The Millennium

Key Verse: Isaiah 2:3-4
Many people shall come and say, Come, let us go up into the mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore.

Question: What does the key verse mean to you?

LESSON:

The word “millennium” means a period of one thousand years. It might even surprise some to find out that the term millennium or The Millennium is not found in most Bibles, however, there are several verses that mention a time period of one thousand years and many more verses that can only apply to this time period. The first verse to mention this specific time period is Revelation 20:1-3: “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.” From these verses we find a wonderful thing has happened! Satan, the “god” of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4) who has deceived the whole world (Revelation 12:9), will no longer be able to influence this world with his lies, doubts, and half-truths. His evil influence will be put on hold for one thousand years! For the first time since the fall of man, in the garden of Eden, approximately six thousand years ago, the world will be able to get the truth straight from Jesus Christ Himself without any being or spirit to interfere with or distort God’s Truths. Continue on in Revelation 20:4-6 and we see the first resurrection taking place and the saints ruling with Christ for the whole one thousand year period. Those who overcome the world and remain obedient to the end will have the power to rule nations with a rod of iron (Revelation 2:26-27). This will all take place on the Earth (Revelation 5:10). Jesus, when talking to the disciples about the last days before His return, said in Matthew 24:22, “And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.” Jesus returns to the Earth to set up His Kingdom just before mankind destroys himself. For more study material about the Kingdom of God and where it will be, ask for our Bible study on “Heaven and the Kingdom of God.”

The Millennium is the first step in establishing God’s Kingdom or the Kingdom of Heaven here on this Earth (Daniel 2:44; Daniel 7:22). From our Key Verse we see the following: God’s Kingdom is established, nations flow to it to learn God’s ways, God’s law is still in effect, and nations learn war no more. These verses, along with others, show that there will still be some people left alive here on Earth when Jesus returns. When the Millennium begins, there will be Jesus Christ, our King, the saints who will rule with Him, and the nations or people that are left alive after the terrible tribulation. If only five percent of the world’s current population were left alive, that would still be a large number of people. Let’s look at additional verses to see what this thousand year period of time will be like without Satan’s influence and Jesus Christ as King. It will be a time of justice, even for the meek and the poor (Isaiah 11:4-9). Verses 6-9 tell us that the animals will be at peace with man and each other, just like it was in the Garden of Eden. The deaf and the blind (physically and spiritually) will hear and see again (Isaiah 29:18). The Earth will be changed and the lame will leap (Isaiah 35:1, 6). It will be a time of rich increase (Joel 3:18). A time for the whole world to keep the Feast of Tabernacles (Zechariah 14:16). and also punishment for those that won’t (Zechariah 14:17-19). The Earth will one day be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord (Habakkuk 2:14) and the Good News is that you can take part in teaching and ruling with Christ during the Millennium if you are in the first resurrection (Revelation 5:10). God is not calling people so that they can retire in heaven and just float around on the clouds. No, He wants you to help in His Kingdom during the Millennium. He is willing to give you a new body with God-Like powers and knowledge to help change this world into a paradise. He wants us to teach and demonstrate to others the way of love, true peace, and happiness. However, there is something standing in the way of most people from accepting this offer from God. It’s called sin. Our sins are made worse and hidden from our own eyes by Satan, the master deceiver. Some people won’t accept God’s offer in this life. God won’t call some people until after Satan has been locked away during the Millennium, but maybe you are one that will heed God’s call now and will get to serve in the Millennium and to take part in the first resurrection, the better resurrection.