Automatic Transcript Generated:
Speaker 1
So Vivian is asking, please explain the 1000 years as it pertains to end times and Revelation.
Speaker 2
That’s an easy one. Again, it’s funny, the shorter the question, usually the longer the answer. So thanks. Thank you for asking. And let’s talk about that. I love the millennium to me is one of the most fascinating topics in the Bible. And I think there’s so much more in the Bible that talks about the millennium than most people realize. And there is a lot of interest. I know people of the millennium, but there’s so much disagreement about what it really is. So let’s break it up. We find a millennium mentioned in Revelation 20, but before we go there, before we go to the 1000 years in Revelation 20, I want to give you a little bit of context. So first we have Amos 37. This is part of verse. It says, Surely the Lord God does nothing unless he reveals his secrets to his servants, the prophets. And I think that’s a part of God’s love first, where God wants us to be able to know what he’s going to do. He’s so transparent, he doesn’t want to hide anything. And he wants us to be able to be just prepared, not be caught off guard out of his love.
Speaker 2
And then, as God says in Isaiah 45 21, there is no other God beside me, a just God and his savior. This is who God’s character is. He is just and he is our savior. And these are important components to the millennium. And a lot of these things get lost, a lot of people get caught up in some of the imagery, which again, to me it’s interesting. But there’s even more going on behind the scenes to the significance of the millennium than what a lot of people focus on. So let’s talk about the millennium. And by the way, the word millennium is used zero times in the Bible. The word itself, it is the 1000 years. As Vivian asked a question, he talks about this 1000 years, mentions it six times in Revelations. So six times about 1000 years. It’s interesting. Now let’s look at Revelation 20, starting at verse one. So pretty much all of Revelation 20 is about this millennium. But the first part especially is these thousand years. So Revelation 20, verses one to three. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
Speaker 2
And he laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old who is the devil and Satan. So right there we’re not having to play gifting games at all. I mean, it says that dragon, that serpent of old think that serpent in the Garden of Eden that tempted Eve says this is the devil, that is Satan. And this great angel bound Satan up for a thousand years. So the angel cast Satan into the bottomless pit and shut him up and set a seal on him so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. So remember, okay, keep that in mind. Satan’s locked up and he can’t do any deceiving for this 1000 year period. But afterwards there will be deceiving coming on again. But after these things he must be released for a little while. So we’re going to see this repeating again and again. And this is a whole book of revelation, really. The same thing is repeated over and over and over. When you understand the cycle, you understand the pattern. You see how we’re getting more elaboration or seen things from slightly different angle. So Satan is locked up.
Speaker 2
This is similar imagery that we see for example in second Peter two four, it says, for if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down, so where did it come from? They came from heaven. They’re cast down to hell and deliver them into chains to reserve for judgment. That word there, that’s Hell, is the Greek word tartaru, or place that we call Tartarus. This is the only time this word shows up in the Bible. So don’t say, hey CC, this is evidence of hell. This is the only time this word Tartar tatteru is used. So don’t make it a big theology on it. But according to strong’s definition, this is the deepest abyss in Hades from Greek mythology. But Hades wasn’t necessarily a burning place, but depending on which myth you read, was just the place where the dead people were. So this is the deepest abyss where the dead people are. Keep that word abyss in mind because that is significant. We’re going to come to that. So the demons occupy the abyss. They’re kind of in the BIS, are going to be stuck in the BIS chain to the BIS.
Speaker 2
This is where Satan is stuck. Revelation twelve, verses nine to ten. It talks about the great dragon was cast down, that serpent of old, the devil or Satan. So we’re back to devil, Satan who saved the world. He was cast to the where was he cast to? The earth. And his angels were cast with them. So where’s the abyss? The abyss is Earth. Then he heard a loud voice. Okay, actually I just need to stop there. Satan and the demons are actually cast to Earth and they’re stuck here. We’re told that they are stuck here. Revelation twelve, verse twelve. It says, rejoice of heavens and you who dwell on them in them. Woe to the inhabitants of the earth. Why and the sea. Earth and the sea. The devil has come down to you having great wrath because he knows that his time is short, safe, and is here with us on earth. He’s quarantined with us, he read, it kind of his trap. But how does he get changed even more? How does he get to the point where he can’t tempt anybody anymore. So he starts to the bottomless pit, what the New Testament calls the bottomless pit.
Speaker 2
If you look at the NIV, it uses the word abyss. And I like the NAV translation on this because the Greek word there is abyssos, which is the word where we get the English word of BIS. And that has a lot of significance. A person during the New Testament times who would be reading the Book of Revelation would see abyssos in their mind, is going to go straight to the Book of Genesis. Because Genesis one two, let me read it to you. It says, the Earth was without form and void and darkness was on the face of the deep. That word deep, there the Greeks speaking Jews, when they wrote the Septuagint, they translated that word, that’s deep to home. They translated that to Abyssals. That means like a deep watery abyss. So the New Testament times, people reading this are going to think revelation is talking about creation. It’s talking about the chaotic state of the Earth before God brought order to it through creation. This is so significant and so water is associated. So water is a very chaotic state of the Earth. And during these times, right when people are transporting goods on the water, it was very dangerous.
Speaker 2
I think about like every time Jesus is on a boat, it gets dangerous. Jonah is on a boat, it gets dangerous. Water is a very dangerous, chaotic place to be on. And Revelation and Genesis draw on that concept. And by the way, that word abyssos, we see that again in Genesis at the time of the Flood when it says, the great waters of the watery abyss come forth. So significance here, keep that in mind. So let’s go on to why now the Earth might be an abyss during the time of the millennium. There is so much of access up revelation 20, verse eleven. It says, then I saw a great white throne in him who sat on it from the whole face of the Earth. And heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. Heaven and the Earth led away. Revelation 1618 to 21. It says, and there were noises and sundries and lightnings, and there was a great earthquake, such a great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the Earth. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found, and great hail from heaven fell upon men.
Speaker 2
These are all things that are happening when Jesus returns. And then he says in Revelation 612 and 14, and then the sun became black and sackcloth of the hair and moon became black blood stars fell from heaven. The sky receded as a scroll when it’s rolled up, and every mountain island was moved out of place. We’re seeing the same imagery again and again. Michael received this imagery, jeremiah four versus 23 to 27. It brings that back. I beheld the Earth. And indeed it was without form and void. Without form and void. That’s the same Hebrew words. Actually we see in Genesis one, two. In the heavens they had no light again. So the sun has been darkened and I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled in the hills they moved back, and forth I be held. And indeed there was no man. There was no man, and all the birds of heavens have fled away. I beheld indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness and all the cities were broken down at the presence of the Lord by his fierce anger. And thus says the Lord, the whole land shall be desolate, yet I will make an end of it.
Speaker 2
This is so much in the Old Testament, so many of the Old Testament writers speak of this. This is the millennium. And these people believe the millennium is going to be this time where Jesus comes back onto Earth and will reign on Earth, or that people will be on Earth and have a chance to make things right with God after the secret rapture. They believe no, we’re told the Earth is absolutely destroyed during the millennium, like devastated, no human life again. Even the birds are dead. And by the way, the birds survive for a little bit because we hear about the feast of birds. We know in Luke 17, Jesus talks about those who are taken. One, two will be here and one will be taken, and one will remain. And people say, Where Lord? Where would they be taking? And Jesus answers in Luke 17, verse 37, he says, wheresoever the body is, there will the eagles be gathered together. The ones who are taken are actually the ones who are destroyed and left there on the earth. And it says the eagles will gather them. And in fact. We see in Revelation 19.
Speaker 2
Starting in verse 17. It talks about how all the fowls that fly in the midst of the heaven come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God. That you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of captains and the flesh of mighty men. And the flesh of horses and of them that sat on them. And the flesh of all men. Both free and bond. Was small and great. We call this the feast of birds. So the wicked are going to be the feast for the birds, while those who are with God will be taken to the wedding feast of the Lamb and the Revelation. See this? There’s always like the wicked have their thing and God’s good people have their bad thing. And that’s what’s going on in the millennium. We see that the wicked are destroyed. Where are they? They are dead. They are in the pit, the BIS, they’re in the grave. However you want to talk about the Bible, use all these terms. They are dead. They’re kind of in like holding bank. They’re not conscious. They’re just there waiting for something. What’s going on? Why are they there?
Speaker 2
And Satan just chained up. He can’t tempt anybody. He can’t tempt anybody because everybody is dead. So he’s stuck on the earth and he has now a thousand years to think about all he’s done. But what are the righteous doing? If we go back to Revelation now, we go to the next verse. Revelation 20, verse four says, and I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. So the righteous are in heaven, they’re in the holy city with God, with Christ. They’re reigning with Him they’re reigning and they see thrones and says judgment is committed to them. What is this judgment that needs to go on? Do people in heaven need to have judges? Are they mistreating each other? And they need to have courts and trials and everybody’s doing that. We’re told even one Corinthians six three know you not that we shall judge angels.
Speaker 2
We’re even judging angels. What’s going on? Who are these angels that we need to judge? Are they the angels in heaven? Are they troublemakers? No, it’s the wicked, wicked angels and the wicked men that are being judged by God’s people. God is so transparent. God doesn’t do anything without taking action. And before God is going to execute his final judgment to purge the universe forever of sin, including those who want to cling to their sin, god gives everybody a chance to see what really was going on, that person’s heart and mind. There’s so many verses throughout the entire Bible talking about books, records in heaven of every act people do. I mean, nowadays that’s not hard to conceive because we’re keeping our own records on Facebook and you can just go and see what everybody has done. And God has a similar record up in heaven. That’s incredible detail has everything. And we can go and look at, okay, why isn’t this person in heaven? Why isn’t that person there? Why is this person here? And there will be no secrets. Everything will be open. I mean, God says he’s going to expose everything. We’ll be exposed to the things that we don’t want to even speak about, that the wicked do is all be open.
Speaker 1
I understand something you just said really made me think about how God views every person. I do believe that we’re going to see people in heaven that we’re like, how is that person here? Why they did all these horrible things. They were known for doing all these bad things and how are they here? But God sees that person in such a different way than what we see each other in the world.
Speaker 2
Yeah. We are all an open book to God.
Speaker 1
We are. And when we think about that, this is a profound point that I wanted to share, which is when we think about how God sees each person, how much he loves literally every single person who is alive on this planet, he loves them so much and he just wants them to know his love. And when we step in to looking at people the way God looks at people, how profoundly that changes our relationship to people and our experiences in our relationship. Because when we choose to love someone the way that God is loving them, it’s just such a profound thing. And I just had that thought when you were talking about this.
Speaker 2
That’s a great point. Exactly. And that’s why God is going to that’s why God is doing this to me. It’s such a beautiful thing. I don’t know why so many people want to resist this message. The Bible teaches to me it is so beautiful. This is the ultimate. This is like the next stage of the trial that God wants to bring to us. So Lana just gave a comment. He says, many times the Bible has stories of those who created devices to destroy God’s. People like Daniel, the lions den and the persecutors received the penalty for their own making. The chain that bindsaving is a chain of circumstances. The pit which he dug for us, he will now endure. Satan will finally receive the kingdom he sought for and will eat the fruit of his labor. That’s a good segue to the next part, which is okay. Revelation 21st. And Tina, did you have something to add?
Speaker 1
I was just saying amen. That is very true.
Speaker 2
Amen. Yeah. Great summary there. So Revelation 20, verse five to six, it says, but the rest of the dead did not live again. So first we heard about Satan, we’re hearing about the righteous and now we’re hearing about the other dead, the wicked human dead. But the rest of the dead did not live again until 1000 years were finished. So the wicked are dead. This is the first resurrection. The first resurrection, actually, is referring to those who were in the judgment or judging for the thousand years less than holy is. He was part of the first resurrection. It says, over such a second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God, of Christ, and shall reign with him 1000 years. So there’s two resurrections. Do you want to be a part of that first resurrection? When Jesus shows up at the time of his second, what we call the second coming, he destroys the world. He’ll gather his people hate them, they’ll judge the Ricket will all be dead. So the period, all wicked people dead. And then there’ll be a resurrection of those people. You don’t want to be a part of that resurrection.
Speaker 2
That’s what Jesus calls the resurrection of damnation. John 528 to 29. He says, do not marvel at this for the hours coming in which all who are in the graves will hear his voice. So at some point, everybody who’s ever lived will live. Everybody will be alive, whether righteous or wicked, and they’ll come forth those who have done good to the resurrection of life. So that’s the one at the beginning of the second coming, at the beginning of the millennium, and then those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation. So those who are going to be resurrected at the end of the millennium, this is what’s going on. And so then you’re going to have this period of time, the season when everybody who has ever lived is going to be alive. All human beings that have ever lived are going to be alive at the end of the millennium. So that’s going to be a really interesting time, though. And then what happens? Revelation 20, verse seven. Now, when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison. And so why is he released again? Because the dead have been now resurrected.
Speaker 2
The wicked are back and he now has access to them again.
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