Always Victorious! The Earliest Church Not Pre - But Post-Millennial

by Francis Nigel Lee

Many modern Pretribulationists and other Dispensationalists claim that most (if not all) of the first Early Church Fathers were Rapturists. Such believe Jesus could return "any moment" to resurrect dead Christians and then secretly "rapture" His dwindling though still-living Church "up in the air" before "the great tribulation" of ungodly earthlings. Thereafter, the Church would then return and rule with Christ on Earth for a thousand years - until God would resurrect the wicked dead. That notion is false. Neither the Church of the Older Testament (even when under foreign domination) nor the always-struggling and often-persecuted Church of the Newer Testament ever expected to dwindle or to be whisked away; but only to conquer this great planet Earth under her victorious Messiah. That Church expected God not to the rapture her - but to heal the World His Son had come to save.

Genres: Theology

41 pages, Paperback

First published January 22, 2006

About the author

Francis Nigel Lee, born in 1934, is a Preacher, theologian, lawyer, educationist, historian, philosopher and author.

Dr. Lee's father was an Atheist, who married a Roman Catholic. Lee's mother raised him in that faith. At the onset of the Second World War, the Lee family moved to South Africa.

Dr. Lee is a Calvinist and a postmillennialist. He is a strong advocate of infant baptism.

After he moved to South Africa, Dr. Lee became a Calvinist, and later a Minister of Word and Sacraments in the Reformed Church of Natal.

After emigrating to the US, he attended the first General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in America, and became a minister of that denomination. Within the PCA he pastored congregations in Mississippi and Florida.

Lee has produced more than 300 publications (including many books), some of which are available at his website.

Reviews

[Alan Fuller · Rating 2 out of 5]

Postmillenialism believes the influence of the Church on the world will increase, producing greater righteousness. Christ's Second coming is seen as occurring after the one-thousand years, which many in this school of thought believe is ushered in by the church. This idea was popular in the 17th through 19th centuries, but lost popularity in the 20th century due to world wars and strife.

Lee seeks to show that postmillennialism is the belief of the early church. It seems like a case of special pleading to me, but he certainly has the academic credentials to make such a case.

He doesn't mention the six days of creation and six thousand years of history, which is central to the understanding of many of the fathers he cites. I think he also refers to Victorinus that was modified by Jerome rather than the original.

[Tim Zornes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very informative on the historic church's optimistic view of the future. Odd structure and formatting makes it difficult to follow a complete thought.