Once the war of Armageddon is over and Satan is sent to the Abyss for 1,000 years along with all others whose names were not in the Book of Life. Jerusalem becomes the world capital. Poverty is unknown and prosperity is evident everywhere. Most people will have every need met. There will be no prisons, no hospitals, no mental institutions and few graveyards for some may live to be as old as Methuselah. The earth will be filled with the knowledge of God. Jesus is Lord and rules with an iron rod. His reign is righteous and the nations obey His directions. Depending on our relationship with Christ, prior to that time, depends on what our life will be like and the rewards we will receive during those years if we are a true Christian.

We believe generation after generation will be born and the earth flourishes as it did in the Garden of Eden before man’s sin. To live longer lives we have been told we will have a new body. A body that is not as lustful and carnal as our present ones. We will have a different mind-set and most likely stress and fear may not be a factor. When Christ chooses us to do a job, would we question whether we could do it or not? Would Christ ask us if He knew we couldn’t do it? What would it be like with everyone having a positive, can do attitude?

Some believe whether they are born during the 1,000 years or those resurrected who believe God has not given them enough, will deny Christ later in this period. These unbelievers on earth are allowed to experience the reign of Christ. They will continue to rebel against God even without Satan’s deceptive influence. The moment Satan is let out of the prison or Abyss, at the end of the millennium; these people will flock after Satan and go to war against Christ seeking a better life or more material things. It happened in Heaven and is possible on earth also. This will prove their absolute depravity and the necessity of the final punishment in the Lake of Fire.

God cursed creation because of the sins of Adam and Eve. It is believed that once Christ returns, the earth’s ecology and environment will be as it was prior to the flood. No one knows how this will happen but the Apostle Peter said, “If God promised it, then He knows how to do it.”

Micah 4:4 – “Everyone will live in peace and prosperity, enjoying their own grapevines and fig trees, for there will be nothing to fear. The Lord of Heaven’s Armies have made this promise!” Revelation 11:15 – “Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices shouting in heaven: “The world has now become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and he will reign forever and ever.”

History tells us that the early church leaders believed, without exception, that Christ would return after the Tribulation to reign. In A.D. 375 Augustine taught that the 1000 year Millennium began with the birth of Christ. Many continue to believe that it is between the resurrection and when Christ returns the second time. They believed the reign of Christ is in the hearts of Christians until Jesus’ return. They also believe the Tribulation occurs throughout history and that we have been going through it since Christ’s death. They do not believe that Christ will rule on this earth for 1,000 years. I continue to believe that when Christ returns, believers will be raptured and those saved in the Tribulation period and the Old Testament saints will live to rule with Jesus.

Revelation 19: 15 – 16 – “From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a wine-press. On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.”

Christ, in His second coming, has a different ministry. In previous Scripture it describes miracle working demons causing all the rulers of the world to gather for battle against the Lord to a place called Armageddon. The sword in His mount is God’s Word. As the universe was spoken into existence, one Word and His foes will be killed where they stand. Isaiah 11:4 says: He will strike down the nations with the breath of His mouth. At this point God’s anger destroys all sin and evil. At the end of the War of Armageddon, then begins the millennium, the 1000 years of Jesus’ reigns.

Isaiah 9:7 – “His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!”

The Jews expected their Messiah would come as a world leader as Scripture predicted. This is why they could not accept a spiritual Jesus as their Messiah. Therefore, we believe the Old Testament and the New Testament agree that there will be 1000 years when Christ actually rules as a benevolent dictator on earth and it hasn’t happened yet. The first time He came was to die for the sins of man and the Jews did not understand He would come a second time.

Revelation 20:1 – 3 – “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven with the key to the bottomless pit and a heavy chain in his hand. He seized the dragon—that old serpent, who is the devil, Satan—and bound him in chains for a thousand years. The angel threw him into the bottomless pit, which he then shut and locked so Satan could not deceive the nations anymore until the thousand years were finished. Afterward he must be released for a little while.”

Once the 1,000 years are over, Satan, non-believers and this earth will be destroyed by fire. There then will be a new heaven and a new earth that we will live in forever, a paradise greater than anything man could ever imagine. It will have the capacity to accommodate over one billion people. What on this earth could be more important than living God’s ways planning for eternity?