THE MILLENNIUM--SATAN IN CHAINS (PART 2)

I have tried to think about the Devil during this period. What is he going to do? The earth is covered with darkness, dead bodies are everywhere, and all is absolute confusion. For six thousand years Satan has been plenty busy. He has followed folk around trying to devise their destruction. His chief employment for centuries has been to accuse, mislead and destroy. Suddenly, though, he has nothing to do. They are all taken away, and he is left with his own thoughts. What will the Devil do? That will be the most miserable punishment that Satan will have to suffer. Forced to live with himself for a thousand years! No one to deceive at all; just thinking, thinking, thinking.

I am sure he will think about the past and remember all the terrible deeds of darkness he has committed. He will think about the future and the prophecies of God concerning his own destiny. Listen, the Devil is a good Bible student. Do not fool yourself. Give him credit where it is due. He knows the Bible better than you do. Oh yes, holy men of God wrote as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, but the Devil was looking over their shoulder and memorizing every bit of it. The Devil knows better than we do that every word of the Bible is true. He knows that everything about heaven is true, because he used to live there. He knows that it is just as beautiful and wonderful as the Bible describes it, but he doesn't want anybody else to believe that. So, he is desperately working to keep people from studying this Book and to keep people off their knees.

If people can once understand what the Bible teaches about the great plan of salvation, Satan knows that his power will be destroyed at that very moment. So, I picture him as thinking of these things and looking ahead to the future, knowing that his utter destruction has already been determined. The Bible itself declares that he will be burned and brought to ashes.

I supppose, also, that he will think about many of the people he tempted while the earth was still standing. Perhaps his thoughts will go back to the poor alcoholic who was struggling to be free. Time after time he crawled out of the gutter, determined never to take another drink. But Satan waylaid the man with constant harassment and temptation, and down he would go into the gutter again. Finally, the desperate alcoholic dared to lay hold of Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour, and he was delivered from Satan's power. Now Satan knows that the man is forever beyond his influence, and he will never be able to assail him again.

Yes, I picture the Devil wandering over this depopulated planet and stumbling over the decaying bodies of those who were slain by the glory of God. And perhaps one of those bodies will attract Satan's special attention because he recognizes and remembers the man. He was a good, moral man with a fine family. Everybody liked him. He was honest and paid his debts. People were attracted to him. He was a good neighbor and a good citizen. There were times when the man was drawn to make a decision to follow the Lord all the way. His wife pleaded with him to do so, and his little girls prayed for him every night. Only one thing really stood in his way, but somehow he could not surrender his will fully to the will of Christ. It was always in his mind to do so someday, but the Devil kept supplying him with excuses for waiting. Then suddenly, unexpectedly, the clouds rolled back like a curtain and Christ returned. The man was not prepared. He was cut down with all the others who were living for self.

Now Satan looks upon the tortured features of the dead man, and a hideous grin spreads over his face. His strategy was successful, and this man, at least, will never have another opportunity to be saved. He is lost forever.

Oh, the utter folly of failing to decide for Christ while the moments of probation linger! Some are toying with sin and trifling with the convictions of God's Holy Spirit. You may be a church member and a professed Christian, but if there is one cherished sin in your life right now, you are playing games with God. Confess and forsake that sin without another moment of delay. Could our eyes be opened for one second to the awful consequences of sin, no one would dare hesitate to follow Jesus all the way.

Dramatic Close of the Millennium

Now we come to the closing events of the millennium. What dramatic developments will mark the end of the thousand years? "And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison." Rev 20:7.

This loosing of Satan is easy to understand when we read verse 5 again, "The rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished." All the lost of the ages will be raised out of their graves at the end of the millennium. This is what releases the Devil to begin his work of deception once more.

Perhaps you are wondering how he could further deceive those who have already passed the point of redemption. Here is the way John answers that question: "And (he) shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city; and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them." Rev 20:8,9.

Several important things are brought to view in these verses. After the wicked are resurrected at the end of the millennium, Satan leads them in an attack against the New Jerusalem. He deceives them into thinking they can actually capture the dwelling place of God and the immortalized saints. That Holy City descends from heaven, following the thousand years. "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." Rev 21:2.

This is the event described by the prophets of old, when the saints will return to this earth from Paradise. According to Zechariah, Christ's feet will touch the earth, and some spectacular things take place. "And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the north, and half of it toward the south...and the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee." Zech 14:4,5.

Please notice that Jesus will make contact with the earth when He returns with the saints. When He came for the saints at the beginning of the Millennium, His feet did not touch the ground. All were caught up to meet Him. But now as the great, heavenly space city approaches this planet, the Mount of Olives splits under the touch of the Son of God. A mighty plain is created for a landing spot, and the New Jerusalem settles to earth.

Resurrection of the Wicked

At the same time that the City descends the wicked are raised, and this releases Satan to deceive them into attacking. Again he has someone to work on. I have tried to imagine how the great deceiver will address that host of lost souls. Perhaps he will even claim that they were resurrected by his power. Charging God with unjustly throwing him out of the city, he now urges the army of the wicked to help him reclaim his former position. No doubt he will make flattering offers of honor and power to those who excel in the battle.

I suppose that Napoleon, Alexander, Sennacherib, Hitler, and Stalin will be there. Oh, I am not sure, of course; I am just using these as examples. Maybe some of these repented before death, but there will be plenty of great generals and military leaders in the ranks of Satan's army as he goes up against God. Many of those men died with curses on their lips; and now, when they are resurrected, they are still cursing, and they are still in the frame of mind to fight. It won't be hard for Satan to get them in line as they march against the City of God.

Sometimes people ask me, "How long will they fight? How long will it take them to get ready for that battle?" I do not know, because the Bible is silent here. I am certain, though, that the Devil will not try to win by just throwing rocks at the Holy City. He will surely devise some terrible, devastating weapons to use. He has a mighty, ingenious mind when it comes to preparing instruments of war. No doubt there will be atomic weapons involved. They will set a D-Day. There could be a countdown at which time they plan to blast away at the Holy City. From all earthly wiewpoints, it seems that the saints are doomed. The explosive, destructive weapons will be able to shatter the walls into smithereens. But then, suddenly, God intervenes. He turns His own fiery power loose upon that assembled army of the wicked. Read it in verse 9 of Rev 20: "And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them." And that is the end of the wicked. There it is. Right here on this earth the fire of God descends. The wicked people are burned up as they launch a final, desperate attack against God. This is the hell fire of the Bible.

The Transparent Wall of Separation

Listen, one of the saddest pictures of all, I believe, is revealed in Rev 21:11. In describing the Holy City it says: "Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal." The walls of that City will be like glass. The wicked will be able to look right through and see everything on the inside of that City. Have you ever thought of some of the sad meetings that will take place by those walls of the New Jerusalem? Talk about the famous wall of China or the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem! But this wall is going to reveal some of the most heart-rending scenes that have ever taken place on this earth.

I picture the resurrection of that man who had such a wonderful family, and who almost made his decision for Christ--the one who intended to do it later. As he comes forth in the second resurrection, he looks around for his wife and two little girls. Nothing but open, empty graves meet his vision, and his ears are assailed by the cries and curses of the lost. He is swept up in the maelstrom of frenzied preparation for the battle.

As he approaches the gleaming, transparent walls, he is overwhelmed by the splendor of the scene. Far in the distance he sees the outshining of the glorious rainbow surrounding the throne of God. The River of Life flows forth from the throne, and great branches of the Tree of Life arch over the river, bearing their magnificent fruit of immortality. The man is transfixed by the beauty. Glorious, radiant angels move around inside the City. He gazes at the streets of purest gold and the indescribable mansions on every side. As he stand, spellbound, he thinks, "What a fool I was to lose all of this."

Then, I picture this man as his eyes try to encompass all the grandeur of the landscape. Moving figures inside begin to come into clearer focus. Suddenly, his heart skips a beat, as he catches a glimpse of some familiar forms on the other side of the wall. His eyes light up with recognition of his wife and children as they draw nearer. The man waves and beckons. He cries out to catch their attention but the words bounce back as an empty echo from the shining walls.

Then, and only then, will the true horror of his situation be realized. A flood of memories will fill his mind. He remembers so vividly the prayers of his little girls for their daddy to be saved. He lives over again the tender convictions that brought tears to his eyes, the struggle with conscience, and the decision to wait. The words of his wife now return to torment him. "Honey, why don't you surrender to Jesus? Don't worry about your job. I will work, and we will get along. the Lord will provide. I love you so much, and Jesus loves you." He had fought the stubborn rebellion but slowly yielded to the practical demands of his job and his carnal friends. Now he would give anything in the world to return to that moment. If only he could take his little girls in his arms again, and kiss his dear wife, assuring them that their prayers have been answered.

Oh, the remorse of that moment! The man stretches out his arms and cries out, "Please pray for me once more!" But it is too late, and before the jasper-clear wall, I can see that father and husband fall on the ground screaming and pleading for one more chance that can never be granted. Surely this will be the greatest punishment for those who finally realize what it means to be lost.

"What Shall It Profit a Man?

Oh, how I wish I could paint this picture so graphically concerning surrender and its importance that every person would settle it with God before going to bed tonight. We must know that we have given ourselves completely to the Lord Jesus Christ. I know there are some who would rather hear you say, "Let's not get fanatical, let's not do anything extreme. Let's just wait, and things will take care of themselves." The very same people who say that now will some day be crying out on the other side of the wall of the New Jerusalem and saying: "Oh, why didn't someone tell me? Why didn't somebody make me do it when I had the opportunity?"

I am amazed at the way people are influenced by their friends--by the words of those who are very well-meaning. What comfort will those words be when the friends are also on the ouside of the wall looking in? Sometimes people are held back by possessions, or jobs, or bank accounts; but what comfort will it be to have a great, heaping pile of earthly treasure and still be on the outside looking through the walls? What about the religious leaders and teachers who have comforted people by telling them not to worry about keeping the commandments? The same religious teachers are also on the outside.

Every one of us should now be searching the Word of God in order to know what to do. The Bible is the blueprint for salvation. The most powerful, motivating forces in society today will soon be exposed as less than worthless. Finally, men are going to throw their gold and silver into the streets to the moles and the bats. At last, people will have to give up those things that meant so much in this life. If it is going to come to that finally--if men are going to throw them away as Isaiah 2 describes it--why won't they throw them away now in order to make their calling and election sure?

If you wait, refusing to make a decision to follow Christ all the way, I can promise you one thing, someday you are going to know that the still, small voice of the Spirit has made its final plea. The Bible will be closed up forever on the pulpit, and the pews will be completely emptied of all the people. Suddenly, every man, woman, and child will be called to face God. The busy life of this world will grind to a crashing halt. The jazz will suddenly be turned off, the bright lights will go out into darkness forever, and the radio and TV chips are going to melt together. No one will go about his or her business, because God will suddenly intervene and call every man, woman, and child to account. The world will be torn by the devastating earthquake we read about in Rev 16. The sea will be lashed to a fury by the voice of the hurricane. The inhabited island of this earth will move, turn slightly, and drop out of sight. Great mountains will twist and turn, and then be thrown out onto the plains disintegrated by the mighty, volcanic action of the earth. Dark, angry clouds will fill the sky, clashing against each other. The lightning will reach out from those clouds to envelop this earth in a great sheet of flame. Men, white as ghosts, will run to and fro, hither and yon, seeking for some shelter; and they will find none. And then, amidst the screams of terror, the great hailstones of God will come crashing down with a sickening thud, making kindling wood out of all the buildings and houses of this earth.

In the midst of all this, there will appear in the distant heavens a tiny spot of glory that will draw nearer to the earth, getting larger and larger. At first, very few will observe it, but then as it comes closer, the dazzling light of it will attract every eye. Inhabitants of every continent on earth will look up and behold the glory of Jesus and all the angels. What a solemn moment it will be! For the first time since the flood there will be no fun-making, no giddy laughter, no levity. Every mouth will be closed, and a solemn, sober spirit will fall upon every heart.

How cheap the dollar is going to look then. How ridiculous it will seem that man allowed the mockery of some friend to hold him back from that decision. On every side voices will be heard crying out, "Too late! Too late!" And those words will echo all around the earth, while the redeemed look up and say, "Lo, this is our God. We have waited for Him and He will save us."

So the story of this lost planet closes just exactly like it began. After the fire has destroyed the wicked, and burned out all the curse of sin, God will make it over again. This earth, delivered from all the blighting effect of transgression, will be recreated into the original paradise that God intended it to be. "Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness." 2 Pet 3:13. Jesus said, "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth." Matt 5:5. And so they shall!