Thursday, March 22, 2018

Hail the Conquering Hero! Revelation 19:11-16

 Revelation 19:11-16
Hail the Conquering Hero!
 (pt. 1)

INTRO- Popular portraits of Christ: (click here to listen to to Sunday's exposition)

A) The tame and mild babe of Bethlehem.   A very safe Jesus. 

B) The humanitarian "peace to all" Christ.  An all-inclusive Jesus.

Overarching questions to ponder: Is the Person I worship, live for, and tell people about the COMPLETE JESUS?  

Are we presenting a user-friendly Christ and a truncated gospel-in hopes of saving face with a lost and hostile world?”  If we're being honest, many portraits of Jesus do not mesh with the (biblical) Christ of Revelation 5 or Revelation 19:11-21.  


The entire Scriptures (2 Tim. 3:16-4:5) are given to us for a reason (including passages like Rev. 19-20).  The Holy Spirit wastes no ink in the Holy Scriptures.  Do we really believe what we say we believe about the Bible?  Does our preaching, worship, and evangelism give evidence of this?


The future earthly reign of the Messiah was prophesied in the O.T.; anticipated in the Gospels and Acts, and finally comes to fruition in John’s inspired Revelation of greater things yet to come!

This new inspired vision of future things presents three interconnected scenes:


I) The Return of the King

Revelation 19:11-16

II) The Feast of flesh

Revelation 19:17-18


III) Armageddon 

Revelation 19:19-21


Three Divine Names of Christ (as presented in Revelation 19:11-16):


1) Faithful and True

Rev. 19:11


2) The Unknown Name 


Rev. 19:12


3) The Word of God

Rev. 19:13



One Overarching Title helps us understand and appreciate who Jesus truly is:

1) King of kings and Lord of lords!

Rev. 19:16b


For Further Reflection/Application:

What are some views or portraits of Christ that are imbalanced that need to be filled in with related passages of Scripture?  List 2-3 that are common among “religious” people.

What are some views or portraits of Christ that are flat out heretical? (see 2 Corinthians 11)

Why do we prefer to keep Jesus as a baby in a manger (as opposed to the Christ of Revelation 5, 19-20)?

Why do so many professing evangelical preachers today skip over passages of Scripture like Revelation 19:11-21?   Is this ok?  Why or why not?  Read 2 Timothy 3:16-4:5 and Acts 20:25-28. 

What are some of the unintended consequences of avoiding hard passages of Scripture like Revelation 19:11-21?

Jesus is Faithful and True.  How has He lived up to this Name in your own Christian pilgrimage?

Satan is a boldfaced liar and a deceiver?  What religious books does Satan endorse (some even under the banner of Christianity)?  What lies is Satan currently seeking to deceive you with?

What is the practical significance of the “unknown Name” of Jesus?

Read a few chapters from the Foxe’s classic Book of Martyrs or visit www.persecution.com.  After you do this then read Revelation 6:10. This holy cry for justice is answered in Revelation 19:11-21!  We must remind those who struggle to accept texts like this that our God is a Consuming Fire and that Jesus is also a righteous Judge!  We must quote John 3:36 in it’s entirety when witnessing to the lost.

Related Praise Songs:

The Hallelujah Chorus- Handel
Eternal Praise- Enfield (YouTube)
O Victory in Jesus
Hallelujah What a Savior (note especially verse 4)
The Sands of Time Are Sinking- see Capital Hill Baptist Church on YouTube
The Battle Hymn of the Republic- When sung through the prism of Revelation 19:11-21
The Lord is a Warrior- Caedmon's Call

Related Biblical Texts:

Psalm 2. 73.  Matthew 3:7-12; 16:21-27; chapters 24-25.  Romans 12:19.  Hebrews 1-2.  Jude 4-16.  Revelation 19-20. 

Related Resources:

Because the Time is Near- John MacArthur
Foxe’s Book of Martyrs
The Voice of the Martyrs ministries.  www.persecution.com