First Corinthians 15:24-25 reveals that for our experience and enjoyment, Christ is the coming King.
First Corinthians 15:25 says, “He must reign until God puts all His enemies under His feet.” In order for Christ to reign He must be in resurrection. If there were no resurrection, Christ would still be in the tomb, and it would not be possible for Him to reign. Christ began to reign from the time of His resurrection. In Matthew 28:18 the Lord Jesus said to the disciples, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” Then He charged them to go and disciple all the nations. He has the authority to reign. Now under His reign we must disciple the nations, bringing the nations into His kingdom and making them His people. Today the real king, the real ruler, is the Lord Jesus. According to Revelation 1:5, He is the Ruler of the kings of the earth. Every king, queen, president, and head of state is under His reign.
In 1 Corinthians 15:25 Paul says that Christ must reign until God puts all His enemies under His feet. The longer Christ reigns, the more enemies are put under His feet. Eventually, at the end of the millennium, the last age of the old creation, every enemy will have been put under the feet of Christ. The word until indicates this and points to the end of the thousand years. That will be the time when every enemy has been put under Christ’s feet.
First Corinthians 15:24 says, “Then the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to His God and Father, once He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.” When Christ annuls the satanic authority, subdues all His enemies (v. 25), abolishes death (v. 26), and delivers up the kingdom to God the Father, that is, when all the negative things are done away with and the entire purpose of God is fulfilled, the old creation will be concluded.
After accomplishing redemption, Christ went to receive the kingdom from the Father (Luke 19:12, 15). Before the millennium He as the Son of Man will have received the kingdom from God, the Ancient of Days, to rule all the nations for one thousand years (Dan. 7:13-14; Rev. 20:4, 6). At the end of the millennium, after He has defeated Satan, the devil, and his evil angels (as all rule, authority, and power), and even death and Hades, putting all His enemies under His feet (1 Cor. 15:25-26) and casting all of them, including death and Hades, into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:7-10, 14), He will deliver the kingdom back to God the Father.
What is revealed in 1 Corinthians 15:24-25 will take place mainly after Christ comes back as the King to bring the kingdom of God to earth and to execute the kingdom for a thousand years. In the millennium the overcomers will be the co-kings with Christ, enjoying Him as such a King. Nevertheless, today we as the Body of Christ can enjoy Him as the King (Rom. 5:17).
In resurrection Christ not only became the life-giving Spirit to impart His life into His Body; He also became the reigning King to execute God’s administration. On the one hand, to us as God’s chosen people, Christ in resurrection is the life-giving Spirit imparting life to us. On the other hand, to the nations, Christ in His resurrection has become the reigning King executing God’s administration. His Body must cooperate with Him in His resurrection life and resurrection authority so that the church may be headed up (Eph. 1:10). In His Body Christ must first head us up. Once the church has been headed up, the church will be used by Christ as His Body to head up all things. Then all the nations will be headed up. Moreover, as He is heading up all things, He is subduing, subjecting, His enemies under His feet. Eventually, at the end of the millennium, after the end of all the ages and dispensations, God’s administration will be fully accomplished. Then there will be the new heaven and new earth, and we will be in the New Jerusalem enjoying Christ and reigning with Him over the nations.
We should not only understand the aspects of Christ revealed in 1 Corinthians but also experience them. We need to first understand all the wonderful aspects of Christ; then we will be brought into the experience and enjoyment of Christ according to these aspects. Experiencing Christ in these aspects requires much time. To enjoy, eat, and digest even one aspect of Christ takes time. As we enjoy Him in one aspect after another, we will realize that the all-inclusive Christ is an unlimited feast.