“And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them; and they were judged, each one of them according to their deeds” (Revelation 20:13).

Even if you were to be eaten by a shark and the molecules of your body have been scattered over the deeps of the earth, the Lord will raise all on that last day to stand before Him.  The first words of Scripture say that God spoke all things into existence.  Is it so hard to believe that God will not lose a single soul to whatever this age may throw at us?  Did not Jesus say, “Father, I thank You that I have not lost one?”

Lord, my level of trust during this age is shaky at best.  I say I believe, and then, privately, I ponder and wonder.  You have put eternity into my heart, and I fear losing it.  Yet, all I really need to do is trust Your word.  You have said that all shall be raised.  That includes me.  Lord, lead me from unbelief to belief.  Guide me to know that in You is all hope.  You have given me the Words of eternal life.  Help me live by and in Your Word.

Word made flesh who dwells among us, You gave Your life on the cross so that I could be redeemed.  You have redeemed me by Your grace.  In faith, Lord, help me to live by my trust in Your Words of hope.  Guide me now and always to understand that in You I have hope and a future.  Not just a future in this world, but in the world to come.  Guide me, Lord, in the way of everlasting life today.  Amen.

“And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds” (Revelation 20:12).

The dead.  Or, at least from our perspective, the ones we would say were once dead.  Everyone is resurrected.  Everyone will stand before the throne.  Who you are is reflected in how you live.  Your deeds demonstrate, in part, what is going on inside of you.  Are your deeds written in the book of life, or in the rebellion of death.  Yes, we all have deeds worthy of death, but are you striving to walk in the light of Christ?

Lord, I would not be reading this devotion, nor praying, if I were not seeking You.  Lead me in the assurance of faith so that I may humbly walk in Your righteousness.  Not that I am righteous, but You are, and You have promised to clothe me with Your righteousness.  You have said that You grace is sufficient.  Guide me, Lord, so that I may live into this new life that You have given me in Your salvation.

Come, Holy Spirit, and prepare me to stand before Jesus on the final day.  Bend my heart so that it is inclined to You.  Bend my ear so that it hears as You speak.  Clear my eyes so that I see what I need to see.  My journey here is not complete until it is finished.  Lead me in the way You know I need to go and give me willing feet to follow where you lead.  Thank You for being me into Your grace and leading me.  Amen.

“Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled, and no place was found for them” (Revelation 20:11).

Why are people so afraid of Jesus?  Even the atheist seems to disdain the name.  On the one hand, if Jesus does not exist as Lord and Savior, what is there to fear?  On the other, if He is the judge of the living and the dead, then you who sin should fear greatly.  But do we not all sin?  And now we who believe are at the place where we can understand why all people flee.  What sinner can stand upright before a perfect and righteous God?

Lord Jesus, I hope in Your grace to cover my sin.  I do need to be saved and far too often I am too cavalier about all of this.  Your Word says that all flee.  That includes me.  Prepare me to fall on my face before You, for You alone are righteous and holy.  You have given me Your Word and there is the place where my hope must be.  You said, “Come unto me.”  And so, following You is my beginning.

Lord Jesus, Savior for all who believe.  You have promised grace and mercy.  Lead me by Your grace so that I may stand before You on the final day in the hope of salvation that You have purchased from the cross.  Guide me, Lord Jesus, to live the life You have made possible by this grace You freely give.  Lord, I want to flee.  Teach me to flee into the arms of Your mercy and grace.  Amen.

“And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” (Revelation 20:10).

We were created to be eternal.  Thrown into destruction forever is what it says.  Do not speculate beyond what is spoken.  We have set before us the narrow path of Jesus, or the broad way of rebellion.  Walk with the Lord and know that in Him is true life and eternal hope.  The deceiver would have you join him.  The Lord offers you real life and there is no more that can be said.  When the Lord returns and judgement is rendered, it will be too late.

Lord, You said that we are judged by our fruits.  Although all our hearts are wicked and deceitful, you give a new heart to those who are reborn in You.  It does not mean that we no longer sin, in the sense of breaking Your law, but that we are walking with You and so that our failures to obey are stumbles along the way.  The fruit is the desire to seek You and Your ways in all circumstances and then do Your will.

Lord Jesus, You are the way, truth and life and You have demonstrated how to live amidst the wickedness of this age.  It is not just a matter of me doing the right things, but about following You, who will teach me how to rightly live.  Produce in me the fruits of the Holy Spirit and guide me according to Your goodness and mercy to walk the way of the righteous and flee from the way of the wicked.  Amen.

“And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them” (Revelation 20:9).

The city of Zion, the gathering place of the saints, is always under attack by the forces of Gog and Magog.  In the end, the wickedness of the world will be consumed by fire, that is, destroyed.  Do not be deceived.  Know that the way of the Lord will prevail.  The wickedness of this age is just for a season and fully in God’s purview.  He is the Sovereign Lord and His will is going to be done.

Whom will you follow?  Will you follow the Lord, or chase after the emptiness of this age.  Know that only in the Lord is there true hope.  Know that the way of the Lord is the only way that works out in the end.  There can only be One who is God.  You cannot be Him, nor can your neighbor be Him, but that is what many seem to be pretending to be able to do.  All the rebellious evil will be consumed and removed.

Lord Jesus, You are the Savior and You have come to save us from sin, death, and the devil.  Guide me, Lord, so that I walk humbly with You, my Lord and God.  You know all these things from the beginning, and I need not tell You of them, but I do need Your instruction.  Guide me in the way of Zion, the holy way of righteousness.  Lead me to do what is right and fitting in Your eyes, for this age and the age to come.  Amen.

“When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore” (Revelation 20:7-8).

We have been consistently reading about people who are in rebellion against the Lord versus the saints.  It is no different here.  Gog and Magog are the people gathered against Zion, the people of God.  Of course, the devil relishes in identity politics.  There are only two kinds of people, those who will come into the salvation of Christ and those who will not.  But the devil entices those in rebellion to accuse and curse those who follow Christ.

Are you aware of what is happening around you?  Do you fall for the oft-repeated things that are believed to be true because they are said enough times?  The word of the Lord is consistent and has been telling us all along that the ways of the Lord are true.  Those in rebellion break God’s law.  You are called to obey Him.  Do you seek to fulfill the law, or desire ways around the law?

Lord Jesus, is it really all about faithfulness to You?  In this age, I will sin.  I will break the law, but that is not the measure of faithfulness.  Seeking to follow You and do what is right is at the heart of faithfulness.  Lead me out of the horde of Gog and Magog so that even if I am in the middle of them physically, I stand with You in every other way.  Help me, Lord. to follow the path of faithfulness.  Amen.

“Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:6).

What is the first resurrection?  Is it the new life Christ gives in baptism to those who believe?  Though you die, yet shall you live.  Do you believe?  He will make you a priest.  That is not some high position; what it means is that You have the ability to draw near to Him and speak to others of the wonder of His love.  Having faith like a child is keeping these things simple and not being filled with pride as the world tends to do things.

Lord, my pride sees the word first and that is what I want to be a part of. Then it sees the word priest and I think of power and glory.  Finally, I see reign and I once again think of myself and power.  But none of these are true.  You have called me to draw near to You in the promised new life which You have given me.  We will be children of God, as will be true of You and all others who have faith.  I will be in fellowship with them too.

Lord, Sovereign Judge, You who know all things, guide me in the goodness and mercy of Your grace to live in the reality which You have created, doing what is befitting all righteousness, and being content with whom You are making me to be.  Lead me in the way of righteousness this day.  Do not let me become caught up in the speculation of all these things, but instead, live humbly with You, my Lord and God.  Amen.

“The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection” (Revelation 20:5).

The Lord will do what the Lord does.  Whether you are awakened now or later, does it really matter?  Everything has always been in the Lord’s hands.  I know the world laments at death, and yes, there is sadness, but what will your lament do to change the reality that the Lord has put into motion?  The Lord is Sovereign, and the peace He gives, in part, is accepting this fully in your heart.

Lord, there are many mysteries, and I would like to know the answers.  Equally, there are many places in my heart where I am more conditional than I would like to admit.  I need to learn how to trust You more and trust myself less.  Compared to You, what do I know?  All things really are in Your hands, and everything will turn out according to the Father’s will.  When my time is complete, then You will do as You have always intended.

Lord God, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  I have no real power over anyone, except perhaps over myself.  Teach me to humbly submit to You so that it is Your will that is done in my life.  Help me understand that even if I do not like the outcome or circumstances, everything is in Your hands.  Of course, Your will is going to be done.  Teach me to trust You above all things knowing that You are the Sovereign Lord.  Amen.

“Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their foreheads and on their hands; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4).

There are those in the world who go along to get along.  Willing to accommodate just about anything, they compromise and join in the rebellion against the Lord.  With their minds, they check out and do not think.  With their hands, they willingly do whatever the wickedness of the day requires them to do.  The mark of the beast has always been unwillingness to look to the Lord and follow Him in all His ways.

You know on the one hand, Lord, that I am unable to follow You in all of Your ways.  It does not mean that I do not want to, it is just that I often find that I do the things I do not want to do and do not do what I ought.  Surely this is not what You mean for me to do.  But I have been castigated for being Christian.  People do treat me differently, but so what.  Your kingdom is forever.  Lead me to be a part of Your kingdom and not be overly concerned about what others may think of me.

Jesus, Lord and Master, You came the first time to provide salvation for as many as believe.  You are coming the second time to separate out those who chose to walk with You as opposed to those who ignored You and adopted the way of this wicked world.  Guide me Lord Jesus to walk humbly with You, my Lord and Savior, and live according to all the directions You give, doing so as best I can in this wicked world.  Teach me how to increase my faithfulness to You.  Amen.

“And he took hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he threw him into the abyss and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time” (Revelation 20:2-3).

I confess to you that I do not fully understand what the Lord is saying here.  I am skeptical of anyone who tells you they do.  What this does tell me is that Satan, the devil, is under the power of our Lord.  Never believe the lie that tells you otherwise.  God has a purpose for everything and even if we cannot yet comprehend what He is doing, know that all power and authority belong to the Lord.

Lord, I do want to know what this means.  But will knowing all that this means change who I am or what I need to do?  No, it will not.  Rather, help me to focus upon the life You have given me knowing that there is much work to be done in me if I am to be like Christ.  Guide me always in the way of eternal life so that I may now and always walk in Your presence.

My Lord and Savior, You are the One who binds and loosens.  You have given some delegated authority such that they may, in Your name and by Your authority, bind and loose, but it is by Your power and authority.  Lead me by Your power and authority, in the baptism by which You brought me into Your promise and to be Your disciple and teach me how to obey all that You have commanded.  Lord, guide me where I need to go.  Amen.