“But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8).
Not everyone who reads this passage of Scripture, really understands it because it has to do with the perception of time (for most of us). Many will make note of the 1000-year-millennial reign of Jesus Christ (after the Tribulation.)
Most do not look into the future any further than tomorrow and at the same time, the past—was just yesterday. I would have to say, that is a very focused viewpoint, wouldn’t you? And yet, we “think” we understand time. Have you ever wondered why time is always in the 12 hour or the 24 hour period?
If you are talking about 7:30 in the evening, it is either 7:30 PM or 1930 Hrs, right? Like I stated, seldom greater than 24 hours ahead or the past was just yesterday. Having said that, 1000 years is very difficult for you or me to clearly have a handle on.
Let me use my parents to try and clear this up some. My dad was born in 1916 and He lived to be 69 years old, therefore it was in 1985, that he passed away. My Mom was born in 1920 and she was 74 years old when she passed away, so that was in 1994. So how much do you remember of the period of time from 1916 to 1920?
I do not mean, how much knowledge have you obtained about that time period, I mean actually remember from that time. I could safely say, very few might remember. Now this means neither my mom or dad never came close to being 100 years old and 100 years is 1/10th of a millennium. So in a phrase, 100 years is small peanuts compared to a millennium. We must use written text to know what all was going on in 1014 AD, right?
Now, let’s go back to the verse above, about a thousand years as one day to God and then let’s combine that with the knowledge that we have about our time here on earth. We must keep the idea, that our time here on earth is Linear and yet, with God there is no time constraint. If we use the 70 years of time according to Daniel’s 70 weeks of years, all of a sudden we see a truly big difference in the use of time. And again, according to Daniel’s 70 weeks of years, a week could be 490 years in actual length.
And then we would need to look at the “Shemitah cycle” according to the Jews. Where six weeks of planting and harvesting and then a rest on the 7th week. Yet our Georgian calendar uses four weeks at a time, to be a month. Oops…something is amiss, because it does not work out just right. So we must use other means…correct?
Not really. I know some will not like that I am disregarding the above. A Shemitah cycle is difficult for most to deal with, not that their stupid, it’s just tough. That is seven years in total, when most are doing pretty well to simply remember what they did at the beginning of this week.
A millennium is far too difficult to assess. I like to keep things a little more close to home, 6 days for work and whatever, but the 7th day is the Sabbath and it is to be kept Holy unto the Lord. The Lord is not slack in giving us information on how we live with our time.
James 4:13-15: “Go to now, ye that say, Today or tomorrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.”
Here’s the problem in a nutshell. We can’’ truly see beyond tomorrow and we seldom ever see past yesterday. We do indeed remember certain periods of time from our past. Why ? We were given finite minds and each persons’ capacity is different from another. Let me tickle your mind a little:
What if one day in the millennial reign of Jesus Christ, felt like it had been a thousand years? That would mean, the 1000 years would feel like 1,000,000 years. And yet, would it truly matter to you or me how long it is? (We still have an eternity with Jesus Christ to look forward to.) How does that one day feel to you now? “Perception” is difficult, to say the least.
Here is another perspective to look at. How long does one minute feel like when you’re in hell? There is no day or night, there is no stopping the pain and suffering and the torment…worst of all…There is NO HOPE of any kind. And that will last for eternity. Now THAT is a scary prospect to consider.
I am not saying anything you don’t already know, deep inside your heart. Be stubborn and angry all you want, it won’t change a single thing, because you don’t control anything, except where you ultimately end up. So how long is a millennium? I would have to guess that depends on where you are at and with whom.
In many ways I have not left South East Asia where I once spent time. I live one day at a time. I don’t dwell on the past, because I can’t change that and I am not worried about the future because I belong to Jesus Christ. All I am concerned about is the right here and the right now. If I am doing as the Lord has asked me to do in His Word, I am good, I am content and I am filled with happiness.
I am not worrying or wringing my hands about the Rapture or the Tribulation, whether it comes tomorrow or not. I am content right where I am and I am with my Lord and Savior with every thought, every intent of my heart and every single step I take. Right now is all we have, so the question is this:
If you died right now, where would you be in the next second? In that I am still alive and a simple human, I hope and pray that my seconds with my Lord and Savior are and will be exactly what the Lord has told me they will be. Unimaginable wonder!
Remember what your parents taught you. If you are going somewhere, it is always one step after the other, no more and no less. Walk each and every step with Jesus Christ, trust me, in the end it will have been the best ever.
We will continue this line of thought in my next article…if that is according to the perfect will of God our Father.