Jesus Reigns!

INTRODUCTION:

Imagine with me that you were one of the first followers of Jesus. And you were hanging out with him after his resurrection.

You’ve experienced FIRST HAND that Jesus really is the Messiah and has proven those claims though signs, wonders and the death-defying miracle of His resurrection.

There’s no doubt in your mind that Jesus is God’s prophesied Messiah from the OT. There’s no doubt in your mind that Jesus can accomplish absolutely ANYTHING HE WANTS.

What would - a first century Jewish disciple - ask him in that moment?

Q&A With Jesus

Acts 1:6 records they question they ask. “Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?” (Acts 1:6)

They ask this question because there are many OT prophecies about the Messiah not just delivering people from sin but also establishing God’s kingdom on the earth.

Listen to Jesus’ response.

Acts 1:7–11

7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

9 After he had said this, he was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took him out of their sight.

QUESTION: Jesus are you going to establish your earthly kingdom NOW?

ANSWER: Not YET. First, I’m going home to the Father so I can send the Holy Spirit to empower you to preach the Gospel and make disciples to the ends of the earth.

After that he floats up into the sky on the cloud and disappears from their sight.

As they’re standing there trying to take in Jesus ascending into heaven on a cloud, two men clothed in white stood by them and said “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, WILL COME IN THE SAME WAY that you have seen him going into heaven.” (Acts 1:11)

He went up into heaven on a cloud. He’s coming back down from heaven on a cloud. Until then, be a witness for Christ to every tribe tongue and nation.

The rest of the book of Acts shows the disciples of Jesus doing JUST THAT.

The rest of the NT is essentially a discipleship and disciple-making manual for followers of Jesus as they wait for the day that Jesus makes good on the rest of his promise.

What was their all consuming motivation for living obedient lives to Christ even in the face of great persecution and event death? Four Words: Jesus is coming soon.

Jesus is Coming Soon

Jesus is coming soon. That’s the message of the book of Revelation. That’s the message of both Old and New Testaments.

The coming of Messiah

is mentioned 1800 times in the Old Testament and 300 times in the New Testament.

Statistically 1 in every 25 verses refers to the 2nd Coming of Christ.

It is referred to in 27 Old Testament books and 23 New Testament books.

For every prophecy in the Bible about the first coming of Jesus there are 8 prophecies about the Second Coming of Jesus.

What happens in your heart when you hear the words, “Jesus is coming soon?”

Is it, as Spurgeon said, music to your Christian ears? Or, does it sound like the wishful thinking of an unserious person?

How you react to the second coming of Christ is a good barometer of where you are at spiritually.

If you’re in right relationship with God then it’ll be something that you eagerly anticipate. If you’re not, then it’s strike fearful dread.

What happens in your heart when you hear the truth that Jesus is coming soon?

What Happens When Jesus Comes?

Today’s sermon text is in Revelation 19 and it’s going to answer the question of what it’s going to LOOK LIKE when Jesus comes.

Spoiler alert: it looks exactly like those two angels said it would look like in Acts 1. He went up into heaven on the clouds. He coming back down, out of heaven, on the clouds.

Revelation 19:11–16 (CSB)

11 Then I saw heaven opened, (not just a door!) and there was a white horse. (symbolizes victory in battle / Isaiah 63 fulfillment of prophecy) Its rider is called Faithful and True, and with justice he judges and makes war. (not suffering servant, just judge!) 12 His eyes were like a fiery flame, and many crowns were on his head. He had a name written that no one knows except himself. 13 He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. 14 The armies that were in heaven followed him on white horses, wearing pure white linen. 15 A sharp sword came from his mouth, so that he might strike the nations with it. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will also trample the winepress of the fierce anger of God, the Almighty. 16 And he has a name written on his robe and on his thigh: King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Jesus is coming soon! It will be a literal coming. It will be a physical coming. And it will change the earth forever.

So what’s going to happen when Jesus comes again? That’s the question answered in our passage today.

There are so many different ways that we could break this passage apart but to make it simple I want to explain it under three headings.

The rider (WHO Jesus is)

The robe (WHAT Jesus will do)

The rod (HOW Jesus will do It)

THE RIDER:

Let’s being with the question of WHO. WHO is this rider? The obvious answer is Jesus. There a plenty of give aways in the text.

He called “Faithful and True” (same title Jesus wears in his letter to the church in Laodicea Rev 3:14) - emphasizes the justice Jesus will establish when he comes again. = concept of TRUTH.

His eyes are flames of fire. We also saw Jesus described this way in Rev 1:14. The idea conveyed is that nothing can be hidden from the penetrating gaze of the Messiah.

He is wearing “many crowns.” (gk Diadema) In contrast to the 7 crowns of the dragon (Rev 12:3) or 10 crowns of the beast (Rev 13:1) The sovereignty of Christ is UNLIMITED.

We also see earlier in Revelation that Jesus has a name that nobody else knows except himself. (same name given to those who overcome: Rev 2:17; 3:12)

This unknown name is accompanied with a very WELL KNOWN name for Christ which is the Word. (cf John 1:1; Heb 4:12)

The clearest giveaway that this cloud rider is Jesus is the name on his robe: King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This was the designation given to Jesus in Rev 17:14 as he destroys Babylons. (in OT it was used of Yahweh to point to his deity)

You might read this passage and think to yourself, “When I think of of Jesus today that’s not the picture in my mind...”

For many of us, we picture Jesus as a middle eastern male, meek and mild, teaching others and hugging children.

Maybe you picture Jesus as that baby laying in a manger. Helpless and fully dependent on the sustenence of his mother.

Jesus is not only the child in a manger or the prophet on a hillside. He’s at least those things but he’s also much more.

Many Christians today have an INCOMPLETE picture of WHO Jesus is.

He’s not just a dependent baby born in a manger.

He’s not just a truth telling prophet that amazed those who heard.

He’s not just a miracle working savior who healed and utterly changed those he touched.

He’s not even just our atoning sacrifice who died on the cross for our sins.

The Warrior Messiah

Revelation 19 presents Jesus as the WARRIOR MESSIAH - the Cloud Rider who makes war on the enemies of God.

And that picture of Jesus is who Jesus is TODAY.

When you hear the word Jesus what comes to your mind? Is it the baby? The teaching prophet? The mediating priest? The reigning king? Or the WARRIOR?

We must make room for this idea thatJesus is the warrior messiah who rides on the clouds and comes to establish justice on the earth by judging his enemies.

(not flannel graph, vbs, sunday school Jesus)

First Not Like the Second

Which means his SECOND coming is going to look VERY DIFFERENT than his first coming.

1st - veiled incarnate flesh. 2nd - unveiled in divine glory.

1st - a single star revealed his location. 2nd - he - the bright and morning star - will shine brighter than the sun.

1st - a few people beheld him - 2nd, the entire earth will see.

1st - suffering servant, riding donkey into Jerusalem to die on the cross. 2nd - sovereign king, riding a stallion on the clouds to rule as a king.

You might think to yourself, “I dunno. This picture of Jesus makes me a little bit uncomfortable.”

My reply to that sentiment is IT SHOULD make you uncomfortable.

You know who else it should make uncomfortable?

ISIS,

communist authoritarians,

human traffickers,

cartel kings and

every fashion of human evil on this earth.

Do you really prefer a meek and mild social worker Jesus when there is REAL evil in this world that MUST BE ABOLISHED if God’s Kingdom is going to be established? Of course not.

Jesus first came as sacrificial lamb. He will come again as a ferocious lion. A warrior messiah who will take out the enemies of God and God’s people.

This is why preaching the book of Revelation has been important for us. Because we need a full orbed vision of Jesus.

THE ROBE:

Now that we have a picture of who the rider IS let’s look at the next symbol which is the ROBE.

The robe answers the question of WHAT Jesus will do in order to establish God’s kingdom on this earth.

Revelation 19:13–15 (CSB)

13 He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. 14 The armies that were in heaven followed him on white horses, wearing pure white linen. 15 A sharp sword came from his mouth, so that he might strike the nations with it. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will also trample the winepress of the fierce anger of God, the Almighty.

How does John describe the robe being worn by Jesus? What is it dipped in? It’s dipped in blood!

Some think that’s a reference to the blood of Jesus shed for sinner on the cross. It’s not! It’s the blood of his enemies.

There are several explicit and implicit references to this idea in our passage.

Verse 11 - “with justice he judges and MAKES WAR...”

Verse 14 - “armies in heaven followed him on white horses...”

Verse 15 - “he strikes the nations with a sharp sword… he rules.”

Verse 15 - “he tramples the winepress of God’s anger...”

All of this imagery is warlike. And when I say “warlike” I don’t mean “spiritual warfare” like we sometimes think about in relation to the Christian life. I mean literal physical warefare.

I know it’s hard to imagine - and certainly different views would unpack the nature of this warfare differently - but the Bible teaches that the Day of Christ’s return will be a gory day of death and despair for God’s enemies.

Where is John getting all of these images from? They’re not accidental.

Isaiah’s Warrior

This idea is established all the way back in the book of Isaiah.

Isaiah 63:1–6 (CSB)

1 Who is this coming from Edom (just North of Red Sea)

in crimson-stained garments from Bozrah— (North east Edom/name = grape gathering)

this one who is splendid in his apparel,

striding in his formidable might?

It is I, proclaiming vindication,

powerful to save.

2 Why are your clothes red,

and your garments like one who treads a winepress?

3 I trampled the winepress alone,

and no one from the nations was with me.

I trampled them in my anger

and ground them underfoot in my fury;

their blood spattered my garments,

and all my clothes were stained.

4 For I planned the day of vengeance,

and the year of my redemption came.

5 I looked, but there was no one to help,

and I was amazed that no one assisted;

so my arm accomplished victory for me,

and my wrath assisted me.

6 I crushed nations in my anger;

I made them drunk with my wrath

and poured out their blood on the ground.

Revelation 19 is CLEARLY drawing from this passage. Jesus’ robe being dipped in blood is a fulfillment of this prophecy.

The gist of this passage seems to suggest that when Jesus returns to the earth he is going to make literal war, against actual nations that results in the physical deaths of wicked people.

I know that might make you feel uncomfortable but it’s what the Bible teaches!

Revelation’s Winepress

Is this not what we saw in Revelation 14:20?

Revelation 14:20 (CSB)

20 Then the press was trampled outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press up to the horses’ bridles for about 180 miles.

Remember back in the day the way they made wine was by trampling on grapes in a vat. The robes worn by people engaging in this would get stains from the grape juice splattering up on their garments. It was a messy business.

Jesus is saying, “God’s wrath is a winepress and the grapes of wicked deeds from wicked people over thousands of years has been piling up.

God is a just judge and every wicked deed must be punished and judgement comes when the king returns.

This is NOT because God delights in the deaths of wicked people. He doesn’t. But he is jealous for righteousness and he is zealous for the vindication of his people.

To preserve his love for righteousness he must establish justice through the punishment of the wicked.

The Nature of the Battle

Remember, we’ve seen all this before in our journey though the book of Revelation.

The unholy trinity deceives the nations and enlists them in a great war against the people of God.

In Revelation 16 we talked about the great battle of Armageddon and how all the nations are going to gather around Jerusalem to deal the final death blow to the Lord and his anointed Messiah; Jesus.

Many people believe the bowl judgments unleashed on the beast and his empire are being unleashed by Jesus himself FROM THE EARTH as he makes his way from north of the Red Sea all the way up towards Jerusalem.

None of this is spelled out in detail in the book of Revelation but there are several Old Testament prophecies that deal with the coming of Messiah that suggest something like that is possible.

This is why many interpreters read these passages and say, “surely the Bible is being more metaphorical and symbolic ...”

They say “I don’t like the idea of Jesus the warrior messiah being the cause of so much death and destruction.”

Here’s my problem with those who take the symbolic or preterist approach.

The prophesy that surrounded the first advent of Christ were literal, historical and physically fulfilled.

Why would the prophecies around the second coming of Messiah be any different?

THE ROD

Now that we’ve seen a portrait of the rider and an idea of what this robe represents, let’s close with the final symbol: the ROD.

Revelation 19:15 says that Jesus will RULE the nations with an iron rod.

For the original readers of Revelation, their minds would’ve immediately thought of Psalm 2.

Besides Isaiah 63. Psalm 2 is the second big influence of this vision of Christ and his return in Revelation 19.

Psalm 2 (CSB)

1 Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?

2 The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers conspire together against the Lord and his Anointed One:

3 “Let’s tear off their chains and throw their ropes off of us.”

4 The one enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord ridicules them.

5 Then he speaks to them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath: 6 “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.”

7 I will declare the Lord’s decree. He said to me, “You are my Son;

today I have become your Father. (this is everything we’ve seen that has been building up throughout the book of Revelation)

8 Ask of me,

and I will make the nations your inheritance

and the ends of the earth your possession.

9 You will break them with an iron scepter;

you will shatter them like pottery.”

Did you notice an important difference between Psalm 2 and Revelation 19 when it comes to the iron rod?

Psalm 2:9 says that the Messiah will BREAK the nations with an iron scepter.

In Revelation 19 the text says that Messiah will RULE the nations with an iron rod.

It’s actually the greek word “poiema” which means shepherd.

You might ask, why on earth would a shepherd need a rod? Well the rod isn’t so much for leading the sheep as it is protecting the sheep from the wolves!

Stricken Shepherd Strikes

The NT constantly refers to Jesus as a shepherd.

In the Gospels he weeps as he looks out over Jerusalem and sees the people as sheep without a shepherd.

He’s the fulfilment of the great shepherd in Psalm 23.

He refers to himself as the good shepherd in John 10.

He even told his disciples before going to the cross that through his crucifixion by the Romans this world would STRIKE the shepherd and his sheep (disciples) were going to scatter.

But now Revelation is saying, “make no mistake. The stricken shepherd will STRIKE when he comes again.”

That’s what this iron rod represents. The idea is that Jesus will come down and bring the nations to absolute submission.

A good shepherd and a STRONG shepherd and that strong shepherd will bring about our vindication when he comes again.

So ISIS and muslim terrors ought to behead as many Christians as they possibly can RIGHT NOW...

The ACLU and Big Tech ought to silence and censor as many Christians as they possibly can RIGHT NOW...

The CCP or any other authoritarian government ought to persecute and alienate as many Christians as they possibly can RIGHT NOW...

God haters, Jesus cursers all the people who want to do all sorts of evil things … go ahead and get in all in RIGHT NOW.

Because there’s coming a day when the warrior messiah is going to return and he’s not going to be pushed around.

CONCLUSION

All of this discussion may leave you with the question, “Wow this is crazy! I never really associated the coming of Christ with these things… what does this mean for me as a Christian?”

Am I going to be enlisted into Christ’s army? Am I going to fight in some Holy War? Is this going to be like the crusades of the middle ages?

Absolutely NOT. In fact, those who use this passage to justify violence in the name of Christ are dead wrong.

Both in the prophecy from Isaiah and here in Revelation - the only person who brings any violence is Christ and Christ alone.

You say, “What about the armies?”

For one thing, they are IN HEAVEN. So they’re not engaged in the earthly warfare.

Secondly, they are wearing white clothes, sitting on white horses, BEHIND the Lord Jesus who’s doing ALL the work.

HIS garments are covered in blood. Ours are washed white as snow.

When you see a football player leave the fourth quarter without any stains on his clothes what do you assume? He didn’t play.

And that will be true of us when it come to this final victory over evil that Jesus wins for his bride.

Vengeance belongs to Christ and Christ alone.

We don’t come to fight. We come to watch.

We don’t contribute to our spiritual deliverance and we won’t contribute to this deliverance either.

We didn’t help the lamb when he was slain and we won’t help the Lion when he comes again to roar.

What Is Our Response?

So what’s our response?

Listen to how Psalm2 concludes...

Psalm 2:10–12 (CSB)

10 So now, kings, be wise; receive instruction, you judges of the earth.

11 Serve the Lord with reverential awe and rejoice with trembling.

12 Pay homage to the Son or he will be angry and you will perish in your rebellion, for his anger may ignite at any moment.

All who take refuge in him are happy.

Obviously there are “many responses” in Psalm two for how different people will respond to the “return of the King” when Messiah comes to establish God’s kingdom.

The response I want us to focus on is in verse 12. It’s the response of those who revere God and desire to serve him.

I’m assuming you wouldn’t be here today if there wasn’t at least something in you that fears the Lord and desires to be in right relationship with Him.

There will be those who experience the crushing of Christ’s second coming. They will tossed into the eternal fire along with Satan and his minions. (we’ll look at that next week).

But you don’t want to be one of those people. You want to experience God’s blessing in your life. You want to flourish. You want to “be happy.”

That’s how Psalm 2 closes. All who take refuge in the Son are happy. So how do you experience this blessed state?

The CSB translates it “pay homage to the Son.” The literal Hebrews is “KISS the son.”

In your notes I interpret it as “revere to Son and you’ll find refuge.”

Kiss The Son

To “kiss” the ring of a king meant to submit yourself to his Lordship. It was an act of reverence, respect and total surrender. Jesus - as King of your life and of this universe - will accept nothing less.

This is the ONLY way to be happy and fulfilled. Submission to Christ is the only way to experience God’s blessing on your life. It requires an act of your will. Repentance and faith.

When you do that - you’ll find REFUGE. An d all who take refuge in the Lord will be happy.

I love that word refuge because it highlights the peace and security we have in the Lord. It illustrates the strength and stability of our great God.

I also love the translation HAPPY. Why are they happy? Because if Jesus is your warrior what do you have to be afraid of?

It’s not that Satan isn’t a fearful enemy. He is! He has tremendous power. The reason we don’t fear isn’t because Satan isn’t a fearful enemy. It’s because Jesus is an even greater friend.

It’s not because Satan isn’ t powerful. It’s because Jesus is MORE powerful.

Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing, were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God's own choosing. You ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is he; Lord Sabaoth his name, from age to age the same; and he must win the battle.

3 And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us, we will not fear, for God has willed his truth to triumph through us. The prince of darkness grim, we tremble not for him; his rage we can endure, for lo! his doom is sure; one little word shall fell him.

Revere Christ the Son and find refuge in Him!