19th Century - Satan released?

[fralo4truth]

For those of you who hold the eschatological view that Satan is already bound...

Have you ever heard speculation that Satan was released around the turn of the 19th century? I was attending church recently, and no shallow student in the scripture informed me that he knew of several who feel that Satan was released then. The argument runs that in the early to mid 1800s there were several heresies, false practices, religious cults, etc, conceived. I must admit that it got my mind to thinking. This could very well be a secret thing which belongs to God, but I wanted to hear from you on this matter.

Was not the early 1800s the cradle for much biblical apostasy? I can think of several instances of great departure off the top of my head which were instigated around this time.

 

[Notthemama1984]

 

[Rufus]

I don' think so because of the numerous heresies that have existed and since died or been "reborn" in some way, from far before the 1800s.

 

[lynnie]

I am amil and I recently looked this up in Riddlebarger's book, as I was talking to people who think Satan has perhaps been unleashed more recently with the current global deceptions inc. Islam, UFOs, etc. Riddlebarger points out that the unleashing seems to correlate with the man of lawlessness in Thessalonians, who he thinks could well be one individual with the fullness of an antichrist spirit, doing great signs and wonders, as opposed to a bigger entity, or an antichrist spirit working in various ways such as you speak of in history.

If that is the case, no such person yet is openly the man of lawlesssness.

Also, there continues to be a global harvest, indeed a marvelous one, although perhaps not in the post Christian west. But some of the stories coiming out of China, India, Africa, etc, are wonderful. So the nations are still being "undeceived". It is true that persecution is happening, but do we see major global presecution of Christians? No, there is a great deal of freedom.

It would not surprise me if the end of the mil, the unloosing of Satan, and Gog-Magog is very close. But I do not think it has started yet.

 

[MMasztal]

I've often thought about that. In the 1800s, we have the expansion of Mormonisn, the advent of Jehovah's Witness, Finneyism, and Christian Science. Add to that the political changes in the early 1900s- communism, nazism, fascism resulting in 100 million lives lost (outside of wartime, ie, persecutions and pogroms) , WWI, WWII, etc.

Makes me wonder.

 

[Rufus]

I've often thought about that. In the 1800s, we have the expansion of Mormonisn, the advent of Jehovah's Witness, Finneyism, and Christian Science. Add to that the political changes in the early 1900s- communism, nazism, fascism resulting in 100 million lives lost (outside of wartime, ie, persecutions and pogroms) , WWI, WWII, etc.

Makes me wonder.

14-15% of world deaths occurred in the An Lushan rebellion in China which was Midevil. 7-17% percent in the Mongol raids.

 

[Peairtach]

You could then say that Satan was released when the Papacy got going and almost strangled the life out of the Church, if you are going to say that the heresies since the Enlightenment period were Satan being released.

The reality is that Satan was bound in the first century and is in the process of being progressively further bound as the chain and the leaven of the Gospel goes forth. The binding and the Millennium are realised in the first century but that does not mean that there is no progress thereafter.

It's a process in history like the ebb and flow of the tide, but eventually the tide comes in.

And the LORD answered me: "Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end--it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.....................................................................For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. (Habakkuk 2:2-3 and 14, ESV)