The Way - Day 230 (Revelation 20)

Pastor Tom's Journal on Today's Reading:
Revelation 20:1-10
Jesus Christ will return to earth immediately after the seven-year tribulation period and prior to His 1,000 year reign on earth. For now, God has completed His judgments upon the evil inhabitants of the earth who have rejected salvation through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. There were three series of judgments (seven seals, seven trumpets, and seven bowls). The final bowl judgment was the destruction of Babylon - the Antichrist's headquarters on earth (16:17-21) - where God brought swift judgment upon evildoers (19:17-21). Since the Antichrist, false prophet, and all unbelievers will be purged from the earth, Jesus will begin to set up His earthly kingdom. His first order of business is to get rid of Satan, known as the "…dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil..." (20:2).
 
An angel descends from heaven and bounds Satan in the bottomless pit for 1,000 years “…so that he cannot deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished" (20:3-4). The removal of Satan, as well as his demons, will drastically affect the happenings on earth during this time. Without their tempting forces, people will only be left to deal with temptations through the world and the flesh.
 
Although the book of Revelation does not give us a ton of details about the 1,000 year reign of Christ, John does provide a little taste of the things which will govern this kingdom.
"I saw thrones, and they sat on them and judgment was committed to them...and they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years...they shall be priests of God and of Christ." (Revelation 20:4-6)

The destiny of those who hate God will differ significantly from those who love Him. "But the rest of the dead [unbelievers] did not live again until the thousand years were finished" (20:5). The first resurrection, which occurred at the time of the rapture, is known as the resurrection of the just; however, the second resurrection (at the conclusion of the millennial reign of Christ) will result in the judgment of all unbelievers and lead to an eternity in hell (20:11-15).

Following this 1,000 year reign of Christ, Satan will be released from the bottomless pit for one last time to deceive the nations (20:7-8). Who will he deceive since all those who entered the millennial period were believers? Satan will attempt to deceive the children of those who have been born to believers during the 1,000 years. It appears that Satan will gather many people and these dissenters will be referred to as "Gog and Magog." Satan and his new followers will develop an army to bring down Jesus' kingdom, but their rebellion will be short-lived. John writes that they surround "…the camp of the saints and the beloved city [Jerusalem]…" but "…fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them" (20:9).
 
At this point, God turns His full attention to Satan, who deceived these people. He is "…cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever" (20:10). They are deserving of this punishment, as they have led many to hate God and reject salvation through Him.

Revelation 20:11-15
As we begin to see what John writes in this passage, we must remember that Satan, the Antichrist, and the false prophet have been cast into the lake of fire (hell) forever. Satan has deceived people since the beginning of human history, causing many to develop a false sense of what is good. His one purpose is to oppose the work of God and draw many into his web of deception. Satan has tempted many into believing that they do not need the forgiveness of God or to trust Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. The Bible clearly teaches that Jesus Christ is the only way to have a relationship with God and experience eternal life in heaven (John 14:7). Without Jesus' death on the cross, burial, and resurrection from the dead for our sins (1 Corinthians 15:1-4), there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22).
 
In these verses we realize the fruit of all Satan's labor as millions of people will stand before God in final judgment for the sins they have committed. Instead of believing that Jesus paid for their sins on the cross, they tried to make their own way in life and ignored the free gift of salvation (Romans 6:23). The writer of Hebrews reminds us…

"And it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many." (Hebrews 9:27-28)

The judgment spoken of here is the Great White Throne judgment.

"I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them." (Revelation 20:11)
Peter tells us that at this particular time in history, the entire universe as we know it will be destroyed (2 Peter 3:10-13) and those who do not believe will appear before God.
"And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books." (Revelation 20:12)

The books have documented every sin committed by every person who appear at this judgment. The Book of Life is a record of all who have been forgiven through their faith in Jesus' sacrificial death on the cross. All who stand before God at this judgment have rejected Jesus' payment for their sin; therefore, the penalty must be paid by them.
"And they were judged, each one according to his works. The Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:13-15)

Lest we just flippantly read over these verses, all these people, without the forgiveness of Jesus Christ, are cast into eternal punishment. There is no return. There is no escape. There is no end to their suffering. So what is this lake of fire? The Bible teaches that it is a literal place of torment and Jesus often calls it a place where there will be "…weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 22:13; 24:15).
 
Some believe God is unfair to punish sinners for all eternity; however, we must remember that hell was only created for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41). God did not desire for anyone to go there. God loved mankind so much that He made a way for everyone to be forgiven through the death of His only Son, Jesus (John 3:16). Peter reminds us that God "…is longsuffering [patient] toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). Even Jesus' intention in coming to earth was not "…to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved" (John 3:17).

God does not want anyone to spend eternity separated from Him, but sin cannot go unpunished because that would make God unjust. So that we do not have to be punished for sin, God "…made Him [Jesus Christ] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21). The unwillingness to recognize our sin and repent will lead to eternal separation from God in hell.
John says that there are only two belief systems – those who believe in Jesus Christ and those who do not.

"He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." (John 3:36)

Dear God, may many see the reality of coming judgment and turn to You in faith and repentance through Jesus Christ.