The Millennium Project

“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed” (Daniel 7:13, 14 ESV).

The Millennium Project, a global participatory think tank established in 1996 under the American Council for the United Nations University, became independent in 2009. Its purpose is to connect futurists around the world and find solutions to improve humanity’s prospects. It claims to be a think tank on behalf of all humanity, not a government, or an issue, or an ideology. The Project has published 19 editions of The State of Future in nine major languages. The introduction to the 20th edition, released on September 15, 2024, reads:

“It provides a broad, detailed, and readable look at the issues and opportunities on the future of humanity, and what we should know today to avoid the worst and achieve the best for the future of civilization. The Millennium Project, a global participatory think-tank, distilled countless research reports, insights from hundreds of futurists and related experts around the world, and 70 of its own futures research reports, to make this report of immense value. It offers an Executive Summary on the prospects for civilization.”

Its globalist view of the world concludes that the world is improving, and the world in 2035 will be better than today. 2045 will bring “beautiful futures.” Other conclusions:
● Most people alive today will be alive in 2050 and most babies born today will see the year 2100
● Despite the media’s focus on terrible events, the majority of the world is living in peace
● Much of the world’s knowledge is freely available to over 60 percent of humanity
● People are healthier, wealthier, better educated, living longer, and better connected.
● Life expectancy has risen from 60 years to just over 73 years. World literacy has improved from just under 68 percent to 88 percent. More than 90 percent of the world has access to electricity. In 1980, almost no one had access to the Internet; today nearly 5.5 billion are online. The world’s economy is currently valued at nearly $110 trillion, triple what it was 20 years ago.

The report concludes with a road map to navigate the complex global landscape and work towards a more sustainable, equitable, and loving future for all.

Is the Future All bright?

The World Bank reports that extreme poverty in 2015 affected just 10% of the world population, as opposed to 1980, when over half the world population lived in extreme poverty ($1.90 per day). However, world problems have not gone away. In 2023, almost 700 million people worldwide lived on less than $785 per year. The World Health Organization reports that annual world deaths in 2023 exceeded 60 million. Seven of the 10 leading causes of deaths were noncommunicable diseases, accounting for 38% of all deaths, or 68% of the top 10 causes. One of every 8 people in the world today live with a mental disorder. In 2022, the global rate of intentional homicide was 5.61 per 100,000 people. The UN News reported that global homicides reached a record high in 2021-exceeding 475,000. Over 165,273 political violence events have been recorded worldwide, marking a 15% increase from the previous 12 months (July 2023 to June 2024). Although the Millennium Project brings hope to the world of equal access, it can never deliver all people from sickness, death, or war. Only Divine intervention can perform such a miracle.

The Biblical Millennium

Details regarding the Millennial Age, its nature, characteristics, laws, and the manner in which God will write His laws in men’s hearts, is revealed mainly in the inspired words of five Biblical prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel and Zechariah. In Acts 3:19-21, Peter said that God had spoken of this age as the “Times of Restitution of all things” through the words of his holy prophets since the world began. Thus Enoch, the very first prophet (Jude 14), and those that followed, alluded to the Millennial (Messianic) Kingdom. However, it was to these five prophets, all living between the 8th and 4th centuries BC, that the holy Spirit gave detailed descriptions of the coming Kingdom. In these prophecies, we have detailed descriptions of a true Millennium Project where earth will be restored through the New Covenant.

The heart-felt expression of an age-old hope was repeated by Jesus when He provided his model prayer and desire for God’s earthly kingdom (Matthew 6:10). Every generation has since reiterated this plea when evil will be eliminated from the hearts of all men, and, to use the language of the prophet, “they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD” (Jeremiah 31:34).

A time is coming when the kingdoms of this world give place to the kingdom of God, and the nations of earth will live in the light of that kingdom (Revelation 11:15, 21:24). The blessings of an all-powerful and righteous Messianic reign will place the issues of life and death before all people who have ever lived. In the hope of becoming part of the celestial world, to “be with Christ,” believers are being trained as leaders and teachers to help reconcile the world to God. The judgment work described by Isaiah (Isaiah 35:8) will be concurrent with the dispensing of Kingdom blessings. So thorough will be the instruction in righteousness that God’s law will be written in the hearts of all people (Jeremiah 31:33, 34). Throughout the ages the experience with sin and death has been a trying one, and human selfishness continues to bring a worldwide “distress of nations, with perplexity” (Luke 21:25). The harsh lessons of sin will result in an appreciation for the blessing of life which will be given to the people during the reign of Christ. Through this experience, all mankind will learn the terrible results of disobeying divine law. By contrast, when the kingdom blessings are showered upon them, they will learn of divine goodness, and their response will be, “Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him … we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation” (Isaiah 25:6-9).

The kingdom reign will bring joy, peace and love. Life will he extended into every corner of the globe. Its healing power will empty every hospital bed. Its life-giving energy will reach down into every tomb. All blind eyes will be opened, and all deaf ears will be unstopped (Isaiah 35:5). No longer will Satan be permitted to deceive or mislead the people. Nor will his rule of selfishness and hate be permitted to further destroy the peace and happiness of nations. As a result of the educational program of Christ’s kingdom, the world will learn the advantages of love and mercy over selfishness and hate. Instead of securing all they can for themselves, people will learn that the real secret of deep and lasting joy is in doing all they can for others. A truly beautiful future!