13 - The Rider On The White Horse 2009
Notes
Transcript
Last time we saw John’s prediction of two Babylons—a spiritual Babylon, symbolized by the Great Harlot; and a literal physical Babylon, that would become the headquarters of Antichrist and his evil political system. Both, says John, will be destroyed.
We ended with the financial collapse of the entire world, starting with Babylon, with whom all the earth had been trading and doing business.
John is now, once again, taken up into heaven to hear a crowd shouting:
Revelation 19:1-2 “1After this, I heard what sounded like a vast crowd in heaven shouting, “Praise the Lord! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God. 2His judgments are true and just. He has punished the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality. He has avenged the murder of his servants.”
Chapter 19 opens with a grand Hallelujah Chorus in sharp contrast to the wailing and weeping of the world over the fall of Babylon in Chapter 18. The four “Alleluias,” or “Praise the Lords” proclaim the triumph of heaven, the judgment of the false and final super-church, and the whole Babylonian system.
The Lord has finally taken vengeance on those that persecuted and murdered His people. Remember their souls under the altar?
Next, the 24 elders and four living creatures are heard for the last time, giving a mighty shout of praise:
“3And again their voices rang out, ‘Praise the Lord! The smoke from that city ascends forever and ever!’
4Then the twenty-four elders and the four living beings fell down and worshipped God, who was sitting on the throne. They cried out, ‘Amen! Praise the Lord!’
5And from the throne came a voice that said, ‘Praise our God, all His servants, all who fear Him, from the least to the greatest.’”
Finally, the voice of a great multitude, all of the redeemed of all the ages, sound out the last “Alleluia” and proclaim the eternal reign of God, and then proclaim the Marriage of the Lamb:
“6Then I heard again what sounded like the shout of a vast crowd or the roar of mighty ocean waves or the crash of loud thunder: ‘Praise the Lord! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. 7Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to Him…’”
Segueing from the fourth “Alleluia” comes the presentation of the Lamb’s wife, the ransomed, glorified Bride of Christ in all of her spotless purity. This is the first of two suppers in this climactic chapter: The wedding feast of the LAMB and His BRIDE.
“…for the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and His bride has prepared herself.”
Though we may speak among ourselves of the Marriage of the Bride, it is here the Marriage of the Lamb, because it is the Lamb—Jesus Christ’s—chief joy.
When all of the redeemed are around Him in heaven, then He will see the fulfillment of why He died!
John sees the bride dressed in white:
“8She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear. For the fine linen represents the good deeds of God’s holy people.”
The “good deeds” of which John is speaking are the works done by God’s saints in obedience to Him. It is the deeds that are rewarded at the Judgment Seat of Christ, spoken of in 1 Corinthians 3:
”10Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. 11For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.”
“12Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. 13But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. 14If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. 15But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.”
So the “good deeds” for which these saints in Revelation have received the reward of “pure white linen,” are works done in obedience to Jesus Christ.
After the bridal banquet, the triumphant saints go forth to participate in the glorious appearing and the establishment of His Kingdom.
Who is among these saints? They are identified in Hebrews, “You have come to the assembly of God’s firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who have now been made perfect.”—12:23
These are the redeemed of this Age, rewarded and glorified, now ready to be exalted with Christ in heavenly splendor.
Guests at the Marriage Feast will include John the Baptist, friend of the bridegroom (John 3:29); the Old Testament saints; and the Tribulation martyrs.
The Marriage Feast will be a joyous celebration to honor the Lamb and the Lamb’s wife before all of heaven. John is overcome with the scene. The Angel speaks to him again and says:
‘“9Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb…’ And he added, ‘…These are true words that come from God.’
10Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said, ‘No, don’t worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers and sisters who testify about their faith in Jesus. Worship only God. For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus.’”
Any time we testify of Jesus Christ, we are prophesying!
Next, John sees the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ, the likes of which the world has never seen. In verse 11, heaven opens—a door from that heavenly and spiritual dimension, where God reigns, will appear. From that divine realm comes the all-conquering Christ.
“11Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war. 12His eyes were like flames of fire, and on His head were many crowns. A name was written on Him that no one understood except himself. 13He wore a robe dipped in blood and His title was the Word of God.”
Next, the redeemed of the Lord come into the picture:
“14The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed Him on white horses. 15From His mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress. 16On His robe at His thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.”
Notice that His names add up to six in connection with this majestic revelation, but, another name, the Lamb, mentioned earlier in the chapter, makes seven names in all. He is the Lamb, Faithful, True, Mysterious Name (no one knows but He Himself), The Word of God, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.
This amazing event is the fulfillment of both Old and New Testament prophecies concerning Messiah’s sudden and majestic coming in “The Day of the Lord.”
It is a literal, personal, visible, physical, and spiritual return of the “same Jesus” who ascended up into heaven in Acts 1:11.
It is the same event John described at the beginning in Revelation1:7:
“Look! He comes with the clouds of heaven. And everyone will see Him—even those who pierced Him. And all the nations of the world will mourn for Him. Yes! Amen!”
Horrific Armageddon
John’s attention turns from the vision of the mighty King of kings, followed by His heavenly armies, the dressed in white “Cavalry of Heaven,” to the sun burning in the sky. Against the sun’s backdrop an angel appears, summoning the birds of prey, the scavengers and vultures, from all over the world to gather for “the supper of the great God.”
“17Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, shouting to the vultures flying high in the sky: ‘Come! Gather together for the great banquet God has prepared. 18Come and eat the flesh of kings, generals, and strong warriors; of horses and their riders; and of all humanity, both free and slave, small and great.’”
What are they eating? The bodies remaining from the slaughter of the armies of the world, following the horrific battle of Armageddon.
This gives us a glimpse into the terrible punishment from the hand of God on this final generation.
The Kings of the East and combined western forces of Antichrist have gathered in the Valley of Megiddo for war.
Remember the four angels who were bound at the Euphrates River in Revelation 9:13-16?
“13Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet and I heard a voice speaking from the four horns of the gold altar that stands in the presence of God. 14And the voice said to the sixth angel who held the trumpet, ‘Release the four angels who are bound at the great Euphrates River.’ 15Then the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were turned loose to kill one-third of all the people on earth. 16I heard the size of their army, which was 200-million mounted troops.”
This massive army of 200-million men out of the east, along with the combined western forces of Antichrist, will be on the verge of annihilating the human race. Jesus warned in Matthew’s gospel:
“21For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. 22If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.”—24:21-22
How will those days be cut short? By the sudden appearance of Christ Jesus! But amazingly, the Antichrist and his forces, and the Kings of the East and their forces, will join together to fight the returning Messiah!
“19Then I saw the beast and the kings of the world and their armies gathered together to fight against the One sitting on the horse and His army.”
King David prophesied of this stunning act of arrogance in Psalms 2:
“1Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing?2The kings of the earth set themselves: and the rulers take counsel together against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying,3‘Let us break Their bands in pieces and cast away Their cords from us.’ 4He Who sits in the heavens shall laugh: The Lord shall hold them in derision. 5Then He shall speak to them in His wrath and distresses them in His deep displeasure and fury…”
The Lord quickly deals with them in Revelation 19:20
“20And the beast (Antichrist) was captured, and with him the false prophet (false spiritual leader) who did mighty miracles on behalf of the beast—miracles that deceived all who had accepted the mark of the beast and who worshiped his statue. Both the beast and his false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.”
The Antichrist and false prophet are the first ones to break open the doors of hell! This fulfills 2 Thessalonians 2:8, “And then the lawless one (Antichrist) will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.”
Then…
“21Their entire army was killed by the sharp sword that came from the mouth of the One riding the white horse. And the vultures all gorged themselves on the dead bodies.”
Now, the course of civilization, which by and large has rejected God and His Word, comes to a close, and a new era is about to dawn.
Zechariah predicted what happens next:
The Lord Will Rule the Earth
14:1-9 “1Watch, for the day of the Lord is coming when your possessions will be plundered right in front of you! 2I will gather all the nations to fight against Jerusalem. The city will be taken, the houses looted, and the women raped. Half the population will be taken into captivity and the rest will be left among the ruins of the city (just prior to Christ’s return).
3Then the Lord will go out to fight against those nations, as He has fought in times past. 4On that day His feet (Messiah’s) will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will split apart, making a wide valley running from east to west: and half the mountain will move toward the north and half toward the south. 5You will flee through this valley, for it will reach across to Azal. Yes, you will flee as you did from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah of Judah; and the Lord my God will come, and all His holy ones with Him.
6On that day the sources of light will no longer shine 7yet there will be continuous day! Only the Lord knows how this could happen. There will be no normal day and night, for at evening time it will still be light.
8On that day life-giving waters will flow out from Jerusalem, half toward the Dead Sea and half toward the Mediterranean, flowing continuously in both summer and winter.
9And the Lord will be King over all the earth. On that day there will be one Lord—His name alone will be worshiped.”
NEXT TIME: “Satan’s Doom and the End of History”