all things, we are deceived.” It is impossible to obey God perfectly and therefore keep the Sabbath in the way that God intended. We always fall short.

But there is a way in which we will sanctify the Sabbath. This we will do in the New Creation as we enter the Eternal Sabbath. This, the author expresses in the words “having received the promise, wickedness no longer existing, and all things have been made new by the Lord” and this is also the time when we shall “be to work righteousness.” Only then will we be able to sanctify the Sabbath as God wills it. Then the author moves to speak of God’s displeasure at the “sanctifying” of the Sabbath by the Israelites with the words of Isaiah 1:13. The presents Sabbaths are not acceptable to the Lord, but there is a Sabbath which is acceptable to Him, namely, “the beginning of the eighth day”, which is the “beginning of another world.” The eternal state is when we will truly sanctify the Sabbath in all of its fullness. Then comes the part about the Lord’s Day, which is here called “the eighth day”. It is the eighth day because it comes after the seventh. It is symbolic of the New Creation. Because the New Creation will come on the eighth day, “Wherefore”, we are to keep the eighth day. The reasoning for keeping the Lord’s Day holy is based upon the idea that the New Creation will come on the eighth day, after this world. This eighth day is the first day of the week as can be seen from the fact that is referred to as the day of Christ’s resurrection and His appearances to the disciples. I’m not sure if the author thinks that the Lord also ascended on Sunday.

But here we see that he believed that the eighth day was to be kept. It was to be kept with joyfulness and gladness because it was the day of Christ’s resurrection and the day which pointed to the New World and the Eternal Sabbath there. This is the ...

The Early Church Fathers on Eschatology (especially the millennial question)

Simon Wartanian | 1,975 views | 207 words | 0:01:03 hours | 02 January 2022 14:56

Amillennialism Premillennialism Eschatology Second Coming Final Judgment Resurrection Revelation

This work is based on Dr. Charles E. Hill’s fine work entitled Regnum Caelorum: Patterns of Millennial Thought in Early Christianity. In it, he surveys eschatological thought in the first three centuries of the church. One focus of the study is the interesting observation of something common in all premillennialists (except one, Methodius of Olympus [c. 270-311]) that did not believe in the immediate entry of believers into heaven. Rather, believers and unbelievers were held in some subterranean place until the resurrection and the Millennium. On the other hand, those who believed in an intermediate state in heaven, gave no indications of chiliasm (belief in an earthly Millennium), but rather, some of them even give explicit evidence of non-chiliasm (i.e., amillennialism). What I’ve done here, is search for the fuller statements of the authors from the early church which are freely available in the Schaff sets on CCEL, and included citations of Dr. Hill from the book itself.

I thought of sharing it on the internet for anyone interested in these issues. In reading these statements, you will find both the good and the bad of the exegesis of the ancient fathers.

(For those not able to see the IFrame, here is the link.)

1689 Baptist Confession Chapter 26: Of the Church - Commentary

Simon Wartanian | 28,104 views | 38,282 words | 3:19:22 hours | 06 March 2015 23:00

The 1689 Second Baptist Confession Of Faith Confession Commentary Reformed Baptist Chapter 26 Church Church Government Elders Deacons Members Universal Church Local Church Congregationalism Polity

... its blessings are, namely: (1) God will put His law within us; (2) God will write His law on our hearts; (3) God will be our God and we will be His people; (4) we will know the Lord; (5) God will forgive our sins and remember them no more. It describes its members as those who know the LORD. To know about God is one thing and a necessary thing. But to know God is wholly another. Various attempts have been made from various groups to make exceptions to what is said in this passage about the New Covenant, its nature and its members. Dispensationalists usually say that this covenant is not yet inaugurated because it speaks of Israel and Judah. Some of them say that it will be fulfilled in the Millennium, others say that the New Covenant which we enjoy is a foretaste of Jeremiah 31. Our paedobaptist brethren usually say that only in the eschaton will everyone know the LORD and thus, it is not necessary for membership in the administration of the covenant or a local church.^[5] In this way, they justify infant church membership. Our position is that this Jeremiah 31 covenant, as interpreted by the Holy Spirit in Hebrews, is the fully inaugurated New Covenant in Christ’s blood. We make a distinction between the invisible church (this paragraph) and the visible church (next paragraph). While those who make up the visible church should have been part of the invisible church, we know that this is not the case. They are falsely laying a claim upon a privilege which is only for those who are part of the invisible church. But if we read Jeremiah’s description of the New Covenant, what we have is members who truly, and not merely by profession, know and love the Lord. In other words, they are regenerate believers. What Jeremiah speaks about are the true members of the New Covenant. Another thing which we distinguish from our brethren is that for us local church membership is not the same as New Covenant membership. There are many local church members who are not New Covenant members. But they are church members falsely. They lay a claim to a thing they don’t have a right to. They set up their homes on a ground which is not theirs.

Since the New Covenant consists only of those for whom Christ’s blood was shed, we believe that a local church should likewise be composed of those for whom Christ’s blood was shed. But we are getting ahead of ourselves at this point.

Christ’s Church (Matthew 16:18)

The Lord Jesus promised to establish His church which no power of hell could stand against. He said:

Matt. 16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

It is Christ Who builds His community of believers, His congregation, His church. Men do not build the church. Men may build church buildings, but Christ is the architect of His church. Sadly, the Roman Catholic interpretation is how this passage is remembered for. As Albert Barnes noted, if “it not been that the Church of Rome has abused it [Matt 16:18, and who the rock is], and applied it to what was never intended, no other interpretation would have been sought for.”^[6] The controversy that surrounds this verse between the Protestants and Catholics lies in the question as to who “this rock” is which is being referred to and the further Roman Catholic implications from this identification. The Roman Catholic church claims that here, Christ gave Peter supreme authority over the church and raised him above all the...

Review of Wayne Grudem's Systematic Theology

Simon Wartanian | 16,243 views | 1,938 words | 0:010:06 hours | 19 July 2015 19:18

Wayne Grudem Systematic Theology Book Review Calvinism Baptist Continuationist Premillennialism

...e in Acts 2 tongues were actual languages, does not mean that that will always be the case because he believes that 1 Corinthians14 supports the idea of tongues not actually being a language sometimes.

I cannot say that now I’m fully a continuationist, but I can say that I see now more support for continuationism and weakness for cessationism.

The Doctrine of the Future

Part 7 of this Systematic Theology deals with the study of the last things, Eschatology.

Dr Grudem shows convincingly for me the support for the coming of Christ, the Final Judgment and Hell, the New Heavens and New Earth. With all these I agreed on most points, except the Millennium.

Dr. Grudem is a Classic Premillennial. He fairly represents the four major views today:

Amillennialism
Postmillennialism
Classic Premillennialism
Dispensational Premillennialsm

While he represents these views he argues against them and for Classic Premillennalism.

I remain an Amillennial.

Conclusion

If you don’t have this book in your library, get it now! You will not be disappointed. I will go back to it.

I’m thankful for God’s grace upon Dr Grudem’s work and life and that he has produced such an excellent treatment of Christian doctrine faithful to the Holy Scriptures.

He has become an example for me and a hero of how I should handle the Holy Scriptures.

Footnotes

^ RC rightly says that everyone’s a theologian ;)
^ Page 315.
^ Page 1050.

...

A Review of O. Palmer Robertson's The Israel of God

Simon Wartanian | 7,011 views | 3,313 words | 0:17:02 hours | 19 January 2017 22:25

Book Review O. Palmer Robertson Israel Of God Eschatology Covenant Theology Dispensationalism Kingdom Of God

...:28). In fact, Paul explicitly says that Jew and Gentile believers have been made one in Christ in Ephesians 2.

There was a helpful discussion and exegesis of the text from which the book gets its name, Galatians 6:16. Dr. Robertson shows how the “Israel of God” in the entire context of Galatians cannot mean anything but all believing Jews and Gentiles. I found his exegesis and discussion on the text very helpful (pp. 38-46).

Dr. Robertson argues that a return to the old land is a return to the shadows of the Old Covenant which are done away with in Christ. Moreover, Dispensationalists believe that there is distinction between Israel and the Church and in the Millennium the Jews will be the head. This is nothing more than the old distinction between Jew and Gentile, which Christ has abolished, but now it is being brought again. This is a return to the Old Covenant which has been abrogated. It is a return to the shadows. It is impossible.

Another helpful aspect which Robertson touches on is the fact that the majority of Israel is still in rebellion against Christ, they are not part of the Covenant of Grace (New Covenant), therefore, they have no theological claim upon the land, not to mention the typology of the land of Canaan. Only those who have faith in the Christ of God can claim the promises of God.

Its Worship

The book of Hebrews is probably my second favorite epistle after Romans. It is masterful and deep. This chapter is dedicated to an exegesis of Hebrews 7 wherein the superiority of the New Covenant is shown. Although not stated explicitly at the beginning, the purpose of this chapter is to make impossible the idea of a rebuild temple and priesthood for whatever reason by showing the superiority of the work of Christ and how by His work He has abolished the old system. This was a very enjoyable chapter.

Because of this great privilege of continual access to the very presence of God himself, we should look for no other city, temple, sacrifice, or priesthood. The perfections of Jesus provide all we need, both for this life and for that which is to come. As a consequence, our worship cannot conform to the old patterns associated with the previous priesthood and sacrifices. Instead, the new covenant community must worship in a way that indicates that the old rituals are gone and the eternal realities have come. (p. 83)

Its Lifestyle

Chapter four was perhaps the chapter from which I learned the most. In this chapter Dr. Robertson examines the wilderness motif throughout the Scriptures for the people of God. He shows the wilderness in relation to Israel. How from then the Scriptures form a basis that the wilderness is the time for God’s people to be tested and nourished by God. The wilderness imagery or motif dominates Scripture and describe the journey of the people of God. Just like Israel of old had to wander in the wilderness 40 years before entering the land of Canaan, so likewise, the Israel of God must wander the wilderness of this world before entering their everlasting Sabbath—Heaven.

The wilderness motif is not only found in the Old Testament, but it is also found in the life of John the Baptist as well as the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the wilderness the people of God are disciplined by God as sons, as He disciplined His Old Covenant people. In the wilderness the people of God are nourished by God (Rev 12:6). It is a place where the God of the Covenant is present with His people, as He wa...