KING'S BUSINESS PROPHECY SECTION Edited by Dr. Charles L. Feinberg, Director, Talbot Theological Seminary
TheThous
Reign of Christ Over the Earth
by Louis T. Talbot, D.D., Chancellor, The Bible Institute of Los Angeles, Inc. W hat The Scriptures Tell I n c o n s id e r i n g the thousand years’ reign of our Lord Jesus Christ over the earth, we take as our Bible lesson selected portions of Daniel and Revelation. In Daniel 2:43-45 we read these words: And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation there of sure. And Daniel, speaking again about the same thing in the seventh chapter, verses 13 and 14, says: 1 saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. Linking these verses with the following passage, found in Rev. 20:1-4, we are ready for our study of the millennial reign of Christ: And I saw an angel come down from heaven, hav ing the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the na tions no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their
foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” The Meaning and Use o f The Word "M illenn ium " The word “millennium” is not found in the Bible. It is a word which has for its root the Latin “mille,” a thousand, and “ annus,” a year; hence we speak of the thousand years mentioned in the verses quoted above as the millennial reign of Christ, or the millennium. To us, the millennium represents the period of time when Christ shall reign over the earth in person, as set forth in Rev. 20:4 just read above: “ And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” While we have come to use the word “millennium” in this sense, I think it is unfortunate that it is so used. I believe that many misconceptions which are in the minds of men and women regarding this period would never have been formed if we had always thought of it and referred to it in the language of the Scriptures. The Word of God always refers to it as “ the kingdom” age; that is, the age when the Kingdom of Christ shall be established, and the Lord Jesus shall be upon the earth, as King, reigning and ruling in righteousness. Jesus, when He told His disciples to pray, “ Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven,” was re ferring to that Kingdom, and to the time when He should reign over the earth in person. The seat of the government of His Kingdom shall be the city of Jeru salem, From that city His Word shall go forth, and He shall govern the entire earth. The world shall know one King, and that King shall be none other than Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God! "W h en Shall These Things B e?" Now, the question naturally arises: How and when is His Kingdom to be established upon the earth? It is the same question which the disciples asked our Lord, saying: “ Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the consummation of the age?” (Matt. 24:3, R.V.). A noted Bible teacher has pointed out that before Christ’s Kingdom can be established upon the earth, five great events must trans pire: 1. The Church Must Be Completed. The present Church age must come to a close; and before this can come to pass, the Church, which is the Body of Christ must be completed. This age, which began at Pentecost, will end with the Rapture of the saints. Every day the Church is growing; and while I do not know—neither does anyone know—how many people are to be in the (continued on next page)
JU LY, 1960
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