Amillennialism - What is it?

Quick answer

Amillennialism teaches that Christ’s millennial reign is not a literal 1,000-year period but a spiritual reality, beginning at His resurrection and continuing through the Church. Amillennialism interprets end-times prophecies symbolically, believing Christ rules in the hearts of believers, rather than in a future earthly kingdom.

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Amillennialism is one of the many views regarding the millennial kingdom—the thousand-year reign of Christ during the end times. The names of these beliefs, including premillennialism and postmillennialism, do not refer to when the millennial kingdom will occur but to when Christ will return to earth in relation to the kingdom. "Amillennialism" is a bit of a misnomer. Linguistically, the word means there will be no ("a") thousand-year ("millennial") kingdom. In actuality, those who ascribe to amillennialism believe that the millennial kingdom is not literal. That is, it is neither one thousand years nor a physical reign of Christ. Amillennialism was championed by St. Augustine and is the view held by the Roman Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church, and many Protestants. Like postmillennialism, amillennialism "spiritualizes" the prophecies regarding the end times, refusing to take them literally.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

Amillennialism goes even further than postmillennialism in spiritualizing the prophecies by claiming they will not be fulfilled literally. The peaceful kingdom (Micah 4:2–4), the lion laying down with the lamb (Isaiah 11:6–9), and the borders of the Palestinian Covenant (Genesis 17:7–8) are all considered metaphors, along with the thousand-year time period (Revelation 20:2–7). Instead, amillennialism teaches that the millennial kingdom is manifest either in the hearts of the saints who have died and now rest with Him—the minority view—or in the hearts of all who follow Him on earth—the most common belief. This point of view, and the scholars who originated it, is informed more by Greek philosophy than biblical truth. The popular view of Gnosticism taught that the physical was corrupted, and only the spiritual was capable of good. It was a short slide to then believe that the perfect Son of God could not rule over a physical kingdom, so His reign must be over the immaterial hearts and souls of mankind.

The point of the millennial kingdom has always been to establish Christ's rule on earth and to fulfill the prophecies of God's blessings on His people that have yet to be fulfilled (Deuteronomy 29:1–29; 1 Chronicles 17:11–14; Jeremiah 31:31, 33).

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

Amillennialism alters the timeline of the end times to fit replacement theology and spiritualizes the millennial kingdom. Amillennialists believe that Christ's kingdom was established at His resurrection. The "first resurrection" (Revelation 20:4–6) does not refer to the physical resurrection of the saints, as premillennialism teaches, but to a spiritual resurrection, that is, the point in history when the Holy Spirit became available to dwell in the hearts of the believers. The "kingdom," then, is a kingdom in spirit only and lasts until Jesus's second coming. The second coming is concurrent with the rapture of the believers. Everyone will be judged, and then the second resurrection will return physical bodies to souls. The eternal state will immediately follow.

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

Like many theological beliefs, amillennialism was born from a combination of human cultural influence and a reluctance to believe God meant His Word as literal truth. Despite the many ways scholars try to convince us otherwise, God did not create the physical to be bad. Adam and Eve had physical bodies in a physical world, and God called it "very good" (Genesis 1:31). God came down to earth as a physical being (Luke 2). When Jesus was resurrected, it was with a physical body (Luke 24:42–43). And the prophecies that have already been fulfilled were done so literally and physically. There is no need for a different method of interpretation for the yet unfulfilled prophecies—God's power is not dependent upon our ability to understand how He will manifest it.

UNDERSTAND

Amillennialism sees Christ’s reign as a spiritual, not literal, 1,000-year kingdom.

Amillennialism interprets end-times prophecies symbolically.

Amillennialism necessitates replacement theology, transferring Israel’s promises to the Church.

REFLECT

How does your view of Christ’s reign shape your understanding of His promises for the future?

How does believing in a spiritual versus a literal kingdom affect how you live out your faith today?

How do you approach biblical prophecy—symbolically, literally, or a mix of both—and why?

ENGAGE

Like postmillennialists, amillennialists believe in replacement theology, or supersessionism. This theology teaches that the unfulfilled prophecies, promising peace under Christ's reign and blessings to His people, do not apply to Israel. They believe Israel's work in God's plan is finished, and all unfulfilled prophecies have been transferred to the Church. This is a common view despite the fact that no literal interpretation of the Bible supports it. How does the concept of replacement theology influence our understanding of Israel’s role in God’s plan?

How does amillennialism compare to other views of the millennium, and what are the key differences?

What are the implications of interpreting biblical prophecy symbolically versus literally?