Thy kingdom come Oh Lord, thy rule Oh Christ begin.
As you probably already know a millennium is a Latin word for 1,000 years. The world today uses them as a measurement of time and we are in the 3rd millennium after the birth of Christ (as long as the calculation as to Christ's birth year is correct). But the one mentioned in Revelation 20-22 is very different.
The world 'millennium' is a title given to the thousand year reign of Christ. It starts when Jesus returns to the earth and ends when death is abolished and we 'stand in front of God'.
I have admit, there's quite a lot about these chapters that I don't understand, but I can build conclusions given other scriptural references throughout the Bible. So we'll look at a few.
It seems to be a time of extremes. There will be a perfect place which we know will be Jerusalem and its surrounding area, yet the hazards of the world will still be surrounding it. Revelation 22 refers to the gates stopping those who do not please God from entering, while inside we have perfection including the Throne of Christ and Tree of Life.
Isaiah records the route there will be a highway, yet off that route there may still be dangers. It seems to me that this is a journey we must take. And not only us, but the "kings of the earth will also come to bring their glory and honour into it".
The Tree of Life has always been of particular interest. One of my first jobs (and one I stayed in for 12 years) was in conservation and woodland management, so a chance to see this tree has always held wonder for me. To see something which has not been seen since Eden will be amazing. But the chance to eat its fruit and leaves would be an even more amazing priviledge considering their recorded properties (the fruit to grant life and the leaves to give healing).
And the city will never be dark, due to the light which will come from "Glory of God, and the lamb".
So the question is; why will it take so long?
I think we've already covered the answer in previous studies. God wants us to come to him of our own choice, not because he forces us to. Admittedly the choice is live or die, but it's still a choice. God isn't going to ask for an immeadiate answer and we'll have a longer life than we would expect these days. Isaiah 65 records
"There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed."It does look like we'll get some help to come to the right decision, the reference to the Devil and Satan being bound means that we'd not be so good at kidding ourselves about right and wrong, that things which cause us spiritual problems will be supressed. The fact that Jesus will be there, where we can see him will be the best motivation for that.
We've also go the "environmental crisis". Now that might take 1,000 years to put right, especially at the current rate of destruction through greed and neglect, but this is Christ's kingdom and God's world we're taking about. They have the power (and knowledge) to correct everything instantly and to perfection. What I think we have here is a way to see the power and glory of God while at the same time being able to see the contrast between that and man's greed and waste.
And just as the dream of Nebuchadnezzar showed a stone growing to fill the whole world, so God's kingdom will do the same over the thousand years.
All we have to do is make sure we're one of the ones who be will able to "enter the gates with gladness".