Victory in Jesus

Victory in Jesus

Revelation 20:7-15 

Intro: A playground bully.

I am so thankful for the victory that is found in Christ. That when we call upon Him, He is faithful to guide, guard, and protect. This morning, we are
going to study the second half of Revelation 20, we will see His final victory over the enemy. Last week we began looking at what will take place after
the tribulation period. After the tribulation, Satan is bound and for 1,000 years, and during this time, he deceives the nations no longer. There is
peace on earth during this time and those on earth will submit to the Lordship of Jesus. It will be a time of perfectly administrated and enforced
righteousness on earth.

This morning, we will see what happens as the 1,000 years are completed.

Read: Revelation 20:7-15

When the 1,000 years of peace come to an end, Satan is released from the abyss (his prison). Upon his return, he has one objective; to deceive the nations
and gather them together for war. He ends up being able to deceive many, the scripture says as many as the sand of the seashore. His plan? To wage
war against the people of God, the city of Jerusalem, and the One who reigns within.

What we see next is fire coming down from heaven and the final defeat of Satan once and for all. Victory is in Christ and in Him alone.

I. Don’t be Deceived

• Verse 5 references the first resurrection. It is important to remember that the first resurrection mentioned is not a single point, rather it is all
  those who have received Jesus and are included in salvation. Those who have been included in the first resurrection will rule and reign with Jesus.
  
• During the millennium: All will submit to Jesus (Is. 2:1-5), there will be no more war (Is. 2:1-5), There will be
  peace among animals (Is. 11:6-9, 65:25), People will live long lives (Is. 65:20), and there will be healing for
  the nations (Is. 35:5-6).
  
• The earth will be changed and this time will be filled with those who live until the end of the tribulation period and do not take the mark of the
  beast and choose Jesus.
  
• Those who live during this time will continue to have children and grandchildren and great grandchildren, and great, great grandchildren.
  
• During this time, outward conformity to Jesus’ rule will be required, but seemingly, the inward embrace will remain up to the individual.
  
• In verse 7, we understand that after the 1,000 years are completed, Satan is released from his prison (the abyss), and he will come out for a short
  time to deceive the nations and gather them for war.
  
• Why does this happen? Why would Satan be allowed to return at all after peace on earth? 

A. Choose to be chosen

• Those on earth haven’t been given the opportunity to choose Jesus for themselves. There is no alternative to Christ during this time.
  

Revelation 22:17, Whosoever will, let him come, take the water of life freely.

• When I think about the fact that Satan will return and deceive many, I am puzzled.
  
• Wouldn’t they here the stories? Wouldn’t they know what took place? Would they hear from their great, great, great grandparents?
  
• Wouldn’t they understand that they are in a good place, a perfect place? That they are blessed? How could they turn away from the Lord?
  
• I am puzzled until I realize that the Lord has been so good even in my life today.
  
• He has given so many blessing, yet, how many times have I turned my back on Him?
• Why will those on earth even be given this choice? Because God is love, and love requires a choice.

Illus. True love is based on a choice.

• We have chosen Christ based on love and an inward embrace of His reign in our hearts. It can’t just be outward conformity, but inward surrender to
  His place as King in your life and heart. 

B. Surrender in your heart

• The Lord is concerned with your heart. We can live well outwardly and in our heart be in turmoil. God looks at the heart. Those who live under Jesus
  reign outwardly will have to make the choice to receive Him inwardly.
  

Isaiah 29:13, The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”

1 Samuel 16:7, But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.

• The Lord wants your heart to be surrendered to Him. Out of that will flow a joy to serve, a joy to follow, a joy to be a joy.
  
• This comes with the choice to love based in our hearts not in actions.
  

 Illus. Love with the right heart.

• Those in the millennial kingdom live in a perfect environment – no Satan, no crime, no violence, no evil. But in the end, many will choose to reject
  God. What that choice reveals, it what is in their heart.
  
• The stories they had heard from their great, great grandparents, it wasn’t enough. Perfect peace on earth, it wasn’t enough. They didn’t believe. 

Illus. Experiencing it for myself!

• There is a choice to make and all have the opportunity to make it. Will you accept Jesus, or reject Jesus? There is no happy medium. 

John 3:16, For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

• Jesus is not one foot in and one foot out regarding your life, regarding your soul. He is all in.
  
• If a person says “I don’t want God, I would rather die than live with God.” That person won’t have God and won’t live with Him.
  
• Be reminded of what God says about you. He says, “I would rather die than live without you.” And Jesus did just that on the cross. Forgiven of our
  sins through Christ, we can live with Him forever.
  
• Those who are deceived, are deceived and somehow made to believe that Christ is not the way.
  
• Those deceived are of the sand of the seashore and after rejecting Jesus, they will be gathered together for war, to destroy God’s people, and to destroy
  Jerusalem, where Jesus is reigning.
  
• As this evil army comes to wage war, fire comes down from heaven to devour them and the devil is thrown into the lake of fire forever and ever. It
  is final, Satan is defeated. 

John 14:6, Jesus declared, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”

James 4:12, “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy.”

II. Only God is Judge

• After the eternal destruction of evil, John sees a great white throne. This great white throne is the throne of God.
  
• While God alone is judge, it is important to understand who will be judged and when. In scripture, we understand two judgements of God. 

A. Some will be judged according to their deeds.

• The judgement at the great white throne is where those who have rejected Jesus are judged according to their deeds.
  

John 12:48, He who rejects Me and does not receive my sayings, have one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day.

• The books are opened, everything that a person has done, it is written down. If a person’s name is not in the book of life, they will be judged based
  on their works, or deeds on this earth.
  

Galatians 2:16, By the works of the law no flesh will be justified.

• Our deeds, our works outside of Christ aren’t sufficient. On that day, when the books are opened, every deed will be written. 

• When the books are opened, the weight of one’s sin will come to light. In seeing it all, it’s as if man will cry “depart from me; for I am a sinful man.”
  (Luke 5:8)
  
• Understand however, that those in Christ will not be judged at this great white throne, nor will they be judged according to their sins.
  
• For those in Christ, scripture reveals that the “certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us,” He has taken away, having nailed it to the
  cross. (Colossians 2:14).
  
• In other words, the pages containing our works and deeds were taken away, removed, and blotted out by the blood of Jesus. 

B. Those in Christ are judged in Christ.

• The judgement which we deserved fell upon Christ, because of His love. He died to make a way for you.
  

Isaiah 1:18, “Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow…”

• We don’t escape God’s judgement, it has been satisfied in Jesus.
  
• Romans 4:25, He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.
• While we have overcome death in Christ, there is a judgement of believers. It is called the “Judgement Seat of Christ.” 

2 Corinthians 5:10, For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ.

• This is not a judgement or punishment of sins, it is a judgement of rewards.
  
• Paul describes this in 1 Corinthians 3:12-15. He speaks of the coming assessment of each one’s work before the Lord. What we have
  done, and our motive for doing it, will be tested by fire, and the purifying fire of God will burn up everything that was not of Him.
  
• What remains, will be the good works we have done. This is not the judgement of sins, but the judgement of what we have done and our motives for doing
  so.
  
• How we live today, it is remembered, it matters. What I want to be left over after all of my errors and my sin has been burned up, is a lot of good,
  and good motives before the Lord.

Illus. A broken heart. 

• As we understand the end Revelation 20, it would be easy to simply say, “this is all great, but I am a believer, I’m going to heaven. I’m more concerned
  about the problems I have today.”
  
• The people this book was written to were also facing problems in their day. The understanding of Christ’s ultimate victory is important. Satan and
  death itself are defeated, they lose. And as for those in Christ, we are victorious, we win.

Revelation 20:7-15   NASB