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Millions of Christians believe Satan is more powerful than God.
During the 1970's this idea took root and spread like an ugly grass on a dichondra lawn.
During the 1970's millions of Christians were caught up in Rapture Fever. They concluded that Satan was in charge (Satan Is Alive and Well on Planet Earth), that God no longer had providential control over the creation (The Late Great Planet Earth), and that the end of human history was at hand (The Terminal Generation). Their ticking prophecy clock, which predicted a "rapture" by the time the State of Israel was 40 years old (1948+40-7=1981), was wrong. Their false prophets would have been executed a few thousand years earlier (Deut. 18:20-22)
The doctrine of the "pre-tribulational rapture" is probably one of the most destructive doctrines in all of human history. Nearly half a billion people have been murdered since the doctrine was invented in the early 1800's. In the face of monstrous evil, rapture-oriented Christians say nothing. The commands of their Master to "exercise dominion over the earth" (Genesis 1:26-28) and make all nations Christian (Matthew 28:18-20) are ignored.
Millions of Christians are waiting, not working.
The Founder of Princeton University, Gilbert Tennent, rightly condemned this attitude. His story is told in a book entitled The Log College:
When the late Rev. George Whitefield was last in this country, Mr. Tennent paid him a visit as he was passing through New Jersey. Mr. Whitefield and a number of other clergymen, among whom was Mr. Tennent, were invited to dinner by a gentleman in the neighbourhood where the late Mr. William Livingston, since governor of New Jersey resided, and who, with several other lay gentlemen, was among the guests. After dinner, in the course of an easy and pleasant conversation, Mr. Whitefield adverted to the difficulties attending the gospel ministry arising from the small success with which their labours were crowned. He greatly lamented that all their zeal-activity and fervour availed but little; said that he was weary with the burdens and fatigues of the day; declared his great consolation was that in a short time his work would be done, when he should depart and be with Christ; that the prospect of a speedy deliverance had supported his spirits, or that he should before now have sunk under his labour. He then appealed to the ministers around him, if it were not their great comfort that they should soon go to rest. They generally assented, excepting Mr. Tennent, who sat next to Mr. Whitefield in silence; and by his countenance [revealed] but little pleasure in the conversation. On which Mr. Whitefield, turning to him and tapping him on the knee, said, "Well! brother Tennent, you are the oldest man amongst us, do you not rejoice to think that your time is so near at hand, when you will be called home and freed from all the difficulties attending this chequered scene?" Mr. T. bluntly answered, "I have no wish about it." Mr. W pressed him again; and Mr. T. again answered, "No, sir, it is no pleasure to me at all, and if you knew your duty it would be none to you. I have nothing to do with death; my business is to live as long as I can --as well as I can -- and to serve my Lord and Master as faithfully as I can, until He shall think proper to call me home." Mr. W still urged for an explicit answer to his question, in case the time of death were left to his own choice. Mr. Tennent, replied, "I have no choice about it; I am God's servant, and have engaged to do his business as long as he pleases to continue me therein. But now, brother, let me ask you a question. What do you think I would say if I was to send my man Tom into the field to plough, and if at noon I should go to the field and find him lounging under a tree, and complaining, 'Master, the sun is very hot, and the ploughing hard and difficult; I am tired and weary of the work you have appointed me, and am overdone with the heat and burden of the day; do, master, let me return home and be discharged from this hard service ?' What would I say? Why, that he was an idle, lazy fellow; that it was his business to do the work that I had appointed him, until I, the proper judge, should think fit to call him home. Or suppose you had hired a man to serve you faithfully for a given time in a particular service, and he should, without any reason on your part, and before he had performed half his service, become weary of it, and upon every occasion be expressing a wish to be discharged or placed in other circumstances. Would you not call him a wicked and slothful servant, and unworthy of the privileges of your employ?" The mild, pleasant, and Christian-like manner in which this reproof was administered, rather increased the social harmony and edifying conversation of the company, who became satisfied that it was very possible to err, even in desiring with undue earnestness "to depart and be with Christ," which in itself is "far better", than to remain in this imperfect state; and that it is the duty of the Christian in this respect to say, "All the days of my appointed time will I wait till my change come."
The Bible says,
For every beast of the forest is Mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.
Psalm 50:10
The Bible also says,
And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. {2} And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, {3}And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. {4} And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. {5} But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Revelation 20:1-5
Nobody interprets BOTH of these passages "literally." A declining number of people still attempt to interpret the passage from Revelation "literally." This is probably a mistake.
The term "millennium" comes from the Latin meaning "thousand years." It generally signifies "the Golden Age," when everybody lives in peace and obeys God. The two most important questions to be answered concerning this period of time are:
Another question that can be asked will answer both of these questions:
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Most people today believe that the Millennium comes about when Christ returns to the earth, and sets up His Kingdom, ruling from a throne in Jerusalem. They therefore believe Christ returns before (pre) the millennium, and are therefore called "pre-millennialists."
A growing number of Christians believe that Christ is ruling now, from Heaven, and is gradually subduing the earth, and will not return until after (post) all "millennial" prophecies of a universal reign of peace have been fulfilled. These people, called "post-millennialists," don't usually interpret the "thousand year" language literally.
A few Christians don't believe there will ever be a reign of peace on the earth. They are called "a-millennialists" (no + millennium).
The Old Testament prophets were clearly "pre-millennial." They believed that a Messiah would come and there would be a "Golden Age" in which everyone would sit safely under his "Vine & Fig Tree." Modern pre-millennialists, however, deny that this prophesied Messiah came, or they believe He must come again because -- for some reason -- He was not able to accomplish His plans the first time He came.
"Post-millennialists" generally (or "in theory") believe that Christ (the Messiah) does not bring about the Golden Age by force, but by regeneration and conversion through the Holy Spirit. Vine & Fig Tree is a vision of spontaneous, voluntary obedience. Premillennialists believe that preaching and teaching are inadequate; the Messiah must come again and kill off all unbelievers and rule with a "rod of iron."
In general, everyone who believes that Christ must come again believes in socialism; that the "free market" of the Holy Spirit working through obedient Christians is inadequate, and some form of top-down, military hierarchy is needed to bring about or maintain "the millennium."
So inadequate is the Holy Spirit to bring about the prophecies of the Old Testament, that everything is getting worse and worse, and soon the entire earth will be swallowed up by a Satanic Global Government, and the only hope for Christians is "the rapture," which will snatch all believers up from the earth, leaving unbelievers to create and experience the "7-year tribulation" in which billions will die from famine and nuclear war.
Vine & Fig Tree rejects this pessimism in no uncertain terms.
Vine & Fig Tree rejects this socialism in no uncertain terms.
"Preterism" comes from a word meaning "past." The preterist view teaches that everything necessary to bring about the fulfillment of all Old Testament prophecies took place in the past, namely at the First Christmas. There is no need for Christ to "come again." All the New Testament prophecies of a "coming again" have already been fulfilled. For most of us -- who have been infected to one degree or another by "premillennialism" -- this is tough medicine to swallow. But the disease (Secularism, Humanism, genocide, war, atheism) is worse than the medicine. The cure is nothing less than the wonder of Micah's Vine & Fig Tree vision.
If you have questions, please ask.
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Vine & Fig Tree
12314 Palm Dr. #107
Desert Hot Springs, CA 92240
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