Not a fair fight

Scripture:

Revelation 19:20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.

Observation:

The beast had been revered by people by reason of its invincibility in battle (13:4), yet once the battle comes against Christ and the armies of heaven, there is no battle. The beast is simple “captured” and the battle is over. And his armies are slaughtered. There is no mention of their being even a fair fight. Such is the vanquishing of evil in the end. His sidekick, the false prophet, was likewise simply arrested and held. Then their punishment is carried out – to be thrown alive into the lake of fire. In both the captivity and sentence carried out, the intentions and end results of the work of the beast and the false prophet have come full circle. For it was their goal to put souls in prisons of fear and shame, resulting in addictive and debasing behavior that further bound them. And after that, to bring their followers into hell itself. Their desire was to take the God-granted gift of freedom and life and pervert it into slavery and death. So the Lord gave them exactly what they had wished on his creation.

Application:

Rather than look for a personal, historical beast – which may or may not be a valid exercise – let me ask – what is my beast? Am I held captive by any being or movement or organization or group that would blunt my freedom, won by Christ on the cross? Do I allow the person of Christ into whose image I am being molded, to be buried beneath some other image or likeness? The road leading to destruction has hundreds of such images, boasting very real and valuable earthly rewards. While awards and rewards do follow a righteous life, let the righteousness of God motivate me and not what glitters. May I receive commendation as His servant and only passingly as one commended by humans.

Also, may I do everything I can to win freedom for those whose lives I can truly grace. Let them be energized towards liberty of being – avoiding that which is blatantly sinful and thus, binding in its result. Let me preach Christ with love, mercy and wisdom, including the judgment that follows walking away. In that, let me also grant forgiveness over my own inflicted punishment. For my anger is not as God’s and the sentences I would pass fall far short of his long-suffering mercy. I will throw no one into a lake of fire or even a too-hot hot bathtub. But I can love those who hurt people (even me) and pray for those who have chosen darkness – so far.

Prayer:

Father, You alone can judge for eternity. And You alone can capture Your enemies – the real ones. Let me walk in holy fear and righteousness that comes from You through Christ. Amen.