TribulationSigns said:
Again, even though Christ bound Satan in chains of darkness so that He could build His Church,
In Revelation 20:2 satan is bound for one thousand years. The Messianic Millennium.
This is not the millennium. This is the church age which has so far been two thousand years. In which Jesus has built His church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Mat.16:18)
Satan STILL is able to work iniquity in the world! Selah!
No. Rev.20 says that satan cannot work iniquity at all during the Millennium.
So, satan is not bound now, because there is iniquity of all kinds and sorts at this time of the church age.
Ergo, the binding was not all-inclusive, it was only for the sake of the Elect of the nation who would not be deceived and come to salvation.
If you are going to claim that, then you can't use the Rev.20 text to say that satan is bound. Not for the sake of the Elect, and not for the sake of the world.
Didn't you read the Scripture:
So you would prefer to overlook every scripture I posted that indicates that satan is not bound.
Matthew 12:28-29 KJV
[28] But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.
[29] Or else how can one enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house.
The verse 28 is not the same as Rev.20 of satan being bound for a thousand years.
Jesus in vs29 ceased talking about himself. "for how can one enter?" "he will bind the strong man". Jesus didn't say "how can I enter?" or "I will first bind the strong man."
Jesus didn't say or demonstrate that only He could do it. For he always asked the disciples "Where is your faith?.. Why didn't you believe?" Jesus sent the disciples to cast out demons from possessed or oppressed people.
The Strong Man is Satan. His house is the world
The strong man is any demon who's not been cast out by the disciples. The demon is strong because they are weak. The disciples could cast out some demons, but then in another case, they couldn't.
The world no longer belongs to satan because Jesus has all the keys of authority and dominion concerning the Earth.
What is satan's dominion is the darkness. In opposition to God's light. That Jesus delivers all sinners out of who call upon Him as their Savior. And be translated into the kingdom of God's dear Son.
The sinners that get saved then proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called sinners out of darkness and into His marvelous light.
Jesus will not have full possession of the Earth until His Second Coming, and The Messianic Millennium.
Until then, it is now the time of the Gentiles. And so satan influences and uses his deception over the people in the world (2 Cor.4:3-4).
where people were held spiritually captive. In order to spoil his house, Christ would have to first bind Satan.
But not by using Rev.20 of binding satan for a thousand years. That will happen after the seven year Tribulation that hasn't started yet.
Jesus only bound each devil or demon within each individual possessed or oppressed person. He didn't bind satan out of every possessed or oppressed person all at once.
Jesus in His earthly ministry didn't entirely bind the devil.. because it was not yet the time. The demons said "Are you to cast us out before the time?"
After the 7yr Tribulation in Jesus Second Coming is 'the time'. So as written in Rev.20 Jesus bound satan from working iniquity in any person for 1000 years.
But until then it was on the cross and by the cross that satan's power is removed from having power over believers and through prayer is bound from working in family sinner's or the pastor can pray for any sinner's lives too so that they can see the light of the gospel and call upon Jesus to be saved.
Because his power over people was through the old testament law.. which was weak through the flesh. On the cross Jesus paid the penalty of the curse that had effect through the law.
But Jesus gave authority to believers to bind the devil (Mat.16:18; 18:18). He demonstrated that by empowering the certain or all of the 12 disciples.
Jesus said "I give you authority that whatsoever is bound on Earth is bound in heaven, and whatsoever is loosed on Earth is loosed in heaven." (Mat.18:18)
Jesus said that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church.
In the same way we are the collective force that restrains the antichrist, that he cannot come yet or fully achieve a take-over of the world before his time.
This is the theme of Revelation 20.
That is then but this is now. We are here now. We need it now. It is available in Mat.18:18 Or there won't be a then for anyone.
It does not mean that Satan will be prevented from causing tribulation or trail against the Elect.
If the millennium were to begin tomorrow and Rev.20 were in effect then, then satan would be totally prevented from causing the least to the greatest of problems.
But this is the church age so the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church, now. That means that he's not bound now. It means that he's doing his temptations and adversities, but he won't prevail against the church in any of them.
There are historical records until today of Christians being tried and killed for their faith: Burning on the stake, fed by the lions, thrown in boiling oil, hated by family, etc.
Except for the apostle John, they tried to kill him in many such ways. But they didn't prevail against him.
In Revelation 12:11 it says "They [believers in the Tribulation] overcame him [the devil, the antichrist] by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony."
But they eventually still died when all Christians during the Tribulation were martyred. Because they did not love their life unto death.
Like the apostle Paul who looked death in the face many times during his ministry. But he continued, and extended his life for the sake of the churches, he overcame every adversity yet, when the time came, he accepted martyrdom.
The key is that Satan is bound so that people can be "spoiled" or "saved" from his spiritual bondage in the blood of Christ.
You keep using Rev.20 to apply to this church age, but the text of satan bound for one thousand years which refers to the Messianic millennium - indicates that it can't apply to this church age.
What applies now, is Mat.16:18, 18:18 In that case believers bind the devil in prayer of believing for family members to be saved.
Not everyone in the world, but only people God intends to seal (saved) has been sealed, Revelation 7:1-4.
That is the Tribulation Jewish remnant of the 144,000 that collectively gets sealed. That is not speaking of the tribulation Gentiles who have their own personal experience of being sealed (Ephes.1:13-14).
In any case, the text doesn't say that those who get sealed is during the Millennium, but rather during the 7yr Tribulation.
After ALL Elect has come in, Satan will be loosened once again and the salvation has ceased.
It doesn't say that salvation ceases.
During the Millennium satan is bound while Jesus literally is on the Earth, sitting on the throne in the Millennium Temple. Salvation will be just available then as it has been since Jesus rose from the dead.
At the end of the Millennium satan will be loosed again. It says when satan is loosed, a Gog army rises up against God but they are quickly consumed by fire. There is no salvation for them.
At least for a short season before Christ returns.
Satan is not bound now, nor is he bound during the Tribulation. It's during the end of the 7yr Tribulation that Jesus will return in the Second Coming. That is when satan is bound for 1000 yrs.
How long will the short season last, we do not know.
By short season... the Revelation is speaking of the second half of the 7yr Tribulation. It's 3.5 yrs duration when satan through the antichrist is at his fullest effect.
But the Word of God assured us that Christ will make sure he will have some Elect who will be "alive and remain" on earth to be raptured when He returns.
When Jesus returns in His Second Coming from heaven where all saints have been for 7 yrs (Isa.26:19-21; Heb.12:22:24) Being raptured before the 7yr Tribulation can begin (2 Thes.2:1-3,6-7)
there is no need for rapture at the Second Coming of Jesus but only for Him with all believers who went to heaven by rapture, or by death to all come to the Earth to put the antichrist, the false prophet and bind satan in the abyss.
Those who would be yet alive would be the Jews in their protected place in the wilderness where the devil tried to kill them all, but failed. (Rev.12:14-16)
Jesus' return to those who are alive and remain.. is before the antichrist comes, is before the Tribulation will begin. (2 Thes.2:1-3,6-7)
The day of the Lord is from the rapture of the church on through to after the millennium, and over to when the Earth is cleansed by fire. The cleansing is possibly during the Great White Throne Judgement.
So when the apostle Paul wrote of those who are alive and remain.. That would be us right now. Even as the apostle Paul and all epistle era believers of the 1st century were alive and remained in their 'right now'.
