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1. The Coming of Christ as the Judge of Antichrist (Revelation 19:11-16)
REVELATION 19:11-16
11 I saw the heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called Faithful and True. In righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has names written and a name written which no one knows but he himself. 13 He is clothed in a garment sprinkled with blood. His name is called “The Word of God.” 14 The armies which are in heaven followed him on white horses, clothed in white, pure, fine linen. 15 Out of his mouth proceeds a sharp, double-edged sword, that with it he should strike the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He treads the wine press of the fierceness of the wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 He has on his garment and on his thigh a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
The Lord Comes to Triumph: The king is coming! The son of God is riding on a white horse. The armies of heaven are following him. The glory of God and his authority are focused in Christ, the promised Messiah.
The seer John saw a picture of the second coming of Christ different from that which Jesus had revealed his disciples according to Matthew, Mark and Luke. In the vision of John the LORD does neither appear on the clouds of heaven nor proceeds him the alarm signal of the Son of man, i.e. a lightning from east to west. John does not repeat any of the earlier reports on the second coming of Christ in the gospel, but he silently presupposes them and completes them! He does not emphasize the saving aspect of the Coming of Christ, but testifies the fighting judge, the “Heliand", who in the battle strides ahead of his army at the head of the attack wedge and takes the main load of the fight upon himself.
John describes the second coming of Christ in a way different from what many Christians have in mind. After Jesus had been baptized in the Jordan, he had not begun to preach and heal immediately, but he was led by the Holy Spirit into the desert in order to overcome the arch-fiend and tempter of all mankind in the physical weakness of a fasting. (Matthew 4:1-11). Jesus appeared so as to fight and triumph in those days as well as at his return! Likewise we should not lie there in a stupor as narrow-minded Christians but set our mind on a spiritual struggle in the power of Christ (Ephesians 6:10-20). All followers of Christ are living in the area of conflict with the Evil One, either in protecting defense or in missionary attack. The fiend of God does not sleep. He is attacking the church from outside and inside. However, Christ is victor, in those days, today and at his return! On the background of the pitiless struggle of Satan against God and His Anointed we are able to realize in a better way the coming of Christ as ready for battle in the Book of Revelation. Jesus is does not appear as a slain (butchered) sacrificial lamb which is bleeding to death. And he is also not appearing as bridegroom so as to fetch home his bride, the church, but Christ is coming again as Lord, warrior and victor! With his authority he will destroy the realm of Satan.
The image of the victorious Messiah is not unknown in the bible. Paul, for example, prophesied the destruction of Antichrist by the coming Messiah (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12). In the Book of Revelation we read about the wrath of the Lamb of God against all who reject the accomplished salvation also prepared for them. (Revelation 6:16-17). Jesus drove out demons by moving his little finger (Luke 11:20). And God is making for the risen Lord all his enemies a footstool for his feet (Psalm 110:1). The ultimate victory of Christ is predetermined (John 16:33). The Lord is coming so as to triumph!
Within the framework of the vision of John of the sixth wrath bowl (John 16:12-16) Antichrist and his prophet had called together the kings of the world and their armies for the last battle against God and his Anointed. However, the Lord did not appear at the time which the son of the Evil One had spied out and calculated. According to the description of the seventh bowl of wrath (Revelation 16:17-21) Jesus instead gave Antichrist a last warning, shook the ground under his feet by a great earthquake and destroyed his gathered armies by means of a heavy hail. However, the arch-fiend recovered from his disgrace very quickly. He is a master of lies and is able to distort eloquently each defeat into a glorious victory. Nevertheless one thing's certain: Christ is coming so as to put down the rebellion of the mankind against God. In Revelation 19:11-21 the promise of Psalm 2:1-12 will be fulfilled. This psalm may help us to understand the visions of John and our future in a better way.
The deported patriarch John uses in his book passages from the Old Testament and expressions again and again so as to impress the return of Christ on the Jewish Christians and Jews who took refuge in Minor Asia. However, with that the Book of Revelation does not represent a backsliding to Judaism, it rather tries to integrate the Jews into the New Covenant by means of the promises of the prophets and psalms: “Every eye will see him, and they also who pierced him.” (Revelation 1:7)
The Open Heaven: At the end of time the Hereafter is entering into our existence! In this vision the heaven did not only open slightly, and John was at this time not only taken in the spirit to the door of heaven, but now the gates of heaven open widely. The Son of God does not come with grace and mercy, because the patience of the Holy One has came to an end! His righteousness demands the Last Judgment on the son the Evil One his followers. The warnings by trumpets together with the educating judgments are over (Revelation 8:6-11:14). Now the last judgment with the extermination of Antichrist and his lying prophets is beginning.
God is not only love and goodness, but he is also holy and just. These different qualities of God and the consequences thereof can be seen in the history of his chosen people. The judgments of the God of the Covenant led Israel 722 B.C. into Assyrian captivity and the Jews 587 B.C. into Babylonian captivity. The rejection of Christ and of the Holy Spirit by the majority of his people was followed by the destruction of Jerusalem and the second temple in 70 A.D. and the scattering of Israel among all nations in 132 A.D. This last judgment, the banishment from their native country, was to last for 1800 years. The severe punishments by God for his covenant people represents for the world and the Christianity an obvious writing on the wall.
God is so merciless and intransigent against himself that he sacrificed his only begotten son and had him killed so as to save us as sinners from his judgment. Woe be to him who rejects this “free offer” of the love of God or blasphemes, for “heaven will fall on his head” according to a supposed saying of the old Germans and Gauls.
Behold a White Horse! John started his description of his new vision with an emphatic: “Behold!” The appearance of the white horse reminds of the first apocalyptic rider who had also entered riding on a white horse (Revelation 6:1-2). This rider, however, had not been the true Messiah but the armed Antichrist who wanted to steal the show from the coming Christ and therefore looked like him. The false Christ begun to stir up the world against the true Christ and led the masses with arms into misery, hunger, wars, and catastrophes. Again and again the cunning phony tries to immunize mankind against the influence of the true Christianity and to fill it with an Antichristian spirit and to bind it to him.
The true Christ also entered into the arena of the world history riding on a white horse so as to challenge and to destroy his demonic adversaries. Jesus is authorized to ride on a white, spotless horse as he is the only sinless God and King. His holiness and righteousness is a guarantee to him for the victory over the son of the liar and the murderer from the beginning on (John 8:44-45). Christ is coming on a white horse so as to carry out the destruction judgment upon the deceiver of the masses possessed by him.
John said also, “Behold, a white horse!”, for he was there when Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey lowly and poor. At that time the Son of God had disposed himself of his majesty and glory so as to die as substitutionary ransom for all sinners. He did not want to win the masses for himself by power and glory but to call out everybody, who is willing to be called out, with lowliness, love and self-denial. Without crucifixion of our Ego we will not be found in the train of the coming Messiah. When he comes again, he will come as riding on a white horse as a proof of his triumph, his majesty and his victory. He will not be disguised any longer as he was at his first coming. He will be seen on the white horse widely and everywhere. He will not be afraid of snipers who will be able to see him and his horse from afar, for he is coming as irresistible victor clothed with the authority of God.
Islam also claimed that Muhammad had a fantastic mount. His name, Burak, is taken from the word lightning, as the animal was supposed to be able to fly as fast as a stroke of lightning. Muhammad is said to have ridden within a few seconds from Mecca to Jerusalem as a proof that he had been welcomed there by Abraham, Moses and Jesus and acknowledged by these leading ambassadors of Allah. However, Muhammad’s wife Aisha said later on that he has slept the whole night in the same room as her and traveled only in the spirit.
Faithful and True: In this last vision four different names are given to the coming Christ. A single name is not sufficient to describe the fullness of features and power of Jesus. The first name of the one riding on the white horse is given as “Faithful and True". As true and faithful witness Jesus introduced himself to the leader of the church in Laodicea (Revelation 3:14). John testified also the faithfulness of Jesus as his first and excellent character trait (Revelation 1:5).
Jesus revealed the secret of the fatherhood of God (Matthew 11:25-27) as it is reported two-hundred times in the New Testament. Even before the Sanhedrim he did not deny being the Son of God and therefore he was crucified. He showed the people their sins, depravity and the coming judgment. Jesus called Satan the Evil One (Matthew 6:13) and did not keep quiet about his own coming as judge of all nations. He was faithful in his testimony up to his death, even to his death on the cross. Therefore he is the faithful witness and the truth in person.
In the orient “truth” means also “right” (justice). So Jesus is also our standard, law and example. Every man will be measured against him. Only he is the way, the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through him (John 14:6). In our era of the multicultural society and syncretism it is decisively important to return to the biblical truth. The risen crucified is the fundament of divine truth and eternal reality which never passes away. Jesus is also Yahweh, the Lord, whose name is called “I am who I am, and I will be who I will be". Jesus Christ does not change but will be faithful. He himself is the Amen of God. In him all promises of the bible will be fulfilled (2 Corinthians 1:20).
He Judges in Righteousness: Jesus is the righteous one and remains righteous due to his substitute ransom even in the case when he justifies unrighteous sinners only by their faith in him (Romans 1:17). But whoever does not accept the grace of justification (by faith alone) granted to him condemns himself; for Jesus will judge him according to his works, according to his gospel, his law and his pattern. The Father has committed all judgment to the Son. (John 5:22-30).
Jesus explains this fact as follows: “Verily, verily, I say to you, He that hears my word, and believes on him that sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death to life.” (John 5:24; see also 3:18-19). But whoever does not believe in the Son of God and hardens himself against the gospel or even pulls it arrogantly to pieces will be judged according to his own works, words and intentions. In this case any self-righteousness will turn out to be an error and self-deception. Whoever does not believe in the Son does not have eternal life and falls in destruction deeper and deeper. “And this is the record that God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that has the Son has life; and he that has not the Son of God has not life.” (1 John 5:11-12)
His Eyes are Like a Flame of Fire: The impressive description of Jesus' eyes “like a flame of fire” is found three-times in the Book of Revelation. The first time this expression is used in the revelation of Jesus Christ as he introduced himself to John as Judge of the world (Revelation 1:14). The second time this characteristic feature of Jesus is found in the epistle to the church in Thyatira (Revelation 2:18), where a practicing spiritist had been granted the permission by the church leader to introduce the church in the depths of Satan. Therefore the wrath of the Lamb of God blazed up and his eyes flashed with fierce anger. He had redeemed the believers in Thyatira and opened the way to the Father by his own sacrifice, and now this devil worshipper caused the blood-bought church to go astray to the knowledge of Satan and the devotion to him! Therefore Christ's anger burned within him, and his judgments came blow upon blow (Revelation 2:20-24).
In Revelation 19:12 it is written that the righteous judge was about to destroy the Son of the Evil One as he had deceived huge numbers so as to worship Satan and his son. Jesus had delivered all these men by his blood from the slave market of the sin and from their fear of death, but the son of Satan had succeeded in filling the masses with enthusiasm by means of his show miracles and the false resurrection of dead persons. Even superficial, good-natured Christians and Jews fell into his trap. Therefore the eyes of Jesus blazed up with anger! The extent of sin, deception and blasphemy overshot the mark He came in order to fight and wage war against the son of Satan and his armies. Jesus had to destroy the presumption and hubris of mankind definitely.
There is no hiding-place from the fiery eyes of Christ. The bundled light beam of his eyes penetrates steel and stone like a cutting torch. No cave and no camouflage will protect against the fiery eyes of Christ. He will not only discover any sin, evil intention and lie of man but also see through brilliant philosophies and sanctimonious religions and judge them as demonic inspirations as they are a threat to his kingdom and try to undermine it. Every subterfuge and excuse on the lips of man fades away in the presence of his piercing glance. Then it's no use to stutter an excuse any longer, only to remain silent, to bend and confess the sins.
Who does not already today repent completely and confess to God all dirt, lies, temptations and wickedness will be pierced by the glance of Jesus and be judged when he comes. If already X-rays are able to visualize hidden things, how much more will the glance of his fiery eyes, which will pierce everything, uncover, judge and burn every seduction of modern theology in liberal sermons likewise as it will happen in thrilling books. In the presence of his holiness we all appear unclean, depraved and lost. Only his blood is our hope on the Day of Judgment, the grace granted by him remains the fundament of our righteousness. With this knowledge in mind the lyrical poet Johann Ludwig Konrad Allendorf beseeched Jesus in his song “Lord, take care of me ….” to judge him completely: If your eyes still find something of a hidden spell then, Lord, please destroy it.
PRAYER: Lord Jesus Christ, we worship You because You come as the Judge and fighter to overcome the antichrist and his false prophet. All our sins would be uncovered and openly exposed before Your eyes, if we did not confess them before You in the upcoming Day of Judgment. If Your eyes find any more hidden possession, please Lord eradicate it. Amen.
QUESTION:
- What is the meaning of Christ's title “Faithful and True"?