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Not since George Ladd wrote on Historical Premillennialism, has a significant book been published on this view of eschatology. Two Denver Seminary Professors each wrote a chapter and edited others in A Case for Historic Premillennialism: An Alternative to "Left Behind" Eschatology, just out this month from Baker Academic of Baker Publishing Group of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Four other Denver professors join these men along with two professors from other seminaries. The book gives new ideas to our discussion in my opinion.
- Who is to say we escape the tribulation? The book argues "I actually think the doctrine of the tribulation is more important than the doctrine of the millennium." (p. 69)
- Believers "will be the ones left behind--on earth to enjoy the glory and grandeur of reigning with Christ during the millennium." (p. 78)
- Why do certain segments in the church dismiss the study of eschatology? Blomberg suggests on page 65 "With the rise of modern (and now postmodern) liberalism, many authors have simply dismissed biblical apocalyptic as the outmoded husk or shell into which the ancients placed their eschatological beliefs. One need not even debate the timing of the rapture, so the argument goes, because we cannot expect a literal rapture ever to occur, or a literal second coming of Christ for that matter. At best, biblical apocalyptic represents, according to this view, theological encouragement, in primitive garb, for beleaguered Christians that God can and will work through the events of this world and through his people to create a better world and that God's people need not fear that the world will become as bad as it could possibly be."
- Book's summary. "The logical corollary of classic dispensationalism is that the world is going to hell in a handbasket and the most we can hope to do is save souls before the end is upon us and we have no further opportunity to do so. Postmillennialism, followed consistently, engenders an unbridled optimism in what God wants to do in Christianizing the earth through his Spirit-filled followers, an optimism that is hard to mesh with humanity's experience in any prolonged period of world history. Amillennialism and historic premillennialism both acknowledge the 'already but not yet' inaugurated kingdom of God, and both allow for God to still want to do great good on this earth through his people and for the devil to still wreak great havoc." p. 172
