Amillennial or premillennial; no unified position across congregations
Churches of Christ have no unified millennial position. Early Restoration Movement figures like David Lipscomb were amillennial, rejecting premillennialism as speculative and unscriptural. However, premillennial views have been held by significant minorities throughout the fellowship's history and have occasionally caused controversy (as in the premillennialist controversy of the mid-20th century).
Mainstream Churches of Christ are generally amillennial or simply non-committal on the millennium question. The fellowship's commitment to 'the silence of Scripture' — not binding where Scripture does not speak clearly — means that many preachers and teachers avoid detailed millennial speculation. The second coming and final judgment are affirmed, but the 1,000-year reign of Revelation 20 is interpreted in various ways.
Key Distinctions
- Millennium view:
- amillennial — the Kingdom of God is the church; no future earthly reign
- Rapture view:
- no rapture; one final judgment
- Israel role:
- church as spiritual Israel
Scripture References
Sources
- David Lipscomb, Civil Government (1889)
- Foy E. Wallace Jr., The Book of Revelation (1966)