In the heavenly part of the millennium the overcoming believers will drink the cup of the new covenant anew with their Lord. In Matthew 26:29 the Lord Jesus said, “I will by no means drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in the kingdom of My Father.” This word was spoken when the Lord was establishing the table (Matt. 26:26-30). By speaking this word, He made it clear that from the time He established the table He would be physically away from the believers and not drink the fruit of the vine with them until He drinks anew with them in the Father’s kingdom. After His coming back, the Lord will drink the cup of the new covenant anew with the overcoming believers. Therefore, the Lord’s promise in Matthew 26:29 will be fulfilled with the overcomers in the kingdom of the Father during the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens.
In the kingdom of their Father the overcoming believers will also feast with the Old Testament overcomers. The Lord Jesus speaks of this in Matthew 8:11: “I say to you that many shall come from the east and the west and shall recline at the table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of the heavens.” This refers to the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens. It will be in the manifestation of the kingdom that the overcoming Gentile believers will feast with the Old Testament overcomers, including Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
In 1 Corinthians 6:10b Paul speaks of inheriting the kingdom of God. The word “inherit” in this verse implies enjoyment. To inherit a certain thing is to enjoy that thing. Thus, to inherit the coming kingdom means to enjoy the kingdom. The coming kingdom will be a joyful inheritance to the overcomers. According to Matthew, the manifestation of the kingdom will be a reward to the overcoming saints as their enjoyment with the Lord. To inherit the kingdom is not just to enter the kingdom; it is to receive the kingdom as a reward for our enjoyment. This should be an incentive for us to live an overcoming life. By living an overcoming life today we shall be qualified to inherit the coming kingdom as a reward.
In Galatians 5:21 Paul, referring to the works of the flesh, says, “Those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” The inheritance of the kingdom of God refers to the enjoyment of the coming kingdom as a reward to the overcoming believers. It is not related to a believer’s salvation. Those believers who practice the works of the flesh listed in Galatians 5 will not inherit the coming kingdom as a reward.
In Ephesians 5:5b Paul speaks of a believer’s “inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” The kingdom of Christ is the millennium (Rev. 20:4, 6; Matt. 16:28); it is also the kingdom of God (Matt. 13:41, 43). The believers have been regenerated into the kingdom of God (John 3:5) and in the church life, are living in the kingdom of God today (Rom. 14:17). However, not all believers will participate in the millennium; only the overcoming ones will. The defeated believers will have no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God in the coming age.
The term “the kingdom of Christ and of God” refers not to the kingdom today in the church life but to the manifestation of the kingdom in the coming millennium. The millennium will be a kingdom in a way that is more practical than what we are experiencing in the church today. Only in the millennium will the kingdom of Christ also become the kingdom of God. Today all believers are in the kingdom of God, but not all of them will have an inheritance in the coming millennial kingdom. Both the defeated ones and the overcoming ones may be in the church as the kingdom of God, but only the overcoming ones will inherit the kingdom during the millennium.
James 2:5 says, “Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor in the world, to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which He promised to those who love Him?” The kingdom of God here is also the kingdom of Christ, which will be inherited by the overcoming believers in the coming age. We cannot receive the kingdom as a reward simply by believing. Receiving this reward requires that we love God. In order to receive salvation, it is adequate that we believe in the Lord. But if we would receive the reward of the coming kingdom, we need to love God.
In Luke 12:32 the Lord Jesus says, “Do not fear, little flock, because your Father delights to give you the kingdom.” The Father delights to give the believers the coming kingdom as an inheritance reward.
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