HopeLives365

Mark Finley: Think of it, my friends. No more sickness, no more suffering, no more heartache, no more death. Think of it.

Guest (Male): This is HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message: A Thousand Year Blackout Predicted. Enjoy and remember you can always catch up with past messages and stay updated with HopeLives365 and Pastor Mark by going to hopelives365.com. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: One reoccurring theme of science fiction books and movies is a future catastrophe that wipes out all life on Earth, or perhaps leaves only one or very few people left alive on the planet. Such stories envision perhaps a worldwide nuclear holocaust, or a collision with an asteroid, or a deadly pandemic that circles the earth.

But in one ancient book, a prophecy centuries old foretells a time in the not so distant future when the population of Earth will be dramatically reduced and only one and his followers will be left. The prophecy clearly identifies who that one person will be. And the book containing this prophecy is not science fiction, but certain fact.

Because you see, the book in question is the Bible. And the prophecy comes from the only person in the universe who knows precisely what the future holds: God himself. You see, the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, reveals what it will be like in the last days of Earth’s history on planet Earth.

Let's go directly to the book of Revelation in our study for today. The Bible's final book, Revelation in chapter 20, verses 1 and 2, says: "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He took hold of the dragon, that old serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years."

Now notice these facts. Satan, the devil, the great source of all evil, suffering, and sin. Satan, the sworn enemy of God. Satan, the once perfect angel who stood in God's immediate presence in heaven. Satan, the angel in whose heart selfishness and sin first arose in the universe. Satan, who wanted to take God's place as ruler of the universe and who declared war on God and the two-thirds of heaven's angels who remained loyal to God.

And here in Revelation, we find a prophecy telling us that a time is coming when Satan will be chained in a bottomless pit where he'll be bound a thousand years. What does this mean? When will it happen? What's this bottomless pit? What are these chains?

For more than 6,000 years now, Satan has been perfecting the art of perverting and destroying the lives of men and women. How long will this last? Will he ever quit? The war that the Bible says began long ago in heaven between God and Satan, and then moved to Earth, will end only after Satan's thousand-year confinement in the bottomless pit has come to an end.

This time period is often referred to in the Bible as the millennium, which is a union of two Latin words: milli and annium. Milli means 1,000 and annium in Latin means years. But someone asked: when will this millennium begin? What is this bottomless pit? Can we really know? Indeed, we can.

Let's take a look at the events surrounding Christ's second coming. Notice this in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 16: "For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God." Now notice, this is not a quiet event. It's not a secret event.

He descends from heaven with a shout. With the shout of victory, with the shout of glory. Jesus came once silently as a babe born in Bethlehem's manger. A few shepherds understood what was happening. A few wise men followed that star in the east and came, but the majority had no clue of it.

This time the Bible says that he comes with a shout. He comes with the voice of the archangel, comes with the trumpet blast of God of victory. And just what'll happen on that great day when the Son of Man descends to the earth in all his glory surrounded by his angels? Jesus himself told us in John chapter 5, verse 28 and 29.

"Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear his voice and come forth—those that have done good to the resurrection of life, those that have done evil to the resurrection of damnation." The Bible refers to two major resurrections: first, the resurrection of life for those who've done good, and second, the resurrection of condemnation for those who've done evil.

And the Bible reveals that the first of these resurrections takes place at the beginning of the thousand years and the other resurrection at the end of the thousand years. So the resurrection of the righteous takes place at the beginning of the thousand years, the resurrection of damnation takes place at the end.

In Revelation chapter 20, verse 6, the apostle John describes those whom God will call back to life in the first resurrection. He says: "Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection." Paul also talks about this first resurrection in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 16, where he tells us that the dead in Christ will rise first.

Clearly, Jesus doesn't want his dear friends, the sleeping saints, to wait any longer than necessary. John 11, verse 25 contains this promise to us: "He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live." Imagine with me this scene. Graves open, families reunited, babies put back into the arms of their mothers, lovers together again, never to part.

And in the midst of all this excitement, another thrilling event takes place. Here it is: 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 17. "Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Thus we shall always be with the Lord."

The righteous living, the righteous resurrected, all are gathered into one exulting, ecstatic group in the swirling winds rushing heavenward. And there's still more. In that very same moment, the redeemed will be changed. Bodies that once bore the marks of old age will surge forth with new life in youthfulness. Bodies once beaten down by disease or injury will be perfectly restored by the friendly Creator who is very good at what he does.

The Bible promises in 1 Corinthians chapter 15 that we'll all be changed, that the dead'll be raised incorruptible, that the mortal will put on immortality. Can anything be more exciting to think about? I don't know about you, but I eagerly look forward to that day.

The prognosis for every one of us on planet Earth isn't good. As much as we try to avoid birthday celebrations, at least after we pass a certain age, the years go by. Once clear eyes become blurred, joints ache, knees and backs give out, wrinkles grow deeper, furrows and hair grows thinner, gray.

But let's listen to the rest of the story. The Bible tells us that one day soon, the redeemed'll have perfect bodies, never again subject to disease or death. What a promise. Talk about something to anticipate. No more cancer, no more heart attacks, no more diabetes, no more lung disease, no more AIDS, no more operations, no more back pain or knee pain. No more, no more, no more disease.

And isn't it just like Jesus to first of all this perfect restoration for those who've fallen asleep in him? The first people to experience the exhilaration of renewed life surging through them are those who've been sleeping in their graves waiting for his return.

And for this, we say to you by the word of the Lord, Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 15 and 16, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. In other words, the Thessalonian church thought that those who were alive would be taken up to meet Christ and they were wondering what's going to happen to those who are sleeping.

And he says, we who are alive and remain are not going to precede or go ahead of those who are asleep. Why? For the Lord himself will descend from heaven and the dead in Christ'll rise first. So all the righteous, both the living and those resurrected at Christ's coming, will be taken to heaven at the same time and thus verse 17 says we shall always be with the Lord.

But before relaxing in this bliss of eternity, the Bible tells us that the righteous'll have a task to perform in heaven. While Satan is confined to the earth, God has a special work for the saved of all ages to do. John wrote in Revelation 20, verse 6: "They shall be priests of God and of Christ and shall reign with him a thousand years."

In verse 4, John the Revelator describes this amazing time as he viewed it in vision. He says: "And I saw thrones and they sat on them and judgment was committed to them." The all-wise, all-powerful, all-knowing God of the universe has included feeble men and women in the solemn work of judging fallen angels and the unsaved.

As Christ has told us through the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, verse 2 and 3: "Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? Do you not know that we will judge angels?"

But someone may ask: didn't God finish his work of judging before the second coming? Hasn't everyone's fate already been forever decided before the millennium begins? These are very fair and understandable questions. And God gives clear answers.

The Bible clearly states that the redeemed will be looking at the books and, as it were, judging for themselves during this thousand-year period. The realization and conviction will become clear once and for all that the judgment God completed before the second coming was right. That his decision about the eternal destiny of every person who ever lived was just, correct, and fair.

For thousands of years, Satan has leveled the accusation that God is unfair, unloving, and unjust. The years of the millennium will put this notion to rest, vindicating God's character before the entire universe.

You see, when Satan rebelled against God in heaven, he said God was unfair, God was unjust, God was a vindictive judge and a wrathful tyrant, that God didn't love. But during the judgment, the final judgment that's going on right now in heaven according to Daniel 7, the Bible says a thousand thousands stood before him, ten thousand times ten thousand gathered around, the judgment was set, the books were open.

Right now in the judgment in heaven, God reveals that he is fair and just and loving. He's done everything he could to save every human being. When Christ comes during that thousand-year period, one of the things the righteous'll be doing is affirming the justice and wisdom of God.

Guest (Male): You're listening to HopeLives365. We'll be right back. And if you like what you're hearing, we invite you to check our website, hopelives365.com. There you can find many ministry resources, encouraging messages, and even a link to our HopeLives365 YouTube ministry. And of course, an opportunity to sow into this valuable ministry. Find out more by going to hopelives365.com. That's hopelives365.com. And now, back to Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: It's like this. Have you ever wondered what your reaction might be if you looked for someone in heaven who you expected to find there only to discover that he or she is lost forever? You might call the fairness of God's justice into question.

During the millennium, the records of the lost'll be open. The most carefully guarded secrets and purposes harbored in each mind will be open to the saved. God's love and justice'll be affirmed. Those inspecting the records'll be left with only one response and we find it in Revelation 16, verse 7: "Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are your judgments."

So in heaven we'll see that Jesus has done everything he could to save every human being. That he has sent his Holy Spirit to their hearts to bring conviction. That he has arranged providences in their lives, that he has done everything possible. He's brought people into their lives to lead them to the better way, to salvation in Christ.

But if indeed the righteous are in heaven during that thousand years, what are the lost doing while the redeemed are so busily engaged for a thousand years? Let's go back again to the dramatic picture of the Lord's return to Earth. While the righteous are being raised to life, reunited with their friends and loved ones and completely renewed, the wicked are involved in a totally different scenario.

To them, the return of the Lord is a time of terror, not joy. They have neglected this Jesus. Their eyes are now seeing him in person come. They've rejected his lifelong appeals. They've chosen to be in total charge of their lives. They've lived selfish, godless lives instead of allowing God to be the Lord of their lives.

Desperately seeking shelter, they run for cover and as Revelation 6, verse 16 and 17 predict, they cry to the rocks and mountains: "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb." What an awesome and sobering picture.

In chapter 25, verse 33 of his book, the prophet Jeremiah adds these vivid details: "And at that day the slain of the Lord'll be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They shall not be lamented or gathered or buried." What an unspeakably sad end, to be stricken down with no one even to mourn one's passing.

And what about the rest of the wicked, those in the grave at Christ's return, those who've died never accepting Christ's gift of salvation? The Bible clearly states that Christ's second coming does not disturb the wicked dead. They're not resurrected at that point. Revelation 20, verse 5 tells us: "The rest of the dead," that is those who are not righteous, those who are not caught up to meet Christ in the sky, "did not live again until the thousand years were finished."

What then will planet Earth look like during the millennium? Across the earth everywhere will be devastation and emptiness. The Bible says every mountain and island moved out of its places. While the redeemed are actively engaged in the judgment process in heaven, the wicked who were slain at the second coming lie dead across a scarred, burnt earth.

Now notice how the prophet Jeremiah describes the desolate earth during this time. It’s found here in Jeremiah chapter 4, verse 23 to 26. He says: "I beheld the earth and indeed it was without form and void. And the heavens, they had no light." Now when is this? Is it at creation? Not at all. Look, next sentence. "I beheld the mountains and they trembled. And all the hills moved back and forth. I beheld and there was no man." So there's nobody on Earth during this thousand-year period.

"And all the birds of the heaven had fled. I beheld and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness and all its cities were broken down at the presence of the Lord by his fierce anger." This has to be the second coming of Christ. So what's it like at the second coming of Christ? Well, the earth is without form and void just like it was at creation. Heavens have no light, darkness covers the earth. There's no man living here, it says. The fruitful land has become a wilderness. What chaos.

The desolation and ruined condition of the earth at that time is now unimaginable. John uses the metaphor of a bottomless pit to describe the emptiness of the planet at this time. Let's return to the verses that we began this message with, Revelation 20, verse 1 and 2.

"Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who's the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years." Now the Greek words for bottomless pit is abussos abussos. This same Greek word, watch this, is used in the Septuagint, that's the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, to describe the chaotic condition that existed on the first day of creation when the earth was without form and void.

So this idea of the bottomless pit is not some subterranean cavern where Satan is bound. It's rather the abussos abussos, it is rather the darkened earth that's without form and void. Why? Because when Christ comes in glory, the cities are broken down, there's devastation, destruction everywhere.

What better symbolism could God use to describe Satan's situation than being chained or bound during that time? Think for a moment. The redeemed are in heaven. The wicked are dead. Everyone is gone, ruin everywhere. Evidently, the great chain which Satan is bound with is a chain of circumstances. There is nobody on Earth left alive for him to deceive.

No lives to twist or to destroy. No human minds with which to toy. His hands, as it were, are tied. He would love to continue his sinister evil work but no one is around. He's bound to a lonely existence on a devastated planet. When now billions of the population of Earth are gone, and now there's just Satan and his evil angels.

Satan has nothing to do for a thousand long years but wander through a silent, deserted, ruined earth, reflecting on the results of his rebellion against God. Now why would God leave the earth that way? Two reasons.

One, so that the whole universe could see the ultimate result of sin if God didn't step in was destruction. Sin brings devastation, disease, disaster, death. So the earth during that thousand-year period is a lesson book for the entire universe of what sin does.

Secondly, Satan himself and the evil angels see that the wages of sin are death. No doubt Satan will ponder with terror his eventual punishment, the bitter end to his self-promoted life. But even a thousand years will eventually pass. And at the end, John says in Revelation chapter 21, verse 2: "I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven."

What a sight. A perfect square, 375 miles on a side, floating down from heaven in all its splendor, in all its gentle glory, settling on the earth almost simultaneously. As the city descends with Christ and his followers, another dramatic event takes place. Notice verse 5: "The rest of the dead did not live until the thousand years are finished." The wicked dead also have their resurrection.

But oh how different it is from the first resurrection. All those in the second resurrection have gone to Christless graves. From Adam's day to the second advent, the rebellious unsaved whose number, verse 8 says, is as the sand of the sea, will rise up with one mighty purpose.

And verses 7 and 8 of Revelation 20 say that this multitude of the rebellious will follow their leader Satan, who will be released from his prison, go out to deceive the nations. This enormous army of rebels reveals the stubbornness of its opposition to God as the unsaved begin planning to attack that holy city.

Of all the ruthless armies this earth has ever known, this final group of warriors will surpass them all in hate and their thirst for revenge. The greatest military strategists of all time will organize them. The most passionate leaders of hate and power this world has ever known will drive them into their last frenzy.

They will probably take as much time as they feel necessary to manufacture their most deadly assault weapons, whether nuclear laser or chemical, we don't know. The day arrives and all's ready. Bent on taking the New Jerusalem by force, the mighty army advances under the master rebel. As Revelation 21, verse 9 describes it: "They went up on the breadth of the earth, surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city."

Grasping his last opportunity to seize world dominion, the arch-enemy feels confident that with such a vast army, such deadly weapons, the rebels committed to the rule of selfishness, committed to shutting out and destroying God, are fully capable of capturing the city. Evil knows no limits to its self-deception.

However, John makes it clear that this desperate attempt will not succeed. In what is called in Isaiah 28, verse 21, God's strange act, he'll finish the battle. He'll bring to an end the war that raged on Earth for thousands of years. Revelation 21, verse 9 says: "And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them."

Notice that the fire comes down from God out of heaven. Hell is not a hot spot burning in the center of the earth. Hell is not some subterranean cavern imprisoning the lost to are tormented forever in the flames, shrieking in horror. Hell is God's final judgment at the end of this world as we know it.

From God's viewpoint, the destruction of sinners is a deeply sorrowful event. But it is an event that lasts forever. They are burned up, they are consumed, never to be destroyed again. They're gone, gone, gone forever. He is no angry God who finds pleasure in tormenting sinners. These are people he gave life to. These are people for whom he died so that they might live.

Yet he has no choice if he is to respect their freedom of choice. Every person is free to choose his or her future, and then to accept the consequences. The wages of rebellion is death, not because God is arbitrary, because inherent in the rebel thought and action are the seeds of self-destruction. The seeds of sin are ultimately death. Selfishness kills. It's deadly, my friends.

Viewing this final fire in vision, Peter writes in 2 Peter chapter 3, verse 10: "The heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with fervent heat. Both the earth and the works that are therein will be burned up." Then out of the ashes of this charred old world, cleansed from the deadly view of sin, God recreates a new world.

As John saw it in Revelation 21, verse 1: "Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth passed away." And John goes on to describe how the New Jerusalem, now on this new earth, will be where God's throne is. The earth will become the capital of the once again sinless universe.

Notice Revelation 22, verse 3 to 5: "There shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it and his servants shall serve him. They shall see his face and his name shall be on their foreheads. There shall be no night there. They shall need be no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light and they shall reign forever and ever and ever."

No more curse. The long cold night of sin is gone forever, replaced by the warmth and light of God's presence. Think of it, my friends. The holy city descends from heaven. Satan and his evil angels try to attack it but they're obliterated. They're gone. And out of the ashes of this old world, God makes a new world for you and for me. Eden is restored and we can live with Jesus forever and ever and ever.

Guest (Male): You've been listening to HopeLives365 with Pastor Mark Finley. We hope you've enjoyed today's message and remind you that you can find more in our many ministry resources at hopelives365.com. And you can support this ministry by going to hopelives365.com/donate. And now, a final prayer from Pastor Mark.

Mark Finley: Father in heaven, we thank you for the fact that one day evil will be destroyed. One day there'll be no more wickedness, no more suffering, no more sorrow, no more heartache, no more death. Lord, keep us faithful until that day and help us always look beyond what is to what will be.

And help our hearts be one with your heart so we can live with you forever. In Christ's name, amen.