The REVELATION of Jesus Christ #13
Chapters 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
John sees an angel come down from heaven, having the key to
the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. The angel lays
hands on the Devil, on Satan, and BINDS HIM UP for ONE THOUSAND
YEARS! Satan is put into the bottomless pit, he is shut up, and
sealed from coming out on to the earth. He will not be allowed to
DECEIVE the nations and peoples of the earth, UNTIL the thousand
years are finished, then yes, God will allow him to come out and
once more deceive SOME, but only for a very short season, a very
short time (verses 1-3).
What a blessing for the people of the earth, to have NO
Satan around for one thousand years. We often do not realize the
horrible work and depths of Satan. When it is all known, I think
we will be somewhat shocked at HOW CLEVER, HOW CUNNING, HOW
DECEPTIVE HE CAN BE, as he often comes as an angel of "light."
Most of the world, the people who have lived in any age, have
been BLINDED - they will be shocked when they are raised to
life again, and really come to understand the depths of the
deceptive work of Satan. The Devil really does come OFTEN as an
angel of light. There are, as I write to finish off this New
Testament Bible Story, OVER ONE BILLION, yes, that is with a big
"B" - Billion Roman Catholics in the world. To them their
Catholic "universal" church is pleasant, nice, caring, warm,
comfortable, and they believe theologically correct (even if some
do disagree with the ruling on "birth control" and "sex only for
reproduction") on the salvation points of theology.
Then you have all the hundreds of thousands in all the other
"Christian" denominations around the world. Most of the members
in those church denomination as blinded, they just simply do not
know they do not know, or they are not concerned with real study
of the Scriptures. They are in a "comfortable pew" and like it
so. It is their spiritual leaders that are mainly at fault. Most
of those spiritual leaders do go to "theological school" and
study for four years or more. They have encountered the truth BUT
just will not teach it! Satan does a number on all these one
billion and hundreds of millions that go under the name of
"Christ."
I subscribe to a "Christian Book" club. Every month you have
this magazine coming with all kinds of very fine writers (as far
as English "prose" goes) - articulate, educated, and have all the
"stuff" needed to sell books to the Christian community. I have
nothing against the "prose" of English. Jesse, who has her
Website on this Website of mine, was a much better English
"prose" writer than me, she had a way of writing much like all
these Christian book writer out there, with ONE EXCEPTION - the
MOST important one - Jesse KNEW AND LIVED the truth of God's
word. So, what am I saying, about those "Christian religious
writers" of some fame, or not? To put it bluntly (and I think you
know by now I do at times put things very bluntly) - they ARE
DECEPTIVE teachers, who have and are NOT teaching the theological
truth of God's word. But they come to you as "angels of light."
Satan is using them to deceive well over a BILLION
Christians on this earth! You think I'm exaggerating. Well just
ask any of them about the FOURTH commandment in Exodus 20.
Then you have the Islamic faith. I believe they say there
are about one BILLION of Islam faith believers in the world at
present. They are deceived also.
You have other faiths of the Eastern world, different
religious faiths in China, India, Japan. They are all deceived!
And what about all the hundreds of millions, who just simply
do not believe in God, period! They just do not think God exists,
or do not think about if He exists or not. The creation around
then TESTIFIES to the existence of the Almighty, but they choose
not to think about it. They are deceived also.
All this DECEPTION, and the one behind it all is Satan the
Devil. Think of the LIBERATING EFFECT this world will feel when
Satan is chained up and CANNOT go around deceiving in any of his
many disguises. It will be ASTOUNDING and a liberating experience
for those people who do live through to see the coming of Christ
and who feel the effect the world will be under when the Devil is
chained up, and cannot do any of his dirty work in the lives of
individual people and governments of nations.
John sees, what all true Christians down the ages have
yearned for, have waited for, and looked forward to seeing.
Thrones are there, individuals sitting on them, having judgment.
They are the lives and people of God from all ages. They have
refused to have anything to do with BABYLON the great. They have
been willing to LIVE and to DIE if necessary, for the truths of
the Lord. They were the ELECT and CHOSEN, of God. Now they sit on
thrones and REIGN with Jesus Christ for a THOUSAND YEARS!!
They have been the relatively SMALL FLOCK, the VERY LITTLE
flock as Jesus once put it, but to them God the Father, is
PLEASED to give them the Kingdom.
All the prophets of old have written about the AGE TO COME
(as Paul once termed it) - NOW it is hear! Now the saints with
Jesus, with Enoch, with Abraham, with Moses, with David, with all
the well known and not known, true Children of the Father, shall
reign and rule the nations of this earth for a thousand years.
And by the way, this is a literal thousand years, otherwise
if not there would have been no need to have gotten so specific
in saying "a thousand years." The book of Revelation, when
saying "forty two months" means 42 months, not a week, or two
years, or 15 months, it means 42 months. So when John writes one
thousand years, it means just that, ONE THOUSAND YEARS! (verses
4-6).
If you have not already done so, please read my study on the
millennium (which means "thousand") called "Armageddon and the
Age to Come" for some details in the Scriptures concerning that
age yet ahead of us.
THE REST OF THE DEAD
Jesus said in John chapter 5, that ALL in the graves would
be raised (John 5:25-29). Here in verse 5 is an important verse
that breaks up into some detail, what Jesus said in the gospel of
John. It is an example of a Bible study key - get all the verses
on any particular subject. This verse here shows clearly that
ONLY the "saints" of God will be in what here is called "the
first resurrection." Those NOT in the first resurrection, are not
raised to life UNTIL AFTER the thousand years. Now, that is
pretty plain and simple to understand. Those that are not
classified by God as worthy to be in the first resurrection, for
whatever reasons the Father has, will not rise in a resurrection
until AFTER the thousand years.
BUT THEY WILL RISE IN A RESURRECTION, that is important to
know and to remember.
More about that resurrection a little later.
SATAN AND DECEPTION FOR ONE LAST TIME
When the thousand years are expired Satan is to be loosed
out of his prison. He will go out to once more DECEIVE the
nations which are in the four quarters of the year. Gog and Magog
(the Russian part of the planet) is especially named, for reasons
we are not told about. But nations in all four quarters are
included. They will be gathered to battle, and the number is not
small at all, like the sands of the sea.
This army goes up and surrounds the camp or home of
"saints", and the beloved city. This seems to indicate the saints
are ones in the physical flesh, not yet made immortal, who live
in the beloved city, which is pretty certain to be the Holy City
- Jerusalem.
You may have many question about this, well so do I. We are
given no more details any where in the Bible concerning this
battle. The "why" is the big question. I'm sure God will have
very good reasons for allowing all this to happen, we will just
have to wait until Jesus comes to receive the answers to our
question. All we can do for now is read it and believe it will
take place as written.
It is a swift victory for God, for fire comes down from
heaven and devours this huge army.
I will say this, this battle has NOTHING to do with that
mentioned in Ezekiel 38 and 39. Both are at the opposite ends of
the one thousand years. As I will write (God willing on all the
Old Testament prophetic books) on those chapters in the future
going through the OT prophetic books, I will just leave it for
now, as I've stated. (verses 4 - 10)
The Devil is this time dealt with in another manner, he is
thrown into the lake of fire that the beast "man" and the false
prophet "man" were thrown into a thousand years earlier. It would
seem that fire is burning continually during the thousand years.
You will read about this fire in Isaiah 66:15-24, which is also a
chapter on the age to come. Some capital punishment will exist in
the millennium, for those who do not desire to have control over
their fleshly minds (we can still be carnal without the help or
Satan) and who will still want to do wicked things and transgress
against the Lord.
The Devil will see his handy work go up in smoke once more.
He will indeed be tormented about it all for ever and ever (Greek
means "ages of the ages." He now begins to see there is no
victory for him, he's smashing his head against a brick way, and
his fate is possibly what Jude alluded to in saying, "wandering
stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever
(Jude 13).
Satan will know that soon there will be no more humans he
can influence, deceive, posses, or control. His time is just
about up, and the thought of not being able to have humans to
manipulate, and lead into sins, must give the fellow night mares
at the thoughts of it all coming to pass. He indeed will have
terrible mental torment over it all (verses 7-10). Not being able
to deceive and influence and even control, would be one of the
greatest punishments he and his demons could possibly be punished
with.
Verse 10 tells us that Satan will be tormented for as the
Greek reads: "for ages of the ages." As Satan is made of spirit,
physical fire and brimstone cannot kill him. Of course God can
say the word and he is no longer, but we see from Jude and from
this verse that it is very likely he will be punished forever in
the blackness of darkness.
THE WHITE THRONE JUDGMENT
John sees a great white throne. He that sits upon it, His
face makes the earth and heaven seem as if not there. Obviously
it is as the next verses tell us the sea and death and hell
(margin is "the grave") gave up the dead.
From verse 5 we know this is the SECOND resurrection! The
insignificant and the kings, the famous, all great or small, from
young to old, were raised up to life again. The "books" - in
Greek "the biblios" - from where we derive "the Bible" was
opened. And another book - "the book of life" was opened. These
dead, now raised to life, were judged by what is written in the
"biblios" according to how they lived, their attitude of mind.
The sea gave up the dead, and the grave gave up the dead, all the
dead, and they were judged according to how they lived, how they
thought, their very attitude of mind.
I have written in detail about this passage and all the
teaching of the rest of the Bible as to being called and chosen,
and the hundreds of millions down through the ages, that have not
been offered salvation in their life-time, who died knowing not
the Bible, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the only way to salvation.
Those studies are called, "The Great White Throne Judgment" and
"Called and Chosen - When" and also "The Truth about Judgment
Day."
Indeed there have been millions in past ages that lived and
died not having the Bible, and not knowing Jesus, the only name
under heaven whereby you can be saved (Acts 4:12).
This resurrection is not some millions standing at attention
while some judge (God) brings out a TV screen and has two
columns, the right hand one listing all the "good" deeds and the
left hand column listing all the "bad" deeds. And another book on
the judges right hand where the names of those to be saved will
be entered. Then the two columns of good and bad are added up to
see which out numbers the other. If there is more good deeds than
bad one, their name is entered into the book of life, and they
pass through a door that gives them entry into the eternal
Kingdom of God.
Some of you may laugh at such a scene. But SERIOUSLY, SOME
CHURCHES TEACH SUCH A DOCTRINE!
Now, do you know WHY this idea that some hold is CRAZY, and
off the wall? Because if it was a true teaching of God, then SOME
would obtain salvation BY WORKS!!
You may not know this, but the SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS - DO
HAVE such a teaching, it is called "The INVESTIGATIVE JUDGMENT."
Maybe other "Christian" churches have something similar.
It's a processing line, to investigate all your sins and good
deeds, add them up, see which comes out on top, then depending
which there is more of, you are either written in the book of
life or you are cast into eternal hell fire, where you shout and
scream for eternity in pain from the fire.
I TELL YOU FRIENDS, BRETHREN, ALL THIS IS ONE OF THE
GREATEST FALSE DECEPTIONS PERPETRATED BY SATAN THE DEVIL!!
NOT ONE SINGLE PERSON, **EVER** IS GOING TO OBTAIN
SALVATION, ETERNAL LIFE **THROUGH WORKS** It is one of the
clearest teachings in the New Testament Bible Story, that you are
SAVED ONLY BY **GRACE** (Ephesians 2:8-10). If you are in any
doubt about that you need to study my study called "Saved by
Grace."
A lot of "churches" teach you that you are saved by grace,
the SDA church does, BUT THEN they come up with some CRAZY,
UNSCRIPTURAL DOCTRINE, about SOME being able to EARN their way to
salvation and into the book of life BY WORKS, by someone (usually
God the Father or Jesus) standing as judge, opening the Bible and
investigating to see if you have more good works than bad, and
then that decides if your going to hell fire for eternity or into
God's Kingdom for eternity.
I'm telling you with plain talk, SUCH A TEACHING is not only
AGAINST everything the Bible teaches on obtaining salvation, but
such a teaching is FROM SATAN HIMSELF!
In MANY studies on this Website, you are given the TRUTH
about salvation, and the truth about being "called" and "chosen"
and THE ONLY way to eternal life. I show you the MANY passages
that give the truth, that ALL ARE IN SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS, UNTIL
God decides to call you and REMOVE that spiritual blindness. I
show you that He does NOT call everyone in this physical life
time. Romans chapter 9 through 11 is ONE of the many passages to
ABSOLUTELY PROVE this fact of the Bible and the plan of salvation
as GOD HAS PLANNED it FOR EVERY SINGLE PERSON EVER CONCEIVED
AND/OR BORN.
GOD HAS A PLAN OF SALVATION, we saw in the letters of Peter,
that the Eternal WOULD LIKE TO SEE EVERYONE COME TO REPENTANCE!
He does not want anyone to PERISH! He sent His only begotten Son
into the world, that whoever believes on Him, should NOT PERISH,
but have eternal life (the famous John 3:16). But UNTIL BLINDNESS
is removed YOU CANNOT even start on being called and chosen, and
walking the road that leads to eternal life. Until you KNOW
Jesus, the ONLY name by which you can be saved, you AIN'T EVEN
OUT OF THE DUG-OUT, you ain't even on FIRST base!
And MILLIONS down through the ages HAVE NEVER LEFT THE DUG-
OUT!
These verses in Revelation 20:11-13 are not talking about
some investigative judgment, or people standing in a line to see
if they are going to be saved or not by looking at the tally of
their works in the light of the Bible.
You have TWO choices, either these verses ARE talking about
some "standing in line to be investigated" as to whether they get
eternal life, OR these are people for the first time HAVING SALVATION
OFFERED to them. The LATTER is by far the BEST and the MOST LOVING,
from a God who just did NOT call and offer salvation to millions
who once lived on this earth. If you choose the first, then I can see
why millions think Christianity is garbage and God is a monster.
Some of the teachings from Catholicism and Protestism have been
garbage and did make God out to be a monster, who loves to fry
people for all eternity in some hell fire.
If you have not seen it before, are you getting now to see
why the Lord proclaims in STRONG language that the majority of
so-called Christianity is MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT? It will be
DESTROYED, and TRUTH will reign supreme one day!
These verses show MILLIONS of people coming up in a physical
RESURRECTION, who were never called or chosen in their physical
life-time. The Bible will be opened to them, they will UNDERSTAND
IT! The book of LIFE will be opened to them, they will be CALLED
to salvation. They will COME TO KNOW Jesus, the only door to
God's eternal Kingdom. They will NEED TO REPENT! They will need
to accept Jesus as their PERSONAL SAVIOR! They will need to
CHANGE their life (they will come up with the mind-set they had
all their life and died with) - GET IN HARMONY WITH WANTING TO
LIVE BY EVERY WORD OF GOD (Matthew 4:4) WANTING TO LIVE WITH THE
FAITH OF CHRIST (Galatians 2:20) IN THEM. They will NEED TO
CHANGE THEIR MIND-SET, and HAVE THE MIND OF CHRIST IN THEM
(Philippians 2:5).
ALL THAT WE HAVE STUDIED CONCERNING SALVATION IN THE
WRITINGS OF PAUL, JAMES, PETER, JOHN, AND THE GOSPELS OF CHRIST,
they will need TO SET THEIR MINDS WITH THIS NEW MAN IN CHRIST,
JUST AS WE ARE DOING, JUST AS THOSE WHO WENT BEFORE US HAD TO DO.
THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY TO BE SAVED, AND THAT IS BY GRACE, BUT
WE MUST CHANGE THE WAY WE THINK AND ACT, AND MOVE IN THE
DIRECTION OF THE BIBLE.
EVERY SINGLE PERSON WILL BE SAVED EXACTLY THE SAME WAY. And
those coming up in this resurrection of Revelation 20:11-13, will
be saved just like we are saved today.
This is a WONDERFUL passage of Scripture that gives HOPE for
the MILLIONS who were never given salvation in their life time,
who never had the BLINDNESS removed, who never KNEW Jesus the
Christ. This is not some "second chance" doctrine that some say
we teach. This is a FIRST CHANCE!!
And let me tell you, this explanation of Revelation 20:11-13
IS A WHOLE LOT KINDER, LOVING, AND GOOD NEWS, than the SILLY
ideas of what the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches HAVE
taught AND MAYBE still TEACH!
I have put much of what I just said in BOLD LETTERS. I want
you to REALLY get the point, of false teaching as opposed to the
truth of God.
The length of time for this white throne judgment period is
NOT given. The one some have used in Isaiah (Isa.65:20 - a
hundred years) may have nothing to do with this period and
resurrection of Revelation 20, but to do with the relatively new
earth and heavens of the 1,000 years age. The context in Isaiah
would relate to the millennium age.
If you truly LOVE God, you should be REJOICING - PRAISING
GOD - for the TRUTHS you are finding on this Website. As a young
man, yes I was SHOCKED at some of the things I was discovering
about all the Christianity I had followed from age 6 to 18. BUT
at the same time, I can remember SHOUTING FOR JOY at the truths
God was revealing to me in His Word.
Jesus PROMISED His true followers, "You shall KNOW the
TRUTH, and the truth will set you FREE."
It takes the HEART, it takes HUMILITY, to takes a HUNGER and
THIRST after RIGHTEOUSNESS .... yes, it takes all of that, but I
guarantee if you have it, YOU WILL FIND THE TRUTH, AND YOU WILL
BE SET FREE!
So it is all done. Everyone now has had a chance for
salvation. It only remains for those who REJECTED it, who would
not humble themselves, who would not REPENT, to be rewarded with
DEATH, not eternal life in hell fire, but DEATH, complete
destruction of body and mind.
"And death and hell (the grave) were cast into the lake of fire.
This is the SECOND death. And whoever was not found in the book
of life, was cast into the lake of fire" (verses 14-15).
Now, righteous, sinless eternity, in a new universe
headquarters can begin.
.....................
To be finished next time
Entered on my Website November 2007
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