βAnd I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little seasonβ (Rev. 20:1-3).
The loosing of Satan for a short time is part of Godβs sovereign plan: βheΒ mustΒ be loosedβ (Rev. 20:3). Everything God does is good and righteous and has a purpose. Mankind has a free will and, at the close of the Millennium, just prior to the eternal state, God gives the inhabitants of Christβs earthly kingdom one last opportunity to believe in Christ or reject Him. After 1000 years of peace and righteousness, with the world as it should be, will they βhave this Man to reign overβ them (Luke 19:14)? The answer from the unbelieving world will be a resounding βNo!β
Many think that the world can be fixed through politics and human government. If we just get this political ruler or that political ruler in office, then everything will be all right. Itβs a gross understatement to call that wishful thinking. Even when the perfect Ruler reigns over the world for 1000 years, the world will still choose evil. Even if the world were all that it could be, people would still reject Christ. It all stems from the heart of mankind and shows that βThe heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wickedβ (Jer. 17:9).
Christ can change the heart. For us under grace, when we trust in Christ, believing that He died for our sins, was buried, and rose again (I Cor. 15:3,4), God creates a new nature in us (II Cor. 5:17). By this βinward manβ being βrenewed day by dayβ (II Cor. 4:16) through the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, Christ can transform our hearts and lives (Rom. 12:1,2). source
