THE POSTPONEMENT OF THE KINGDOM

Revised from a paper on the topic from www.middletownbiblechurch.org

When Christ came the first time Israel, as a nation, did not repent and the kingdom was postponed. When Christ comes the second time, Israel will repent and will receive their Messiah (Zech. 12:10-14; Matt. 23:39; Rom. 11:1-36). There is a false teaching which says that the Church has replaced Israel in God's program, and the Church has claimed Israel's kingdom. The technical name for this erroneous view is Replacement Theology. However, it is helpful to remember:

(1) When the kingdom is finally restored to Israel, it is a continuation of the same historical, theocratic, earthly kingdom. The very same tabernacle of David that fell will be restored, not some new, revised, or spiritual version of the kingdom (Amos 9:11; Acts 1:6; 15:16-18).

(2) When the kingdom is offered again, God guarantees that Israel will repent and receive her Messiah. In other words, there is no possibility of Israel rejecting Christ the second time, and thus postponing the kingdom yet again. We know this is so because: a) It is based upon the sure word of prophecy (Zech.12:10-13:1). b) It is based upon the provisions of the New Covenant which assure Israel of a new heart, the Holy Spirit, and thus obedience (Ezek.36:24-28). c) It is based upon the nature of the New Covenant which is unconditional. God had declared, "I will..." (Jer. 31:31-34).

Anyone who takes the kingdom passages seriously in their normal and natural sense knows that what the prophets described is certainly not being fulfilled in our day. Notice just a few of the amazing descriptions of the future kingdom: 1) A king will rule the world from Jerusalem (Isa. 2:1-4; Jer. 23:5-6); 2) Wars will cease, and there will be peace throughout the earth (Mic. 4:3); 3) People will be healed of diseases, and there will be no sickness (Isa. 33:24; 35:5-6); 4) People will enjoy amazing longevity (Isa. 65:20-22); and 5) There will be a drastic change in the nature of animals (Isa. 11:6-9).

The concept of postponement of the kingdom is not unique in the Bible. God postponed His judgment on Nineveh because they repented at the preaching of Jonah (Matt. 12:41). He did so in Ahab's case (1Kgs. 21:29). He did so in Hezekiah's case (2 Kgs. 20:5-6). He postponed night for Joshua (Josh. 10:13. He has postponed "Elijah's" coming, for had the Jews accepted Christ, John the Baptizer would have been the fulfillment of that prophecy (Mal. 4:5; Matt. 11:14; 17:10-12; Rev. 11:3-12). And, He will postpone Satan's sentence to eternity in the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:1-10). Our God is the same, yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8)!