Revelation 20 unveils that the dragon is already restrained and soon to be destroyed, while the saints are already reigning and soon to be delivered.
Speakers
Matt Felton (teaching)
Pastor Dan (service host, mentioned)
The church's position, and the preacher's
Article 16 of the church's statement of faith, "The World to Come," says Christ will descend, raise the dead, and fix forever the final state of men in heaven or hell.
The church takes no position on the end times beyond this: Jesus is going to return, and Jesus is going to win.
You can disagree with this sermon's view of the millennium and still be a mature Christian and a member of this church.
The view given here — that the millennium is now — was the majority view through church history, held broadly by Augustine, Luther, and Calvin.
Revelation 20 answers four questions: how should you live now, what happens when you die, how will history end, and where will you spend eternity.
How should you live now (verses 1-3)
An angel seizes the dragon, throws him into the abyss, and locks it so he cannot deceive the nations.
The analogy of faith: the best interpreter of Scripture is Scripture, and less clear passages are read in light of clearer ones.
The binding is specific: Satan is stopped from deceiving the nations into a final war against the church, not silenced entirely.
He is like Napoleon Bonaparte exiled to an island in the Atlantic — stripped of empire, but still able to kill you if you go play with him.
From Abraham to John the Baptist, God's people were one nation; now Christians gather in nearly every nation on earth.
Evangelism should carry urgency and optimism — expect rejection and some suffering, but also expect progress and salvation.
What happens when you die (verses 4-6)
More untrue things are said in church right after a saint dies than at any other time — but the Bible's answer is better than the Hallmark cards.
Thrones appear 47 times in Revelation; John sees uncounted thrones occupied by the beheaded and by those who refused the beast's mark.
Antipas, killed in Pergamum (Revelation 2:13), was a friend John's first readers knew — John sees him alive and reigning with Christ.
The first resurrection is the believer's present reign with Christ after death; the resurrection body comes later.
Their waiting is the happiest of waitings, like children trying to fall asleep on Christmas Eve.
Ephesians 2 says God has already raised us up and seated us with Christ — visitors walked into a gathering of priests and future kings.
So act like it: stop the bickering, grumbling, and criticism, and picture your brothers and sisters on thrones.
How history ends (verses 7-10)
The thousand years is a full, round number for completion, not a literal span.
Satan counterfeits God's work — an unholy trinity, a mark, a fake resurrection, a counterfeit bride, and now a kind of second coming.
Gog and Magog are not Russia, Afghanistan, or Iran; they allude to Ezekiel 38 and 39 and represent all of God's enemies.
Armageddon in chapter 16, the beast in chapter 19, and Gog and Magog here are one final battle seen from three angles.
Fire falls and the dragon is thrown into the lake of fire — Sodom and Gomorrah all over again.
Prepare to resist that final deception by learning God's truth and resisting temptation now.
Where you will spend eternity (verses 11-15)
The great white throne is great for its stature and its occupant, white for his holiness and radical purity.
Earth and sky flee and find no place to hide as the fallen creation gives way to the new.
Great and small stand in line — kings and presidents, slaves and their masters, each judged individually.
On a flight home from Munich, first class got their own menu, their own curtain, even their own announcements — until the captain said everyone shares the same life vest.
The first book records works and damns every person standing there; the second book, purchased by the blood of the Lamb, holds only names.
Detectives on a podcast said the most monstrous category of criminal consistently feels justified and no remorse. You could never be too bad to become a Christian; you can only be too good in your own eyes to turn to Christ.
Key Takeaways
The dragon is restrained now and destroyed forever soon — so share the gospel with boldness.
Christians who die are not floating spirits; they reign with Christ as priests and kings.
Self-righteousness is probably the dragon's greatest deception.
Everyone who trusts Christ's death and resurrection will be found in the book of life.