Origin of MILLENNIUM REIGN

MILLENNIUM REIGN

The Millennium reign doctrine began as a Judaism doctrine called the Schism. The Jews believed that the millennium or Schism would be a natural reign, where the Messiah would reign upon the earth, with a earthly kingdom. It is why they rejected Christ, for Christ said the "Kingdom is within you" and there is no end to that Kingdom. It is not for a thousand years but forever. "Neander's History of Christian Dogmas, Vol. 1 Page 248.

"The idea of a Millennial reign proceeded from Judaism; for among the Jews the representation was current that the Messiah would reign a thousand years upon earth... Such products of Jewish imagination passed over into Christianity.

The Millennium was introduced or started from a "heretic" named Cerinthus, in the first century as spoken by history in Eusebius's Ecclesiastical History, Book III, Chapter 28, is a fragment from the writings of Caius, who lived in the last of the second century, which gives us the following account of Cerinthus's heresy:

"But Cerinthus, too, through revelations written, as he would have us believe, by a great apostle, brings before us marvelous things, which he pretends were shown to him by angels; alleging that after the resurrection the kingdom of Christ is to be on earth, and that the flesh dwelling in Jerusalem is again to be subject to desires and pleasures. And being an enemy to the scriptures of God," , wishing to deceive men, he says that there is to be space of a thousand years for marriage festivities" "One of the doctrines he taught was, that Christ would have an earthly kingdom."

This is the true origin of the thousand year reign theory. Notice how the history of Caius, how lightly he speaks of Cerinthus idea of the thousand year reign being here on earth after the resurrection. He says this doctrine was

"something which Cerinthus pretends was shown to him by angels."

Caius must have believed the orthodox teachings of the scriptures, that Christ's kingdom was set up at His first coming. Notice how Caius calls Cerinthus "an enemy to the scriptures of God," and one who was "wishing to deceive men."

Now Cerinthus lived in the same time of Apostle John, the author of Revelations, and the following is how the Apostle John felt about Cerinthus:

Irenaeus, an early church father lived around 120 A.D. and was acquainted with Polycarp, the disciple of Apostle John and wrote the following:

[Eusebius's Eccl. Hist., V. 24], states that while Apostle John was at Ephesus, he entered a bath to wash and found that Cerinthus was within, and refused to bathe in the same bath house, but left the building, and exhorted those with him to do the same, saying "let us flee, lest the bath fall in, as long as Cerinthus, that enemy of the truth is within"
Eusebius's Eccl. Hist., III. 28.

Apostle John was calling the heretic Cerinthus, the originator of the thousand year reign, a "liar".

The modern Millennium teachers leave off the sensual living part, but teach the earthly reign part.

How did the early church feel about the doctrine of a "thousand year reign?" They taught that "they are not to be heard who assure themselves that there is to be an earthly reign of a thousand years." which this doctrine was not allowed in the church up until around the 16th Century, when John Darby and D.L. Moody revived the doctrine of Cerinthus about an earthly reign of a thousand years and they brought it to the United States, where many denominations took it and run with it, except the Primitive Baptist and the Old Regular Baptist. Also there are others but don't have time to research it as of now.

What was the doctrine of the Early Church?

"Christ is the rock on which, and by which the church is found", also "The kingdom of Christ is within you and is now and is eternal, not just a thousand years."

"It was the universal feeling among primitive Christians that they were living in the last period of the world's history." Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. VIII., Page 534.

The reason the early church believed the above, was because of the New Testament was their faith, and this is the doctrine of the New Testament throughout. No wonder Cerinthus and His follows

"rejected part of St. Matthew's Gospel, and held the epistles of Paul in great abhorrence." As do the modern Millennium teachers dwell very little in the Gospels and Epistles to prove their doctrines, but go to the "book of Daniel" and other books in Old Testament. Also they use the one phrase in Revelation of a thousand years, which say plainly it was the souls, that lived and reign with Christ a thousand years and no where says it will be here on this earth, in an earthly kingdom.

Now the early church having rejected the doctrine of Cerinthus's thousand year reign, the doctrine was revived by Papias, who lived in the first half of the second century, but Historian generally tell us that Papias was a very zealous advocate of this imaginary reign of Christ on earth.

Eusebius, under the heading of "The Writings of Papias" says the following of Papias.

"The same historian also gives other accounts, which he says he adds as received by him from unwritten tradition, likewise some strange parables of our Lord, and of his doctrine, and some other matters rather too fabulous. In these he says there would be a certain Millennium after the resurrection, and that there would be a corporeal reign of Christ on this very earth;; which things he appears to have imagined, as if they were authorized by the apostolic narrations, not understanding correctly those matters which they propounded mystically in their representations. For he was very limited in his comprehension, as is evident from his discourses" Eusebius's Eccl. Hist., Book m, Chap. 39, Page 115.

Nonetheless, it was silenced by the church until around the 16th Century.

The Historians:

"The first distinguished opponent of this doctrine was Origen, who attacked it with great earnestness and ingenuity and seems, in spite of some opposition to have thrown it in general discredit" Wadington's History, Page 56.

" This obscure doctrine was probably known to but very few except the Fathers of the church, and is very sparingly mentioned by them during the first two centuries; and there is reason to believe that it scarcely attained much notoriety even among the learned Christians, until it was made a matter of controversy by Origen, and then rejected by the great majority. In fact we find Origen himself asserting that it was confined to those of the simpler sort." Wadington's History, Page 56.

Another advocate of this doctrine was Nepos, a bishop in Egypt. He advocated the doctrine about A. D. 255. The following is what Eusebius's History, Book VII, Chapter 23, under the heading of "Nepos, and His Schism.":

"He taught that the promises given to holy men in the scriptures should be understood more as The Jews understood them, and supposed that there would be a certain Millennium of sensual luxury on this earth; thinking, therefore, that he could establish his own opinion by the Revelation of Apostle John...He, Nepos asserts that there will be an earthly reign of Christ."

"Through Millennialism had been suppressed by the early church, it was nevertheless from time to time revived by heretical sects," Dr. Schaff's History, Page 299.

"No where in the discourses of Jesus is there a hint of a limited duration of the Messianic Kingdom. The apostolic epistles are equally free from any trace of Chiliasm (thousand year reign)." Encyclopedia Britannica---Articles on Millennium.

So, the theory of a thousand year reign (on earth), throughout history was gathered from Jewish fabulous "apocalypse", "unwritten tradition," carnal misapprehensions," "pretended visions," "suppositions," and "superstitious imaginations."

This vain belief is why the Jews rejected Christ, for they were looking for an earthly kingdom, and He brought a "spiritual" Kingdom. They only wanted an earthly kingdom, so the crucified Him, the Son of God. So many are still looking for that Earthly Kingdom, and fail to realize the Kingdom is at hand.

"The thousand year reign, was only for the souls that lived and reign with Christ for a thousand years, and was Spiritual, to Christ's reign, THERE IS NO END, BUT FOR ETERNITY.

http://pages.suddenlink.net/orb/orb/millennium_reign.htm

Fascinating..so...

The millenial reign is a revived heresy that was there very early in the Church.

Heres the wiki entry on this Cerinthus dude:

Cerinthus (c. 100 AD) was a gnostic and to some, an early Christian, who was prominent as a "heresiarch" in the view of the early Church Fathers.[1] Contrary to proto-orthodox Christianity, Cerinthus's school followed the Jewish law, used the Gospel according to the Hebrews, denied that the Supreme God had made the physical world, and denied the divinity of Jesus. In Cerinthus' interpretation, the Christ came to Jesus at baptism, guided him in his ministry, but left him at the crucifixion.

He taught that Jesus would establish a thousand-year reign of sensuous pleasure after the Second Coming but before the General Resurrection, a view that was declared heretical by the Council of Nicaea. Cerinthus used a version of the gospel of Matthew as scripture.

Cerinthus taught at a time when Christianity's relation to Judaism and to Greek philosophy had not yet been clearly defined. In his association with the Jewish law and his modest assessment of Jesus, he was similar to the Ebionites and to other Jewish Christians. In defining the world's creator as the demiurge, he matched Greek dualism philosophy and anticipated the Gnostics.

Early Christian tradition describes Cerinthus as a contemporary to and opponent of John the Evangelist, who wrote the First Epistle of John and the Second Epistle of John to warn the less mature in faith and doctrine about the changes he was making to the original gospel.[2][3] All we know about Cerinthus comes from the writing of his theological opponents.

LINK: Cerinthus - WIKI

Funny that the pre-mils never hold this guy up as an early proponent of their eschy views eh?

Prolly coz early Christians called him out as a HERETIC!

Strangelove wrote:In his association with the Jewish law and his modest assessment of Jesus, he was similar to the Ebionites and to other Jewish Christians.

I really dont want it to, but the info just keep going back to those who call themselves 'Jews'.

Now...we know from our studies of talmudism that the Earthly millenial reign of the 'messiach' appears in the Babylonian talmud which was eventually compiled (Mishna) after Cerinthus in about 200-220 AD, but of course that was just the written version of the oral traditions that were going around from at least 500BC.

So it wouldnt be a stretch to assume that this early 'christian' who was really into Judaic laws, got his erroneus millenial reign doctrine from......the rabbis.