Now, just real quickly, keep your place in 1 Corinthians 15, go back to Isaiah 65, and
let me just end with this, okay?
What's the point of the millennial reign?
I mean, what's the point?
Have you ever thought about that?
Like, what's the point of the millennial reign?
What's the purpose of millennial reign?
Well, I would submit to you that there's a few, you know, reasons for the millennial
reign and probably more than I can think of, but one of the reasons for the millennial
reign is that prophecy has to be fulfilled, right?
Because the Lord Jesus Christ has to reign.
He has to be king.
So it's a fulfillment of the fact that he is king and he actually reigns, and we know
he reigns in heaven and we get that, but he reigns upon this earth, right?
And there's a fulfillment there.
But I believe another reason for the millennial reign is because God, you know, just at the
end before he gets rid of all sinners and gets rid of all sin, he just wants Jesus to
come down and just show us how it was supposed to be done.
Because don't you think, like, if we didn't have the millennial reign, wouldn't we just
for all of eternity wonder?
Like we would think like, well, yeah, I mean, it works now because we're all in our glorified
bodies, but I wonder if it would ever work.
So see, Jesus himself comes down to show us, no, the law of the Lord is perfect.
You're the problem.
It would have worked if you would have done it, but it didn't work because of you.
It didn't work because of sin.
It didn't work because you didn't do it the way you're supposed to.
So Jesus comes down with sinners, implements us, and shows us that it can be done.
So he shows us that, again, it fulfills the fact that he's king.
But you know what?
It also gives us a time to enjoy this world.
Because here's the thing.
You and I, we're in a spiritual battle, aren't we?
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers,
against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high
places.
And you know, when you're in battle, when you're in battle, you don't get to really
enjoy your surroundings.
You know, on D-Day, I don't think those young guys that were storming the beaches of Normandy
were like, man, I always wanted to go to France.
I always wanted to check out France.
You know why?
Because they were in battle.
Because they were fighting.
But you know, when the battle's over, I bet a bunch of those guys went back to France
and checked it out.
And you know, in this world, you know, sometimes we can get discouraged and we think, man,
I just give my life to church Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night.
We got salt winning on Saturday or salt winning on Sunday.
And I got to give 10% of my money to the church.
And I got to, you know, my vacations consist of the Prophecy Conference and the Red Hot
Preaching Conference, you know.
And my neighbor's going on cruises.
And they're buying new cars.
And they're enjoying the world.
And you know, they don't want to get saved.
But look, the millennial reign is a time when you and I, we get to enjoy this world.
You know, my wife and I, we're not going to be married, right, because after the
resurrection there's no marriage.
But you know, I'm hoping she'll like go tour the world with me.
Just as friends.
But you know, we're going to go tour the world.
All the places I never took her to, you know.
The Bahamas, you know, whatever.
I don't know.
We're going to enjoy.
Are you there in Isaiah 65?
Look at verse 21.
Isaiah 65, 21.
Maybe I can sneak in a kiss.
I don't know.
Isaiah 65, 21.
And they shall build houses and inhabit them.
And they shall plant vineyards and eat fruit of them.
They shall not build and another inhabit.
That's the world we live in today.
They shall not plant and another eat.
For as the days of a tree are the days of my people and mine elect shall long enjoy
the work of their hands.
You don't miss that.
The work you do today, the work you do right now, the work you do for God, you'll get
to enjoy that then.
Or you can just enjoy this life now.
You know, where everything gets moth-eaten and corrupt.
You know, what's the point of the millennial reign?
It's the fact that we get to enjoy it and, you know, it should motivate us.
First Corinthians 15 talks a lot about the resurrection, talks a lot about the resurrection
having to do with the millennial reign, the end, and all those things.
Notice how the chapter ends.
First Corinthians 15, 58.
Notice how the chapter ends.
And it ends in the same way that I'd like to end this sermon.
Because of the millennial reign, because of the fact that Jesus Christ is victorious
at the battle of Armageddon, because of the fact that we'll be judged on this earth for
the things we did, the way we lived our life, because of the fact that the millennial reign
is one day coming, literally, for real.
We don't have to bring it in.
Jesus will bring it in.
And it's actually going to happen.
Those things, those verses are not just poetry.
There are going to be lions that eat like a bullock.
Men will live long.
It's going to be a great time.
There will be peace on earth.
Because of that, because of the fact that one day sin and death will be judged along
with unbelievers at the great white throne, because of the fact that God will be victorious
at the battle of Gog and Magog, because of all of that.
The Bible says this, Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always
abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain
in the Lord.
Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer.
Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for your word.
Thank you for the Bible.
And Lord, thank you for the hope that it gives us.
We don't live without hope.
We have hope not only of the resurrection, but we have hope for the millennial reign,
that one day the work and the labor that's done in this life, the suffering and the trials
and the persecutions we go through, one day we will be rewarded for those and we'll get
to rule and reign and judge with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Lord, help us not to just learn about these things just because they're interesting and
just to learn about them, just to have knowledge, but Father, I pray you would help us to allow
them to motivate us to be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.
In the name of Christ, we pray.
Amen.