Daily Bread 2011 - Revelation 20
The Thousand Years (also called the Millennium)
1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They 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 a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
What Does This Mean?
(Taken from IVP Commentary) “Nine times out of ten, when people ask, "How do you interpret the book of Revelation?" what they mean is, "How do you interpret Revelation 20:1-10?" They want to know whether an approach is "premillennial," "amillennial" or "postmillennial," to use the jargon by which some evangelical institutions (and even individuals) define themselves. Although how we interpret these verses says little or nothing about how we interpret the book as a whole, our interpretation of them tends to become the litmus test by which our interpretation of the whole book is measured and classified.”
To summarize these positions briefly, a “pre-millennialist” believes Jesus’ second coming comes before the 1,000 reign of Christ, where Satan is temporarily defeated. A post-millennialist’s viewpoint is that Jesus’ second coming will come after this literal reign. The a-millennialist believes this language is more figurative language, and therefore does not believe in a literal 1,000 reign of Christ. They would argue that John’s millennium is just another name for the age in which we now live, in which Jesus’ reigns by virtue of his resurrection and ascension. Accordingly, Christ will return at the end of this present age. This is another variation of pre-millennialism.
Another specific form of pre-millennialism, that has gained a lot of attention over the past 50 years, is called called “dispensationalism”, based on the teachings of John Nelson Darby. This view divides history into “seven eras”, or “dispensations” culminating in a final era where the kingdom will be realized as the temple in Jerusalem is rebuilt. Modern day proponents of this view are Charles Ryrie, John Walvoord, and probably the most well-known is Hal Lindsay. Lindsay wrote the book “the Late Great Planet Earth”, which described some of the events in the political world in the 70’s as pre-cursors to the second coming of Christ.
What Does This Mean For Us?
There are many debates about these things one needs to take into account the context in which this book was written. The church was facing much persecution and trying to figure out what role “eschatology” (the study of the end times) played into what was happening to them. We also know throughout the ages many in the church have felt like we were in the end times. I.e. Lindsay’s, The Late Great Planet Earth.
While all the theories have some merit, there are a couple of conclusions I think we can make. One Jesus hasn’t returned yet. With the descriptions of the great and promised glory that the book of Revelation uses describing His return, it is unlikely that this has happened yet. Two, we minister in an era between his first coming and second coming, as we anticipate His return. ( I guess this would make me technically Pre-Millennialist) Jesus has come once to establish His kingdom on earth through the Church, and has given the Church power through the Holy Spirit to expand His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
Yet, we see that there is still another power at work in the world, which tries to thwart God’s kingdom and its advancement. With what we see going on in the world it seems unlikely that Jesus is reigning in anyway, or bringing peace on earth except through the power of the Church to which He gave the keys to the kingdom (the power to announce the forgiveness of sins).
Finally, if we conclude he hasn’t returned yet, what does it mean that He is coming soon? As I have always said and at risk of being trite or cliché, Jesus’ coming for each of us is the day we die. While he may return before that, chances are with the amount of people/nations who have not yet even heard the Gospel, that it may be a while. That being said, Jesus could come back tonight, so we always are prepared for His return by living a life worthy of our calling. If we are doing our best by the Spirit’s power to live a life worthy of our calling as His sons and daughter through our faith in Jesus and our Baptism into the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; we can be confident at any time He chooses to return or call us home.
Jesus, we know you are coming soon so help us to prepare for Your coming by living a life worthy of the calling you have given us. We know you are with us as we continue to make disciples on earth and you have given us Your power and authority to carry out Your purposes until the time is right for Your return. Protect us from the evil one and help us to usher in Your kingdom on earth as it is heaven until that day. Amen.
1 And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They 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 a thousand years. 5 (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.
What Does This Mean?
(Taken from IVP Commentary) “Nine times out of ten, when people ask, "How do you interpret the book of Revelation?" what they mean is, "How do you interpret Revelation 20:1-10?" They want to know whether an approach is "premillennial," "amillennial" or "postmillennial," to use the jargon by which some evangelical institutions (and even individuals) define themselves. Although how we interpret these verses says little or nothing about how we interpret the book as a whole, our interpretation of them tends to become the litmus test by which our interpretation of the whole book is measured and classified.”
To summarize these positions briefly, a “pre-millennialist” believes Jesus’ second coming comes before the 1,000 reign of Christ, where Satan is temporarily defeated. A post-millennialist’s viewpoint is that Jesus’ second coming will come after this literal reign. The a-millennialist believes this language is more figurative language, and therefore does not believe in a literal 1,000 reign of Christ. They would argue that John’s millennium is just another name for the age in which we now live, in which Jesus’ reigns by virtue of his resurrection and ascension. Accordingly, Christ will return at the end of this present age. This is another variation of pre-millennialism.
Another specific form of pre-millennialism, that has gained a lot of attention over the past 50 years, is called called “dispensationalism”, based on the teachings of John Nelson Darby. This view divides history into “seven eras”, or “dispensations” culminating in a final era where the kingdom will be realized as the temple in Jerusalem is rebuilt. Modern day proponents of this view are Charles Ryrie, John Walvoord, and probably the most well-known is Hal Lindsay. Lindsay wrote the book “the Late Great Planet Earth”, which described some of the events in the political world in the 70’s as pre-cursors to the second coming of Christ.
What Does This Mean For Us?
There are many debates about these things one needs to take into account the context in which this book was written. The church was facing much persecution and trying to figure out what role “eschatology” (the study of the end times) played into what was happening to them. We also know throughout the ages many in the church have felt like we were in the end times. I.e. Lindsay’s, The Late Great Planet Earth.
While all the theories have some merit, there are a couple of conclusions I think we can make. One Jesus hasn’t returned yet. With the descriptions of the great and promised glory that the book of Revelation uses describing His return, it is unlikely that this has happened yet. Two, we minister in an era between his first coming and second coming, as we anticipate His return. ( I guess this would make me technically Pre-Millennialist) Jesus has come once to establish His kingdom on earth through the Church, and has given the Church power through the Holy Spirit to expand His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
Yet, we see that there is still another power at work in the world, which tries to thwart God’s kingdom and its advancement. With what we see going on in the world it seems unlikely that Jesus is reigning in anyway, or bringing peace on earth except through the power of the Church to which He gave the keys to the kingdom (the power to announce the forgiveness of sins).
Finally, if we conclude he hasn’t returned yet, what does it mean that He is coming soon? As I have always said and at risk of being trite or cliché, Jesus’ coming for each of us is the day we die. While he may return before that, chances are with the amount of people/nations who have not yet even heard the Gospel, that it may be a while. That being said, Jesus could come back tonight, so we always are prepared for His return by living a life worthy of our calling. If we are doing our best by the Spirit’s power to live a life worthy of our calling as His sons and daughter through our faith in Jesus and our Baptism into the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; we can be confident at any time He chooses to return or call us home.
Jesus, we know you are coming soon so help us to prepare for Your coming by living a life worthy of the calling you have given us. We know you are with us as we continue to make disciples on earth and you have given us Your power and authority to carry out Your purposes until the time is right for Your return. Protect us from the evil one and help us to usher in Your kingdom on earth as it is heaven until that day. Amen.
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