Our name | Mission | Vision | Leaders Ministries | Schedule | Directions | Contact Home   Gateway Church gathers for worship Sundays at 10:30 a.m. Location: 6425 Jefferson Rd. (Hwy. 129) in Athens, Georgia. For directions, click here. Ministry of the Word: Recent sermons Our quarterly e-magazine Gateway Today For the Gateway family Pastor Jerry's Weekly E-Mail A GATEWAY SERMON SUMMARY AUDIO The devil's demise Jerry Varnado, pastor Gateway Church, Athens GA February 26, 2006 (On this date, Gateway Church celebrated 130 years of ministry. Pastor Jerry Varnado preached on Isaiah 13, the same text used by Bishop George F. Pierce at the church's dedication service in 1876.) Main Scripture text: Isaiah 13 Artist's rendering of our original sanctuary, dedicated in 1876. Isaiah 13 is a difficult text, especially for a "celebration" service! This text is full of judgment, destruction and terror. Where is the good news? This passage is about the God-ordered destruction of "Babylon." Babylon is a real place, but in the Scriptures it also represents something. In a sense the Bible can be understood as "a tale of two cities." There is Jerusalem, the City of God. It is the place -- the New Jerusalem -- where the redeemed, the Bride of Christ, will live eternally with God in peace and joy. There is also Babylon, the City of Rebellion. The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible says this about Babylon: "[A] symbol of satanic deception and power; it is a heavenly mystery, which is to be comprehended prophetically, and which is never wholly reducible to empirical earthly institutions." In this sense, "Babylon" is the essence of evil in our world. It is the thing that must be destroyed for God's Kingdom to come in all its fullness. Hell has to be taken out. Ultimately, that will include everything and everyone who voluntarily accepts or tolerates the powers of hell. Right now, we have a choice. If we want heaven, if we want the Kingdom to be present in our lives, we must give up any part of hell -- any evil -- that we continue to embrace. Here's the good news of Isaiah 13 and 14 -- the good news of the devil's demise: 1) It is God's power that will defeat the devil. We are not left on our own. (Isaiah 13: 2-3, 6, 11-13) 2) The devil's defeat will be total. There is no question about the outcome. (Isaiah 13:14-19) 3) The devil's defeat will be final. This is not just a battle; it is the end of the war. (Isaiah 13:20-22) 4) Peace and blessing will come to God's people. There will be peace at last, for the enemy of our souls will be defeated. (Isaiah 14: 1-7) And here's more good news: You don't have to wait until you die or until the end of time to cash in on the good news of the devil's demise! Heaven is our future hope -- but it is also a present reality! We won't experience the fullness of heaven until the end of time, but Jesus made it clear that we could have something of heaven on earth. The power of the Kingdom resides in us through the Holy Spirit. The devil's ultimate demise is certain, total, and final -- but you can defeat him now in every dimension of you life, by the power of the living God. That power is available to you -- if you have given yourself to Jesus Christ. Supporting texts: 2 Peter 3:9 | Genesis 14:17-20 | Revelation 21 | Genesis 11:1-9 | Isaiah 14:12-14 | Luke 10:19 A mp3 audio file of this sermon is here (25 min.). (Download to a PC by right clicking on the link and choosing "Save Target As." Mac users: click, hold, and choose "Download Link to Disk." Depending on your connection speed, the file may take several minutes to download.) An audio tape of the sermon summarized above is available free of charge (U.S. requests only). Request a tape by calling or writing the Gateway Church office. Please specify tape number 060226a: The Devil's Demise. © 2006 Gerald R. Varnado To the Gateway Church home page How to contact us