November 19, 2020

The Return of the King

Revelation 19

Madison McGill
Thursday's Devo

November 19, 2020

Thursday's Devo

November 19, 2020

Central Truth

Jesus will keep His promise to return. And when He does, it will be glorious, swift, and triumphant.

Key Verse | Revelation 19:11-12

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.

Revelation 19

Rejoicing in Heaven

After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
    for his judgments are true and just;
for he has judged the great prostitute
    who corrupted the earth with her immorality,
and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

Once more they cried out,

“Hallelujah!
The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.”

And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” And from the throne came a voice saying,

“Praise our God,
    all you his servants,
you who fear him,
    small and great.”

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
    the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

And the angel said 1 19:9 Greek he said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” 10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The Rider on a White Horse

11 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. 12 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. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in 2 19:13 Some manuscripts sprinkled with blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule 3 19:15 Greek shepherd them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

17 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, 18 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, 4 19:18 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface both small and great.” 19 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. 20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence 5 19:20 Or on its behalf 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 of fire that burns with sulfur. 21 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.

Footnotes

[1] 19:9 Greek he said
[2] 19:13 Some manuscripts sprinkled with
[3] 19:15 Greek shepherd
[4] 19:18 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface
[5] 19:20 Or on its behalf

Dive Deeper | Revelation 19

The first thing that comes to mind when reading Revelation 19 is when Gandalf arrives at the Battle of Helm's Deep in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. Things are looking grim for the good guys as they seem to be overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of evil Uruk-hai breaking down the walls. However, it is one of my favorite climactic moments in any movie as our heroes make a last charge through their attackers and dawn arrives. Just as he had promised five days previously, Gandalf arrives in the east on his white horse accompanied by the Riders of Rohan to save the day. Makes you want to cheer, right?

The arrival of a hero in a movie to save the day pales in comparison to the return of our King of Kings and Lord of Lords. As followers of Christ, we have even more to celebrate and rejoice in as we trust in the promise that Christ will return (Acts 1:11). Revelation 19 tells of the glorious fulfillment of this promise and how Christ will capture the beast and false prophet, throw them into the lake of fire, and slay the kings and armies gathered together to make war against the rider and His armies of heaven. Nothing can stand a chance against the Word of God. 

Even though He is not mentioned by name, we can identify the rider on the white horse as Jesus Christ as He is the faithful and true witness (Revelation 1:5). We look forward to Christ's return, because it signals that the end of the suffering, tribulation, and deception this world has been embroiled in is near. Jesus already defeated sin and death (1 Corinthians 15:55-57). Revelation 19 reminds us that the ultimate victory over evil belongs to Him, and nothing is too big or terrifying for the Lord to handle. We do not know exactly when He will return, but we do know that the Lord is righteous and sovereign and that He always keeps His promises. May we let those truths inform our thoughts and actions daily.

Discussion Questions

1. One day the heavens will pass away with a roar, but until then, the Lord is patient, wishing all to reach repentance (2 Peter 3:9-10). Have you received the free gift of eternal life by confessing Jesus as Lord and believing God raised Him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10)? If so, how does the hope you have in Christ inform your day-to-day living? If not, I invite you to reflect on Romans 6:23 and 1 Peter 3:18. 

2. Did the last time you felt overwhelmed by something (circumstances, temptation, sin) drive you to return to the Lord? Read 1 Corinthians 10:13.

3. What are some areas of your life in which you have seen God display His faithfulness and keep His promises? Read Psalm 111:7-8. How can you remember this faithfulness the next time you face trials?

4. Are you in consistent fellowship with other believers? Read Hebrews 10:24-25. What is one thing you could do today to encourage someone "to love and good works"? Don’t just think of it; do it!