REVELATION 19.11-21

Revelation 19 brings us to the end of the 7-year tribulation period described in chapters 6-18. The events in chapter 19 follow the destruction of the one world government and the one world religious system. 

Verses 11-21 is a vision of the departure from heaven of The Lord Jesus Christ and the armies of heaven at which time He, The Stone cut out without hands, destroys Gentile world-power, headed up in the Beast, in fulfillment of  Daniel 2:34 Daniel 2:35 .

Concerning the actual, physical return of The Lord Jesus Christ to this earth, we must go back to Acts 1, where we read.

Ac 1:6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

• This same Jesus Christ, The One who ascended to heaven (Acts 1:9–11) and had been seated at the Father’s right hand (Heb. 8:1; 10:12; 1 Pet. 3:22) will return to take back the earth from the usurper and establish His kingdom (5:1–10).

Re 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

• John saw a door opened in heaven earlier:
• Rev 4.1 After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.
• By comparing Scripture with Scripture, The Second Coming of Christ differs from the Rapture of the church.
• At the Rapture of the church, Christ meets His own in the air—at the Second Coming He comes with them to earth. At the Rapture, there is no judgment, at the Second Coming it is all about judgment.
• The Second Coming of Christ is preceded by blackness—the darkened sun, moon gone out, stars fallen, smoke—then lightning and blinding glory as Jesus comes. Such details are not included in Rapture passages (1 Thess. 4:13–18).
• There is no Rapture or gathering of the saints seen anywhere in Revelation 19.
• White horse. In the Roman triumphal processions, the victorious general rode his white war horse up the Via Sacra to the temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill.
• Jesus’ first coming was in humiliation on a colt (Zech. 9:9). John’s vision of Jesus at the Second Coming portrays Him as the conqueror on His war horse, coming to destroy the wicked, to overthrow the Antichrist, to defeat Satan, and to set up His Kingdom reign upon the earth.
• Faithful and True.
• In Revelation 1:5 and also in His message to the church of Laodicea. Rev 3:14 Jesus is described as the faithful and true witness of God. Beloved, our precious Lord is faithful and true.
• Faithful and true to His word, Jesus will return to earth just as He promised.
• Matt 24:27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.28 For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together. 29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (this did not happen in 70 AD)
• In righteousness He judges andmakes war.
• This startling statement, appearing only here and 2:16, vividly portrays the holy wrath of God against sinners (cf. Ps. 7:11). God’s patience will be exhausted with sinful, rebellious mankind.
• The Second Coming of Christ to the earth in judgment is no “rush to judgment.”  Jesus has amply displayed His nature of mercy, forgiveness and grace to this fallen world.  For 2,000 years, through the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ, The Father has demonstrated His love for sinners and that He is not willing that any perish, but that all come to repentance. He is demonstrating that love today. But there is a time coming when Jesus will judge a world hardened and totally given over to their rebellion against Him.
• According to Zechariah 14:3-4, when Jesus returns, He will come first the Mountof Olives in Jerusalem. The plea of Isaiah 64:1-2 will be fulfilled: Oh, that You would rend the heavens! That You would come down! That the mountains might shake at Your presence; as fire burns brushwood, as fire causes water to boil; to make Your name known to Your adversaries, that the nations may tremble at Your presence!
• This verse is the answer to the prayer, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Re 19:12  His eyes were as a flame of fire (Rev 1.14), and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man:

·      The very same eyes that looked so compassionately upon Peter after his denial…at the woman at the well…at the woman caught in adultery…at the multitudes and at you and me this morning are revealed here as  eyes of fire ready for judgment.

·      Nothing escapes the penetrating vision of The Lord Jesus Christ. His judgments are always just and accurate. There is nothing that Jesus Christ does not see.  There is no lewd thought, there is no unbelieving skepticism, that Christ does not read.  There is no hypocrisy, no formalism, no deceit that he does not scan as easily as a man reads a page in a book.

·      A name … no one knew. John could see the name, but was unable to comprehend it. There are unfathomable mysteries in the Godhead that even glorified saints will be unable to grasp.

Re 19:13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.

• Some interpret this to speak of the garment of Jesus Christ that is drenched in the blood of His enemies. Others see this as speaking of His garments that were splattered with the blood He shed for us on the cross. Both are true statements, and I am not going to split hairs over which it is.
• The Word. Only John uses this title for the Lord.
• John1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
• As the Word of God, Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Col. 1:15); the express image of His person (Heb. 1:3); and all the fulness of the Godhead bodily (Col 2.9). As words are the vehicles of expression, Jesus Christ, The Word of God is the perfect expression of God.
• The One Who shed His blood for our sins is also The One Who will return to this earth to destroy Satan and every fallen angel and rebellious man. He is The Lord Jesus Christ.

Re 19:14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.

• This army of heaven is composed of the church, Col 3.4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. The tribulation saints (7:13), OT believers (Jude 14; cf. Dan. 12:1,2), and even angels (Matt. 25:31).
• The Second Coming of Christ was prophesied in the days of Enoch:
• Jude 1:14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,15 ¶ To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

·      They return not to help Jesus in the battle (they are unarmed), but to reign with Him after He defeats His enemies.

• Re 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
• Re 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Rev 19:15 And out of His mouth (not ours) goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations: and He shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

• Out of His mouth goes a sharp 2-edged sword- The Word of God is alive and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. (Hebrews 4:12) 
• The Word that goes forth out of the mouth of Christ is powerful. "And God said, Let there be light: and there was light." Genesis 1:3  Oh the power in the Word of God!
• Isa 11:4 But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.
• That the sword comes out of His mouth indicates that He wins the battle with the power of His word. Though the saints return with Christ to reign and rule, they are not the executioners. That is His task, and that of His angels (Matt. 13:37–50).
• He shall rule them with a rod of iron. Swift, righteous judgment will mark Christ’s rule in the kingdom. Jesus comes to rule and to reign in triumph, to rule the nations with a rod of iron as predicted in Psalm 2.
• Winepress of the wrath of God (Rev 14.19,20). A vivid symbol of judgment.
• Isa 63:3 I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.

Re 19:16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

• On His thigh. Jesus will wear a banner across His robe and down His thigh with a title inscribed on it, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS that emphasizes His absolute sovereignty over all human rulers.
• Rev 17.14 He is Lord of lords, and King of kings.
• Jesus Christ is The blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords (1 Tim 6.15).
• Note how God The Holy Ghost busts the JW’s on this verse. If capital L-O-R-D means Jehoavh: (and the JW’s say that it does) then Jesus Christ is revealed here as the JEHOVAH OF JEHOVAH’S!! Guess what the NWT does to this verse? It uncapitalizes the words!!
• The identity of Jesus Christ in Scripture is clear. He is The Word made flesh, Who is KING OF KINGS and LORD OF LORDS.

So, what is the church to do to prepare for the coming of The Lord?

• Lu 19:11 ¶ And as they heard these things, he added and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. 12 He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return.13 And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.
• Use your God given time, your God given talents and God given opportunities to serve The Lord both inside and outside of the church community. Be a person that makes investments in the body of Christ, not a person who only makes withdrawals. Be a giver, not a consumer.
• Heb 10:24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: 25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
• Cultivate community. Make fellowship an important part of your weekly planning. Check in with other saints; beware of being a lone ranger Christian. Seek kingdom fellowship that is based on Scripture and Jesus Christ, not just social American culture fellowship that is centered around food and sports.
• 1Jo 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. 2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
• Pursue purity in all that you do. Filter your choice of entertainment, reading and music through this filter: Php 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
• Titus 3:8 This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men.
• Make an impact in the world that you live in for Jesus Christ. Put the grace and love of Jesus Christ on display wherever you go.
• 1Pe 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.
• Ro 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
• Be led by The Spirit of God to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with all the people you can. Pray for the lost and be moved with compassion towards them.

Have you repented of your sin and called upon The Name of Jesus to save you from your sin debt? Jesus Christ IS KING OF KINGS and LORD of LORDS, but is He The Lord of your life? Is Jesus Christ The King of your life? We would love to pray with you after the service. 2 ways to live booklets in front of the office.