In the previous messages, we saw the truth concerning the second coming of Christ. In this message we want to see the truth concerning the kingdom of a thousand years revealed in Revelation 20:4-6. It is generally called the millennium.
The kingdom of a thousand years is different from the New Testament church. There are no Old Testament saints in the church age, but in the kingdom of a thousand years, the overcoming Old Testament saints are present with the overcoming New Testament saints. The kingdom of a thousand years includes Old Testament saints such as Abraham, Noah, Moses, David, and Elijah. These were some of the ones who were overcoming in the Old Testament times.
Just before the Lord was transfigured on the mount, He told His disciples, “There are some of those standing here who shall by no means taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom” (Matt. 16:28). This was fulfilled by the Lord’s transfiguration on the mountain (17:1-3), which was His “coming in His kingdom.” It was seen by His three disciples, Peter, James, and John. Furthermore, Moses and Elijah were there conversing with the Lord. His transfiguration there prefigured the coming kingdom. Moses and Elijah represent the Old Testament overcomers who will be in the manifestation of the kingdom, whereas Peter, James, and John represent the New Testament overcomers. The ones selected to reign as kings in the kingdom of a thousand years will be the overcomers, the perfected ones.
The history of man from the creation of Adam can be divided into four ages. The first age is the age of the patriarchs from Adam to Moses. The time of the patriarchs was before the law was given, so we can term it the age before the law. It began from the creation of Adam and concluded at the time that Moses received the law and passed the law on to the children of Israel. The second age is the age of law. This age comprises the period of time from Moses to Christ’s first coming. The church age follows the age of the law. The church age began at the day of Pentecost with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit for the baptizing of all the believers into one Body and continues to the beginning of the thousand-year kingdom. In the church age, God works Himself into man. God is presently working Himself into us every day. The coming kingdom age will be the result of God’s work in the church age.
The kingdom of a thousand years has two sections: the heavenly section and the earthly section. The heavenly section of the kingdom of a thousand years is the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens (Matt. 24:46-47; 25:19-23; Luke 19:15-19; Rev. 2:26-27; 3:21; 2 Tim. 2:12a). The kingdom of the heavens has three aspects: the reality, the appearance, and the manifestation. The reality of the kingdom of the heavens, depicted in Matthew 5—7, is within us. The appearance of the kingdom of the heavens, depicted in Matthew 13, is with today’s Christianity. The manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens, depicted in Matthew 24 and 25, will be the thousand-year kingdom. The manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens is the heavenly part of the thousand-year kingdom.
The heavenly section of the kingdom of a thousand years is the kingdom of the Father (Matt. 13:43). The Father has a royal family. All of His children who have been faithful will be kings in His kingdom. That kingdom will be a dear family to the Father. The firstborn Son of the Father, Jesus, is the first king. He is the firstborn Son, and we are the many sons, His brothers. All the brothers will be kings in the Father’s kingdom as the Father’s home. Matthew 13:43 says, “Then the righteous shall shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” Christ and the overcoming saints will be the kings in the heavenly section of the kingdom of a thousand years.
The earthly section of the thousand-year kingdom will be the tabernacle of David. Acts 15:16 says, “After these things I will return, and I will rebuild the tabernacle of David which has fallen; and I will rebuild its ruins, and I will erect it again.” The term that is used to denote the kingdom of Israel is the tabernacle of David. God considers the kingdom of Israel in the millennium as a tabernacle, which is something temporary rather than permanent.
The earthly section of the kingdom of a thousand years is also the restored kingdom of Israel (Acts 1:6) and the kingdom of the Son of Man (Matt. 13:41; Rev. 11:15). The heavenly part of the kingdom of a thousand years is the Father’s kingdom. The earthly part is the Son’s kingdom. Matthew 13:41 says, “The Son of Man shall send His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all stumblingblocks and those who do lawlessness.” Revelation 11:15 says, “And the seventh angel trumpeted; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.” This word reveals that when the thousand-year kingdom comes, the entire earth will be the kingdom of Christ.
The heavenly section of the thousand-year kingdom will be the Father’s kingdom, and the earthly section will be the Son’s so that He might rule over the earth. The earthly section of the kingdom of a thousand years is also the kingdom of Messiah (2 Sam. 7:13). A king is the ruler of the people in a kingdom. In the kingdom of a thousand years, the dwelling place of the King is in the heavens, and the dwelling place of the people is on the earth.
In the earthly section of the kingdom of a thousand years, the saved Israelites will be the priests, and the restored nations will be the people. When the Lord returns openly to the earth, the Spirit will be poured out as the latter rain upon the house of Israel, and they will repent and be saved (Zech. 12:10; Rom. 11:26-27; Ezek. 36:25-28). Following this, the Lord will judge the remaining nations, the Gentiles, and restore the good ones, the “sheep” (Matt. 25:31-32), to be the people in the thousand-year kingdom. As the priests, the Israelites will teach the nations as the people to know God, to serve God, and to worship God (Zech. 8:20-23; Isa. 2:2-3). This is according to the Old Testament type. The Gentile nations will come up to Jerusalem to the Jews, seeking after the Lord and asking to be taught.
The kingdom of a thousand years will be the age of restoration (Acts 3:21). Before the Lord’s return, there will be the great tribulation of three and a half years. At that time the earth will become an unpleasant place in which to dwell. Many people will follow the Antichrist. At the end of the great tribulation, Christ will come to defeat Antichrist and destroy all his followers at Armageddon. After this battle, there will still be a large number of people left among the nations. Then the Lord Jesus will set up His throne in Jerusalem (Matt. 19:28; Jer. 3:17) to judge all the nations who are left. Matthew 25:31-46 tells us that at that time the nations will be gathered before the Lord, and He will separate them as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. The goats are the evil ones who will be sent to the lake of fire (vv. 41-46a). The good ones are the sheep. These will enter into eternal life in the thousand-year kingdom (vv. 34-40, 46b). They will be on the earth as the people.
In the kingdom of a thousand years there will be a heavenly section with the overcomers of the Old Testament and of the New Testament. There will be an earthly section that will be the tabernacle of David, the kingdom of Christ as the Son of Man, and the kingdom of Messiah. In the earthly section, all the Jews will have been saved and regenerated, but they will have missed the age of the church. God will keep them in the earthly section to be His priests teaching all the restored nations. The nations who are the people in the earthly section of the thousand-year kingdom will not have been saved but only restored back to their created situation. They will be the people in the earthly section of the kingdom of a thousand years. Thus, the kingdom of a thousand years will be a kingdom with kings, with priests, and with people. If we are the overcomers, we will be in the heavenly section of the kingdom of a thousand years as kings; the saved, regenerated Jews will be the priests; and the restored nations will be the people.