Christ the king appears - Revelation 19:11-16 v11 Then I looked. I saw that heaven was open.

And there I saw a white horse. The name of the rider of the horse was Loyal and True. He is a judge who is always fair and correct. And he goes to fight against his enemies. v12 His eyes shone like fire and he wore many crowns on his head. He had a name written on him, but nobody except himself knows it. v13 Blood covered the long clothes that he wore. And his name is the Word of God. v14 The armies of heaven followed him on white horses. They wore clothes of fine cloth, which was clean and white. v15 A sharp sword seemed to come from the riders mouth. With it, he will defeat the nations. He will rule the nations strictly, like a *shepherd with an iron stick. One presses *grapes in a *winepress and wine flows out. So, he will cause the fierce anger of the all-powerful God to flow out. v16 The rider had on his clothes, and on his upper leg, this name: King of kings and *Lord of *lords.

Verse 11 Heaven opens and there is a white horse. The description of the rider tells us who will win the last battle. The rider will fight the last war. He will bring to an end this present age. He is the *Lord Jesus Christ. In this verse, the name that he has is Loyal and True. He is right to fight against his enemies. He will be the judge of all who are on the earth. Verse 12 The eyes of the rider shine like flames of fire. The riders eyes are special in this description, because the *Lord sees all things. Nobody can hide anything from him. He has many crowns on his head. This means that Christ is the ruler over all other kings. He has all authority in heaven and on the earth. The rider also has a name that only he knows. It is a secret name. We can know the *Lord but there will always be more to know. He is so much more than we shall ever be able to understand. Verse 13 In this strange description, blood covers the clothes of Christ. It is the blood of his enemies. As Christ goes into the battle, blood splashes his clothes.

The *Lord Jesus has the names Loyal and True. He also has a secret name. But here his name is the Word of God. In the *gospel of John, the Word means Jesus. Jesus was with God in the beginning of time. He is God. Verse 14 The armies that follow Christ are on white horses. They wear white and clean clothes. This shows that they also win the war. But Christ wins the battle and they follow him. Verse 15 The rider on the white horse has a sharp sword. It seems to come from his mouth. This description shows us the power of his words. They are like a sword that cuts his enemies to pieces. He will speak and, by his words, he will defeat the nations. Christ overcomes all by the words of his power. This is what Isaiah the *prophet said. He will strike the earth with the bar of his mouth. With the breath of his lips, he will kill the wicked people. (Isaiah 11:4). He will rule the nations like a *shepherd with an iron stick. An iron stick is strong and it will not bend. So, Christ will be strict when he rules the nations. He will punish all who do not obey him. (See Psalm 2:9.) He will press his enemies as one presses *grapes. To make wine, one squeezes the *grapes until the juice flows out. So, with the anger of God, Christ will kill his enemies. Verse 16 The rider is the King of kings and the *Lord of *lords. The *Lord Jesus is the king over all the nations. There is nobody on earth or in heaven like him. He alone has all power and he alone rules over all.