Read Revelation 20:7-10.
A thousand years is a long time to build an army against God in the battle to end all battles. With Satan’s restraints removed, he is now free to gather the earth’s armies to fight against God’s people. The size of Satan’s army is staggering – “like the sand on the seashore” (v. 8). They are seen to surround God’s people. Like cattle corralled for slaughter, the enemy couldn’t be in a better position to decimate God’s people. When enemy forces are as numerous as grains of sand on the shore and their position leaves no apparent way out, the future can look bleak and impossible to break free.
If there is something that seems to come up time and time again in Scripture is the fact that God is able to take the impossible situations of life and provide a way out. The situation described in our passage today is nothing new to God. It is nothing beyond His power to overcome. He simply brings down His fire from heaven and destroys the enemy. When God’s people are in a place of helplessness, that is often when we see God come through. He may not always work a miracle of the likes of fire from the sky, but how many times have we seen Him work in ways that were “out of the blue”? (I wonder if that’s where the phrase “out of the blue” comes from, i.e. “out of the blue sky“.)
Are you experiencing an impossible situation? Do you find yourself backed into a corner with no escape? Indeed, it is a difficult place to be. But keep in mind that it is in these situations that we have an opportunity to see God work. In many other less threatening situations, God is at work there, too, but it is also easy to chalk it up to the “normal” course of events. It is in the most desperate situations that God’s power and glory are most often relied upon.
If you are struggling with an impossible situation, consider reading a similar story of Elisha (one of my favorites): 2Kings 6:8-17. In it, Elisha makes a remarkable and memorable statement: “Don’t be afraid. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” (You’ll just have to read it to get the context!)