Revelation 19:11-16
Purpose: To describe how Jesus appears when He returns to retake the earth.
Aim: I want the listener to grow in holy awe of the glory of Jesus Christ.
INTRODUCTION: In the first chapter of this book John told us that one day Jesus was going to come to earth: Revelation 1:7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen. (NAU)
All of human history has been building up to this one dramatic event. Now, it is finally here! The King of all the universe comes back to claim His creation.
Even Jesus Himself pointed to this moment: Matthew 24:30 And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. (NAU)
REVIEW:
1:1-20 I. John’s Vision of the Past "the things which you have seen"
2:1-5:14 II. Christ’s Vision of the Present "the things which are"
Ch.6-22 III. John’s Vision of the Future "things which will take places"
6-7; 12-14 A. Satan’s war against God’s creation: the first six seals
8-11; 13:11-18; 15-18 B. The wrath of God: the seventh seal
Ch.19-20 C. The worship of God
19:1 1. A description of worship "salvation...glory...power"
19:2-6 2. Four reasons to worship God
Vs.2 a. God brings holiness to the earth "true and righteous"
Vs.3 b. God’s holiness is eternal "forever and ever"
Vs.4-5 c. God loves without partiality "small and the great"
Vs.6 d. God rules "the Almighty, reigns"
19:7-10 3. The Believer’s eternal union with Christ
Vs.7 a. The church is prepared to meet Christ "made herself ready"
Vs.8 b. The church is pure before Christ "bright and clean"
Vs.9 c. The church is privileged to marry Christ "Blessed
are those who are invited"
Vs.10 d. The church worships ONLY Christ "worship God"
LESSON:
19:11-16 4. The King appears
"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 portrays Him as the conqueror on His war horse, coming to destroy the wicked, to overthrow the Antichrist, to defeat Satan, and to take control of the earth (cf. 2 Cor. 2:14)." [1]
In today’s text we see 11 descriptions of Jesus Christ as He prepares to invade earth and set up His kingdom.
Vs.11a a. Jesus is reliable "Faithful"
This is an often repeated statement about Christ. For example: Revelation 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness ... (NAU) Revelation 3:14 ...The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God... (NAU) This means that Jesus is reliable. He is always the same.
Just think of all the benefits we have because Jesus is faithful.
Because Jesus is faithful:
He fulfills His promises
Deuteronomy 7:9 "Know therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments; (NAU)
Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; (NAU) Jesus has never failed.
He helps us during trials
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. (NAU)
He protects us from Satan
2 Thessalonians 3:3 But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen and protect you from the evil one. (NAU)
He will never forsake us
2 Timothy 2:13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.(NAU)
He forgives ALL of our sin
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (NAU)
Vs.11b b. Jesus is real "True"
The word TRUE has the idea that Jesus is the real thing. 1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. (NAU)
Vs.11c c. Jesus is right "in righteousness He judges"
The Lord’s judgments may seem harsh to us, but they are just or fair. Revelation 15:3 And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations! (NAU)
Vs.12a d. Jesus reveals all things "eyes are a flame of fire"
Nothing can escape the all-seeing eyes of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 4:13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. (NAU)
Psalm 139:1-6 O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, And are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, O Lord, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot attain to it. (NAU)
Vs.12b e. Jesus is beyond measure "name...which no one knows"
We cannot comprehend how wonderful the Lord really is! Philippians 2:9-10 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of [or literally "given to"] Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, (NAU)
There is still much more to learn about Jesus. Our eternity will be spent plumbing the depths of the knowledge of God. Perhaps much of the joy of heaven will be sharing with each other the new things we have learned about our wonderful Savior--much like we do now when we share with each other what we have learned from the Bible.
Vs.13a f. Jesus is the conqueror "robe dipped in blood"
This scene was predicted by Enoch thousands of years ago: Jude 14-15 It was also about these men that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, "Behold, the Lord came with many thousands of His holy ones, to execute judgment upon all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him." (NAU)
"On the cross of mercy He shed His blood but on the White Horse of judgment He will wear the blood of His murderers. [2]
Isaiah looked forward to this day. Isaiah 63:2 Why is Your apparel red, And Your garments like the one who treads in the wine press? (NAU) Isaiah 64:1-2 Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down, That the mountains might quake at Your presence-- As fire kindles the brushwood, as fire causes water to boil-- To make Your name known to Your adversaries, That the nations may tremble at Your presence! (NAU)
When Jesus died on the Cross He endured the wrath of God against our sin. When Jesus comes back He will execute the wrath of God on those who rejected the Cross.
Vs.13b g. Jesus is the revealer of God "The Word of God"
The word "WORD" tells us that Jesus is the one who came to earth to reveal God to us.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God. (NAU) John 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. (NAU)
1 John 1:1-2 What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life-- and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us-- (NAU)
There is NO other way to know God, except through Jesus Christ.
Vs.14 h. Jesus is the leader of heaven "armies...following Him"
The armies here are Christ’s followers. Notice Revelation 19:8 It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. (NAU)
Last time we saw Jesus as the Bridegroom and the church as the bride. Jesus made us His very own, paid our ransom on the Cross, and came to earth in a procession to get us. We read about this in 2 Thessalonians where Paul describes what I think is the rapture: 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. (NAU)
Then there was the celebration, called the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, that we studied in verses7-9. Now we see Jesus returning with His bride to secure complete victory.
Notice that Jesus engages His enemies personally. The armies that come with Christ are unarmed. They are there to witness the victory and then rule in His kingdom. All of our salvation, from beginning to end, comes from Christ!
Vs.15a i. Jesus is the manager of His enemies "He will rule them"
The word RULE can be translated SHEPHERD. Jesus will be a loving but firm shepherd over His creation. Jesus is called Hebrews 13:20 ... the great Shepherd of the sheep ... (NAU); John 10:11 ...the good shepherd.... (NAU); 1 Peter 5:4 ...the Chief Shepherd .... (NAU). Jesus will rule with a ROD because He is the absolute and unquestioned ruler.
David described this scene in Psalm 2:8-9 ’Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. ’You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.’ " (NAU)
Vs.15b j. Jesus is the executer of God’s wrath "tread the wine press"
Joel 3:13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, tread, for the wine press is full; The vats overflow, for their wickedness is great. (NAU)
Jesus spoke the worlds into existence and now He speaks His enemies into oblivion.
Proverbs 1:24-27 "Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; And you neglected all my counsel And did not want my reproof; I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes, When your dread comes like a storm And your calamity comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. (NAU)
Vs.16 k. Jesus is ultimate royalty "KING OF KINGS"
Psalm 45:3-4 Gird Your sword on Your thigh, O Mighty One, In Your splendor and Your majesty! And in Your majesty ride on victoriously, For the cause of truth and meekness and righteousness; Let Your right hand teach You awesome things. (NAU)
CONCLUSION: We treat disposable things differently than the things we think are more permanent. For example, we are more careful with a cell phone than we are a Styrofoam cup.
Studying the Second Coming of Jesus Christ will help us to look at the things of this world more like a Styrofoam cup and our relationship with Christ more like something expensive like a cell phone or a car.
2 Peter 3:10-14 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, (NAU)
John was a loyal carpenter, working for a very successful building contractor. One day his supervisor called him into his office and said, "John, I’m putting you in charge of the next house we build. I want you to order all the materials and oversee the whole job from the ground up." John accepted the assignment with great enthusiasm and excitement. For ten days before ground breaking at the building site, John studied the blueprints. He checked every measurement, every specification.
Suddenly he had a thought."Hey, wait a minute, if I’m really in charge why couldn’t I cut a few corners, use less-expensive materials, and put the extra money in my pocket? Who would know the difference? Once the house is painted, it will look just great."
So John put his plan into action. He ordered second-grade lumber, but his reports indicated that it was top-grade. He ordered inexpensive concrete for the foundation, put in cheap wiring, and cut every corner he could, yet he reported the purchase of much better materials. When the home was completed and fully painted, he asked his boss to come and see it.
"John," his boss said, "What a superb job you have done! You have been such a good and faithful employee all these years that I have decided to show my gratitude by giving you this house that you have built, as a gift! [3]
The real value of an object is that which one who knows its worth will give for it. He who made the soul, knew its worth, and gave His life for it.Arthur Jackson [4]
[1]MacArthur, J. J. (1997, c1997). The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic ed.) (Re 19:11). Nashville: Word Pub.
[2]From Suffering to Singing by Bob Marcaurelle Page 49
[3]Submitted by John Schelter, Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church. Oklahoma City
[4]Thomas, I. (1996). The golden treasury of Puritan quotations. Includes index of authors. General index created by Christian Clasics Foundation. (electronic ed.). Simpsonville SC: Christian Classics Foundation.
