Revelation 20:11-15

¹¹ Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. ¹² And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. ¹³ The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. ¹⁴ Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. ¹⁵ And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.

After the final removal of Satan from the world, all are judged.  All who have ever died.  The general interpretation of this Great White Throne judgment is this is the sinner's judgment.  This is the judgement of those who oppose Christ and do not accept God.  The Book of Life contains the names of all who follow Jesus.  Those whose names are written therein are not cast into the lake of fire. 

Most scholars interpret that the saints are judged at The Judgment Seat of Christ.  Everyone is judged and no person is exempt.  Romans 14:10 tells us "For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God."  1 Corinthians 15:22-26 says, "For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.  But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.  For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.  The last enemy to be destroyed is death."  This would indicate that the saints are either judged prior to His second coming are just as He comes.  Revelation has already indicated that the saints would be present for the millennium, therefore, they will have had to previously been judged.  However, this is people's interpretation and I always encourage everyone to seek out the Spirit when reading His Word for wisdom.

We are told in John 5 that the Son is the judge.  Acts 10:42 and 17:30-31 also indicate that Jesus is the One appointed by God to be the judge.  2 Timothy 4:1 says that Christ Jesus will judge the living and the dead.  Jesus will sit as the judge at this great white throne. 

The dead, those who have refused repeatedly to accept Jesus, will be judged according to their works, their righteousness.  God knows all the secrets of the heart, every hidden thing is found out and presented.  Death, which claims the body, gives up the dead, and Hades, which claims the soul, gives up the dead to the lake of fire.

Hell is real.  It is almost impossible to hear anyone preach on it anymore, but it is real.  Here we are told that anyone not found in the Book of Life is cast to this lake of fire.  If someone does preach on it or talk about it they do not speak with the intensity of it as it is described in the Bible, but just as a bad place.   The theologian Clark Pinnock in his book “Destruction” captures this sentiment.

“Let me say at the outset that I consider the concept of hell as endless torment in body and mind an outrageous doctrine, a theological and moral enormity, a bad doctrine of the tradition which needs to be changed.  How can Christians possibly project a deity of such cruelty and vindictiveness whose ways include inflicting everlasting torture upon his creatures, however sinful they may have been?  Surely a God who would do such a thing is more nearly like Satan than like God, at least by any moral standards, and by the gospel itself.”

How would you, dear Christian, respond to that?  Surely all have doubted the Words of the Scriptures at one time or another.  Where does such an argument find your faith?

Jesus used the word gehenna 11 times.  It is only used 12 times in the New Testament.  In all instances it is translated as hell.  (Matt 5:22,29,30; 10:28; 18:9; 23:15,33; Mark 9:43,45,47; Luke 12:5)  If we summarize what Jesus taught on hell we can say the following:

• Hell is real  
• Hell is separation from God  
• Hell is for all the “accursed ones”  
• Hell is eternal  Hell is fire  Hell is a prepared place  
• Hell is eternity with Satan and his angels  
• Hell is inevitable if you never come to Christ  
• Hell is inescapable once you are there  
• Hell is avoidable if you will repent and believe in Jesus

There is no room in the teachings of Jesus for universalism, that eventually all will be saved, or annihilationism, that all who are lost will cease to exist.

We know that Jesus believed in hell because He taught it.  We also know that Jesus believed in hell because of the cross.  Why would He come and live and die with no sin except to provide a way for people to not go to hell.  There is no greater love.

Our sins against God are far more serious than we can ever imagine.  In fact, they are so serious that He had to come and live, die, and be resurrected so that we could have a way to get to Him. 

Dorothy Sayers, a close friend of C.S. Lewis, wrote the following regarding the doctrine of hell:

“Let us face the facts.  The doctrine of hell … is Christ’s.  It is not a device … for frightening people into giving money to the church: it is Christ’s deliberate judgment on sin.  The imagery of the undying worm and the unquenchable fire derives … from the prophet Isaiah, and it was Christ who emphatically used it. … One cannot get rid of it without tearing the New Testament to tatters.  We cannot repudiate hell without altogether repudiating Christ.”

Revelation 20:7-10

⁷ Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison ⁸ and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. ⁹ They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. ¹⁰ The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

This is the final battle between God and Satan.

There are a few interpretations here. 

One is that the “rest” will live again after a thousand years and be deceived by Satan once again.  All will battle against the saints and their world.  Then God destroys them with fire.  The devil is cast once again into the lake of fire and brimstone except this time it is forever more.

Another is that in the millennium there will be saints with their glorified bodies and the martyred saints with non-glorified bodies.  This second group can and will have children.  These persons, like all persons, will have the ability to say yes or no to Jesus.  Outwardly they will say yes, but inwardly many will say no and when the time comes to be able to rebel they will.

Lastly, there is the idea that all saints are in their glorified bodies that live 1,000 years and is free from pain and disease, but even still, they will be turned away from God in their hearts during this time.

Whichever it is, the question remains, “Why does God allow Satan to be loosed one more time?”  The best answer seems to be twofold: 1) To demonstrate the evil intention of Satan that consume him now and forever. 2) To reveal that even in a near perfect environment with no Satanic temptation, man is capable of and willing to rebel against his gracious and loving God.

“Gog and Magog” is a reference to Ezekiel 38-39.  This is a reference to the enemies of God among the nations of the world. 

As Satan and those who rebel with him come to battle against the new city, they are vaporized in an instant with fire.  Like the battle of Armageddon, the battle is really an execution.  At this, Satan is bound forever.

Revelation 20:4-6

⁴ And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. ⁵ But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. ⁶ Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.

Matthew 19:28 indicates to us that the apostles will sit as judges over the 12 tribes of Israel.  Revelation 2:26 and 5:10 tell us that saints will have authority over nations and followers of the Lamb will reign on the earth.  Those who do not follow the world or worship the world nor are marked by the world will live and reign with Christ for a thousand years.  All the other dead will not live until the thousand years has passed.  There is also an obvious resurrection for those who had been martyred for Jesus in this tribulation time.  They are now alive and living with Christ with the saints.   

The rest of the dead are the unbelieving humanity.  They will not be resurrected until the judgment.

So, what is this thousand years like?

Isaiah 11:1-9 -

¹ There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.  ² The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.  ³ His delight is in the fear of the Lord, and He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears; ⁴ But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.  ⁵ Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist.  ⁶ “The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.  ⁷ The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.  ⁸ The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den.  ⁹ They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Isaiah 35 is entitled “The Future Glory of Zion” – Reading 3-7 and 9-10,

³ Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.  ⁴ Say to those who are fearful-hearted, “Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you.”  ⁵ Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.  ⁶ Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.  ⁷ The parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water; in the habitation of jackals, where each lay, There shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

^…
9 No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast go up on it; it shall not be found there. But the redeemed shall walk there, ¹⁰ And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Isaiah 65:17-25 –

¹⁷ “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind.  ¹⁸ But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing, and her people a joy.  ¹⁹ I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My people; the voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, nor the voice of crying.  ²⁰ “No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days; for the child shall die one hundred years old, but the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed.  ²¹ They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.  ²² They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people, and My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.  ²³ They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth children for trouble; for they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.

²⁴ “It shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear.  ²⁵ The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. they shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,” says the Lord.

Jeremiah 31:12-14 –

¹² Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, streaming to the goodness of the Lord—for wheat and new wine and oil, for the young of the flock and the herd; their souls shall be like a well-watered garden, and they shall sorrow no more at all.  ¹³ “Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old, together; for I will turn their mourning to joy, will comfort them, and make them rejoice rather than sorrow.  ¹⁴ I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord.”

These are just a few of the prophesies regarding this reign of Jesus.  Some attributes are:

• It is a blessed and fruitful land.  
• Animals will live in harmony with one another and with humans.  
• Longevity will be increased.  
• Physical illnesses will be removed.  
• The souls of the people will be satisfied, they will rejoice and not be in sorrow.

Congratulations, Joseph! It’s a God!

This is from http://johnedmathison.org/blog/ and needed sharing.

A very creative children’s Sunday School teacher asked her class to write and act out their own version of the Christmas story.  It had some traditional parts, but a very unexpected ending.

There were familiar members of the cast – Joseph, the shepherds, the star, the three wise men, the animals and the angels, propped up in the background.  But Mary was nowhere to be seen.  Suddenly, from behind some bales of hay, they could hear the moaning and groaning of someone in pain.  Evidently, Mary was in labor!

About that time, a doctor arrived dressed in a white coat with a stethoscope around his neck.  You could see the relief on Joseph’s face as he took the doctor straight to Mary, then started his pacing back and forth.  A few minutes later, the doctor emerged with a big smile on his face and said, “Congratulations, Joseph!  It’s a God!”

This is the meaning of Christmas.  Christmas isn’t about parties, trees, gifts and family gatherings.  It’s not a holiday – it’s a holy day because God came to be a part of our situation.  God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him will never perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16).  Christmas is about the giving of His Son to you and me.

The Bible says “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).  Jesus was called Emmanuel – “God With Us” (Isaiah 7:14).

Luke sums it up when he said, “Behold I bring you good news which is for all the people, for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11).  Break that down for a moment. 

1.      It’s positive – Luke says, “I bring you good news of great joy.”  The world has enough bad news.  We need some good news!  Jesus’ birth is the best news the world has ever heard.

2.      It’s personal – The Bible says, “Unto to you.”  Christmas is extremely personal because God loves you so much that He gave His Son to you.  He wasn’t just offered to “humankind,” or people in general – but to people specifically.  “Unto you.”

3.      It’s a plan – The birth of Jesus was prophesied in Micah 5:1-2 with the place that He was born, and the time it was to happen.  His coming to us was always part of God’s divine plan.

4.      It’s a Person – A “Savior who is Christ the Lord.”  Jesus is not an idea, an ideal or an idol, but a Person who has come to save us and empower us for everyday living.  That’s the meaning of Christmas.

One day an English diplomat said, “Congratulations, USA, on the Fourth of July – the second greatest day in history.”  He was then asked, “What is the greatest day in history?” He replied, “December 25.  If there had been no December 25 – Christmas – there would be no Fourth of July.” 

One day a Sunday School class was talking about the importance and meaning of Easter. One little boy asked the teacher, “Is Easter the greatest day of the year?”  Another little boy interrupted and said, “No.  Christmas is.  If it had not been for Christmas, there would have been no Easter.”

My dad used to quote a newscaster who would sign off on Christmas Eve with these words – “That night as the sun bent low to kiss the earth goodnight, God reached down and placed a kiss of love on the brow of humanity and gently placed in the waiting arms of Mary His love-gift to the world.”

Congratulations, Joseph – It’s a God!

Revelation 20 - Millennialism

There are three views concerning this millennium described in Revelation 20

Premillennialism.  This is a reference to those that believe the 2^nd coming happens before the millennium.  A premillennialist takes the Bible literally and believes that only Jesus, on David’s throne, will establish a perfect kingdom.  Christ will reign over the nations of the earth and Israel will enjoy the blessings promised through the prophets.  Premillennialist hold to these points:

• Christ will return at the end of the great tribulation with His saints and He will reign for a thousand years. 
• Israel will experience the blessings God promised Abraham and David.  New Testament believers will likewise share in those blessings. 
• Today’s church is not completely experiencing the fulfillment of the promises made to Israel. 
• The millennium is an intermediate kingdom before the establishment of the eternal state.

Amillennialism.  The prefix a means “no”.  So, an amillennialist are those that believe there will be no literal reign of Christ for a thousand years.  These are those that take the Millennium as allegorical (or “spiritualized”).  (Allegory - a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.)  They do not take the millennial reign of Christ in a literal sense.  Amillennialism began with Augustine (A.D. 345-430).  Upon conversion of Constantine, his Edict of Toleration made the Christian Church legal throughout the Roman Empire.  Constantine’s successors later made it the official state religion.  However, the traditional “premillennial” view – that the Lord Jesus Christ was going to return to rid the world of its evil leaders – was unpopular with then current Roman leadership. 

The allegorical methods, adopted by theologian Origen, led to Augustine developing the “amillennial view” – that Jesus was to rule “spiritually” rather than literally.  This view ultimately became the dominant view of the Roman Catholic Church.

Some basic points to this view are:

• The millennium or kingdom of Christ and His saints is the existence for the period of time between Christ’s first and second coming.  We are in the millennium right now.
• There will be no future reign of Christ on earth prior to the new heaven and new earth, and the word thousand is a symbolic number indicating a long period of time.
• The promises to Israel are being fulfilled in a spiritual sense in the church.  They were conditional and have been transferred to the church because Israel did not meet the condition for obedience.
• Christ is ruling now in heaven where He is seated on the throne of David, and Satan is presently bound.  This binding relates primarily to Satan’s inability to stop the preaching and spread of the gospel to the nations.

Postmillennialism.  Postmillennialist are those that believe Christ’s second coming will occur after the millennium.  They do not expect a literal and historical second coming (evangelical post millennialist do expect one however).  A few notes of this view are:

• The church is not the kingdom, but it will bring in the kingdom to the earth through the preaching of the gospel. 
• Christ will not be on the earth during the kingdom.  He will rule in the hearts of His people.
• The term thousand is symbolic of a long period of time, therefore the millennium is not a literal interpretation.
• The church, not Israel, will receive the fulfillment of the promises to Abraham and David.

Many people have different views on this.  Daniel Akin makes a strong point to say that this topic is not one worthy of Christians being divided over.  It can be discussed and debated, but it should not divide Christians as they follow Christ.

Here is an overly simple graphic of the three views.  It is worth noting that all views end at the same place: a new heaven and a new earth.

I, personally, am more of a premillennialist.  I think this view has the best answer to the descriptions of prophecy in the Scriptures and the apocalyptic nature in the rest of Revelation.  A few distinctions regarding the way this is presented here in chapter 20.  No where in Scripture is the word year written and used with a number where the number is not interpreted literally.  Here it is written six times in this way.  Romans 11 makes it clear that the New Testament believers are grafted onto the promises to Israel.  The fulfillment of the covenants for Abraham and David have not taken place yet.  Also, the prophecies of the first coming of Christ were fulfilled literally.  It should be expected that the prophecies of His second coming will be fulfilled in the same manner.  

However, ultimately, I am a pan-millennialist.  I think God knows what He's doing and it will all pan out.

Revelation 20:1-3

Coventry Cathedral - UK

⁴ And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; ⁵ for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” ⁶ Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. ⁸ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

⁹ Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. ¹⁰ And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, ¹¹ who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” – Acts 1:4-11

We are at that time in Revelation.  Jesus has come down from heaven as He went up to it.  And He is at this time restoring the kingdom to Israel that the disciples asked about.  It is the millennial kingdom.  The doctrine of the millennium, mentioned only here in Revelation 20, has generated controversy throughout the history of the church and many Christians are divided over it. 

¹ Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. ² He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; ³ and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while.

A few things that I notice.  There is no war.  The angel lays hold of Satan, bounds him with a great chain, shuts him into a bottomless pit, and seals him there so that he has no influence for 1,000 years.  There is no great war between the angel and Satan.  I can only assume, as stated in chapter 19, Jesus has come again and with only His word, sent Satan to the lake of brimstone or this bottomless pit.  It’s worth noting that God did not need our involvement to overcome the evil in the world.  The saints got behind Jesus and He rode into the world for the 2^nd time and at the sound of His Word it was done.  A believer’s job, and while it is in no way seems easy but should be, is to follow Jesus.  Jesus carries the burden of the fight.

This 2^nd coming and reign is the fulfillment of many promises. 

Matthew 6:10, “Your kingdom come.  Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  The kingdom has come and His will has been done on earth as it is in heaven.

Zechariah 8:3, “Thus says the Lord: ‘I will return to Zion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem.’”

Micah 4:7, “The Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion from now on, even forever.”

Isaiah 24:23, “The Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem.”

1 Corinthians 15:24 describes the end events as they are described here.  “Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power.”

Revelation 19:17-21

¹⁷ Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, “Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, ¹⁸ that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great.”

John Piper remarks that this second coming will be like lightning and vultures.  Jesus is recorded in Matthew 24:27-28 saying, “For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.  For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.”  All kings, captains, mighty men, free and slave, great and small will be judged.  Just as God is indiscriminate about who can accept salvation he is just as indiscriminate about who is judged.  Everyone is to be held accountable for their rejection of Jesus.

¹⁹ And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army. ²⁰ Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. ²¹ And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.

All who lived in the flesh will have their flesh destroyed.

The long-awaited battle of Armageddon is almost over before it begins.  Satan and his false prophet are captured and cast alive into the lake of fire.  Everyone else is slain.  None are left alive.  All who have said no to God are killed by His own words.  There is no war described as we would envision this final war.  All that is described here is that the Word of God from Jesus immediately kills all who have followed the beast and have said no to Him. 

The Revelation of God’s Word, to all those who refused Him, destroys them and casts Satan away.

Jesus is coming again, are you ready?

Revelation 19:9-16

⁹ Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.” ¹⁰ And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

You are blessed if you are at this marriage supper.  It is a privilege.  It is not a burden to bear.  Dear Christian, is your Christianity a burden or a blessing to you today?  I fear that too many Christians are walking around burdened by their Christianity and feel they are missing out on life.  Yet life only exists in God through the person of Jesus our Savior.  How can so many who are supposedly following Christ be burdened by it except that they aren’t following Christ, but being dragged.  

Revelation is very intense, and it will separate those who follow from those who don’t know what they are doing.  I personally believe that things are already happening to force such a decision upon people who say they believe but in their hearts they do not seek Him.

John is overwhelmed by the moment and he falls to worship at the feet of this fellow servant.  He will do this a few times.  The scene must be glorious as it is the fulfillment of all the hopes and promises of God.

We are about to read of the Return of the King, when Jesus returns again.  The life of Jesus can be outlined around seven events:

1.       The incarnation.

2.       His baptism.

3.       His temptation.

4.       His crucifixion.

5.       His resurrection.

6.       His ascension.

7.       His second coming.

There are some distinct differences between His first coming and this second coming.  They are:

He (Mary did) rode a donkey the first time; He rides a white horse this time.

He came as a Suffering Servant; He comes a King and Lord.

He came in humility and meekness; He comes in majesty and power.

He came to suffer the wrath of God for sinners; He comes to establish the kingdom of God for His saints.

He came to seek and save the lost; He comes to judge and rule as King.

He came as God incognito; He will come as God in all His glory.

This return is the culmination of all His previous work.  It is the finished work for God.  He first came in grace and not He comes in glory.

¹¹ Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. ¹² His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. ¹³ He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. ¹⁴ And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. ¹⁵ Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. ¹⁶ And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

What is your vision of Jesus?  How do you see Him?  Most images are of a gentle young man holding a small lamb and smiling at children.  How many of you see Him with eyes of fire riding a white horse out of heaven wearing a bloodstained (I believe this is the blood of the saints or His own blood) robe striking the nations and ruling them with a rod of iron?  Yet all of heaven has been in the most glorious powerful praise described of God for this time over this second coming of Christ.  We should consider that there is an intense personal passion with God over the total destruction of sin at this time of Revelation and in our everyday lives.  What sin besets you?  Are you willing to let this Jesus destroy that sin with you?  What does this say about the sin we don’t give up?  Doesn’t it say we are standing on the wrong side of this army?  We are on the pointy side of the sword and I promise you, we don’t want to be on that side of the sword of Jesus.  The sword is adequately described in Hebrews 4:12, 6:17 and Isaiah 11:4 as the Word of God.

Jesus has a concealed name.  It is a name that John couldn’t know.  I can only assume that it is so eternal and secret that we can’t comprehend it or grasp it’s understanding.  But there are two other names that he could read and that we know, “The Word of God” and “King of kings and Lord of lords”.  When we hear or read the words of Jesus, we are hearing the voice of God.  Hebrews tells us (1:2) that God has spoken to us by His Son.  Jesus also told us that if we know Him we know the Father.  His words bear the power of the all-powerful omnipotent God.  He will strike the nations with His words and they will fall.  He can do this because He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.  There is none over Him.  There is no equal and there is no competition.  This is who He is and has always been.

Revelation 19:6-8

⁶ And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! 

In looking at our own worship services now, today, John Piper makes these thoughts.

“Corporate worship … is the declaration in the midst of Babylon that we will not be drawn into her harlotries, because we have found God the satisfaction of our souls.  In His presence is fullness of joy and at His right hand are pleasures forevermore.  Corporate worship is the public savoring of the worth of God and the beauty of God and the power of God and the wisdom of God.  And therefore worship is an open declaration to all the powers of heaven and to all of Babylon that we will not prostitute our minds or our hearts or our bodies to the allurements of the world.  Though we may live in Babylon, we will not be captive to Babylonian ways.  And we will celebrate with all our might the awesome truth that we are free from that which will be destroyed.”

Now there is praise to God for being God who is all-powerful and He has made a way for salvation that all of us sinners have been made ready to be in relationship with Him forever.  John describes these exaltations as the “sound of many waters” and “the sound of mighty thunderings”.  Imagine the intensity of that great multitude of praise. 

The chorus to the song Shout to the Lord by Darlene Zschech read,

“Shout to the Lord, all the earth, let us sing

Power and majesty, praise to the King

Mountains bow down and the seas will roar

At the sound of Your name

I sing for joy at the work of Your hands

Forever I'll love You, forever I'll stand

Nothing compares to the promise I have in You”

All of heaven is shouting God’s praises and it is thundering.

⁷ Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” ⁸ And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

The saints have been made ready to be in the presence of God.  Akin his exposition commentary Exalting Jesus in Revelation asked the question, “How do we prepare and get ready for that day?  I believe the book of Revelation itself provides the answer.

• The bride prepares herself by remaining faithful to Christ in a fallen and evil world.
• The bride prepares herself by enduring hardship in the midst of suffering.
• The bride prepares herself by trusting God in the face of martyrdom.
• The bride prepares herself by obeying God to take the gospel to all tribes, languages, peoples, and nations.”

We must be clear that the white linen is provided only by God as it is washed clean by the blood of the Lamb.  We cannot make ourselves clean with good works.  God is the agent behind all of our efforts of preparation.

Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:25-27, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”  Do you see how this applies at this time of the wedding of the church to Jesus?  He presents us to Himself without blemish because He has given Himself for us.  The church is presented in “fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.”  These acts that we are adorned with are from Jesus Himself.

It is in this marriage that we will know Jesus all the more.  Jesus prayed in His High Priestly Prayer in John 17:23-26, “²³ I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. ²⁴ “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. ²⁵ O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. ²⁶ And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”  This is a time when we will know our Savior and be with Him as He is with the Father.

He willingly gave Himself so you and I will have this moment.

Revelation 19:1-5

This chapter is about praise, glorifying, and worship for God who is the just judge, has righteous character and a perfect plan.  Then it is the return of the King of kings and the Lord of lords.  This is it.  The earthly “city” is judged with all her entrapments.  Those who follow this worldly system of values will fall with her.  All of us are in a constant battle to fight to love only the One true God and to keep our eyes on His Son Jesus.  He alone will win this war.  We cannot defeat the Babylonian influence in our lives without Him.  And so, it is imperative that we praise God and lift up our Savior, Jesus, for saving us!  Everyone who recognizes the despair that they came from is always quick to praise God and to tell what He did for them. 

In verses 1, 3, 4, and 6 the word “Alleluia” or “Hallelujah” is used depending upon your version of Bible.  It is not used anywhere else in the New Testament.  Around the world, it was or still might be in some traditional to stand at the beginning of Handel’s Messiah most famous oration “Hallelujah Chorus”.  However, in heaven we are going to see a different reaction.  Everyone will fall down and worship.

There has been a lot of intense scenery and overall destruction described in this book so far.  It gets overwhelming to read and read about the destruction of people, the world system, and the earth.  It is depressing to know that the world will regress further and further and that we Christians will become targeted, that the world will be against us specifically.  All of it is just not very uplifting.  However, we are about to read where that changes because the Good News is ready to arrive.  If you have ever longed for that time of no pain, dwelling in your heavenly Father’s house with Him and with all the brothers and sisters who know Him, and of being a part of a heavenly worship, that time is now.

¹ After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! ² For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.” ³ Again they said, “Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!” ⁴ And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!” ⁵ Then a voice came from the throne, saying, “Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!”

“After” verse 1 tells us, this is after the judgment of Babylon, the world system.  “Hallelujah” means “praise Yahweh” and heaven is not like many churches today, they aren’t partly singing this or going through the motions, this is a loud shout!  They praise God for salvation, glory, honor, power, His true and righteous judgments, judging the world system, and avenging the blood of His servants.  The multitude follows with a 2^nd shout over the permanent death of the world. 

We should note that this isn’t a judgment made of vindication.  This praise is not because Satan has lost.  This is not a football game.  God wants every person to have every chance to choose Him.  We have seen this over and over throughout Revelation.  But once all hearts are decided and those who will follow Him, come what may, and those who will never follow are established, He will remove all that opposes Him.  John Piper said in his sermon “Worship God!” (desiringgod.com),

“If God turned a deaf ear to sin and evil and injustice and suffering in the world.  He would not be true, and He would certainly not be just.  God here is rightfully and wholeheartedly praised for His justice.”

These are shouts of praise for salvation and the restoration of all things.  Paul spoke of this time in Romans 8:18-23.  “¹⁸ For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. ¹⁹ For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; ²¹ because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. ²³ Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.”  All of creation is awaiting this day, persevering in patience for this glorious appointed time.  My sons now tell me that I make “old man noises” because I groan sometimes when I have to move certain ways.  Groaning is scriptural, and we all groan with the earth awaiting the new day.

In verses 4 and 5 we see where all in heaven, the elders, the four creatures, and this immense heavenly chorus are all praising and worshiping together.  Everyone is praising together with a shout, with all of their heavenly being from heaven to the glory of God.