“How Does It End?” – The Second Coming – Rev. 19:11-16

So, here’s the scene.  You go home after church tonight and change into your pj’s, pop some popcorn and sit down on the couch and turn on the TV.  You scroll through the stations until you see a movie you would like to watch.  It’s just coming on so this is perfect.  And it turns out to be really interesting.  You are glued to the tube, sitting on the edge of your seat.  It’s the guy in the white hat against the guy in the black hat.

Through the whole movie, the guy in the white hat has protected the pretty girl who, in return has made goo goo eyes at him back.  He has made good choices even when they were difficult.  He has remained honorable through the whole show.  All the while Mr. Black Hat has schemed and stolen and lied and been basically a big ol’ meanie-head.  And now it’s high noon and time for the showdown.

White hat walks out of the general store with the pretty girl watching nervously through the window.  Black hat walks out of the saloon with a bottle of whiskey.  They start to walk towards each other with that suspenseful piano music playing in the background.  And all of the sudden Mr. Black Hat pulls his six-gun and shoots Mr. White Hat right in the heart.  He grabs the girl and rides off on his horse.  The end.

How do you like that story?  Pretty horrible, huh?  Nobody makes a movie like that.  Nobody wants to see the good guy lose the girl, much less get killed.  What kind of justice is that?  It’s also why I don’t want to watch “Ol’ Yeller” ever again.  I’ll get misty-eyed just thinking about what happens to poor Yeller.  I don’t want to see that stuff.  Everybody roots for the good guy, right?  But now the good guy is dead and there is no way anything good can come from it.

Well, that is exactly how the disciples felt in John chapter 21.  Listen as I read starting in verse 2.  “Simon Peter, Thomas , Nathanael, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. ³ “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.”

Let me stop there and just say this was a bad time for the disciples.  They had watched Jesus die on the cross and now He was gone and there was nothing else for them to do but what they had done before they had even met Him.  They went fishing.  But now they couldn’t even catch any fish.  This was just the worst.  All of their lives they had been reading that Old Testament script about how the guy in the white hat was going to come and save them and then He did come but now He is dead.

But what they didn’t know was that it was the end of the movie but not the end of the story.  There was a sequel coming soon.  If it were a movie sequel they would be able to see that the guy in the white hat had been shot but the bullet was stopped by a Bible in his shirt pocket.  He gets up off the ground, finds the guy in the black hat, fights him and kills him and then takes the girl home and marries her and lives happily ever after.

And what is even better is that the disciples and all of us believers through the ages will have a part in the movie.  Did you know that?  You are going to be a part of the greatest epic that ever happens in the history of the world.  And the name of that sequel…is “The Second Coming.”  Let’s turn to the book of Revelation to see a trailer for that show.  And our narrator for this epic is the Apostle John, one of those who just happened to be with Peter when he went fishing.

Revelation 19:11-21 is the screenplay for how this show goes.  But I’ll warn you.  This is not rated G.  It has violence and mature themes.  Let’s read it.  I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. ¹² His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. ¹³ He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. ¹⁴ The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. ¹⁵ Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. ¹⁶ On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: king of kings and lord of lords. ¹⁷ And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds flying in midair, “Come, gather together for the great supper of God, ¹⁸ so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, great and small.”   ¹⁹ Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. ²⁰ But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. ²¹ The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.

Now that’s how a story ought to end, right?  Which is appropriate as we continue our series entitled, “How Does It End?”  We have seen the judgment that is to come to believers and the judgment for unbelievers.  We have looked at the Rapture where Jesus snatches up His church in the air, in the twinkling of an eye.  And for some people that would be enough.  It would be enough that God takes all of His children to Heaven and just leaves Satan on earth with his minions to run wild.  But for all of you that crave justice, that wouldn’t be enough.

And we know that God is just.  We have all heard Romans 12:19 that says, “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”  Well here you go.  Here’s justice.  Our setting is the Battle of Armageddon at the end of the Tribulation.  I once heard an end-times specialist talk about how things were going to end and how he closed his talk was to say, “If you want clues as to when it is coming, keep your eye on Israel.”

Here we have nations all over the world coming together to battle Israel and each other.  But in the middle of their fighting, they won’t miss what happens as Jesus comes back to earth to finish the fight.  And when He does He will come back visibly.  He will come back victoriously.  And He will come back with vengeance.  Let’s look again at verse 13.  It says who is coming back.  His name is the Word of God.

This isn’t the first time John calls Jesus the Word.  He starts his gospel with those words.  In John 1:1 he says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was God and the word was with God.”  He says in verse 12 of Rev. 19 that His eyes are like blazing fire which symbolizes His all-seeing, all-knowing, all-revealing sight.  He has on His head many crowns.  In fact, He has every crown.  He is the King of the universe, the King of Zion, the King of every believer, the King and Husband of the church.  He is the King of kings.

He will not be mistaken or missed.  He is coming visibly with His robe dipped in blood; the blood He shed for us on the cross by which He offers us salvation; the blood of the believers which He is coming to avenge and the blood of His enemies which is as good as spilled right there on the battlefield.  All of which stains His robe royal red like the King that He is.

And He will come visibly riding a white horse.  This is not the colt on which He rode into Jerusalem the last time as one riding in peace.  This is a horse ridden in victory and He rides in holiness and purity.  And it says He rides it to make war.  What a horrible thought to be an enemy of God at this last day.  Isaiah 2:19 says, “People will flee to caves in the rocks and to holes in the ground from the fearful presence of the LORD and the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth.”

He will come visibly and He will come victoriously.  Look at verse 14.  It says, “The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.”  Who are the armies of Heaven?  Well, there may be angels involved in this battle but John sees us.  He is talking about all the believers riding behind Jesus on white horses too.  But look how we are dressed.  In fine linen, white and clean.  Jesus has blood all over His but ours are spotless.

Now, I would like to think I was going to be riding that white horse into battle like John Wayne with the reins in my teeth and a sword in one hand and a machine gun in the other, blasting away at the bad guys with a bazooka and RPG’s but that’s not how it happens.  I said earlier that we will play a part in this epic but we are pretty much just extras at this point.

Jesus is the victor.  We are on His side but Jesus is the great warrior.  And look at verse 15 to see His weapon of choice.  Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations.  Yes, the same Jesus Who was present at creation and spoke the universe into being and populated it with water, mountains, animals and even people just by speaking will end it all with His mouth.

When the U.S. attacked Iraq they said it would be shock and awe.  And it was pretty impressive.  But when the enemies of God look up and prepare to fight against the Lord, they will be shocked but I don’t know if they will have time to be awed because it will not last long.  Jesus doesn’t need our help.  He doesn’t need the help of the angels. 

We say often around here that “God’s got this.”  When you are scared, don’t worry.  God’s got this.  When your month exceeds your money, don’t worry.  God’s got this.  When your world seems to be crashing down around you, let not your hearts be troubled, be still and know He is God…God’s got this.  We say that because the same God that has plenty of power to overthrow all the powers of hell and every army on the planet all at the same time has all the power necessary to take care of you on this side of Heaven as well as the other side.

He is coming visibly.  He is coming victoriously.  And He is coming with vengeance.

 A despondent woman was walking along the beach when she saw a bottle on the sand. She picked it up and pulled out the cork. Whoosh! A big puff of smoke appeared. "You have released me from my prison," the genie told her. "To show my thanks, I grant you three wishes. But take care, for with each wish, your mate will receive double of whatever you request."  "Why?" the woman asked. "That bum left me for another woman."  "That is how it is written," replied the genie.  The woman shrugged and then asked for a million dollars. There was a flash of light, and a million dollars appeared at her feet. At the same instant, in a far-off place, her wayward husband looked down to see twice that amount at his feet.  "And your second wish?"  "Genie, I want the world's most expensive diamond necklace." Another flash of light, and the woman was holding the precious treasure. And, in that distant place, her husband was looking for a gem broker to buy his latest bonanza.  "Genie, is it really true that my husband has two million dollars and more jewels than I do, and that he gets double of whatever I wish for?" The genie said it was indeed true. "Okay, genie, I'm ready for my last wish," the woman said. "Scare me half to death."   (Sermonillustrations.com)

Vengeance!  I saw an anonymous quote that said, “The divine wrath is slow indeed in vengeance, but it makes up for its tardiness by the severity of the punishment.”  The severity of God’s vengeance cannot be overstated here.  Because unless you are a bird, this day is going to end badly for you.  The first coming of Jesus brought forgiveness and grace but the second time He comes, He is coming to bring judgment and He is bringing it with a vengeance.

I told you this was not rated G.  It’s pretty graphic here.  In verse 15 he says, “He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.”  John also talks about seeing a winepress in chapter 14 of Revelation.  There he sees “The grapes were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress in a stream about 180 miles long and as high as a horse's bridle.”  NLT

He is comparing the wrath of God to a winepress where the blood flows like wine for 180 miles, which is about half the length of Israel.  So, why is Jesus so mad?  Why does He have to kill everybody and do it in a way that is so gruesome?  Is it because of how they treated Him at the cross?  Is this for spitting on Him and pulling out His beard and whipping Him nearly to death before nailing His hands and feet to the cross while He hung there naked until He died?

Is this just about getting revenge?  Is He saying, “Boy, you really messed with the wrong guy this time!”?  I can answer those questions with an emphatic, “No!”  No!  Because is any of that really any worse than any sin I have committed?  When I make the choice to lie, steal, gossip, lust or even worry, is that not the same thing as shaking my fist in the face of Almighty God and swearing that I know better than He does?

Every time I sin it is an offense to God.  It is one more thing holding Jesus on that cross.  I might as well be holding the hammer that drove the nails into His precious hands every time I sin.  But do you know what?  He has forgiven me.  He has forgiven you, too, when you accepted Him and His forgiveness.  And He would have forgiven any one of those who beat Him or mocked Him or killed Him if they had just repented and asked.

No, that is not why Jesus is so angry at His Second Coming.  His righteous anger burns for those who willfully rejected Him.  And they didn’t just do it once.  It was their lifestyle; their ongoing attitude of rebellion – a stubborn way of life that continually resists, rejects and insults the One who came to earth to die for them so He could provide the way for them to have eternal life with Him in Heaven.

But they rejected Him having been warned over and over and over again.  They wanted to live their own life.  They wanted to live life their own way and so God makes good on His warning and gives them what they have been asking for.  As believers and followers of Jesus we do not get what we deserve.  We get grace and mercy.  Unbelievers get justice.

Do you remember that passage in John 21 that I started reading earlier where the disciples had gone fishing but didn’t catch anything?  Let me read a little bit more.  Starting in verse 4.  “Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. ⁵ He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered. ⁶ He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. ⁷ Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. ⁸ The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish.”

I love that story!  Can you imagine how Peter must have felt?  Can you imagine the grief, the shame that he was carrying around, knowing that he had denied Jesus 3 times and then abandoned Him?  But now Peter sees Him again and He is alive and he can’t wait to row to shore.  He jumps out and swims.

He swims because Peter knows that on that shore is forgiveness.  He knows that on that shore is the end of his guilt and shame and the beginning of an abundant life here on earth and he knows he is not guaranteed another breath and so he gets to Jesus as fast as he can.  And that’s just what Jesus was waiting for.

And that is what He is waiting for you to do today as well.  Why let your pride stop you any longer?  How has that worked out for you so far anyway?  Do it today.  Ask Jesus to be Lord of your life and to forgive you of your sins and change your life for all of eternity.  That’s what He is waiting for.