David Brown

In this series, The Great Commission and Biblical Prophecy, we’re considering Jesus’ prophecy about the temple’s destruction (Matt 24:1–2), the disciples’ questions regarding the timing and the signs related to it (Matt 24:3), and Jesus’ response to their questions. We’re in the section where the Lord gives the signs (Matt…

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). This verse causes some readers to doubt inmillennialism. For…

Paul tells the Thessalonians of his desire to be present with them but says “Satan hindered us” (1 Thess 2:18). Most commentators express uncertainty about Paul’s meaning here, but I want to make a suggestion that, if true, will help us understand God’s prophetic word: Satan was using Israel after…

Pentecost provided the Power the church needs to accomplish its mission to “make disciples of all the nations” (Matt 28:19). Jesus had instructed the apostles to abide in Jerusalem until it came. He said, “you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be…

Prophetic models and their underlying assumptions influence how we interpret Scripture. The atheist Bertrand Russell believed Jesus taught his coming, the end of history, and the kingdom’s arrival would occur simultaneously. Further, he believed Jesus said they would happen in his generation based on passages like Matt 16:27–28; 24:1–3, 34.…

This brief post will make a single point—Jesus used standard prophetic imagery to describe the Temple’s destruction. The need to establish this point is clear. In the Olivet Discourse (Mark 13:1–27), Jesus spoke about the Temple’s destruction. His disciples asked two questions about this prophecy: when would “these things” happen…

Our last post mentioned that inmillennialism rests on pillars found in the Olivet Discourse. We examined the definitions of four key words. We also mentioned two other supports: a key prophetic image and a literary device. This post will discuss the image and our next post will consider the literary…

We are using our prophetic model (inmillennialism) to interpret selected passages in Matthew. We have come to a passage (Matt 13:46–52) that contains two sayings of Jesus. The setting is important. Jesus gave them in the “last days” (Heb 1:2) of the Mosaic age. He was about to take the…

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). This verse causes some readers to doubt inmillennialism.…

Please don’t allow a little word to intimidate you. Syllogism may sound scary, but it is our friend. It is “a formal argument consisting of a major and a minor premise and a conclusion.” For example, “every virtue is laudable; kindness is a virtue; therefore kindness is laudable.” This post…