The Millennium and the End of Sin (What Will Happen?) – Pastor Ted Wilson

About this sermon

In this episode, Pastor Ted Wilson talks about the millennium and the end of sin, the subject of the twenty-seventh fundamental belief of the Seventh-day Adventists. With the tragedies, wars, disasters, and other sufferings happening around us, will there be an end? The Bible says that Christ will come again to take His children to heaven, bringing an end to earthly suffering and sorrow. After the second coming, there will be a 1000-year period called the millennium in which all believers will live in heaven. After this time, Satan and sin will be destroyed forever and the earth will be made new. The Seventh-day Adventist Fundamental Belief #27 explains: "The millennium is the thousand-year reign of Christ with His saints in heaven between the first and second resurrections. During this time, the wicked dead will be judged; the earth will be utterly desolate, without living human inhabitants but occupied by Satan and his angels. At its close, Christ with His saints and the Holy City will descend from heaven to earth. The unrighteous dead will then be resurrected, and with Satan and his angels will surround the city; but fire from God will consume them and cleanse the earth. The universe will thus be freed of sin and sinners forever." "Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he cast him 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. But after these things, he must be released for a little while" (Revelation 20:1-3). This millennium takes place between the first and second resurrections—the resurrection of the righteous and the resurrection of the wicked. It begins with Satan, along with his angels, being locked up in a pit so he might not deceive the nations again. Where is this pit? Though the Bible doesn't state it specifically, we can infer that this pit refers to the earth after the resurrection of the saints. By this time, all the righteous have already been taken to heaven to live with Christ, and the wicked are still sleeping in their graves. So, there is no one for Satan to deceive. Meanwhile, the believers will reign with Christ in heaven for a thousand years. That is, they will go through the records God has been keeping since the earth began. Now, what will Satan and his angels be doing during the millennium? The Bible says they will be stuck on earth with no one to deceive. And how will sin end? "Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison  and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever" (Revelation 20:7-10). When God returns to cleanse the earth, the second resurrection, or the resurrection of the wicked, begins. Those who rebelled against God, refused Him, and sided with Satan, will be resurrected to be judged. As Satan sees them, he tries one final deception, urging them to turn and attack the Holy City, claiming they can conquer and take it as their own. But fire falls from heaven and burns them up. Then, Satan will be thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where he will be burned and destroyed forever. "Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.  Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, 'Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.' Then He Who sat on the throne said, 'Behold, I make all things new'" (Revelation 21:1-5). What a beautiful promise that Jesus will come back again and make things new! Learn more about the millennium and the end of sin at www.adventist.org/millennium-and-the-end-of-sin/

Topics

• Leadership
• Repentance
• Prophecy & End Times