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Will there be a millennial hierarchy?

 Submitted: 7/30/2006
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Question: Jesus says that those raptured at His second-coming will reign as kings and priests (Revelation 5:10 and 20:6) over mortal humans (Isaiah 65:17-25, 17) who can still die and live sinfully (Isa. 65:20) during His 1000-year reign. Please help me understand this as it seems like a 'ruling class' of immortal humans, that is the Bride/Body of Christ, which seems hierarchical in that a king is a ruler of people. Being a king and priest seems to equate to being a 'ruling teacher/minister.' Thank you for clearing this up for me.
Answer: The literal meaning of the word 'hierarchy' is priest-rule. While we do not believe the leadership of a local assembly should be hierarchical, we do believe that there is a spirtual hierarchy. Since Jesus is both the great High Priest and the King of kings (Hebrews 3:1; Revelation 19:16), He serves as a ruling priest over the church. This means that in the local assembly, there is a hierarchy in that Jesus rules over the entire body. This also means that He is the model of how spiritual rule is to take place.

The Bible does indicate that during the Millennium the raptured and transformed believers will rule and reign with Jesus over the inhabitants of the earth. The point is this: their rule will be modeled after the style of Jesus Christ. They will be firm (a rod of iron), yet tempered with humilty and compassion. In addition, this will be a time of peace on earth and good will toward men, the lion lying down with the lamb. A 'ruling teacher/minister' is probably a good way to describe the ruling believers.


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