A Defense of The Millennial Kingdom of Christ | Revelation 20:1-6 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (9/6/26)

Glorious songs about a glorious Christ. Amen. Well, as you heard, we came back from conference. And by God's grace, we saw people come to Christ for the first time. We saw people Yes, we can applaud that.

Why don't we applaud that? Praise God. We saw people who've been walking with Christ for decades be refreshed by the presence of the Lord. And I'm sure that there are stories and testimonies that we have not heard of that one day we will hear about. And I don't think there is a year that goes by without someone saying that the conference we get to enjoy every year is a taste of heaven on earth.

And perhaps, you share that with someone after last weekend especially if it was your first time. But I found myself this year asking why is that? What is it about that particular weekend that makes it so blissful and serene? And I think there are a few things. I think it's a combination of factors actually.

Number one, it's an answer to our prayers that God's presence would be so known and his peace would be enhanced. Besides that, you also have the heightened focus on prayer, praise, fellowship, being with God's people that seems to distract us in a good way from other things. There is also the extended communion that we have with other Christians from different places around the world really, but have one thing in common. A dominant love for Jesus Christ gushing from the heart. Moreover, if you were there last weekend, you saw the beauty of that place, right?

The lake and the trees and the fields and the lands, everything included. It's a constant reminder as we're surrounded by such majesty of the the beauty of God, his power, his glory. So even creation itself speaks louder it seems in a place like that. And although, our conference is a day more than the average weekend retreat, it's a consensus really, it's unanimous. People want it to be longer, and they ask for it sometimes.

And I think another reason for that is because when you go there, it seems to be a time and place when our daily temptations, our fears, afflictions and sorrows are hushed. As we are fixed on eternal realities for a brief amount of time, at least in a more intense way. But have you ever wondered if such an atmosphere and the interactions that we share there can can go beyond the glory that we taste together? Can it even get better than that? Have you ever wondered if such a holy environment can exist beyond just a conference center in Michigan, but can actually cover a city, a state, a nation, the globe?

And is it possible, can you imagine, can you fathom something like what we experienced last week and last thing not just three nights every year but I don't know for something like a thousand years uninterrupted. Well, this may surprise you but there is a truth in the bible that promises a day when the world will come under such submission to Christ that he will usher in a utopia unlike anything that we've ever known in history. And this golden age to come is commonly known as the millennium or the millennial kingdom of Christ. You've probably heard that term before, but in case you haven't, the the word millennium is Latin and all it means is a thousand years. And it speaks of the doctrine of how the Lord Jesus Christ when he physically returns will rule and reign on the earth for a period of a thousand years.

And that is explicitly stated in next text that we'll be studying in the book of Revelation, chapter 20. And I invite you to turn there with me to look at it briefly, as we seek to understand how this truth fits into prophecy and what to make of its predictions. So after Christ, by John's own record, gallops from the heavens and slays his enemies with the sword of his mouth, and throws the beast and the false prophet into the lake of fire, we read the following in in Revelation chapter 20 verse one. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit and shot it, and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer until the thousand years were ended.

After that, he must be released for a little while. Then I saw thrones and seated on them were those who to whom the authority the judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worship the beast or its image, and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life, and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.

This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years. This is God's holy word. Let's thank him for it.

Lord, we ask with gratitude in our hearts that we have access to this prophecy. We have a glimpse into our future in Christ, and for this we rejoice. But Lord, we want more than a glimpse. We need understanding. We need insight.

And so we pray that by your spirit, you would you would help us, Lord, clarify any confusion. If this is difficult for people to grasp, may they receive it with clarity, but more than just clarity, with delight, with excitement, with praise erupting in our hearts at the revelation that is before us. So Lord, may your son, the Lord Jesus Christ, be exalted in the preaching of his word, and may your people exalt that name and receiving it with humility and worship. We ask these things in Jesus name, amen. You and I just read one of the most debated passages in the entire book of Revelation.

And as of today, there are three main views, perspectives concerning this doctrine known as the millennium. And I wanna briefly review those positions, and it's very possible that in a room this size, there are people who hold to one of these three views. And I'll tell you where we stand as a church concerning the millennium. First, there are those who are identified as the amillennialist. And as the name suggests with the prefix a, those whose spouses view do not believe that John is writing about a physical millennial reign that will take place on the earth in a time to come.

Instead, they understand the millennium as describing the current spiritual reign of Jesus Christ, namely what we're experiencing now between the first coming of Jesus and his return. In other words, Amillennialism teaches and understands much of what John describes here as symbolic, or to be known in spiritual terms rather than a literal one thousand earthly year kingdom. So here's how we can understand this, here's how we can summarize this. For the all Millennials, Jesus Christ is currently reigning as John describes here, but from heaven and he is exercising his power from heaven through his church now. Satan being bound as we just saw, refers to his defeat at the cross and he has been limited ever since to interfere with the spread of the gospel to the nations and the resurrection that was highlighted in the same passage does not speak about a bodily physical resurrection, but is a way of describing how one comes to spiritual life once they put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.

In other words, Amillennialism teaches and claims that we are currently in the millennium. Full stop. The second common view are the postmillennialists. And again, as the name suggests, this school of thought argues that Christ will only return after post the millennial kingdom. And here's how all of this works.

The realities of the millennium will not be brought about by Christ physical presence on the earth, but through the church. It is the church that will usher in the the kingdom of God through an indefinite period of time. So like the Amillennialists, the postmillennialists do not see this thousand years as a literal time stamp. They see this as just a symbolic way of describing a significant portion of history. Furthermore, as the church preaches and teaches and evangelizes and disciples, the gospel is promised to infiltrate every sphere of society, and it will come to a point where the entire world will be essentially Christianized.

And only after this period of unprecedented gospel success and kingdom prosperity reaches its climax, then the church hands the kingdom over to Jesus Christ. He will return and he will then bring about the resurrection, the general resurrection. He will condemn those who are deserving a condemnation. He will bring about the eternal age, and heaven for those who are saved. He will bring about Satan's total destruction, and that's how it goes.

If you want an easier way to understand what postmillennials believe, the world will only get better and better and better and better before Jesus Christ returns. The kingdom of Christ will progressively advance through history, and the gospel will transform individual societies, government, any layer of culture and every layer of culture culminating in Christ's return. Finally, there are the premillennialist, the opposite of post. In that, the realities of the kingdom of Jesus Christ will fully manifest when Christ returns. In other words, it will only be inaugurated after Jesus Christ returns to the earth.

And when he does return to the earth, he will actually rule and reign from a physical throne in a physical city called Jerusalem that will bring about universal peace and righteousness. Those who have been redeemed with Christ will rule and reign with him. They will receive the reward in part in that age. That thousand years is an actual period of time at the end of it. Christ will then bring about the final judgment of the wicked, and then you will see the eternal age to come with the new heavens and the new earth.

And these realities will contribute to the Messianic Golden Age foretold by the prophets of old and of Christ himself. Now, if we had to put a label on what we believe here at Maranatha Bible Church, we would say that we are premillennialist. We would say that we hold to this view. Why? Because we believe it best honors the literal and historical grammatical interpretation of this text and scripture altogether.

And I'm aware that it's easy for any position to make a similar claim. We believe this because it's the most biblical. Anybody can say that. I'm aware. That's why I wanna take the time this morning to explain why we believe it.

This is gonna be a little bit different than our usual Sunday. We're going to class this morning. And I I want you to understand why. I want you to understand that this is more than just clarifying what we believe. That's the most important thing.

We wanna know what the Bible teaches, but we're we're looking at this truth at a very critical time in our history. Because I'm persuaded that more than any point in my Christian journey at least, this truth is under severe attack. This truth is being challenged not just by in house debate with other Christians. This is now gaining the attention of unbelievers who now more than ever are actually attacking and labeling Christians who believe in this doctrine because they think it's political, and they contribute this theological truth to the climate in The Middle East in part, and what's happening with Israel. Label me however you want.

My main concern is does the Bible teach it? You can say whatever you want on your podcast. You can say whatever you want on your podium. You can write whatever you like to write. My main concern is, is it faithful to God's word?

What does God's word say about it? I'm not concerned with what's popular, and I'm not concerned about somebody who has no right to interpret scripture with their fleshly minds to determine what I should believe about these things. And I hope I'm in a room filled with people who also want that. What does God's word have to say about it? And this is what we are going to consider together.

I want you and I to see five quick reasons. What John is describing here speaks of an actual earthly kingdom that will be ruled by Christ physical presence among us after he returns that will endure for a thousand years. Are you ready? Reason number one, the chronology of the text. The chronology of the text.

If you've been with us since we started this series in the book of Revelation, I hope by now you are convinced that the way John unfolds these prophecies and these visions has a direction. There is a chronological progression. Now there are a few times when John and his visions will skip ahead and fast forward to give us a glimpse of what's to come, and there are even fewer times when he gives us a flashback. But that kind of movement is not the general flow of the book of Revelation. Instead, you have this steady transitional language that creates a forward moving narrative in this book.

And one of the ways that is made known to us is with phrases like after this, after this I looked, or then I saw, or then I heard. Look back at Revelation 20 verse one. We find it here. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. Chapter divisions are wonderful.

They appear though in the thirteenth century. And they are a great way to reference certain parts of the Bible, but they can do us a disservice if you don't train yourself to not divide the context based on these chapter breaks. So you have a big giant 20 there, right? And perhaps you even have a little title above verse one. That's wonderful, but don't let it mess with how you understand how John is bringing about these truths in a certain way.

And on top of even this language that he brings to us, that helps us move with him forward, you have the the details of his prophecies as they continue, the severity of these judgments. There's a lot of similarities. I'm aware of that, but there are enough differences to show that these visions as some claim are not cyclical. So those who are not pre millennial often will say, what you see in the book of Revelation is not an order of things taking place chronologically, but are kind of pieces that need to be put together, and often their vision speaking of similar themes or realities of the Christian faith from different angles. And you'll even have some people who teach this way taking a chapter here later in Revelation and saying it's the same thing that you find earlier in Revelation.

They're speaking about the same event from a different vantage point. Well, it's very difficult to come to that conclusion if you see this book chronologically. There is a flow. There is a direction. And if you simply take John's chronology at face value, then you're really left with no other choice but to understand Revelation 20 from a premillenial perspective.

That is Christ must return, Christ does return before this kingdom that we see here is inaugurated. That's what's in Revelation 19. We saw in the past few weeks, Jesus Christ broke open the heavens, he comes down on a white horse, he comes with the saints, they destroy Christ, namely destroys the Antichrist and the false prophet. They they're thrown into the lake of fire. The armies that allied with them are then also destroyed.

And then John says what? Then I saw. So the only way you can make this say something else is if you just massage it and bend it to the point where it's out of place, chronologically speaking. Revelation six to 18 describes the tribulation period. Revelation 19 brings the tribulation to an end as Christ returns to judge the Antichrist and the false prophet and their allies, as I just said.

Revelation 20 describes the establishment of Christ's earthly kingdom, which follows immediately after his return. Revelation twenty one and twenty two look beyond Christ's earthly kingdom to the eternal age following the final judgment of the wicked and the ultimate defeat of Satan once and for all. Isn't that wonderful? Why complicate it? Why meddle with it?

Why mess with it? Just leave it. So number one, the chronology of the text. Number two, the meaning. We're looking at five reasons why this is literal.

This is a literal kingdom with a literal Christ and a literal city with a literal kingdom. Number two, the meaning of a thousand years. So in these short verses, we saw here that the phrase a thousand years appears at least five times. And then once more in verse seven. Don't you think that's one clear way the Holy Spirit is amplifying the importance of this detail?

He didn't just say it once. He didn't even just say it twice. He's saying it over and over and over again. And as I mentioned earlier, apart from the premillennialist, virtually every other school of thought believes the thousand years here to be non literal. This is not an actual unit of time.

This is a figurative number for an imprecise yet prolonged period of time. And the simple justification for that kind of argument is the book of Revelation is highly symbolic. It is highly symbolic. I'm not disagreeing with you there. But in this apocalyptic book, you have to also acknowledge that there are things that are literal.

There are things that are plain. There are things that are obvious. And in many cases, numbers themselves should be treated as actual numbers, actual measurements. And if you are somebody who struggles to accept John's vision of Christ's reign to be a literal thousand years, consider the following questions. I wanna just give you some questions for you to ask yourself and for you, dear believer, to ask somebody else that you dearly love who is a genuine brother in Christ that may not agree with your understanding of this passage.

Question number one. We're still under point number two. We're looking at the meaning of a thousand years, but here are some sub questions. Question number one. If the one thousand years here is to be taken symbolically, then should we apply the same rule to other places in Revelation that also give us numbers?

And one example is what you read in Revelation chapter 11. Would you like to turn there with me, please? Revelation chapter 11. Revelation chapter 11 verse three. Again, we're asking the question, the rule that we applied here to interpreting one thousand years symbolically, do we apply it in the same way that we would here?

This is just an example. And if so, why? And if not, then why is one non literal and the other literal? Let me read this to you. Revelation 11 verse three.

And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth. Is that literal or not literal? And if it's not literal, why? Where do you get that from? If it is literal, then why is this literal and the thousand years is not?

Does that make sense? Scroll down to verse nine of Revelation 11. For three and a half days, some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb. Is that literal or not literal? Is that a symbolic three and a half days?

Is that an actual three and a half days? If it's not literal, explain why it's not literal. If it is literal, once again, why is this one to be taken at face value and not the one thousand years? What about the seven churches? Are they actually seven churches?

What about the four living creatures, are they actually four living creatures? What about the one third of different parts of the world being destroyed under certain plagues and judgments? Is that actually one third or is that symbolic? Again, how Revelation treats numbers is very much to be taken plainly. Yes, there are some exceptions, but again we're talking about the general rule here.

And so unless clearly stated, the immediate context of a passage with a unit of time must give us sufficient reason to convert it to be figurative. There has to be some evidence within to tell us, listen, this is not to be taken seriously. And what we're seeing in Revelation 20 is that there there lacks considerable contextual grounds to say that it's to be taken non literally. I have another question. If a thousand years is supposed to be a number describing a long period of time, then why not use a different number?

Why a thousand years? Especially when you remember that there are far greater numbers in the book of Revelation. Do you remember some of those numbers? Here's one, Revelation seven verse four. And I heard the number of the sealed in Revelation seven four, a 144,000.

That's a much bigger number than a thousand. Sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel. What about Revelation nine verse 16? The number of mounted troops was twice 10,000 times 10,000. I heard their number.

So then I wanna press, why a thousand? Is it just a pretty number? Is it is it round is it a rounded number? That's why John picked it. Why 1,000 exactly?

Why not a 100? Why not 10,000? Why not a million? These are legitimate questions. It's easy to say it's symbolic because it's in a symbolic book.

Give me some answers. Give me some evidence. Third and final question under the second point, as we're considering the meaning of a thousand years. If the Lord wanted John to describe an indefinite period of time, why not have him do so as he does elsewhere in the very same text? See, what are you talking about?

Go back to Revelation 20. Look here with me in verse three of Revelation 20. And threw him into the pit and shut it and sealed it over him so that he might not deceive the nations any longer until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be released for a little while. Okay.

So apparently, John, led by the spirit, knew when to be specific with time and when not to be specific. So why use a thousand years to speak of a long period of time and repeat it at that, yet when it comes to a short period of time, he doesn't give us any number? Thousand years, thousand years. I'm gonna say it over and over again, a thousand years. When it comes to that brief duration at the end of thousand years where Satan will be released to deceive the nations once more, and I'm sure you're itching to know why God would allow that.

That will be in part two if we have a part two by God's grace. He says a little while. So John knows what he's doing here apparently. He's being very careful with how he is giving us a description of this reign, so the meaning of a thousand years. Number three, third reason why we can take this literally, and we should, is because of the description of Satan's activity.

The description of Satan's activity. One key element to making sense of this prophecy is determining the role of Satan and how he plays into it. Let's reread Revelation 20 verse two, and read this slowly with me. Read this carefully with me, and tell me what kind of imagery is aroused in your mind's eye. Revelation 20 verse two.

And he sees the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the devil and Satan and bound him for a thousand years and threw him into the pit and shut it and sealed it over him so that he might not deceive the nations any longer. I'm excited for that, aren't you? Until the thousand years were ended, after that he must be released for a little while. To both the amillennialist and the postmillennialist, the binding of Satan here speaks of his loss at the cross two thousand years ago. And the implication of that loss is that when Christ died and rose again and ascended on high and he received all authority in heaven on earth, Satan was essentially restricted from stopping the spread of the gospel to the nations.

He is hindered from keeping the church from growing, and he would remain in such a state until the Lord Jesus Christ returns to judge him completely and totally. Now, this opinion does not claim that Satan is totally inactive. It primarily argues that he has hindered from keeping the nations from the pre gospel darkness that they were once in, and it sounds good. And we do believe that there was a significant blow to Satan at the cross. And as attractive as this point may sound, it's problematic for many reasons.

The obvious reason is the language that John gives us about Satan's incarceration. Look at it again here, verse three, and threw him into the pit and shut it and sealed it over him so that he might not deceive the nations any longer. So just looking at that, it's it's hard to understand how we are currently experiencing all of this craziness, all of this darkness, all of this wickedness, and yet Satan is apparently locked up in this way. And if that's not convincing enough, which is fine, how do you reconcile the description of Satan's apprehension here with how the New Testament post gospel, post cross describes his activity even in the days of the early church. Rapid fire.

Are you ready? I'm going to just read these verses to you and keep in the back of your mind how apparently John tells us that Satan is bound. He is shut. He is sealed. He is chained.

Later says he's in prison. Do these verses denote a Satan who is imprisoned? Second Corinthians four four. In their case, the God of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God. Wait, John, you said that Christ sealed them so that he can no longer deceive the nations.

Paul tells us that he is still blinding the minds of unbelievers. For what purpose? That they may not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ. First Thessalonians two verse 18. Paul in speaking to the church in Thessalonica writes, because we wanted to come to you, this is first Thessalonians two eighteen, because we wanted to come to you, I, Paul, again and again, but Satan hindered us.

As one preacher said it, that must be a long chain that Satan has. Doesn't stop there. Listen to how Paul describes false teachers whom he instructed Timothy to be gentle with, so that they can be liberated. In second Timothy chapter two verse 25. Second Timothy two twenty five, correcting his opponents with gentleness.

God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil after being captured by him to do his will. You're telling me a captured Satan is capturing people? What do we do with this? Let me give you one more. This is probably the strongest verse that contradicts that interpretation in Revelation 20.

First Peter five verse eight. Be sober minded, Be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. This is a chained devil. This is an imprisoned devil.

This is how the New Testament presents Satan, roaming around like a lion. He's not a little kitty cat on a chain. He's like a lion, and he's devouring people. If this is the millennium where the Satan bound, I'm telling you, I don't know what to make of it. Let's go back to Revelation 20.

There's a statement at the end of that verse that describes Satan's condition in the millennium that I think we have to add to this discussion as well. Revelation 20 verse three, and threw him into the pit and shut it and sealed it over it so that he might not be he not deceive the nations any longer until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be released for a little while. So here's my question. If Satan's imprisonment here refers to him being curtailed through the cross, what can his release possibly mean?

What is he doing being released? And I'm aware of the answers to this objection from the opposing view, but none of them have been able to make sense to how John describes the release of Satan in that brief time. So some would say, oh, yeah. Okay. We're in the millennium.

Satan is bound, but as we approach the return of Christ, the Lord will let him go so that there's this intensification of deception. Again, that sounds good, but read how John tells us what Satan was willing and able to accomplish once he was released. Revelation 20 verse seven. Revelation 20 verse seven. And when the thousand years were ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle.

Their number is like the sand of the sea, and they marched up over to the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them. This is more than just Satan deceiving people for a brief period of time before Christ returns. There's gonna be a war apparently. There's gonna be an actual gathering of people to surround an actual city unless unless this is all figurative. This is all symbolic.

And that's what you have to do if you're gonna interpret the thousand years to be representation instead of being literal. So if you wanna be consistent with your system of interpretation, you see how this is starting to bleed out to other parts of the Bible, and it's becoming even more problematic. So the return of Christ is literal. The eternal age after chapter 20 is literal. Revelation 20 is not literal.

There's a gap. The description of Satan's activity must be factored in in how you understand this prophecy. Number four, the nature of the resurrection John speaks of. The nature of the resurrection John speaks of. And to me, this point perhaps is the most decisive detail in this conversation and actually should settle the debate about this passage.

When he is writing about the resurrection, he says that there's going to be one at the beginning of the millennium and one at the end. Look at it here in verse four of Revelation 20. Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those whom the authority of the judge was committed. Also, I saw the souls. Mark that.

I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. Now he doesn't stop there. Look at verse five. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.

This is the first resurrection. I know myself, and if I was hearing a different preacher bring this text up, I would have to hold my hand down because I would wanna know what this is all about. I wanna know as many things as possible from this text. What does it mean that there's a first resurrection? What are we talking about here?

Two distinct resurrections? Answer me, preacher. We'll get there. Again, my goal here is different. My my goal here is for you and I to feel confident about why we believe what we believe, and then we'll get into the minutiae of things.

It's tempting to try to explain it, but here's how I want you and I to view this. For those who do not see this passage as strictly literal, they would look at the resurrection mentioned here, namely verse four, as something being of a spiritual experience. It's not bodily. It's not even future. It describes what happens to the inner man when he is in union with Christ by grace through faith.

In other words, the idea of resurrection here to many is actually regeneration, being born again. And they they try to move around here to say, yeah, there's there's something about being born again, but there's also a future resurrection element to this. And I'm sure that you can cross reference text to try to show how the language here can be related to other places where the Bible speaks about coming alive, being made new, having the presence of the Holy Spirit dwell within us. I'm fully aware of all of those texts, but it betrays the plain reading of this prophecy. It really does.

What does John tell us that he sees in verse four? I alluded to it earlier. Look again here at the beginning. He says here in the second sentence, also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God. I saw the souls.

And he's talking about here those tribulation saints primarily who paid a high price to reject the mark of the beast and to be loyal to Jesus Christ. He sees their souls who have been killed for their faith. And then he goes on to say this in the rest of verse four, they came to life and reign with Christ for a thousand years. Hold on. They came to life?

So is John speaking about unbelievers who became believers? If this is speaking about coming to life in Christ, if this is speaking about regeneration, then how is it that those who died were those who died because they believed in Jesus? I saw the souls who died and were separated from their bodies because of the price that they paid for their faith and those who came to Christ and paid a price for it, they came to life. This is bumpy. Unless, of course, the coming to life is not speaking about you being born again, but your body coming to life.

What is John highlighting here? Physical death, is he not? And in in great detail, actually. So they were believers before their deaths. So how can we understand coming to life as being saved or born again?

Moreover, if we can include how John continues to speak about this concept of coming to life in verse five, then it becomes even more difficult. It gets even tighter in our understanding of the resurrection here. Look again at verse five of Revelation 20. The rest of the dead, implying that what he spoke about before were others who died physically. The rest of the dead did not come to life until a thousand years were ended.

This is the first resurrection. We're talking about physical death that's leading to a different kind of life as a result of Christ's return, and we know this to be what? A physical resurrection. How do you infuse here this idea of this speaking about being saved? So a choice has to be made here that essentially determines how we understand the timing of the millennium.

If John here is speaking about the church experiencing the millennium today, then fine, you're supposed to see this resurrection as speaking about being saved. But if you see this millennium speaking about the future, then the resurrection here speaks about a future bodily resurrection, which is a core tenant of our faith as believers in Jesus Christ. You have to make a choice, and I've made mine. The nature of the resurrection that John speaks of. This is the key question to the meaning of the first resurrection.

Is John referring to coming alive spiritually, or is he describing a future experience? Once you answer that question, you're getting closer. You actually make a great leap towards the pre millennial position. Finally, number five, the witness of other scriptures. The witness of scripture as a whole.

Did you know that the doctrine of the millennial kingdom of Christ didn't just appear here in Revelation 20? John isn't introducing to us a brand new idea. Like the rest of Revelation, and I pray that you are persuaded, these prophecies, these visions, these teachings are deeply rooted in the complete story of the scriptures that go all the way back to the Hebrew Bible. So John is actually revealing something that we have seen so many times before. You can almost say that what he describes here is the capstone to many of the predictions and the foretellings and the visions and the prophecies that you find in the Old Testament especially.

And what you will find if you simply read the scriptures over and over is that the Holy Spirit describes a world to come that does not fit our current experience in this lifetime or this era of humanity, nor does it quite fit the description of the eternal age to come. There seems to be these prophecies about an environment, an atmosphere, a reality, a society, a government that has its own category. Doesn't describe anything that we've seen in human history. It's hard to imagine how it will lead to that kind of thing, nor does it speak of what the Bible says about heaven. There seems to be a different slot, a different category that we know to be the millennial reign of Jesus Christ.

I wanna point you to a couple passages as we wrap things up here. One of the strongest places is Isaiah 65. Let's go to Isaiah 65 for a moment. I want you to see what Isaiah sees as he is coming to a close in his prophetic book describing a world to come. And and precious believer, please, all you have to do is ask yourself this question.

What we're about to read, does it describe our experience as humans in this world? With that, does it describe what the bible says about our experience in heaven? That's all you have to answer. Okay? Look at verse 17 of Isaiah 65.

The Lord says through his prophet Isaiah 65 verse 17, for behold, for behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind. Pause. You're being prepared here for new heavens and a new earth. That's that's eternal age language, is it not? And then, he does something.

It's almost as though he shows us as he describes the new heavens and the new earth, a phase. It isn't quite describe the new heavens and the new earth, but something that's leading up to it, something that's bringing us closer to that paradigm. Read verse 18 with me, please. But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create. For behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy and our people to be gladness.

I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people. No more shall be heard in at the sound of weeping and the cry of distress. Okay. This still sounds like heaven. Read on, verse 20.

No more shall there be an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days. For the young man shall die a 100 years old, and the sinner a 100 years old shall be accursed. Pause. Wait. You just said it's gonna be a new heavens and a new earth.

There's gonna be no crying, no distress. Okay. This is wonderful. We see this in Revelation. Then he speaks about death.

There's no death in heaven and he speaks about you dying at a 100 is considered young. Can you imagine that? And moreover sinners are sinners in this world that Isaiah is speaking about. Verse 21, they shall build houses and inhabit them. They shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

They shall not build and another inhabit. They shall not plant and another eat, for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be. And my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain or bear children and for calamity, for they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the Lord and their descendants with them. Before they call, I will answer.

While they're yet speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall graze together. Have you ever put a wolf and a lamb together? Have you ever seen a wolf and a lamb together? The lion shall eat straw like the ox.

Have you seen that in any National Geographic documentary? And dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, says the Lord. What is he speaking about here? What world is he referring to?

It can't be our world. If you died a 100, you live two lives almost. Animals getting along, not hurting anybody. Well, there's death still here. There's decay still here, so it can't speak about heaven either.

What's the clue? The last part. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, says the Lord. My holy mountain. Something's gonna happen when I occupy my holy mountain again.

It's gonna affect the animal world. It's gonna affect biology. It's going to affect everything. What category do you place this in? You have two option, a literal millennial reign or this is all symbolic.

This all somehow speaks about our experience as the church. Turn with me to Zechariah in chapter 14. Zechariah 14 is the Old Testament version of Revelation nineteen and twenty. Read the entire chapter on your own. We've referred to this passage in the past in our study of Revelation, so I won't read all of it.

But remember, the beginning of Revelation, or excuse me, Zechariah 14 describes Christ returning to Jerusalem on the Mount Of Olives with his feet to destroy all the armies that have surrounded the city of Jerusalem. And it really is a wonderful foundation to understanding Revelation 19. However, it doesn't stop with Christ just defeating these armies. The prophecy continues. Look with me here in verse nine of Zechariah 14.

And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day, the Lord will be one and his name one. And you and I would say, well, the Lord is king over the earth now. True. He he is universally reigning.

He always has been. But this is a different facet to his rule. This is speaking about his messianic reign. This is speaking about his reign upon the earth unlike what the world has ever seen. The fulfillment of the promises that were made to David, his son establishing and sitting on a throne forever and ever.

And we get a little glimpse. There's more than just this, but we get a little taste of what that world will look like. Are you ready for this? Look here at verse 16 of Zechariah 14. Then everyone who survives of all the nations, that is surviving after what happens when Christ returns.

Then everyone who survives of all the nations that have come against Jerusalem shall go up year after year to worship the king, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of booths. And if any of the families of the earth do not go up to to Jerusalem to worship the king, the Lord of hosts, there will be no rain on them. Is this speaking about heaven? If you say yes, then you have to also admit that there's disobedience in heaven. Are you ready to admit that?

It's possible to say no to worship the Lord in whatever world we're looking at right now. And what are the consequences? They're very real. If that nation doesn't wanna come, they're not getting any rain. Who has the power to do that?

The king, the Lord of hosts does. Verse 18. And the family of Egypt and the family of Egypt, if the family of Egypt does not go up and present themselves, then on them there shall be no rain. There shall be the plague with which the Lord afflicts the nations that do not go up to keep the feast of booths. This shall be the punishment to Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to keep the feast of booths.

Who what where is this? Answer, please, somebody give me some explanation. Is this speaking about now? Is this speaking about Christ ruling now, sitting on the throne of David at the right hand of God in heaven? If so, how do you how do you explain the consequences that Christ is able to execute?

Well, no, no, no. This is speaking about heaven. So there can be disobedience in heaven again? There's only one category that makes sense. That after this era of human history and before the eternal age when Jesus Christ returns to set up his earthly kingdom for a thousand years.

Yes, same preacher. How convenient. You're in the Old Testament. We're in the new covenant. Well, did you know that the new covenant also infers and references what we find in the old?

You saw it in Revelation. Let me give you places that you might have missed. Couple more passages. Matthew, from the mouth of the Son of God himself. Matthew, in chapter 19, Notice what he says to his apostles.

Matthew 19 verse 28. Matthew 19 verse 28. Jesus said to them, truly I say to you, in the new world, that's how the ESV renders it. The Greek literally means regeneration. And and when the world becomes born again almost, In the new world, when the son of man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit down on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel.

Did that ever happen in the lifetime of the apostles? Did they ever sit on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel? Will this happen in heaven? Will judgment of evil, wicked, disobedience be necessary in heaven? So when will this promise be fulfilled?

When will Jesus Christ sit on his glorious throne and exalt his 12 apostles to sit on their own thrones and supervise over the land of Israel itself? This is the church apparently. This is the church age. This is the church exercising her authority in Christ's name. Is it?

Or does it make more sense that we're speaking about an actual kingdom that Christ will usher in when he returns? One more place. Do you remember what Jesus spoke to his disciples after his resurrection for forty days? What was the main theme? What was his main teaching?

You might be surprised to know this. Go to Acts chapter one. We know exactly what Christ spent most of his time teaching his apostles before he ascended on high. Acts one verse three. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

That's what he spoke about, the kingdom of God. And so much focus was placed on the kingdom of God that the first recorded question in the book of Acts is what you find here in verse six. Acts one verse six. So when they had come together, they asked him, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, it is not for you to know the times or seasons that the father has fixed by his own authority.

Notice that the authority. Notice that the Lord Jesus does not correct their expectation. He just corrects their timing. He doesn't rebuke them. I've been with you for forty days talking about the kingdom of God.

Do you not realize that my kingdom is a spiritual kingdom? Have you not understood that the nation of Israel has no relevance to this program now moving forward? No. He just says, don't get so caught up with the timing. You have another mandate.

Lead the timing up to the father. This is their question as a result of Jesus teaching them about the kingdom of God, and in their understanding, there is some kind of restoration that's coming to Israel. There is still a fulfillment for that people, promises that God had made to them years before that have yet to be realized. And the question that these disciples who love Jesus Christ and believed and what he did for them and for the world was, when are you gonna restore that kingdom? And what I find more fascinating is that the book of Acts is the sequel.

It's the second book that Luke authored. After his gospel in Luke, we read this in the final verses of Luke 24. So you have to understand and connect these together. What did the Lord do to the minds of the disciples at the end of the book of Luke that leads into the first chapter of the book of Acts? Listen to this in Luke 24 verse 45.

Luke 24 verse 45, then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures. He opened their minds to understand the scriptures. You go to acts one, what's their question? When are you gonna restore the kingdom to Israel? They did that, they asked that with their minds being touched by Christ to know what the Bible teaches.

So they're not saying this out of ignorance, they're not saying this in error, they're saying this with their minds open to know what the Bible teaches, and here's one of the questions that you arrive to when you study the Bible. When is this kingdom promised to this people, promised to David, when are these promises made to Abraham going to happen? And John answers it in part, when he comes back, when Jesus Christ comes back. I hope that these five reasons have helped. I hope that they have stirred your heart to see that what we believe is not fanciful interpretation.

And if you really want to go even deeper, this is not a new teaching either. Many of the old old man, many of the church fathers even believed in the literal millennial reign of Christ. Something happened in the fourth century. There's much more for us to discuss. I have a feeling we're gonna come back to this passage and discuss it.

But for now, let's come before the Lord in prayers. We prepare to eat of the table. Laura, we look to you today thankful. Oh, so thankful. That this is not the millennium.

That there is a kingdom to come and there is a world to come that will be greater than the best conference any church can put on. We thank you, Lord, that in that time, you will be vindicated. You will bless your people. You will show the whole world that there is no governor like Jesus Christ, that there is no government like the one of the Son of God. And Lord, even this table before us is a preview of what awaits.

You promise that we will eat together. You promise that we will drink together in that kingdom on your holy mountain. Help us believe that, and help us yearn for that more and more. And Lord, give us a taste of it in this service. We ask these things in Jesus name.

Amen. Let's stand together and worship the Lord.