Different Look at the Millennium

Imagine a TV nature show where you see a lion sneaking up on a bale of hay instead of an antelope or a sheep (Isaiah chapter 11).  During the Millennium, peace will rule the earth -including the animals. Christ’s Kingdom will be characterized by peace, prosperity, purity, prolonged life and personal joy.

Rapture                        Second Coming

Old Testament l Church Age l Seven Year Tribulation l Thousand Year Millennium l Eternal State- Heaven

Almost everyone knows the lyrics to Isaac Watts’ famous hymn, “Joy to the World’, but few people realize that it is not really a Christmas hymn. To dissect the words of the hymn in sections will explain why by asking four questions for the first four sections: 1) Did mankind receive the king when Jesus was born at Bethlehem?  2) Has nature rejoiced at the coming of Christ? 3) Has the curse been lifted from the earth? 4)Is Jesus ruling the nations of the world?

The words of this great hymn more accurately describe the coming Millennium, the time when Christ will rule over the earth at His second coming, not His first. The Millennium will be a foretaste of the heavenly state that is to follow. Revelation 20:1-10 is the central passage in the Bible on the Millennium and will be our focus in this article. “Millennium” doesn’t occur in our English Bibles, but the reference to a thousand-year period of time does- six times in Revelation 20:1-10. The Millennium is a period of one thousand years that begins with Christ’s second coming to earth. He establishes His kingdom in Jerusalem and brings in a period of peace and justice on earth.

Part #4 will tell us the real purposes of the Millennium- soon!!