The Defeated Enemy

Revelation 20:1–10 NIV

And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time. I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years. When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—and to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore. They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Introduction: How many when we started the series on Revelation thought, When will he get to the timelines when different things will happen in the future?

17 - Millennial Theory Chart

18 - Millennial Theory History Chart.

Conclusions:

Sometimes Non-Heretics on this point become heretics, and heretics may become Non-Heretics.

This is the only passage both in the Bible and in Jewish/Christian literature that mentions the 1,000 years, perhaps we would be wise to “Not” commit to elaborate theories based on this 1 passage, we need to look at all scripture to discern what God is saying about Jesus’ coming again.

Sadly, this has become the focus point, but what is it?

In this passage, one of the more famous, if not infamous, in the Revelation, John’s own interests have often been largely ignored by a great many later interpreters. Whatever else, John is not at this point interested in a time period as such, known as “the millennium,” even though the term “a thousand years” appears a total of four times in these few sentences. Rather the two paragraphs, both of which begin yet again with the verb “I saw,” are best understood together as an interlude between the divine overthrow of the unholy triumvirate (Satan, the Empire, the cult of the emperor) delineated in the preceding section (19:11–21), and the final judgment of all evil, both demonic and human, in 20:7–15.

Gordon D. Fee, Revelation, New Covenant Commentary Series (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2011), 280.

So what is the focus, it is on What happens to Satan, and is there hope for all of the Martyred friends of the 7 churches?

19 - Satan’s Nature is to Deceive.

After the Beast the prophet, the prostitute are defeated, (ie. the Roman Empire, the provincial leaders, and Rome itself) God sends an Angel to arrest the one behind the whole debacle - Satan

- The Story of Rosco Peco Train arresting the Duke Boys. - They always escaped - Satan is not powerful enough for the Angel - Cosmic Police Officer, nor to escape, He is released. - Picture again of God's Common Grace.

Why does God release him. John MacKinney gives a compelling reason.

- John's Illustration of trapping his fish that fights the other fish - Learns his lesson, but it is in Satan's nature to always decieve. - He never learns his lesson. - So God is trying to make this point. The options are to make your allegience with those regimes that are empowered by Satan, or with Jesus.

The Revelation here is Satan will always deceive and mess things up.

But the Good News is that...

20 - God Finally Defeats Satan.

The imagry from vs. 8-10 comes from a number of different O.T. references. The first and main one is Ezekiels message to Gog the leader of the land of Magog also known as Meshack and Tubal. This is the primary imagry and it is basically short-hand storyline of this text of Ezekiel 38-39. It also alludes to two other stories, how Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, and second how the prophets of Baal were defeated at the contest at Mt. Carmel with Elijah.

Magog, Meshech and Tubal were all sons of Japheth, one of the sons of Noah. Ezekiels purpose is to point out that Gog is the leader of these nations and Nations from 7 different directions join Gog against the people of Israel. Basically Magog and its cohorts represent all of the Nations of the Earth coming against the one True God. So while the Beast represents the Roman Empire, and its fate is the same as that of Gog and Magog in Ezekiel, What John is saying is the Roman Empire is not the only, nor the last of these Beastly Kingdoms. All Nations will be judged. Also, the Idea of Satan being bound for 1,000 years leading to Magog's judgement seems to be John's way of saying, Satan is behind the Roman Empire, the Roman Empire will lose, because of God's limiting power, but John can forsee at least one other or other nations beyond the Roman Empire that will be empowered by Satan, just like the Nations in the O.T.

This passage is saying that this cycle of beastly nations empowered by Satan will eventually cease. There will be at some point in time a final Beastly nation when Christ Comes again. And what does God, Jesus do with Satan and these Nations?

21 - Video from Lisa - Passion Play.

22 - - Throwing out the Trash Illustration - Flash Paper - The Lake of Fire - The Beastly Nations, The Beastly Prophets, Prostituting Societies, and the one behind it all Satan - Go in the Cosmic Trash heap. and we will see some other things go in there as well next week.

This message helps us answer the other primary focus of John in this passage and it is part of the Hope we have as belivers....

23 - We Can Live Confident Satan is Defeated.

The passage with the Martyrs is an allusion to Daniel 7 where after the fourth beast is conquered. Then there will be a court will sit to remove the dominion of the final beast, and the dominion and greatness of the kingdoms will be given to the nation of the holy ones of the Most High. This ability to give judgment was given by the Ancient of Days to the Holy ones. But the leader of that Kingdom of the Holy Ones is the "Son of Man."

The People of Israel were called to be a Kingdom of Priest, and Peter identifies the Church as the Kingdom of Preists.

The Question that is being answered in this passage for the 7 churches. What happens to all of our friends who were martyred?

Everything said of these who rule with Jesus can ultimately said of all believers. They will judge/rule, they are priests, they kept their allegience with Christ, they preached the Gospel, and when they die, they will live forever with Christ.

He is saying very much what Paul said in...

1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 LEB

Now we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you will not grieve as also the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, thus also God will bring those who have fallen asleep through Jesus together with him. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who remain until the Lord’s coming, will not possibly precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout of command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who remain, will be snatched away at the same time together with them in the clouds for a meeting with the Lord in the air, and thus we will be together with the Lord always. Therefore comfort one another with these words.

So what is being said here. The martyers judge precisely through their martyrdom, and then the Roman Empires downfall that the Martyrs are vindicated.

Persecution for Christ and then the ultimate downfall of the persecutor is their judgment.

This is a message of Hope and encouragement to those in the Church who are grieving the killing of their friends by the Roman Empire. “This is not their end.” They are coming back.

This is exactly what we say at funerals of those who pass away and are believers.

Those who hold to a physical millenial reign have to answer a whole bunch of questions. One being if Christ rules physically with these resurrected saints, how can a huge amount of Gog and Magog non-believers be so easily deceived to oppose Jesus?

Well here are my thoughts.

First - I hold loosely to a more Amillinial view. This Resurrection is not a physical resurrection for a thousand years. It is as we believe they are present with the Lord, and will not experience the second death which is hell - eternal absent from God.

The reign/judgement they provide is a testimony that they were right. God has vindicated them by toppling the unjust, deluded, power hungry, Satan empowered beastly nations. That the way to life is through sacrificial service, and receiving Jesus for atonement of sins (ie the cross) and not power over models.

However, whether you believe in a physical millennium or a symbolic Millinnium, the same is true. In this Age, whether Satan is bound or not, Sin is still present in our world. Satan is not the author of sin, humans are. And so if you believe like me.

The Millinneum is a symbolic number representing the completeness of time. Sin is still present in this world whether Satan is limited or given full reign. And it will not be fully irradicated until Jesus Comes to Judge the living and the dead. Satan will be unleashed from time to time to deceive and so we are called to discern and remain alligned with Jesus and his Gospel.

Or the Millinneum is a physical reign on this earth. Sin will still be present until Jesus comes to bring the Kingdom in its fullness and comes for the final judgement of the living and the Dead. - Which we will talk about next week, but until then We can receive the forgivenss of our sins through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

24 - Application Points:

When it seems like Satan is deceiving or has the upper hand. Always remember, He loses, and has already lost. He has no power over those who remain aligned with Jesus.

For those who were believers who passed away - We know they have been vindicated. That we will be reunited with them for eternity.

Conclusion:

So, this passage may talk about the millinium, but my encouragement for you is not to put your focus on that, but on the Good News, that Satan while he will deceive, has no power over God, over Jesus, over believers he is a defeated foe. And on the Good news for those who die - specifically as martyrs, but all Christians that they will be vindicated.