Neo - Calvinism v ersus Two - Kingdoms: an eschatological assessment

Abstract

Recent debates about the church and society in Reformed evangelical circles are often characterised as a disagreement between neo-Calvinist and Two-Kingdoms approaches. The two positions are summarised, highlighting their views of the mission of the church in relation to the wider culture and how this relates to eschatology. The two approaches are assessed in terms of their view of the timing, scope and implications of Christian hope. The discussion shows some of the implications for engagement in the public square which flow from this analysis. The two-kingdoms approach stresses that redemption is not yet realised, while neo-Calvinists seem to under emphasise this. The neo-Calvinist emphasis on God's redemption of all of creation is equally important and Two-kingdoms typically they do not identify this or draw out its implications. The two-kingdoms approach asserts that the church has no social agenda and Neo-Calvinism tends to give a priority to the church scattered over the church gathered and its accompanying institutions. A biblical eschatology suggests that there is a social ethic bound closely to the life of the church. The article concludes that understanding the church as the anticipation, now, of the redemption of the whole of creation is the key to thinking about how we live in the culture. The church is to be a genuine counter-culture seeking to engage, witness to, challenge and bless the culture.