SATAN CHAINED

Revelation 20:1-6 (NASB)
David Bruce Linn, Pastor-Teacher
22 October, 2000
All Rights Reserved

Why is it that every attempt of human government to improve life on earth also results in major problems? Sometimes it seems like one problems gets fixed while two more are created by the repair. In fact, it is a cycle well-known to historians that human governments oscillate between anarchy and dictatorship, both of which harm people. Take America, for example. We are a democratic republic which may be showing the first signs of anarchy. "Everyone does what is right in his own eyes" is becoming true of us--that's anarchy. Everyone feels victimized in the chaos of anarchy, and so people look for a solution. Since only a strong intervention can reverse an anarchy, the tendency is to set up a dictatorship. Then the dictatorship begins to decay because people feel victimized in that government also. Things become increasingly worse, and if the dictatorship does not collapse under its own weight, it is overthrown and people move to some form of republic or democracy. Then that decays into anarchy, and the people begin to call for a dictator again. The cycle just keeps repeating with variations.

Why can we not get one of these forms of government to work for more than a few years at a time? It almost seems like there is some secret x-factor fouling things up. Human sinfulness is one important part of the explanation, but Scripture clearly identifies another factor, which is that "...the whole world lies in the power of the evil one." (1 John 5:19b). The Devil is involved with every government in every form in every age, and his influence is a key cause of pain, sorrow, oppression, waywardness, and moral obtuseness.

As C. S. Lewis pointed out, our awareness that there is something wrong with human government points to the existence of the standard of right by which we find the present government lacking. From where does this standard come? Lewis argued cogently that though humans can never achieve moral perfection, such a concept lives in our minds and can only have come from God. And so it has. Scripture reveals that all human beings were created to live under a theocracy, where God is the sole benevolent ruler. That hope was dashed when Adam and Eve chose to violate the terms of the perfect government of God. Ever since then, God has been moving all world history back to the reestablishment--with some differences--of his perfect government of everyone on earth.

Premillennialism is the doctrine of Scripture that Christ will return, punish sinners, reward the righteous, and then set up that very perfect government, namely, a thousand-year reign of peace on the earth over which he will personally preside. Other views include amillennialism, which states that all Bible verses speaking of the earthly reign of Christ are to be spiritualized to mean Christ's present reign over his church. Therefore, they say, there is no thousand-year reign of Christ on earth. Postmillennialism is the view that Christ is reigning now over the earth through believers who are responsible to be setting things right on earth. When the world is much improved from its present condition Christ will be willing to come back. Both amillennialism and postmillennialism see Christ coming back at the end of an undetermined period followed by the eternal state. These views deny that Christ will return to set the world right and bring in a thousand years of his personal rule.

1. THE BIBLICAL BACKGROUND OF REVELATION 20
   
   That only premillennialism satisfies the prophecies of Christ's future rule is abundantly clear in both the Old and New Testaments. To quell the argument that it is a teaching based only upon Revelation chapter twenty, let us look at a remarkable prophecy in Daniel chapter seven. This chapter contains one of Daniel's night visions displaying the sweep of history up to the last days. Out of the final kingdom revealed by the vision comes the infamous "little horn," also known as Antichrist. In view of the rise of Antichrist, Daniel saw a vision of God the Father:
   
   I kept looking
   Until thrones were set up,
   And the Ancient of Days took His seat;
   His vesture was like white snow,
   And the hair of His head like pure wool.
   His throne was ablaze with flames,
   Its wheels were a burning fire.
   A river of fire was flowing
   And coming out from before Him;
   Thousands upon thousands were attending Him,
   And myriads upon myriads were standing before Him;
   The court sat,
   And the books were opened. (Daniel 7:9-10)
   
   Here is revealed the supreme glory, rule, antiquity, holiness, and judgment of God. Daniel sees also that the "little horn," Antichrist, is vanquished, probably spewing vain claims of victory to the last: "Then I kept looking because of the sound of the boastful words which the horn was speaking; I kept looking until the beast was slain, and its body was destroyed and given to the burning fire" (Dan. 7:11). How this was done is described in the next part of the vision:
   
   I kept looking in the night visions,
   And behold, with the clouds of heaven
   One like a Son of Man was coming,
   And He came up to the Ancient of Days
   And was presented before Him.
   And to Him was given dominion,
   Glory and a kingdom,
   That all the peoples, nations, and men of every language
   Might serve Him.
   His dominion is an everlasting dominion
   Which will not pass away;
   And His kingdom is one
   Which will not be destroyed. (Dan. 7:13-14)
   
   In short, the rule of Christ destroys and displaces the rule of Antichrist.
   
   This picture of Christ's rule has specific elements which deserve attention. First, it comes in the context of the judgment of the "little horn," Antichrist. That gives us the time of the presentation of the kingdom to Christ. But what aspect of rule is yet to be presented to Christ? Is he not already in unity with the Father and Spirit in omnipotent rule of all things? Of course he is! One more observation completes the picture. This aspect of Christ's rule is over earthly "nations" (7:14), which is not now the case. Since there are no nations in heaven (or perhaps only one), the presentation of rule must be a reference to Christ's future earthly millennial reign. The fact that it is presented to Christ in the context of the defeat of Antichrist pinpoints the time as the end of the church age. When this prophecy in Daniel is fulfilled, Christ will begin ruling over "all the peoples, nations, and men of every language" (:14), and this rule will never again be interrupted the way that it was at the fall of man when sin, Satan, and the evil world system took over. This is the meaning of the doctrine of the premillennial return of Christ. It's pattern and duration are explained in Revelation chapter twenty.
   
   
2. THE CHAINING OF SATAN FOR A THOUSAND YEARS
   
   The context of Revelation twenty in the previous chapter describes the battle of Armageddon, where Antichrist leads the armies of the ten-nation confederation into battle against the glorious Christ who has returned from heaven with his armies. Antichrist and the False Prophet are then summarily thrown into the lake of eternal fire, and their armies are slain by the sword of Christ's mouth. Chapter twenty contains what follows: "And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the abyss, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he should not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time" (Rev. 20:1-3).
   
   The assumption of these verses is that Satan has been deceiving the nations for the entirety of earth's history, and that of course, includes the individuals within each nation. No human being has or will be able to prevent Satan from pursuing this course. But God can, and he will. This remarkable display of Christ's power will authenticate his rule on the earth for the entire millennium. He and only he can create a peaceful environment on earth free of the perpetual foul influence of the Prince of the Power of the Air.
   
   How do we identify the deceit of the Evil One? Satan hates God and his holiness, and so his deceptions are usually those designed to harm God's people and disgrace the name of God on earth. A good example is the story of a Christian man serving in one of the most influential of Christian ministries. This ministry has had a singular positive effect on the family, helping millions of people every week through publications and radio broadcasts. Most of us know this man, his voice, and his ministry.
   
   Yet somehow, right in the middle of a ministry promoting marriage and family, this man committed adultery. Thirteen years of the best teaching on earth about fidelity did not prevent the fall. Thirty-one years of marriage did not prevent it. Having a successful and influential ministry did not prevent it. Considerations of how much damage the adultery would do to his family, his ministry, and the cause of Christ did not prevent it. At the time of his fall he gave an interview where he was asked: "How did this happen?" He ruefully replied, "I wish I knew." Like a chess player who does not perceive a skillfully concealed attack, this man was blind-sided.
   
   Nothing could be more characteristic of the deceit of the evil one. He likes nothing more than to defile the most beautiful things on earth, to befoul that which is holy, and to twist everything that is good. I believe that Satan especially seeks to besmirch the name of God by displaying the corruptible heart of man whenever he can. In fact, this was Satan's desire with regard to Job. Could he make this most reverent man curse God? He failed with Job, but he is still trying with others. And so this highly-placed servant of Christ in ministry to the family was a special target for the Devil's lies--a prime victim. Pray for God's servants! Pray especially for those who, by God's grace, achieve great influence, wealth, or recognition, that they not fall into the snare of the Devil. And thank God that the day will come when Satan will be bound, unable to deceive the nations anymore.
   
   We also hear in these first three verses two strikes of a gong that will be sounded six times in Revelation twenty: "a thousand years", a "thousand years." Even evangelical scholars of our day have become loathe to identify the period of time of Christ's earthly rule. I have a sizable collection of commentaries on this Bible book, and only a few of them say that Christ rules for a thousand years. In fact, I just bought a huge commentary set at great expense, purported to be the finest work of recent years for Bible expositors, and it does not affirm the thousand-year timetable. After having spent much time with the work of these scholars, I have begun to wonder: What is their commission under God? Is it to write things which bring them esteem among scholars, or is it to magnify the glory of God? I believe we magnify God's glory when we hear what God is saying to us. When he says: "Christ's reign on earth will be a thousand years" six times, we should receive it unreservedly and worship. We should all tremble at any chance that we be found revising or even denying what God of truth has clearly said.
   
   
3. THE REIGN OF CHRIST FOR A THOUSAND YEARS ON EARTH
   
   John the Revelator goes on to say: "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of the testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years" (Rev. 20:4-6).
   
   What is this "first resurrection," and who are these beheaded martyrs who will rule with Christ? Jesus explained the basis of the two resurrections: "'For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.'" (John 9:26-29) Jesus here claims self-existence, absolute rule, and his authority to judge every person. The life record of every person's deeds will be the standard of judgment as evidence of faith in God or unbelief. Those who believe will be resurrected to eternal life at the first resurrection, and at the second all who did not believe will receive their eternal death sentence.
   
   While in the past it has been common to lump all these events together, a closer reading of Scripture reveals that the first resurrection occurs in multiple phases. Christ is identified as the firstfruits of this resurrection in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians (15:20ff). Then the "dead in Christ" (including, as I believe, saints of all ages) arise at the rapture according to I Thessalonians 4:13-18. The next phase of the first resurrection is of those who come to Christ after the rapture and before the millennium. The final phase of the first resurrection is the rising of saints who die in Christ during the millennial reign.
   
   Without being dogmatic, it appears that the beheaded martyrs in our text are Jewish people who will testify of Christ during the Great Tribulation of Antichrist. Their testimony will be instrumental in calling out believers from the physical remnant of Israel. It seems probable that these are the martyrs seen underneath the altar during the fifth seal in Revelation 6.
   
   What will God do with these? The passage is quite clear what God's disposition of these will be: "they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years." Their resurrection will take place on the first day of the millennial kingdom. And what a beautiful testimony they bear! Faithfulness to Christ in the face of Antichrist's worst blasts of hateful persecution! And joyful participation in the completion of a prophecy given by Paul in Romans 11:25-27. After the "fullness of the Gentiles has come in," then "all Israel will be saved." While others also will rule with Christ in the coming kingdom on earth, these will be honored for their special role in completing the program of God under the harshest of circumstances. They are among those in the hall of faith who are described in Revelation 12:11: "And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even to death."
   
   
4. CONCLUSION
   
   Keith Green sought in his short but powerful ministry to shake up the complacency of well-fed, lazy Christians. He sang: "Jesus rose from the dead, /And you--you can't even get out of bed!" Are we prepared for the challenges which are in store for us during this present age of Satan's deceptions? Will we choose not to believe our senses which tell us to "eat, drink, and be merry," and to believe God's word which says that in the last days difficult times will come? If we do the latter, we will train like Olympic athletes in the word of God and prayer, and we will expend every effort in the great task of reaching people for Christ in our own day. If we fail to embrace the serious call of a deep walk with Christ, we will assuredly find ourselves among those who have been grievously deceived by the wiles of the Enemy of our souls. Thank God that our labors will be conserved and rewarded in the victory of Christ as he binds Satan for a thousand years, and begins to reign with perfect justice on his glorious throne!