One of the most fascinating of all Bible subjects is "1000-Year World Blackout Predicted," or the millennium. The word "millennium" is simply Latin for 1000 years.
There are many different ideas taught concerning the future of our world. Some Christians believe that the second coming of Christ will initiate the "Golden Age" of mankind on earth—a time during which all men will be converted and peace will prevail. Others believe that the 1000-year period will be a time of distress and hardship; of conflict and chaos.
A third view is that the millennium immediately follows the return of Christ. A time when all the righteous are in heaven. Satan and his angels are left on earth, and the wicked are dead.
With this subject, as all others, let us discover what the Bible really teaches. In this study we will discover the answers to the following questions: (1) What events occur at the return of Jesus? (2) What events occur during the 1000 years? (3) What events occur at the end of the 1000 years?
1. When Jesus returns, what happens to all the righteous? 1 Thessalonians 4. 16, 17.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall he caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord."
2. What happens to the wicked? II Thessalonians 2:8; Revelation 20:5.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming." "But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection."
3. Where will the wicked remain during this period? Jeremiah 25:33.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "And at that day the slain of the Lord shall be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They shall not be lamented, or gathered, or buried; they shall become refuse on the ground."
4. What condition will the earth be in during the 1000 years? Jeremiah 4:23-27.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, . . . And the heavens, they had no light. I beheld the mountains, . . . and all the hills moved back and forth. I beheld, and indeed there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens had fled. I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down at the presence of the Lord, . . ."
5. Will there be any human being alive on earth during this time? Revelation 19:17, 18.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "And he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, 'Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great."
6. Where will Satan be during the 1000 years? Revelation 20:1-3.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, . . . He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished."
The term "bottomless pit" has an identical meaning to the description "without form and void" of Jeremiah 4:23. They also parallel the description of the world at creation— a place of desolation and darkness. These parallels clearly show Satan is bound to the earth with chains of darkness, unable to tempt anyone.
7. Where did Jesus promise to take His followers at His return? John 14:1-3.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."
8. How does Revelation 20:4 describe the righteous? What are they doing? (See also I Corinthians 6:1-3.)
MY BIBLE SAYS: "And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. . . . And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years."
During the millennium, the righteous have an opportunity to observe firsthand the justice and love of God in dealing with the sin problem. In a new way, more forcefully than ever before, they grasp His powerful attempts to save all people. They realize anew that all who are lost are lost because of their own personal rejection of the appeals of Christ.
9. How many general resurrections does the Bible describe? John 5:28, 29.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."
10. If the resurrection of the righteous takes place at the beginning of the 1000 years, and they live with Christ during the 1000 years, when are the wicked resurrected to receive their final reward? Revelation 20:5, first part.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished,"
11. What is Satan's strategy at the end of the 1000 years? Revelation 20:7-9.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, . . . to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city."
12. Where does the Holy City—New Jerusalem—come from? Revelation 21:2
MY BIBLE SAYS: "Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband."
13. How does God prevent Satan's overthrow of the Holy City? Revelation 20:9.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them."
14. What happens after the destruction of the wicked? II Peter 3:13.
MY BIBLE SAYS: "Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells."
The great challenge of the millennium is that men and women must choose today where they will spend eternity. There is no second chance after Jesus comes. The Bible clearly states, "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is that day of salvation." 2 Corinthians. 6:2.
Thousands will be lost because they are looking forward to a future time to make a decision for Jesus Christ. Jesus invites you to give Him your whole life today. If you have not done so, why not do it now?
MY DECISION: "Dear Lord, I choose to allow you to rule on the throne of my heart today and I am longing to worship You in the Holy City for all eternity."
