What is this doctrine?  It is false, and will be proven as such, yet to be fair we must examine their views as well.

1. They believe that the Kingdom of David would be re-established.  But, when Christ came for the first time the Jews refused him so he went back to Heaven and will wait till a second time to come again.  They also believe that he left the Church as a temporary substitute.  They do NOT believe that the Church and the Kingdom are synonymous.

2. This doctrine and its believers use Revelation chapter 20 to explain that near the Second Coming and the end of the Church age, the righteous believers will be resurrected.  All of the Old Testament and New Testament believers will share in the first part of the resurrection.  Those still alive will have their bodies changed.

3. Then the “Rapture” (never mentioned in the Bible), will be the first stage of the Second Coming of Christ, in which the saints are taken into Heaven.  This will be done in as the “secret coming” of Matthew 24:36. 

4. Then the saints will spend 7 years in Heaven and they will be judged and given rewards and positions.  The marriage feast will also take place Revelation 19:7-9.

5. Then during the last 3 ½ years of this period, many on earth will be converted and the “Anti-Christ” will appear.  The Jews make a covenant with him, and all of the converted saints are killed before the Lord returns.  During this period “All Israel” is said to be saved (Romans 11:26).

6. Then comes the Second Coming.  This ends the tribulation after the battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16:16).  This is the second time of the first resurrection and the Gentiles are judged and disposed of.

7. The 1,000 year earthly reign of Christ on David’s throne Revelation 20:2.  Satan will be bound and sealed in a pit.  The Kingdom is on earth, the Gentiles will be converted.  National Israel will be supreme in all the earth.  Members of the Church will rule with Christ in Jerusalem.  There will be no temptation. 

8. At the end of this period Satan will be loosed for a little while Revelation 20:7.  Then the resurrection and judgment of the wicked.  Then there will be a reconditioned Heaven and Earth.  Only some will be in Heaven.  Many say this is the 144,000 chosen ones (Revelation 7:4).
 
 
 
 

REFUTING EACH OF THE EIGHT ITEMS DISCUSSED

I. (Refuting point 1) The Kingdom was Prophesied and that was fulfilled/Thus the Kingdom/Church are the same and currently in effect – not waiting for a second return! 

A. The Kingdom was Prophesied
B. The Kingdom was Established
C. The Kingdom and the Church are one in the same (The Church was not a “substitute” for the Kingdom until Christ came again)
D. Correcting this false doctrine with simple Bible truth

A. Prophesy

An Everlasting Kingdom
KJV Daniel 2:44
 44.  And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

The Kingdom of the Son of Man
KJV Daniel 7:13-14
13.  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
 14.  And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

**(The Son of Man was Christ)**
KJV Matthew 8:19-20
19.  And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.
 20.  And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

Christ as who I the son of man am
KJV Matthew 16:13-18
 13.  When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
 14.  And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
 15.  He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
 16.  And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
 17.  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
 18.  And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
 

B. The Kingdom was Established

At hand
KJV Matthew 3:2
 2.  And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

While some present were still there the Kingdom would come**With POWER
KJV Mark 9:1
 1.  And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.

The Holy Spirit will come with POWER
KJV Acts 1:8
 8.  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The Holy Spirit came with power
KJV Acts 2:1-4
1.  And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
 2.  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
 3.  And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
4. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

C. The Kingdom and Church are one in the same

The Colossians were translated into HIS KINGDOM, NOTE VERSE 18 (Also note: that the Kingdom had to exist to be added to it)
KJV Colossians 1:13-18
13  Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14  In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
15  Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
16  For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
17  And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
18  And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

They were in a non-existent Kingdom????
KJV 1 Thessalonians 2:12
12.  That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory.

We are taken from darkness into the Kingdom, the same as Baptism into the Church (coincidence?) 
KJV 1 Corinthians 12:12-13
 12.  For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
 13.  For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

The Church is the Body and he is head of it as well
KJV Ephesians 1:22-23
 22.  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
 23.  Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Forgiveness of sins in the Kingdom (Colossians 1:14)– through baptism 
KJV Acts 2:38
 38.  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Then as you are added to the same Church/Kingdom
KJV Acts 2:47
 47.  Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

Wherein is Salvation
KJV Ephesians 5:23
23. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

D. More Correction of their error on point 1 with simple Bible truth

1. Rejection was promised therefore would not have persuaded Christ to change his plan

The Prophesy of the rejection and death of Christ
KJV Isaiah 53:1-12
1.  Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?
 2.  For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.
 3.  He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
 4.  Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
 5.  But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
 6.  All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
 7.  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
 8.  He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.
 9.  And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
 10.  Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
 11.  He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
 12.  Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

They would reject the head stone of the corner
KJV Psalms 118:22-23
22.  The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.
 23.  This is the Lord's doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.

This is Christ
KJV Ephesians 2:20
20. And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

2. They love to go to Revelation

The same John that has penned many of the key verses they use penned this:
KJV Revelation 1:9
9. I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.  (Was John in a make believe Kingdom?)

II. Refuting the “First Resurrection” Doctrine (Revelation 20:5-6) and points 4,5, and 6.

They admit that Christ will come without warning, and they use Matthew 24:36 to show this.  Yet they think that this coming will be secret.  The inspired word disagrees with this view!  They also fail to recognize that we will be with the Lord forever, if faithful, and that the elements of this earth will be destroyed.
KJV 2 Peter 3:5-18
 5.  For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
 6.  Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
 7.  But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
 8.  But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
 9.  The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
 10.  But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
 11.  Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
 12.  Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?
 13.  Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
 14.  Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
 15.  And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
 16.  As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
 17.  Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
 18.  But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

It will not be quiet!  We all will rise up (to the judgment seat of Christ), the dead being first!
KJV 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
 16.  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
 17.  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Then the dividing of right from wrong (Not rapture) – Rapture is no where in the Bible – the idea is that the saved will be secretly taken into Heaven just before “Armageddon”.
KJV Matthew 25:31-34
 31.  When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:
 32.  And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
 33.  And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
 34.  Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:

There will be no more chances for salvation, for the judgments will be eternal
KJV Matthew 25:46
 46.  And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

III. Refuting the 1,000 year reign and the 144,000 and The Anti-Christ – also the final Battle

Anti-Christ – They are looking for one to come out, the Bible says they have, many of them and defines an “anti-christ”
KJV 1 John 2:17-22
17.  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
 18.  Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
 19.  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.
 20.  But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.
 21.  I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth.
 22.  Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.
 

Premillennialism 1,000 year reign

Will never occur because-

They wanted him to, but he did not want to
KJV John 6:14-15
14.  Then those men, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that prophet that should come into the world.
 15.  When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.

Heaven is His throne, earth is his footstool
KJV Acts 7:49
 49.  Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?

He said his Kingdom is not of this world
KJV John 18:36
 36.  Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.

(Follow this line of thought)
He will be a priest on his throne
KJV Zechariah 6:12-13
12.  And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The Branch; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord:
 13.  Even he shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.

He is our High Priest
KJV Hebrews 4:14
14.  Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

This is not changeable
KJV Hebrews 7:24
24.  But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.

The unchangeable would have to change for him to reign on earth
KJV Hebrews 8:4
 4.  For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:

This theory teaches that Christ will come prior, before (pre) his millennium-reign (1000 years). Matthew 24 is one of the key areas for this doctrine. 
Verse 21 is the key to their doctrine in Matthew 24. 

KJV Matthew 24:21-22 
21. For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened. 

Verses 21-22 
A great tribulation in which 97,000 Jews were captured and 1,100,000 Jews perished. These facts are provided according to historian Flavius Josephus. 
 

They then tie the following passages to this. Stating at this point is the great battle of Armageddon. 

KJV Revelation 7:14 
14. And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 

KJV Revelation 19:19-21 
19. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. 
20. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. 
21. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh. 

This verse is the only in which the term Armageddon is used!
KJV Revelation 16:15-16
 15.  Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
 16.  And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

If we would we read this chapter, we should and even will all agree that this is not literal, but refers in scripted, figurative language that God would send his wrath on the ungodly.  Remembering that the book of Revelation is written so that the enemy could not inherit the knowledge of hope that is contained therein.  John, by inspiration, is giving a last jolt of hope to suffering Christians.

Understanding Megiddo, Har-Magedon,  the hill of Megiddo – 
This place is known as a place of battles –
Judges chapter 4, 5, and 7 for instance.  The place near Kishon.  A hill near 70 feet in height.  A place in which victory was taken. 

If we use the references to places that are in Revelation we can see why and how this was used.  This is a place that meant victory after a long battle. 

John used Zion 14:1, and Jerusalem 21:2 as symbols of God’s spiritual city.  Babylon as apostasy 14:8, Sodom and Egypt of corruption and sin 11:8.  This too is how the reference is, but as all scripture, a false teacher will try and divide the truth.

Again we must refer to the great passage in this same chapter – verse 34, These things will occur in this generations lifetime. To claim that Christ will reign when he comes is to forget:

KJV 2 Peter 3:10 
10. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. 
 

144,000 will be saved?
 
 

This false theory indicates that Christ will not save his body the Church as he promised
KJV Ephesians 5:23
 23.  For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

This false theory makes more than one body and more than one hope
KJV Ephesians 4:4
4.  There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

Remission of sins was to bring forth salvation
KJV Luke 1:77
 77.  To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,

Which is obtained through baptism
KJV Acts 2:38
38.  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Of which baptism is to save
KJV 1 Peter 3:20-21
20.  Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
 21.  The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

This false doctrine makes knowing the gospel or not knowing it of no effect
KJV 2 Thessalonians 1:6-11
6  Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;
7  And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8  In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9  Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
10  When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.
11  Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:

Conclusion:
Do not be deceived by the teaching of this doctrine.  The Bible is clear on the judgment.  We will be judged on our obedience!  These teachers have changed the word of God and tried to make it a lie. 
This is serving man not God
KJV Romans 1:21-25
 21.  Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
 22.  Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
 23.  And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
 24.  Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
 25.  Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

The Bible in its simplicity does not refer to the nature of this doctrine.  Teachers of this doctrine take figurative and make it literal and vice versa.  The shame is in how many actually believe this doctrine.

This doctrine has a must that the Kingdom is of this world, when in fact it cannot and is not (John 18:36)!
 

Copyright 2000 by Brian Yeager may be reproducted for non-commercial purposes at no cost to others.