Jesus Reigned...and Reigns...and will Reign Forever

What Did Jesus Do?

“...and he shall reign forever and ever.”
Revelation 11.15

I have another one of my many confessions to make—millennialism gives me a headache. You've got your premillennialists (of various persuasions); you've got your postmillennialists; and you've got your amillennialists. Me, I guess you'd have to say I'm a minimillennialist, which is to say I don't give the millennium a lot of thought, and even less study.

The millennium, just to make sure we're all on the same page before we divide up over our millennial doctrine, references the thousand year reign of Christ which will precede the last judgment. The scriptural reference is Revelation Chapter 20. And the debate, unlike the millennium itself, is seemingly endless, and certainly heated. So, I suppose my minimillennialist position is likely to bother folks from all the other millennial camps. It might even get me kicked out of some ecclesiastical clubs.

None of this is to say that I do not have the same respect and regard for the 2oth Chapter of Revelation as the Word of God as I do for all the rest of the Bible. But when I read about the millennium the message I get from it is one that the Boy Scouts have adopted as their motto—BE PREPARED!!! Whether the Church is raptured or not, be prepared. Whether the thousand year reign of Christ is a “pre-” or a “post” event, or a spiritualized experience (as amillennialists believe), be prepared. If the return of Christ is today, tomorrow, or hundreds of years from now, be prepared. If you will not be here for the Lord's return because today is the day YOU enter eternity, be prepared!

So, here's the thing from my “minimillennialist” perspective. If Christ isn't reigning today, why fuss about the thousand years? To me, what matters is Christ being Lord and Savior of our lives right here and now this very moment. And, if he truly is reigning in our heart today, than our primary concern should be for any and all in whose heart Christ does not yet reign. Today is the day that matters. Where Christ reigns today, and where he does not, is what we need to be concerned with, and how we can be used by the Holy Spirit to extend the Lord's reign to other hearts.

I could be wrong, but I believe it is of infinitely greater importance, to all of us who could enter eternity at any moment, to be sure that Christ is reigning in our life today, tomorrow, forever, rather than expend a lot of energy, making friends and foes along the way, over the matter of his reign before the end times. If your end time is today, does the exact timing and sequence of events of the eschaton matter all that much?

It all comes down to this—does Christ reign in the heart now and forever? If he does, there is nothing to worry about. If he doesn't, there is something much more urgent than the millennium to be concerned about. As far as I can tell, Jesus spent little or no time discussing the millennium with his disciples. He did speak of the final judgment, and of the importance of people preparing today not for a thousand years, but for eternity.

Only those who have Christ in their heart are truly prepared for eternity. Is Jesus reigning in our life today, tomorrow, and forever? Being able to answer this question in the affirmative is all that matters.

S.D.G.

Jim
www.jimwilkenministries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4