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In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
And I saw an angel coming down out of Heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
Revelation 20:1-3
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Upon His long awaited return from Heaven to earth, we saw Jesus triumph over the beast (antichrist), the false prophet (his accomplice), and all “the kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders”, and all the people “who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image”. We read where the beast and false prophet were case into the “fiery lake of burning sulfur” where the rest of the people were slain, their bodies left to be picked apart by the birds (Revelation 19:11-21).
And so as we turn to Revelation, chapter 20, we do so riding the wave of Jesus’ victory, one where good overcame evil with power, and in these opening verses, we find one more bit of business that needed done as Jesus set up His reign over the world. Look again at our passage here:
And I saw an angel coming down out of Heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time. Vv.1-3
How powerful are angels?
Well, the Book of Revelation more than any other book shows what they are capable of, tasked and empowered by God to carry out His purposes.
In this instance, the scriptures tell us that a certain angel from Heaven will have the privilege of capturing and detaining Satan himself, “the dragon” and “ancient serpent”. We read where the angel held “a great chain” in “his hand” and he used it to bind up the devil before throwing him “into the Abyss”, a subterranean place where demonic forces dwelled”. Once there, Satan would remain incarcerated for a thousand years, unable to deceive the nations any longer.
Think about this for a moment. Every single day, we are afflicted by the presence and work of the enemy. Like our Lord, he never takes a day off in initiating and instigating wickedness. His insistent attacking as we walk across the spiritual battlefield called life is oppressive and exhausting but here in Revelation, chapter 20, we have the assurance that a day is coming when Satan will be completely disempowered for 10 centuries. What a relief and blessing this will be for every believer alive on earth then!
In the meantime, we will trust in our Lord to protect us and lead us to truth, away from the malevolent acts of the devil. For through belief in Jesus, we know that we already have gained the victory over our enemy, death, and the grave. Now and forevermore, let us lift our thanks and praise to our Savior and the God who loved us so much that He sent Him to provide our deliverance and salvation.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
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