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If we endure and remain in Christ through thick and thin, we will also rule with Christ in His millennial Kingdom on earth.
Revelation 19:11-20:6 - 19:11 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 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 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, 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 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.
20:1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.
4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.
What is the millennial Kingdom of Christ and why does it matter? It is the thousand-year rule of Christ on earth and it matters because the church is promised to rule with Christ in His earthly Kingdom for a thousand years at His second coming.
The problem is that not all who say they believe in Christ believe in the future physical second coming of Christ to rule for a thousand years. They need to know that their denial is the denial of God’s promise to the church to rule with Christ in His earthly Kingdom for a thousand years.
In recorded history, the only empire that lasted for a thousand years was the Roman Empire. Revelation 19:11-20:6 assured the church suffering under the ruthless rule of the Roman Empire that if they endured and remained in Christ, they would rule with Christ in His millennial Kingdom on earth.
The big idea is that if we endure and remain in Christ through thick and thin, we will also rule with Christ in His millennial Kingdom on earth. We know that it is true because Revelation 19-20 tells us that. However, it also reveals that before the Millennial Kingdom takes place, the world must witness three future events: the return, rage, and reign of Christ.
The Return of Christ (Revelation 19:11-14)
Revelation 19:11 reads, “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse!” So far in Revelation 19, John reported what he heard but in verse 11, he is the eyewitness of another white horse with its rider. It is another white horse because in Revelation 6:2, John saw a white horse with a rider who was given a crown to conquer the world.
That rider was the antichrist who would bring false peace to the world. He will negotiate a deal between Jews and Arabs to construct the last temple in Jerusalem. However, after three and a half years, he will put himself in the temple to be worshiped. Jews will rise against him and he against them.
Once again, God will deliver the nation of Israel by coming the second time in the person of Christ. He is the rider on the white horse in Revelation 19:11. He is the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. He is the eternal king of Israel who from the throne of David in Jerusalem would rule the entire world. Note three divine attributes of the rider who comes to rule the earth:
He comes as the divine righteous Judge. Revelation 19:11 continues, “The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.” No one is more faithful and true to God than Jesus, the Son of God. Philippians 2:8-11 declares, “And [Jesus] being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient [to God] to the point of death, even death on a cross.” So, Christ returns as the righteous judge to war against the unrighteous.
He comes as the divine conquering King. Revelation 19:12 reads, “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.” In John’s time, when kings conquered a land or a kingdom, they would come riding a white horse wearing the crowns taken from the rulers of those lands. Jesus returns with many crowns on His head because all kingdoms rightfully belong to Him. Therefore, in Revelation 5, Christ was the only one who was found worthy to take the scroll, the title deed to the earth from the hand of God.
He comes as the divine Lord and Commander. Revelation 19:13 continues, “He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God.” Whose blood is it? Is it Christ’s? No! It is the blood of nations. The first time that Christ came was as the suffering Lamb who was slain for the salvation of nations. At His return, He comes as the Lion of Judah to rule nations and devour all who oppose His rule.
A few weeks ago, I saw an advertising truck with a huge picture of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the founder of a sect of Islam with the statement, “The Messiah has arrived.” He has a growing following in over 200 countries. He was born in the 1800s in India, married twice, bore children, and died in 1908. Many like him have come in the last 2000 years claiming to be the promised Messiah but they all lived human lives and died like humans.
Revelation 19 tells us that Christ returns as both a righteous Lord and a ruthless military commander. Verse 14 reads, “And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses.” This is the great multitude of believers that John witnessed in Revelation 19:1-10. They were shouting Hallelujah and singing victory songs of Christ. They will follow Jesus on earth in His quest to set His earthly kingdom for a thousand years.
The application here is, do not be deceived that the Messiah has returned because Christ will return as the divine Judge, King, Lord, and Commander. In Matthew 24:5, Jesus said, “For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.’ ”
The Rage of Christ (Revelation 19:15-21)
Revelation 19:15 says, “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.” What are the weapons that Christ the divine, eternal Judge, King, Lord, and Commander will use in His rage to pour the wrath of God on the earth?
First the sword. Why not some modern advanced weapon? There is a reason for it. In Revelation 1:16, when John first saw the glorified Jesus, the two-edged sword was coming out of His mouth. Here in Revelation 19:15, it is the same sword that Christ will weaponize to strike down the nations.
Hebrews 4:12, which says this sword is the Word of God, reads, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Interestingly, in Revelation 19:13, Jesus was called the Word of God and in Revelation 19:15, the sword that comes from His mouth is also the Word of God.
John 1:1 reads, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” So, the Word that became man the first time to rescue and redeem the world comes the second time full of wrath and rage against the world. The Word that created the world will also end it. No more a meek Jesus but a mighty Jesus with the rod of correction in His hand to rule.
Revelation 19:16 says, “ On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.” This time, Jesus will not be mocked as the King of Jews because He comes with rage to take what rightfully belongs to Him.
Revelation 19:17-21 describes the scope of His rage that spills over in Revelation 20. Verses 17-19 reads, “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, 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.” This is the Battle of Armageddon that we studied in Revelation 16:16. In Zachariah 14:1-3 it is called the War of Armageddon.
Then in Revelation 19:20-21, “20 And the beast was captured, [that is the antichrist] 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 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.” So, the antichrist, the false prophet, and all those who took the mark of the beast, the number 666 will be gone from the earth.
Today as I preach, in the Hamas and Israel war, the world has declared Israel the bad guy. Only a handful of countries stand with Israel. A day is coming when no one will stand with Israel. The false prophet and the antichrist will mobilize the armies of all nations of the world to attack Israel and Christ will descend to defend and decimate the enemies of God and Israel. He will capture the false prophet and the antichrist and throw them into the lake of fire.
The application here, is to trust God’s plans and His timing. He is coming to punish the evildoers.
The Reign of Christ (Revelation 20:1-6)
Revelation 20 starts, “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain.” In Revelation 9:1, we saw an angel who was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit from which demonic creatures came out. However, the angel in Revelation 20:1 is different because He is not given the key but rather, He holds the key to the bottomless pit along with a great chain.
Revelation 20:2-3 tells us who is chained, “2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, 3 and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him,” After the antichrist, the false prophet, and all the human enemies, the only hurdle that would be left before the reign of Christ is established on earth for a thousand years would be the ancient serpent, the devil himself.
He rebelled in heaven and caused a rebellion against God on earth. Revelation 20:3 tells us that Satan will be bound before the reign of Christ for a thousand years, “so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while.”
Why not end Satan then and there? Why must he be released after a thousand years? There are many views on that, but my guess is to allow the nations to prove their loyalty, and faithfulness to God after a thousand-year rule of a righteous and divine Judge, King, and Lord—Jesus.
This has never happened before because Satan stole the dominion of the earth from Adam and Eve in its infancy. Once the reign of Christ is established, Revelation 20:4-6 says, “4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.” They are blessed and holy because they were given bodies like Jesus to reign with Him for a thousand years as their reward for enduring and remaining in Christ during their earthly life. They will be the first who will be resurrected to reign this earth with Christ for a thousand years.
The application here is, if we want to experience the first resurrection to rule and reign with Christ in His literal, earthly Kingdom for a thousand years, then endure and remain in Christ no matter what you face in this life. This life and its pains and pleasures will not last. If you believe and remain in Jesus, you will reign with Jesus for a thousand years on this earth.
A pastor shared a story about another pastor who said that if he changed his view on the great tribulation and the rapture, they could still fellowship but if he changed his view on the millennium there was no hope of fellowship.
Next time, we will see why it is such a controversial subject within the church. Nevertheless, our views do not change God’s promise that the church will rule with Christ in His millennial Kingdom on earth. However, before that takes place the world must witness the return, the rage, and the reign of Christ.
The action step to take in preparation for the return of Christ is to read, obey, and submit to the Word of God. Christ is called the Word of God, and by Him, everything was created, and by Him, everything will end. If you are not a believer in Christ and you want to escape the rage of Christ and reign with Christ in His literal millennial Kingdom on earth at the return of Christ, come to Christ today.
My appeal to you is, don’t wait anymore. Come as you are and receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Yes, the decision is yours but do not wait anymore. The Bible teaches that the first time Christ came was to shed His own blood for sinners and the second time, He comes to shed the blood of the sinners. He is coming with the two-edged sword in His mouth and an iron rod in His hand. If you decide to follow Him, He will fight for you. Otherwise He will fight against you.
Study Questions
1. What is the main theme of Revelation 19:11-20:6?
2. Why was the robe of Jesus at His second coming dipped in blood in Revelation 19:13?
3. What is the significance of the name, “The Word of God,” that Jesus is called in Revelation 19:13 in the end times? How does it relate to Revelation 19:15 where John saw a sharp sword coming out of Jesus’ mouth?
4. Why are the antichrist, the false prophet, and Satan dealt with separately in Revelation 19:20 and Revelation 20:2?
Deeper Study Questions
1. In Revelation 19:16, Jesus is called “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.” Share in what way Jesus is your King and Lord now.
2. Revelation 20:4-6 talks about the first resurrection. Share why you believe that you and your loved ones will experience that first resurrection. In other words, what makes you believe that you will be resurrected to rule with Christ in His literal, physical, millennial Kingdom on earth? (Hint: it is not your righteous works)
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