1. "Christ's faithfulness is one of the most striking aspects of Christianity. And it becomes clearer the more you get to know the Bible. And should you be converted, it will become clearer to you over time as evidences of God's faithfulness in your own life begin to pile up higher and higher."

2. "Christianity, amongst all the world religions, has always shown itself to be particularly fussy, particularly doctrinal, particularly theological. We care about ideas. We care about what is true, because we realize that God himself is the sponsor of truth."

3. "The mercy that we speak of in Christ in no way sacrifices or compromises His goodness and His righteousness. He is righteous. The God of the Bible is always concerned with righteousness and justice."

4. "Christ's tenderness to the weak should never be mistaken as indifference to wickedness. The Christ we see here is no pacifist."

5. "By God's Word, He created the world, and so by God's Word, He will judge."

6. "If Christ is not sovereign over all, including everything in Washington, D.C., He is not sovereign at all. This one is sovereign over what is happening in Iran and what is happening in Ukraine and what is happening in North Korea and what is happening on the floor of the house."

7. "Brothers and sisters, let us fear the Lord and we shall have no one else to fear. Praise God, just such a sovereign should be so loving to us as Christ has been. Christ is Lord, He is sovereign, and He is for us."

8. "A heaven without Christ would be no heaven at all."

9. "Friends, it is vain and useless to oppose God. Befriend Him while you still can."

10. "There is not one of us here today as Christ's friend who was not once his enemy."

Observation Questions

1. According to Revelation 19:11, what two names is the rider on the white horse called, and what does the text say He does "in righteousness"?

2. What physical descriptions of the rider are given in verses 12-13, including details about His eyes, head, and clothing?

3. In verse 15, what three things does the text say the rider will do to the nations, and what title is written on His robe and thigh according to verse 16?

4. What does the angel standing in the sun call the birds to gather for in verses 17-18, and whose flesh are they invited to eat?

5. According to verses 19-20, who gathered to make war against the rider on the horse, and what happened to the beast and the false prophet?

6. How were "the rest" of those opposing the rider defeated according to verse 21, and what was the result for the birds?

Interpretation Questions

1. The rider is called both "Faithful and True" and "the Word of God." How do these names work together to reveal Christ's role as the one who both keeps God's promises and reveals God's truth?

2. Why is it significant that the rider's robe is "dipped in blood" before the battle takes place, and how does this connect to Christ's sacrificial work on the cross as emphasized in the sermon?

3. The sermon notes that in chapter 5, John heard about the Lion but saw a Lamb, while in chapter 19, he hears songs to the Lamb but sees the conquering Lion. What does this literary pattern teach us about the full identity and mission of Christ?

4. The passage describes Christ wearing "many diadems" (crowns) in contrast to the limited crowns worn by the dragon and beast earlier in Revelation. What does this unlimited number of crowns communicate about the scope of Christ's sovereignty?

5. Why is there no actual battle described—only the gathering of enemies and then their immediate defeat? What does this reveal about the nature of Christ's power and the futility of opposing God?

Application Questions

1. The sermon emphasized that Christ's faithfulness becomes clearer as we look back over decades of God's provision. What specific instances of God's faithfulness in your own life can you recall, and how might regularly remembering these strengthen your trust in Him for current uncertainties?

2. Since Christ is called "True" and Christians should be known for honesty, what is one area of your life—at work, at home, or online—where you are tempted to bend the truth for your own benefit, and what would it look like to reflect Christ's truthfulness there this week?

3. The sermon stated that knowing Christ is sovereign over all nations and events "should help you sleep better at night." What specific worry or fear about the future are you currently facing, and how does the truth that Christ is "King of kings and Lord of lords" speak to that concern?

4. The preacher urged that this vision should produce both courage and compassion—courage because victory is certain, and compassion because we were once Christ's enemies. Who is someone in your life who currently opposes or mocks the Christian faith, and how might you practically demonstrate love and pray for them this week?

5. The sermon pointed out that there is no neutrality—everyone is either with Christ or against Him. If a friend or family member who does not yet follow Christ asked you why you believe Jesus is worth trusting with your life, how would you explain the good news of what Christ has done for you?

Additional Bible Reading

1. Isaiah 11:1-10 — This prophecy about the descendant of Jesse striking the earth with the rod of His mouth is directly quoted in the sermon and shows the Old Testament foundation for Christ's righteous judgment.

2. Isaiah 53:1-12 — The sermon emphasized that the same Christ who judges was first "crushed for our iniquities," and this passage provides the fullest Old Testament portrait of the suffering servant who bore our sins.

3. Exodus 34:1-9 — This passage, where God reveals Himself to Moses as merciful yet one who will not clear the guilty, is cited in the sermon as the foundation for understanding how God's justice and mercy are united in Christ.

4. John 1:1-18 — The sermon connects Christ's title "the Word of God" to John's Gospel prologue, which explains how the eternal Word became flesh to reveal the Father's glory, grace, and truth.

5. 2 Corinthians 2:14-17 — Referenced in the sermon to illustrate how the same gospel message brings life to some and death to others, this passage helps explain why Christ's Word both saves and judges.

Sermon Main Topics

I. The Certainty of Christ's Return Amid Life's Uncertainties

II. The Victor: Seven Aspects of Christ (Revelation 19:11-16)

III. The Victory: Christ's Complete Defeat of His Enemies (Revelation 19:17-21)

IV. Our Response: Courage and Compassion

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Detailed Sermon Outline

From our perspective, uncertainties always abound. When the headlines are bad, what will happen? When the headlines are good, will they continue? How will that offeratory end? What's going to happen with this planet, with humanity's fate?

What's going to happen to our country, to our business, to our school, to our party? What will happen to our family? What will happen to us?

According to the Bible, the answers to all of these questions are tied up with the question, what will happen to Christ? And the surprising answer the Bible gives is that Jesus, the incarnate Son of God who lived and was crucified, who rose and ascended, Jesus will bodily and visibly return to this world and to His people. He is coming back. Christians call it the Second Coming of Christ. If you're visiting with us today, perhaps you've never heard of it.

But if you're here as a Christian, it's one of the great doctrines of our faith. And we come this morning to that section of the Bible which most clearly talks about it. Here in Revelation, the second half of Revelation chapter 19. So please turn there with me now, Revelation chapter 19. If you're using the Bibles that are provided, it's just inside the back cover on page 1040.

The chapter numbers are the large number, the verse numbers are the small numbers afterwards. Revelation chapter 19 and we're looking at verses 11 to 21, Revelation 19 verses 11 to 21.

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written that no one knows but Himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is the Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him on white horses.

From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: King of kings and Lord of lords. Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, 'Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great. ' And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against Him who was sitting on the horse and against His army.

And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet. Who in its presence had done the signs by which He deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These too were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.

And the rest were slain by the sword. That came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse. And all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Wow.

A more dramatic scene you could not imagine. Let me try to make some notes on it, not answer all the questions you could possibly have about it.

Both because of my ability and even the time we have. But simply notice that our passage is in two halves. Verses 11 to 16, it's shown nicely in the ESV by the paragraphs, verses 11 to 16 focuses on the victor. And then 17 to 21 on the victory.

We're going to spend most of our time in those first verses looking at the victor. Because there, there are more descriptions of Christ than we could spend time looking at if we gave the whole sermon only to those verses. There's so many rich things to understand about Christ. I want to draw our attention to seven aspects of the victor. And then briefly at the end, we'll look at the second half, the victory, which I think is more straightforward and unitary in its point.

So we want to know the seven aspects of Christ the Victor that John describes here in the first part. And then briefly, we will look at the victory, the second half of our passage. And I pray that as we do this, the Lord will grow your courage, in serving Him and your compassion for those who don't yet serve Him.

Let's jump in. Okay, so what happens when Christ returns? Well, we want to look at the victor first, and let's just read those first verses again and think of the different aspects you see. Maybe in your mind, even be making a list of all the things that we're taught here about Christ.

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written that no one knows but Himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is the Word of God. And the armies of heaven arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him on white horses.

From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Notice again the structure of our passage. You see that then I saw there in verse 17, in verse 11, and you see that same phrase in verse 17, it's the beginning of both of the paragraphs.

I think John's clearly indicating the two parts of this particular vision. In the first part, we begin being reminded that none of this is John's special learning or because of the fruit of his fasting or inquisitiveness. It wasn't his brilliant holiness or brilliant Christian theology that got him all this insight. It was, we see in verse 11, heaven opened.

This is God's work, very much like this whole series of visions began back in chapter 4, verse 1, I looked and behold a door standing open in heaven. So friends, the Bible is not a result of a committee of experts. Instead it is, as Paul said in 2 Timothy, chapter 3, verse 16, all Scripture is breathed out by God. So here, it wasn't so much John seeking God as God seeking John to show him and so to have him write the truth for himself and for the young churches of the time and for us. What John sees immediately is a white horse, kind of horse, a conqueror would ride into a once embattled and besieged city now at peace and in subjection to him.

This is the horse that the the victor over the grave would well ride. And in verse 11, the attention goes, though, from the horse to the one sitting on it. So we want to notice especially seven aspects of this rider. He's described initially as the faithful and true. So much communicated about the Son of God in those two words alone.

Let's begin there. Number one, faithful. Faithful. He calls himself that back in chapter 3, verse 14 in the letter to the church at Laodicea. Christ shows us God's faithfulness, His commitment to do what He's promised.

From His promises to Adam in Genesis chapter 3 to His promises to Abraham in Genesis 12, God has always shown Himself to be faithful. And the incarnation of the Son of God is the culmination and the climax of God's faithfulnesses. He was faithful to send us the one who would bruise the serpent's head, to bear our transgressions in our place, and He will be faithful to return to His own to complete His work of deliverance. So if you're here and you're not a Christian, Let me simply say that Christ's faithfulness is one of the most striking aspects of Christianity. And it becomes clearer the more you get to know the Bible.

And should you be converted, it will become clearer to you over time as evidences of God's faithfulness in your own life begin to pile up higher and higher. As you can look at decade after decade and see God's provision in ways that honestly you questioned or even doubted whether or not he would provide. In fact, he has and he does. And we see that nowhere as clearly in God's word as in the example of Jesus Christ himself. Jesus is the one who above all others shows us the faithfulness of God.

His very essence is to honor His own words. He will never betray or disown you. Give yourself to Him. He is faithful.

If we are His followers, we should pray that God will work this kind of faithfulness in us as well. That this should mark us in our homes and in our businesses. His is the faithfulness that we must finally trust in, not ultimately our own or others. We're together as a congregation in part to rehearse and to experience this kind of faithfulness from each other. That's what it means for us to covenant with each other and to love one another as we attempt to do.

He's also, we read here in verse 11, true. That's the second thing, true. He is true. That is, He only speaks that which is accurate, which is real, which is the case. You look in verse 11 again, Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, the one sitting on it is called Faithful and True.

You remember Jesus said to Thomas, I am the way and the truth. And the life. It's Christ's nature to be true. So Christianity, I think, amongst all the world religions, has always shown itself to be particularly fussy, particularly doctrinal, particularly theological. We care about ideas.

We care about what is true, because we realize that God himself is the sponsor of truth. And we realize that error and lies hurt people made in God's image, and they deceive about God's own nature. So we Christians are concerned with questions of truth, and we should be known for it in the best way. We should be known as being truthful and reliable in our workplace. Honesty should be our trademark.

So, parents, in your homes, how are you setting a priority on honesty? As you speak to your children and as your children learn to speak and represent themselves, how are you modeling, how are you instructing them in the importance of honesty? If you haven't seen it in children yet, you will over time. They both have a desire for truth and they have a native tendency to lie.

With your own worldview, explain that as you will. I'll just tell you the Bible is right at home with that. We understand. Their desire for truth, their demand for it, it's normal, it's natural. We're made in God's image.

It's part of what it means to be human.

They're lying. That's because in the story of the Bible we don't just have Genesis 1 and 2, we're made by God and we're good. All the religions that stop and say people are basically good just have Genesis 1 and 2 but they lack Genesis 3. Genesis 3 is the story of the fall. We understand that something happened in this good creation that sin entered the world and by sin, death.

And part of what accompanies sin is deception. And lying. And so any temptation you have to bend the truth for your own ends is what we call lying. And that's part of what it means for us, even made in the image of God as we are, to be fallen creatures. And those actions are sins, and God says that they are wrong.

Brothers and sisters, Christ is like we should be. He was always truthful. So as we get to know His teaching, His Word, as we meditate on it, as we trust Him in it, we can thank God for the way Christ's truth is reflected in His own life and ministry and for the way it's imperfectly reflected, but hopefully increasingly in our own lives. In our own church, our teaching, our reading, our talking, our living. Insofar as it is, it's only by His kindness and grace to us.

He is true. Well, in the last phrase of verse 11 we read that in righteousness He judges and makes war. So here we see more about Christ. Verse 11, number 3, righteous. He is righteous.

In righteousness He judges and makes war.

Righteousness is simply another way to discuss Christ's rightness, His justice, His integrity. He's not harsh. Rather, He is utterly and completely good. There is nothing not good in Him. That righteousness is His character in many ways.

The same thing is His truth, but it's considered from a moral standpoint. It is His goodness that assures us that all wrongs will be righted. The God of the Bible is concerned with righteousness and justice. Remember a couple of weeks ago I pointed out that crucial text in the Old Testament, Exodus 34:6, where God revealed himself to Moses. He proclaimed, the Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty.

Friends, I want to make this point to you very clearly, particularly if you're not yet a Christian. I just want you to understand that Christianity uniquely puts together this combination of God's justice and His mercy. The mercy that we speak of in Christ in no way sacrifices or compromises His goodness and His righteousness. He is righteous. The God of the Bible is always concerned with righteousness and justice.

And so, brothers and sisters, if we're followers of Christ, this means that we too must be concerned with righteousness and with justice. So if you are an employer, the treatment of your employees is supposed to be a reflection of Christ's character. All of your work is to be done to the end of bringing God glory supremely of advancing the gospel. Parents, you've been given the amazing opportunities you have with the blessing of children in order to model what authority is to be like. And brothers and sisters, when you find times in your life when you're struggling financially or physically, you can trust that there is a provident God who sees all that you endure.

Who witnesses any wrongs that have been done to you, and he will exact justice more perfectly than any human court could ever approximate. Because not of our Constitution and not of our judicial tradition, but because of his character, he is like this. God was good and righteous a thousand years before America was founded. And He will be a thousand years after there's no more America. Because He is good.

As a congregation of followers of Jesus Christ, you see His justice reflected in our proclamation of God's holiness in the gospel, and in our practice of church membership, and even our practice of church discipline. Christ is righteous and He is concerned that we be as well. And also in that last phrase, verse 11, we read, A fourth thing we want to notice about Christ. A fourth thing, Christ judges. He makes war.

He is not one of no conflict.

It's part and parcel of who He is and what He does. He condemns His enemies. We see that throughout this passage. Christ's tenderness to the weak should never be mistaken as indifference to wickedness. The Christ we see here is no pacifist.

He judges and makes war, we see in verse 11. The Christ we see here is not merely the suffering servant, but now He's the one we see in verse 15 who will strike down the nations. Of course, the right evidence from a faithful witness can secure a conviction. And Christ is both the faithful witness and the true judge. The verdicts will now be handed down.

The prophecies of old will come true. Just as we read in Isaiah 11 a prophecy that a descendant of Jesse, King David's father, will, quote, strike the earth with the rod of His mouth and with the breath of His lips He shall kill the wicked. So now here in Revelation 19, we've come to this time for the final word of God to be spoken. By God's Word, He created the world, and so by God's Word, He will judge. John could remember Christ's terrible words of judgment pronounced in Matthew 25, Depart from Me, you cursed into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

And now John, who had heard those words as a young man, sees this vision. Of its fulfillment. Jesus promised that He would come again as the Judge. We read in the last line of verse 15 that He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. This is how the rider on the white horse will make war on the rebelling armies against Him.

But friends, while we're seeing this vivid picture of God's justice of his wrath, of his vengeance. If we're to have the theology of the Bible in mind, we have to keep in mind that this is the one who was crushed for our iniquities, that this is the one who himself bore our transgressions. We read in Isaiah, he was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering. For he bore the sin of many and made intercession for transgression. My friend, if you're here and you're not a Christian, listen very carefully.

Few weeks go by that I don't have conversations with people who explain to me that yes, they believe in God, yes, they're spiritual, and basically we get to be okay with God by living a good life, by good works we do. And if our works are good enough, then God is satisfied with them. I'm sure every week I have this explained to me. It is never true. It's not true one time.

I don't care if it comes from a secular person or a religious person of another religion or sort of their own spirituality. Friends, I'm just telling you that is not true. It is against what Jesus very clearly taught. Jesus's whole life was aimed toward his own death on the cross. He did not die on the cross fundamentally as a moral a moral example of self-sacrifice.

If all his death is doing is accomplishing self-sacrifice, there are loads of other ways you can show that, arguably more productive than simply cutting off life in the mid-30s. It's like the one theologian gave the example, if all his death on the cross is doing is giving us an example of self-sacrifice, it's like the guy sitting on the end of the pier with somebody coming running along going, I love you, and to show you how much I love you, I'm going to jump off the pier. And he jumps off the pier and he dies. It accomplishes nothing. But, friend, what Christ did by dying on the cross, He accomplished something.

He actually paid the penalty that was owed by all of us who would turn from our sins and trust in Him. He accomplished, He purchased our redemption. Now, that's the language used again and again. Jesus Himself uses it in Mark 10:45 when He says, the Son of Man will lay down His life as a ransom for many.

That's what's happening. He's accomplishing something. So to go back to the image of the man on the pier, it would be as if somebody had fallen in, and then a man comes running along and jumps off the pier, and he saves the one who had fallen off and was drowning, but at the expense of his own life. That's closer to what went on. The difference would be, even that seems like an accident when this is the giving of Christ himself for us on the cross was deliberate.

Friends, the good news is God has done this for all of us who would turn from our sins and trust in him. And I pray that you will be among that number. I pray that God will help us to follow Christ more nearly. I pray that he'll give us help to give up our trust in other things, that we will not trust our sins more than Christ. Parents, teach your children God's standards and teach them that God has met them in Christ for us.

And congregation, I pray that we will rejoice together as we get to experience the good news of Christ's salvation together. What a privilege. We get to sing about it every Sunday. Our hymns are rich and full of it, whether they were written ten years ago or a thousand years ago. They're just full of this richness, of this news that Christians have feasted on ever since Christ came.

To know God's forgiveness and His grace and acceptance given to us in Jesus Christ, our Savior, is our treasure. So we see all of that here, as we see that Christ judges and makes war. He judges the sinful. He is judged for our sin.

In verse 12, we come to His wisdom. His eyes are like a flame of fire, we see. It's a strange image. As we go back in Revelation, chapter 1, we see John describes Christ like that, and Jesus describes Himself like that in the letter to the church at Thyatira. And it seems to mean that He can see the truth.

Because right after he says that in the letter to the church of Thyatira in chapter 2, he says, I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance. So these flaming eyes convey the idea that nothing escapes Christ's knowledge, and that, of course, gives us added confidence in his judgments. He knows everything. All of history is before him. No further evidence ever need be introduced in order for his judgments to be perfectly just and wise.

His sight lightens that which is dark, penetrates the hidden, and His seeing something brings to bear His demands for purity. As long as He lives, the crucial witness for every sin ever committed lives. And all wrongs will be accounted for. Wrongs at work, wrongs online, wrongs in marriage. Wrongs against us, all wrongs against God.

He sees them all. His eyes are like a flame of fire. He is all-knowing and wise. Number six, one that we cannot miss, He is sovereign. And that's just summarizing so many of the things that we see here in this passage.

One of the things I've been asked about a number of times is that phrase there, he has a name written that no one knows but himself. And people have asked me there in verse 12, what does that mean? Especially when you have so many names given here, like the Word of God that we'll come to in just a moment. Well, it has to do with the fact that it seems that giving a name is understood as having power over. Knowing somebody's name is having power over.

You notice how Jesus responded strongly when the demons recognized him.

He banished them. You remember how Adam named all the animals? You know how God named Adam? You know how we parents name our children? So there's something in the Bible's understanding that giving the name is a sign of giving and having authority.

So here, if there's a name that no one knows, it's because it's a name that no one gave him.

It's His own. It's another way of referring to His self-existence, His utter sovereignty. The risen Christ rules. It's clearly set out in verse 11 just by the fact that He's riding this white horse. It's a what a victorious general rides.

Or in verse 12, most clearly, we see that on His head are many diadems. What's a diadem? It's a crown. Thus you'll notice the one hymn we have left to sing that we'll sing as soon as I'm done talking is crowning with many crowns. It's taken right from here from this passage.

He has many diadems. What does it mean that he has many diadems? Well, it's interesting. If you look a few chapters back in these studies we've been having in Revelation, earlier in the book we find a certain, a limited number of crowns on the heads of the dragon in chapter 12.

And the beast in chapter 13. But here we have this indefinite number, it just says many. So I think what we're intended to understand from that is that the lack of number, but the simple fact that it's not just a couple or a few or several, but it's many, means that there is no limit to his sovereignty. There is nothing over which he does not have sovereignty. Now I know that many of you are fans of the preacher C.H.

Spurgeon. So I'm just going to go ahead and let you know, in 1859, very young man, he preached a sermon on this. And it's an exceptionally good sermon. You can go look it up, read it or listen to it. It's called the Savior's Many Crowns.

And he imagines what this would mean, the Lord wearing many crowns corresponding to various realms he was sovereign over: crowns of dominion over heaven, over hell, over earth; crowns of victory for victory over the world, over sin, over death, over Satan, over man. Crown of thanksgiving from mighty doers, mighty sufferers, from those who turn many to righteousness, from young saints and from old saints, from chiefs of sinners saved by grace, and from weak little faiths. It's a striking meditation, even by Spurgeon's own standards. So if you want to look that one up, the Savior's Many Crowns. Worse things you could do on Sunday afternoon than read a Spurgeon sermon.

Anyway, I give you one little bit where he is meditating on what he calls the iron crown of hell.

It is the iron crown of hell, for Christ reigneth there supreme. Not only in the dazzling brightness of heaven, but in the black impenetrable darkness of hell is His omnipotence felt, and His sovereignty acknowledged. The chains which bind damned spirits are the chains of His strength. The fires which burn are the fires of His vengeance. The burning rays that scorch through their eyeballs and melt their very heart are flashed from His vindictive eye.

There is no power in hell besides His. The very devils show His might. He chaineth the great dragon. If you give him a temporary liberty, referring to chapter 20 next week, yet is the chain in His hand. And He can draw him back lest he go beyond His limit.

Hell trembles at Him. The very howlings of lost spirits are but deep bass notes of His praise. While in heaven the glorious notes shout forth His goodness, in hell the deep growlings resound His justice and His certain victory over all His foes. Thus His empire is highest than the highest heaven. And deeper than the lowest hell.

Friends, this Christ is represented as sovereign, having many diadems. Verse 13 mentions that he's clothed in a robe dipped in blood. Many have asked me, what does that mean? Is that part of his sovereignty, his victory over his enemies? I don't think so.

The last time I preached this 17 years ago, I said it was. I now revise my opinion. Having read some more and talked some more, I think given the fact that the dead, the victors, those he has victory over are not yet depicted as having been defeated, that it would be a little messy in the image to have the blood already present of their defeat. So I think it's the other thing that people generally say, which is his own blood, which has been referred to before, which is why he comes as a conqueror. I think that's probably the better reading, that it's his own blood.

That He has given. In verse 15, John quotes one of Jesus' favorite Messianic psalms, Psalm 2:9, which says that the Messiah will rule them with a rod of iron. And then we have that phrase, On His robe and on His thigh has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. When I preached on this 20 years ago, no one particularly cared about this passage. Now, with the rising generation's love of tattoos, This is a often-referred-to passage.

Dear young tattoo lovers, I have no moral and biblical objection to your practices, though I confess they are strange to an old man.

But I will tell you, you get no solace here. This is simply referring to King of Kings, Lord of Lords, on the thigh. The thigh is a place of strength. It could the same words would be used if it was on the garment that's there. And particularly what makes sense is the scabbard of his sword would be there.

So it would be written on the scabbard of his sword. I don't know that, that's speculation, but it's very wise and sensible speculation. So. But he is the King of Kings. He is the Lord of Lords.

So, in a city full of titles of power and importance, the senators and congressmen, Mr. President, Madam Secretary, Congressman so-and-so, honorable this and honorable that, your Honor, we address the Judge, just as so and so we say, yes ma'am, we say to the traffic cop for the 15th time. Earthly and appropriate courtesy and respect are to be found on all sides, and yet all these positions, even the highest of them, are as nothing compared to the legitimate titles of Christ. Imagine meeting with an ambassador, better than that, with the head of state himself. Imagine being at the G7 a few weeks ago, seeing the heads of state for seven powerful nations together. Now, what about gathering all the kings and presidents of the world together?

This passage is saying that Jesus Christ is the King of all kings. He is the Lord of all lords. Scripture is full of God using Pharaoh and Cyrus and Pilate and Herod for His sovereign purposes. Christ is sovereign over all. In fact, The fact of Christ is not sovereign over all, including everything in Washington, D.C.

He is not sovereign at all. This one is sovereign over what is happening in Iran and what is happening in Ukraine and what is happening in North Korea and what is happening in the floor of the house. And knowing that should help you sleep better at night. It was certainly meant to give John confidence and us as well. You see something there is of the comfort there is for us, the children of the sovereign.

Lord, in times like this. I love that phrase in Proverbs 29:25, where Solomon says, Whoever trusts in the Lord is safe. Whoever trusts in the Lord is safe. If there's something that you're particularly worried or concerned about, trust in the Lord. Realize you will be safe.

In all the most important and lasting ways, you will be safe, because God will work all things for good for those who love Him and who have been called according to His purpose. So, brothers and sisters, let us fear the Lord and we shall have no one else to fear. Praise God, just such a sovereign should be so loving to us as Christ has been. Christ is Lord, He is sovereign, and He is for us. And the last aspect of Christ, though there are many others we could bring out from this first half is that phrase about the victor there in verse 15, that he is the Word of God.

Fundamental to this book that we're studying, the Bible, and particularly this book of Revelation, stands Jesus Christ as the one who reveals the truth about God and the truth of God. Christ shows us that God is the God who speaks and communicates. You see this here at the end of verse 13, He is called The Word of God. So who is the Word of God? Well, John answers that in his own gospel that he writes, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only who came from the Father full of grace and truth. For the law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. So the writer here called faithful and true in verse 11 is shown in verse 13 also to be named the Word of God. No one else in the Bible is given that name.

It is uniquely the name of the second person of the Trinity. It is the role of Jesus Christ to reveal God, God's nature, His character, His plans, His truth to make God known to us. That's why we have this image again in verse 15 about the sword coming out of His mouth. You see, the sword was a well-known image among those early Christians for God's truth. What's the famous passage about it?

Hebrews chapter 4, verse 12, For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword. It penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give an account.

So this helps us when we come here to Revelation 19 to see that in verse 15, this is standing for the truth revealed about God through Christ's teachings and through the other writings that His Spirit have inspired in the books of the New Testament. This word that has brought us life is the same word which will bring God's verdict against His enemies in the second half of of our passage. I think of that saying of Paul in 2 Corinthians 4, where he... or 2 Corinthians 2:15, For we are the aroma of Christ to God, among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance of life to life. The Word of God has brought life to us, but we read here in verse 15, It is that with which you will strike down the nations.

Who would appear in rebellion. So according to verse 21, by that same word, he will defeat their rebellion. He will rule them with a rod of iron. Friends, Christianity is a religion about the Word of God. Witness to the truth about God, about Christ, about the gospel, as you speak today, as you speak this week.

I pray that you'll be known to speak God's Word, because we follow Christ whose ministry is to reveal God and he is the Word of God incarnate. Now, before we go to the victory, we've looked at the victor. I always have this question when I'm in the book of Revelation. Why? Why is the Lord revealing this particular thing to John?

What did he want the people in the first century to know? How did he want them to respond? Why does he want us today to know this? Why is it important that we have this vision of the victor?

That we've been given. And while we can fruitfully meditate on many reasons, I think one good summary of our response to this is because friends, as Christians, we are to be rejoicing that the Lord who promised he would return will actually return to us. That this should be at the very center of our hopes, our desires for the future. And to have that assured is to have that which we care about most promised. This is the return that Jesus Himself promised.

He said in Mark 13, Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory, and then He will send out the angels to gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. Or as He said to His disciples on the last night of His earthly ministry, so also you have sorrow now, But I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. So why is John being shown this and being told to write it down, to share it with the churches? Because our joys are fulfilled at Christ's return. Thus back to the image from last week of the wedding supper of the Lamb.

Jesus promised us in John 10, I came that they might have life and have it abundantly. The two first fruits of the Spirit that Paul mentions in Galatians are love and joy. We see throughout God's Word in the Old Testament and the New, this promise of joy. In John 15, Jesus said, these things, verse 11, these things I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you. And that your joy may be full.

Friends, our fellowship with Christ eternally is at the heart of our confidence in future joy. A heaven without Christ would be no heaven at all. This is the joy that we have set out for us here. Well, we should also see that the victor is the victor of this particular victory we see here in verses 17 to 21. Let's look at the second half, verses 17 to 21.

Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, 'Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great. ' and I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. And the rest were slain by the sword.

That came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse. And all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Okay, to understand this passage, realize verses 17 and 18 are kind of just ornament. Let's say not true, they're true, but they're just there to point to verse 21. Verses 17 and 18, the calling out of the angel to the birds. He's just saying, you think this great battle is coming up? Yeah, what you're calling a great battle, I'm gonna call supper.

That's it. All the foes of God are assembling and birds, I'm telling you, they will be your supper. Get ready to eat. That's what he's saying in verses 17 and 18. Look again at this angel's call to the birds to prepare themselves.

Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great. Quite some angelic tidings. Counting the other half of the angels at Christmas, you know. Luke 2:14, Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased. Second stanza, birds come and eat.

This scene that John chose here, or is shown here in verses 17 and 18 is the angels announcing Christ's judgment. And he does it by means of this graphic image of calling the birds to feast on the remains of Christ's enemies who have been so soundly and completely defeated that there's not even anyone left to bury the dead. So the bodies are going to face the ultimate dishonor of being unburied and thus exposed and so become carrion for the birds to feed on. The whole thing is described in the end of verse 17 as the great supper of God, and you cannot have missed the macabre parallel with the marriage supper of the Lamb in the first part of chapter 19, and now this great supper of God where His enemies become food for the wildlife.

And then we turn to verse 19. To what is called Armageddon, back in chapter 16, verse 16, verse 19, and I saw the beasts and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army.

And then all I can say is what we've got is then verse 20, and the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast. And those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake that burns with sulfur, and the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of Him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh. Interesting, the first half when it describes the army of the Lamb, they're dressed in white, they're on white horses, they look like the Lamb, but no weapons are mentioned. Well, their weapons aren't really very important.

It seems like all the work is done by God, by the victor, by Christ. Verses 19 to 21 tell the rest of the story about this judgment. The enemies gather in verse 19. They're all lined up. This is Armageddon.

But there is no nuclear Holocaust. There's nothing like Tolkien's Battle of Helm's Deep. There's not some eschatological Gettysburg. No, Jesus simply wins. He just wins.

They all gather up, then He captures their leaders, and then with a sword of His mouth He dispatches the rest of them. Verse 21 says, the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of Him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh. Of course, physical death is not all there is to God's judgment of the wicked. That's taught clearly elsewhere in Scripture. But here the point is that Christ's enemies Christians are overcome, they're defeated, and in judgment they are utterly destroyed.

Their rebellion is completely crushed. Friends, it is vain and useless to oppose God. Befriend Him while you still can. Befriend Him while you still can.

In all of this, Christ's judgment vindicates God's holiness. He is right.

And while might never makes right, might will finally once and for all reveal the right. Unjust institutions will be brought down. Bad bosses will be unprotected by their power and status. Abusive parents, rebellious children, unfaithful spouses, mockers of Christians, persecutors of others, all these because God is good will be judged by Christ. And note how widespread this rebellion is.

Verse 19 refers to the kings of the earth with their armies. Verse 18 referred to the flesh that was to be eaten being of all men, both free and slave, both small and great. It seems like if you're not enrolled in the army of heaven, then you are enrolled in the armies opposing heaven. You're in the armies of heaven. Or hell.

There's no neutrality depicted here. Two categories are ample, sufficient to describe the attitude of every man, woman, and child on earth toward God. Jesus taught that if you were not with him, you were against him. And this vision seems to bear that out.

The why question again. I asked the why are we shown this victor like we are? It's to show that our joy will know fulfillment in being with Christ forever. Why are we shown this victory, not just a victor, but this victory? And as I noted in the first part, so here, I think God wanted this written down specifically so that Christians in these trying times, remember John himself was thrown out of his church office, put in exile in prison because of Rome?

Because of his refusal to worship the emperor. I think Christians are being shown this in order to know that their trials will end. All those who are now opposing God will not succeed, they will fail. This passage bears witness to the fact that we will outlast all of our trials and troubles, all of our temptations and sins. So when the opponents of Christ begin to oppose you too, You're glad to see the end of them.

John here is holding out to these first century Christians and to us too here today in the 21st century, confident hope that the day will come when our trials give up and our opponents are defeated. What a joyful day to contemplate, contemplating this victory our minds' eyes are turned back to the victor. Praise the Lord who gives the victory. In conclusion, there are the magic words, but we never know what Mark means by those words. Henry Clay?

No. No, I confess I had a 10-minute introduction on Henry Clay, and out of my love for you, I scrapped it.

But the in conclusion is sincere. In conclusion, all of this is given not only for the basis of our own subjective joy, though God cares about that. But ultimately this is given so that God's name will be vindicated. God objectively wants the truth about Himself to be known. He does not want to be misrepresented to his creation.

We know in Ephesians chapter 3 what he's doing in the church. He does not merely for the ends of the things accomplished in the church, but for the celestial hosts which observe what's going on, so that the truth about him will be known, understood, relished. Friends, that's the case for this too. God would vindicate his name. He would have us know that He is as good as He claims to be, that He is as merciful as He claims to be.

God has kept His promises of salvation, revealing His love and mercy. And He has kept His promises of judgment, revealing His goodness and righteousness. He has been both faithful and true, as we see in Exodus 34, and as He said He was doing in Romans 3, that He might be just and the justifier. Of him who has faith in Jesus. Back in our passage, you notice that then I saw, I pointed that out in verses 11 and 17, and it's really there again in verse 19 where the ESV has and I saw.

And these are helpful paragraphs. But friends, just looking at this Friday night late, I noticed studying this passage, something that I hadn't noticed before. Look back up in our passage from last week.

Chapter 19:6, look at that phrase, it's Then I heard. John heard of the Lamb in the songs of the great multitude. But when he looked, he saw the warrior on the white horse. He saw the Lion. And that made me think of how the book began back in chapter 5.

The vision began. Remember, John heard of the lion of the tribe of Judah who could open the scrolls, get the decrees of history going, make it all happen. But when he turns, he looks, what does he see? But a lamb standing as though it had been slain. He heard about the lion, and he saw the lamb.

Now, as history draws to an end, he hears a voice the songs to the Lamb. But he sees the Lion who will conquer. The time has come for the scrolls to be rolled up, for history to be finished. The wedding banquet is mirrored by this great supper of God provided for God's victory to be complete. Friends, in all this, the basic news is that Christ is returning.

He's returning to judge and rule His own and to judge those who refuse to be ruled by Him. And here we have testimony that John saw and then wrote to us about as instructed by God's own Spirit so that we would have the truth about this life revealed to us. There is no one in this room, whether they believe in God or not, who operates as if this life is all there is. Everyone has suppositions about the meaning of life. Reflecting on this, it's clear to me that this should produce at least two basic responses among us, then and now.

Number one, it should give us courage. Courage to face whatever we're facing, knowing that complete victory is ahead that will give us heart and hope to persevere and carry on faithfully and entirely devoted to Christ. Remember John's own state. How encouraging would this be for John to keep going on.

As an old man imprisoned in exile. And this should give us compassion, because, of course, we were Christ's opponents. Paul recounts the great truth of conversion in Ephesians 2, and then he recalls, of course, all of us were also with them, walking in the fleshly passions of this world. But God shows his love for us while we were still sinners. Christ died for us.

Those here, though we may not remember the day nor the hour when that great change occurred, there is not one of us here today as Christ's friend who was not once his enemy. Let's remember that. What did Jesus teach? Love your enemies. Pray for those that persecute you.

Let's do that now. Let's pray. Lord God, we know in youn own time youe will bring history to a close and youd will finally judge. But Lord, even those who today are persecuting our brothers and sisters around the world, Lord, the persecutors in North Korea, Lord and in Iran. Lord, persecutors we may know in our own lives and experience.

We pray, Lord, that you will show the same mercy to them through the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ that you've shown to us. Oh, God, draw millions of men and women today who do not know you to come to know you through the proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ. Do this, we pray, before it's this final day for Christ's return. We ask in His name, Amen.