https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/The-Thousand-Year-Reign.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n\tby Jeffrey W. Hamilton<\/p>\n\t
I. Revelation 20:4-6<\/p>\n
A. Many elaborate theories are based on this <\/p>\n 1. Some teach that Christ, at his second coming, sets up a kingdom here on\nearth.\n
2. Christians from the early church are raised up to rule with him.<\/p>\n
3. After a peaceful, thousand-year reign, the Devil is released<\/p>\n 4. A seven-year battle ensues (the years of tribulation) where Satan is\ndefeated.\n B. The teachings vary widely by groups. For example, some place the seven-years of\nbattle before the return, some place it after. Some have the dead raised before the\ntribulation, some after Christ’s reign. And so on.\n
C. The problem is that these ideas are not supported by the Scriptures<\/p>\n
1. The method used to understand this passage is all wrong.<\/p>\n
2. It assigns a literal interpretation on a book written in signs – Revelation 1:1<\/p>\n 3. It places distant meanings on a book that mostly contains things which will\nshortly take place – Revelation 1:1,3\n
D. How do we figure out what Revelation says, if it is symbolic?<\/p>\n 1. Revelation is done in a style similar to many of the prophetic books in the\nOld Testament, it also bears some relation to the Song of Solomon.\n 2. It presents a series of pictures described in words. The images described\nsignify (or represents) things in real life.\n 3. If we grasp the meaning of each element in the picture, we can understand\nthe scenes as a whole.\n
II. The picture in Revelation 20:4-6<\/p>\n
A. The center of the picture is a group of people<\/p>\n
1. They were beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and the Bible<\/p>\n
2. They had not worshiped the beast or his image<\/p>\n
3. They had not received the mark of the beast<\/p>\n
B. You probably already suspect that this is a picture of Christians<\/p>\n
1. But what is the beast?<\/p>\n
a. Revelation talks of two beasts.<\/p>\n (1) Revelation 13:1 speaks of a beast from the sea, who is\nworshiped (Revelation 13:8). We learned that this beast\nwas the government of Rome.\n (2) Revelation 13:11 speaks of a beast from the earth, who sets\nup an image of the first beast to be worshiped (Revelation\n13:14-15) and marks the worshipers of the image\n(Revelation 13:16). We learned that this beast was the\nreligion of Rome, in particular emperor worship.\n
b. Behind these two beasts is the great dragon.<\/p>\n (1) The dragon summoned the beast from the sea – Revelation\n13:1\n (2) The beast from the land spoke like the dragon – Revelation\n13:11\n
(3) The dragon, we are told is Satan – Revelation 20:2<\/p>\n c. The beasts and the images are all representatives of Satan – II\nCorinthians 11:13-15\n 2. The marks are used to indicate ownership, like a brand on cattle – Exodus\n21:2-6\n a. Before we became Christians, we were bond servants of sin –\nRomans 6:16-18\n
b. That means Satan was our master, but no longer.<\/p>\n
C. But these people reign with Christ for a thousand years<\/p>\n
1. Romans 5:17 – Christians reign in life through Christ<\/p>\n
2. II Timothy 2:11-12 – Those who die in Christ will reign with Christ<\/p>\n
3. When is Christ’s reign?<\/p>\n
a. He currently reigns – I Corinthians 15:25-26<\/p>\n
b. His reigns ends at his second coming – I Corinthians 15:24<\/p>\n c. He cannot begin a reign on earth at his return because the world at\nthat time ends – II Peter 3:10\n d. Because Jesus currently reigns, this is the reason Jesus’ church is\ncalled his kingdom – Colossians 1:13. Jesus is our ruler and we are\nthe citizens of his kingdom.\n 4. The thousand years refer to a complete, large set of years. As with the\nother symbols, it is not literal, but representative.\n
III. What is the first resurrection?<\/p>\n
A. Those who are a part of the first resurrection will not face the second death<\/p>\n 1. The second death is the condemnation to Hell at Judgment – Revelation\n20:14-15\n
2. Those in the book of life won’t suffer this death – Revelation 20:15<\/p>\n
3. Those who overcome will not be a part of it – Revelation 2:11<\/p>\n
4. Revelation 21:7-8 lists the type of people who will suffer the second death<\/p>\n
5. If Hell is the second death, what is the first? <\/p>\n
a. The death we all must face one day – Hebrews 9:27<\/p>\n b. After the first death comes judgment with the possibility of a\nsecond death.\n
B. Those who are a part of the first resurrection are priests of God<\/p>\n
1. Once again, we are talking of Christians – I Peter 2:9<\/p>\n
2. As Christians, we will also reign with Christ.<\/p>\n
C. So how do people become priests (or Christians)?<\/p>\n
1. By being baptized into the likeness of Christ’s death – Romans 6:3-6<\/p>\n 2. This is what II Timothy 2:11-12 alludes to, our death with Christ in\nbaptism.\n
3. A similar thing is mentioned in Ephesians 2:1, 4-7.<\/p>\n 4. Therefore, becoming a Christian is the first resurrection, when we come\nout of the water to a new life.\n
D. If there is a first resurrection, then there must be a second<\/p>\n
1. I Thessalonians 4:13-18 – The dead will rise at Jesus’ second coming.<\/p>\n
2. John 5:28-29 – Both the good and the bad will be raised.<\/p>\n
3. This is what Revelation 20:5 refers to the rising of the rest of the dead.<\/p>\nIV. Hence, Revelation 20:4-6 covers the rest of the Christian age in a few brief statements. \nWhat follows is a description of the final triumph.\n
A. Now that we have covered these things, let us look at Daniel 7:7-27<\/p>\n 1. Notice the great, fourth beast, whom God said would be a fourth kingdom,\nor empire (from Daniel’s time, this refers to Rome)\n
2. The rulers (horns) of the beast are full of boasts (or blasphemies)<\/p>\n
3. Eventually this beast would be slain and burnt (just as in Revelation 19)<\/p>\n 4. Before it is slain, during an extension of time, the Son of Man comes and\nsets up a kingdom which will not end.\n
5. The saints of God will receive and possess that kingdom<\/p>\n 6. A really wicked ruler will arise and during his reign, the saints would be\npersecuted.\n 7. But the ruler will be destroyed and the rule will be turned over to the saints\nof God\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I. Revelation 20:4-6 A. Many elaborate theories are based on this 1. Some teach that Christ, at his second coming, sets up a kingdom here on earth. 2. Christians from the early church are raised up to rule with him. 3. After a peaceful, thousand-year reign, the Devil is released 4. A seven-year battle ensues (the years…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[345,344,102],"class_list":["post-62585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-kingdom","tag-premillennialism","tag-revelation"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7830,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/premillennial-theories\/","url_meta":{"origin":62585,"position":0},"title":"Premillennial Theories","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0There are a lot of ideas floating about concerning the Second Coming of Christ \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Most of them are strange fantasies that have little to do with the teachings in the Bible. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Many of the myths are repeated over and over so many times that many people\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3533,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-thousand-year-reign\/","url_meta":{"origin":62585,"position":1},"title":"The Thousand Year Reign","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 16, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Many elaborate theories have been based on\u00a0Revelation 20:4-6. Some teach that at his second coming the Christ will set up a kingdom here on earth. To help him administer this new kingdom, Christians from the early church will be raised to rule with him. After a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3530,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/an-overview-of-premillennial-theories\/","url_meta":{"origin":62585,"position":2},"title":"An Overview of Premillennial Theories","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 16, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton When dealing with the second coming of Jesus Christ, you will find a wide variety of theories floating about the world. The vast majority of them are simply strange fantasies that have little to do with the teaching of the Bible. Yet, because the myths are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18437,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/how-can-satan-be-bound-if-he-is-walking-about-like-a-roaring-lion\/","url_meta":{"origin":62585,"position":3},"title":"How can Satan be bound if he is walking about like a roaring lion?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 17, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Would you please assist me with a question about Revelation 20? I understand that Christ is now reigning and that when death is conquered at his second coming his reign will end. I know his reign is not a literal thousand years. But my question is: How is Satan\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":89638,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/will-christ-reign-on-earth-for-a-thousand-years\/","url_meta":{"origin":62585,"position":4},"title":"Will Christ Reign on Earth for a Thousand Years?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 23, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Samuel Matthews Loved ones, the doctrine of Premillennialism teaches that, when Christ returns, there will be a resurrection of the righteous. Then there will be a seven-year rapture (the righteous taken to heaven) while there are seven years of tribulation on earth (during which the antichrist reigns). At the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":55804,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/your-teaching-in-the-establishment-of-the-kingdom-is-very-unorthodox\/","url_meta":{"origin":62585,"position":5},"title":"Your teaching in “The Establishment of the Kingdom” is very unorthodox","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 14, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Greetings Mr. Hamilton, I'm reaching out because I have just heard your teaching on \"The Establishment of the Kingdom\" and I must admit, this is a very unorthodox view in my estimation of what you're presenting. However, first, I must ask, do you ascribe to an Amillennial position? Seeming\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62585"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62585\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}