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Well, once again, good morning. Please turn in your Bibles to Revelation chapter 19. Revelation chapter 19. I want to look at verses 11 through 13 today, and a very appropriate text this morning. We have been singing about his first advent and taking our minds to his first presentation to the world.

And our text this morning takes our minds to his second advent and to the presentation of the king at his second advent. Let me go ahead and read these words to you. And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called faithful and true.

And in righteousness he judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems. And he has a name written on him, which no one knows except himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God.

Well, with this, we come to the high priest. In the book of Revelation. In fact, everything that in Revelation leads up to this point. In fact, I would go as far as to say everything we've read in our Bible takes us up to this point. This is the high point of the book of Revelation.

It is the high point of Scripture. It is what everything has been pointing to. And everything that happens after this moment is more post-script, as glorious as it is. What we read coming afterwards in the final three chapters really merely introduces us to the glory of his reign.

And so, in these verses that we'll be looking at this morning, we're looking at that presentation of Jesus Christ to the world. This is what the book is about: the revealing of Jesus Christ, the revelation of Jesus Christ. And so, just to make sure we're prepared for this, I want to remind you of the context in which this great scene, this scene of his second coming, occurs.

You remember that it's against the backdrop of all the worldwide. Opposition that has been developing through the book of Revelation, starting all the way back in Revelation 6, where the other pseudo-king, the pretender on the white horse, comes and conquers. And now we have the true king coming.

All the way back then, deception, fraud, tyranny, and the rise of an evil empire, and the gathering together of these worldwide forces to oppose Christ. That is occurring and has occurred and sets the backdrop for this glorious entrance. Look at verse 11, and I saw. And I saw.

You can circle that. You can look at verse 17, then I saw. Then you can look at verse 19, and I saw. In fact, as you will go through the next three chapters, eight times that expression is going to be made, eight different divisions that will take us from the second coming all the way to the new heavens and the new earth.

And this first scene, and I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. This continues to describe the judgment that is coming upon Babylon the Great. If you remember, in chapter 16, we looked at the bowl judgments. All that is coming. And then, beginning in chapter 17, the angel comes to John and says, Let me explain to you the fall of Babylon the Great.

And so, in chapter 17, he describes and shows him how God is going to judge the false religion of the worldwide system. And then, in chapter 18, God shows how the economic powerhouse of Babylon the Great and its trading enterprise is going to be judged. And then in chapter 19, he deals with the collapse of Babylon the Great's military machine.

So, its influence in the world, its economic power, and then finally, its military capacity, all brought down. And it's in this final scene: the military power and machine is going to be brought down by the personal appearing of the true king. That's the backdrop. In fact, we've already been preparing this and prepared for this in Revelation 4.

14, 18, remember these words? Then another angel, the one who has the power over fire, came from the altar, and he called out with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe.

So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God. And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out from the wine press up to the horses' bridles for a distance of 200 miles.

This is also depicting this scene in the metaphor of the wine press. But then this scene is also described further in chapter 16. Remember in verse 12, the angel, the sixth angel, poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings of the East.

And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs. For they are spirits of demons performing signs which go out to the kings of the whole world to gather them together for the war of the great day of God the Almighty.

So deception goes out. The river Euphrates is dried up. A place where then now the convenience of military advancement of the kings of the earth and their forces come into the land of Israel. Gathering the logistics, a pathway, and deceiving spirits. And so the kings of the whole world gather there.

The place. Verse 16, and they gathered, and this is in chapter 16, and they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Harmageddon. That's how they get there. Then, verse 17, the seventh angel poured out his bowl on the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, It is done.

And huge hailstones, about 100 pounds each, came down from heaven upon men and blasphemed men because of the plague of the hell, because its plague was extremely severe. That's the seventh bowl judgment. And in that, then, chapter 17, chapter 18, and chapter 19 go into more details about this final military conflict, which is likened to a son.

Smashing of grapes in the wine press. They are in the valley of Aharmageden, and we know why they are there. They work for the dragon, they work for his beast, they oppose Christ and oppose God, and they have gathered. That's the backdrop of this worldwide opposition. But also in this context, there's the backdrop of heavenly celebration.

At the same time, the world is gathering, there is celebration happening in heaven and about to happen on earth. This backdrop of this in chapter 19 is this marriage supper of the lamb getting ready for. And Christ's second coming is likened to a wedding reception that is announced and then celebrated in heaven in the first nine verses.

And it's after this revelation that John falls down to his feet in verse 9. And he said, This, write, 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. Then I fell at his feet to worship him.

So moving, so. Over the top, wonderful, the revelation that it even moved John to worship an angel. But he said, Do not do that. I am a fellow servant of yours, and your brethren who hold to the testimony of Jesus worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

You do not worship me because I'm a fellow servant of yours, and because I am testifying to the true King, you worship God. That's the spirit of prophecy. Jesus is God's public statement to the world. And so it's continuing with this wedding reception analogy. The second coming in the rest of this chapter is described or can be broken down into two major sections.

First of all, the presentation of Jesus Christ and then the entrance of Jesus Christ. And so what we're looking at this morning is this presentation of Jesus Christ to the whole world. And then, as chapter 20 is going to show us, begin looking at his reign. Presentation, the entrance, and then his reign.

The king is coming. This is what the whole book is about. Revelation 1:7 says this: Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every Eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over him. So it is to be.

Amen. See, the Bible, the book of Revelation, and the Bible is about this coming king. We sang about royalty and David's royalty and the coming king. And I think the Bible is a book about royalty. In fact, you could even call it the Chronicles of Royalty. Because there it shows us many different kings and kingdoms.

Shows us two different realms, an earthly realm and a heavenly realm. It shows us many different earthly rulers. Some of them are legitimate, put there by God. Some of them illegitimate usurpers. Some of the kings, as we read, and rulers and nations, they have kings that are individual and last for a short time.

Some are dynastic and they last for a long time. Some kingdoms are short, some are long, some are competent, some led by incompetent kings, some good, some bad. One thing's for sure. They all come and go. It's a book of royalty, earthly royalty, and heavenly royalty. It shows us what true royalty is all about.

Heavens, all the royalty, and all the dynasties, and all the kings, and kingdoms, and people, and pecking orders in all these is earthly. It's made by man. But when you look into the Word of God, there is a king. There is a royalty that surpasses everything that we see and know in this world.

Because ultimately, this book is about heaven's king, his royalty, his kingdom. He is the one who is over all other kings. He is legitimate. He is competent. He is good, and he will reign forever. See, the Christ presented to us in the scripture is heaven's true king, and all are going to bow to him, and all are going to recognize him as the supreme leader.

And this is his presentation in our text this morning. Very last thought of verse 10 is: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. He is a true king. He is earth's true king. And the integrity of his kingship speaks of a royalty that surpasses every royal ideal that characterizes earthly realms.

And the honor that is due to him, likewise, is to surpass every ideal of devotion in earthly realms. He is the true king, and God wants pure devotion, true devotion, complete devotion to him. Every thought of every sector of human society is to bow before him in aggressive acquiescence and devotion to him.

What about you? I know we sing a lot about the baby in a manger, and sometimes we can come away with some very warm feelings about devotion, but let me ask you: are you aggressively bowing before this king? He is heaven's true king, and his royalty wasn't diminished for just even a second when he entered into this world, taking upon the form of a child.

He is to be loved with all of our hearts. To be loved with all of our minds, he is to be loved with everything we have. Tribute is due to him. That's who God says his king is. The Bible is a book about royalty and bowing to heaven's royalty.

It is also a book about destiny, destiny. As we look at this morning, all of the world is going to see him. And so, in our time this morning, I want you to see the surpassing royalty of heaven's king so that you will aggressively throw yourself down at his feet, so that you will bring every sector of your being into submission and complete worship of him and him alone.

That is why he is revealed, and that is the invitation for us this morning. Before I jump right into that, I can't help, just since it happens to be December 24th, I do want to spend a little time just thinking about. His first advent as entrance into this world.

Just take a brief moment. I read to you a good bit of Luke chapter 2 already. Let me just pick up where I left off in verse 21 and just read a little bit further about his first presentation. Luke 2:21, and when eight days had passed before his circumcision, his name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

And when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. As it is written in the law of the Lord, every firstborn male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord.

And to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law, a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was a righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to carry him to the children, out for him the custom of the law.

Then he took him into his arms and blessed God and said, Now, Lord, you are releasing your bondservant to depart in peace according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light of revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of your people, Israel.

And his father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel and for a sign to be opposed. And a sword will pierce even your own soul to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.

And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuo, and of the tribe of Asher, and she was advanced in years and had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage. And then, as a widow to the age of 84, she never left the temple, serving night and day with fastings and prayers.

At that very moment, she came up and began giving thanks to God and continued to speak of him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. You see, if we didn't have a record of his first advent, it If there were no baby in a manger, and all we were given was this scene in Revelation 19 of this, the splendor of this conquering king.

You know, we might be tempted to think that the way to true greatness is to assert yourself, to show your glory. But we have the manger, and we understand, even as we look at him, that the way of greatness is to empty oneself before the Lord rather than asserting ourselves before man.

He emptied himself in total submission to his father's will. That's the baby in the manger. Total submission to his father's will. And you know what? That's why he expects the same of everyone who follows him. Total submission, total surrender to the heavenly Father's will. That's the king. Are you following him?

Do you understand what he wants from you? He emptied himself. This first Advent is wildly contrasted with what we see in Revelation 19. In his first Advent, he came humble, lowly. You can't be more dependent than being a helpless baby. That's the form he took. And he showed that our Heavenly Father can be dependent upon when we have absolutely no strength in and of ourselves to rely upon.

He can be dependent upon. Not only did he come humbly, but he also experienced rejection, despised. He allowed himself to be rejected, to be thought little of. He experienced intense humiliation. Not only was he humble, but he was humiliated even in the public's eye, public rejection, even in front of those closest to him.

He allowed himself to be publicly humiliated, suffering, physical suffering, mental suffering, spiritual suffering, all of this, loss, and to the point of death. This is the king. And let me tell you, his royalty is no less royal in the manger than it is on the white horse as he returns.

He is king thoroughly in both settings. We just get a chance to see him and take him in. This is true royalty. This is the kind of royalty that heaven. Is excited about, celebrates, and bows before. True kingship. Not pretenders of the earth or the little pecking orders that we come up with in our little, this is the true king, deserving of full heart obedience.

And so, God, in his providence and in his wisdom, he wanted us to behold the king in the manger before we behold him on the white horse, which is what we get the privilege of doing this morning. So, I want you to turn back with me to Revelation 19, beginning in verse 11.

There are really seven descriptions, several descriptions, and I'll group them together as we just walk through these few verses. But these verses contain one of the most graphic depictions of Christ's second coming anywhere in Scripture. And it starts out by first really describing the realm from which he comes.

Look back at verse 11. And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. I saw heaven opened. The idea, heaven is open to revealed. This is a bigger and wider. Opening than anything else we've read in Revelation thus far. That is the realm that is open, full sight of heaven.

Kings of the earth see it. Heaven opened up. Really, it's saying the heavens now standing open. And behold, first thing that catches John's eye is a horse, a white horse. This action, what's taking place is not the action of an individual, but of heaven itself, heaven opening up.

He is God's king. God is about to act. Heaven is about to act. With all this amassing of world forces in opposition to God, now the heaven is responding. God is about to act. And not in an impersonal way, like you remember the flood in Noah's day. He wiped out the earth with water.

That was more of an impersonal way. He's coming personally. And he's going to walk among them and tread the wine press. He is going to come personally. Not in an impersonal way. He comes upon a white horse. You remember in chapter 6, verse 2, there was another white horse and a ruler who goes out and deceives the nations, conquers.

He is the rise of the Antichrist, the usurper. But here on we see a white horse, and that's the first thing. John, I saw heaven, and there it is. Look, behold, a white horse. He's not coming in on a donkey this time. He's coming as heaven's king, fully, operating for heaven itself, a military champion, white, victory.

He's coming in battle array. That's what he's doing. That's the realm from which he comes and who he is in that realm. This is true royalty. Second, as we're looking at this second advant, I want you to see the description of his, really, his essential being of. His persona.

Look at verse 11. And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat upon it is called faithful and true. John's eyes then go from the horse to the one sitting upon the horse. And he says, He is called faithful and true. Word for faithful, he is the one who is dependable, faithful.

He is the one who fulfills all his promises. He is the one who we've been looking for. And he comes. He is faithful. He is reliable. He is dependable. He comes as he said he would come to fulfill all of his promises. You can build your life upon his words because he is faithful.

But he's also true. He's true. That is, he is true to his calling. He is true. Everything he says is right, accurate, spot-on. And this is in stark contrast to the unreliable and false words of the beast in this context, who has just deceived the nation. To get them to come around and to go up against God.

This beast inspired by the serpent of old. Unreliable words, false words. This is what has left and led humanity into a wreck. That serpent of old, unfaithful words, false words, and a life built upon unfaithful and false words inevitably bring about the curse of God. But here is one who is, in contrast to all that, the faithful one, the true one.

Upon whom do you build your life? Look, this is heaven's true king. This is the outcome. We're just declaring what is going to be the outcome. The question is: whose side are you on? That's the question you have to deal with. Are you going to accept this depiction of who he is and what he's coming to do as reliable and true, or are you going to look at them as false and unreliable?

And everyone who doesn't bow before him aggressively, paying tribute to him with everything. Reveal who they think he really is. Somehow he's a liar. That's where the entrance of this king takes us. Are you really his? Are you growing in allegiance to him, or are you fooling yourself?

He is faithful and true. That is who the writer is. But notice going on, there's a description of what he does. Look back at verse 11. And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat upon it is called faithful and true. And in righteousness, he judges and wages war.

And in righteousness, he is judging. In righteousness, he is fighting. He is warring. I love this expression. In righteousness, he is judging. He is making distinctions. Listen, God is a God who judges. And he makes distinctions. Judging involves deciding, discerning. And waging war. He wages war for what's right, rightness, uprightness.

I love this. His desire is to do what is right. That's characteristically who he is. He comes to do what is right, to make right. No deviation from what is right. He does what is absolutely right. That is what he is doing. He is faithful. He is true.

And in rightnesses, in righteousness, he is judging. And in righteousness, he is fighting. This big, assembled array against him. You see, you have, in contrast, you have the beast and all of his armies who have gathered to war against Israel and to war against the Lamb. And yet, they do not wage war in righteousness.

They're very deceptive. They do what is wrong. But here's heaven's true king. He is going to make all things right. That's why he comes. He is faithful and he is true, and he is going to make. All things right, even if that involves going to war over it.

Do you see the zealousness for what is to make things right? In fact, let me read to you the verses in Isaiah chapter 11. Verse 1, then a shoot will spring forth from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The spirit of the Lord will rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

And listen to this. And he will delight in the fear of the Lord, and he will not judge by what his eyes see, nor make a decision by what his ears hear. But with righteousness he will judge the poor and decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth.

And he will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Also, righteousness will be the belt about his loins, and faithfulness the belt about his waist. He's already been spoken about. He's coming to make things right on an individual level, on a global level.

That's who's coming. That's heaven's regal authority. But notice he's also described in verse 12 by his credentials or by what he's endowed with. Look at verse 12. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems. His eyes, a flame of fire, they are burning.

It speaks of his omniscience, his piercing vision into the soul and heart and thoughts of mankind. He has this relentless searching, probing ability because he judges in righteousness and he wants to see things right. And so he is searching. You see, he needs omniscience to be able to understand a matter, get to the heart of the matter, to judge the matter and to make it right.

He doesn't turn a blind eye to anything that is even slightly off. That's not who he is. He is faithful. He is true. And he comes in righteousness to make things right. And he will judge. And then he will make war with that which is not right to bring about rightness.

That's heaven's king. It's all there in the manger. Just see a little more full depiction here. But it's all there. And also, I want you to see another aspect of he has many diadems. Not only is he omniscient, but he has authority, power. Remember the dragon. He had a diadem on each of his seven heads.

Now, the diadem, it's a different kind of crown. There's the one kind of crown that speaks of the victor's wreath, victory. That's not what's being depicted here. It is the royal crown, sovereignty, rulership. And you have the dragon, that usurper of heaven's authority. He has a diadem on his seven heads.

And then you have the beast. He has a diadem on each of his ten horns. This is the kind of royalty of an earthly kind. It is illegitimate. It is short-lived. It is incompetent. It is bad. It is an imitation. It is a pretender. It is a usurper.

It is selfish. That is of the realm of this fallen humanity. This is the best that humanity can come up with. Apart from God. But the true king is sovereign over all of these realms. He has many diadems. And he is so far above all these kingly realms of earth, as far as the heavens are above the earth, so is his rulership.

So he is omniscient and he is omnipotent. He knows all and he is sovereign. He is endowed to make things right, perfectly right. That's heaven's king. So he comes, faithful, true, in righteousness, judging and making war with eyes that are aflame of fire and with the ruling power of Almighty God.

But notice also in verse 12, there's a description of his uniqueness. End of verse 12, and he has a name written on him which no one knows except himself. There's some mystery there. Something is not being disclosed at this moment, but I can assure you, one day it will be.

But his unknown name speaks of his uniqueness, his unique relationship with the Father of heaven. There's an intimacy that is being depicted here. But I believe when he returns, and a lot of thought has gone into this verse. A lot of explanations of what this name, why it may be.

I think it's just not revealed right now. We will have new names, as Revelation 2 points out. He has a name, a fuller disclosure, a fuller understanding that will happen, I believe, at that time. But it definitely speaks of his uniqueness, and it definitely speaks of his intimacy with the Father.

Next, I want you to see a description of what he's going to do to his enemies. Look at verse 13. He is clothed with the robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. Now, there are some that want to relate this and say, well, it's his blood that he's dipped in, and that's why his armies are white.

Well, yes, we know that certainly it's in the blood of the Lamb has already been very carefully explained in the book of Revelation why robes are white. It's because people have washed themselves in the blood of the Lamb. But this chapter, this context is not about redemption. The blood depicted here is that of God's enemies, and the context demands it.

The wine. Press, the sixth and seven bold judgments, the assembled armies of the beast, the great supper of God, where all the birds get to come in and take part, eating the flesh of kings. All this speaks of a context of judgment. In fact, Isaiah 63, let me read to you again, looking toward this event.

Isaiah 63, 1, Who is this that comes from Edom with garments of glowing colors from Basra? This one who is majestic in his apparel, marching in the greatness of his strength. It is I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Why is your apparel red, and your garments like the one who treads in the wine press?

I have trodden the wine trow alone, and from the peoples there was no man with me. I also trod them in my anger and trampled them in my wrath, and their lifeblood is sprinkled upon my garments, and I stained all my raiment. For the day of vengeance was in my heart, and my year of redemption has come.

You get this picture of him coming, the blood. Is that of his enemies? And his name, look at his name, is called the Word of God. You see, he comes as the judge, as the one making war. The armies behind them are white. They're not getting bloody. The word of God is accomplishing all of this.

His name. The end of verse 13. And his name is called the Word of God. On the one hand, as you just mentioned, he has a name which no one knows. But then on the other one, he has a name which every reader of the New Testament is very familiar with.

Who is he? He is the word of God. And this is consistent with the very last thought of verse 10. For the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of God. The Word of God. Made flesh. Jesus is God's public statement to the world. Are you going to bow to him?

Will you agree with your Heavenly Father? Or will you, like these assembled armies, take your stand against him and say, I will not bow. Even though this depicts something future. The battle's raging right here in amongst us. Are you believing or are you opposing? My advice to you right now is to cast yourself down before him in aggressive acquiescence to who he is.

The manger isn't meant to make us feel comfortable, it's to reveal a king with an agenda from heaven. And he is approachable. Come to him while you can. But his name is the word of God. This is why enemies cannot stand. He's the word of God. There is nothing that can stand against the word of God.

The word of God is going to accomplish what it sets out to do. It is futile to appoint, to oppose him in any kind of level, at any kind of sector, in any kind of place in your life. It's futile because he is the word of God. And as the word of God, guess what?

Is faithful and true. And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat upon it, the Word of God. And He is faithful and true. You can depend upon the Word of God. It is true. It is accurate. It is right. It is spot on.

And you can build your life upon it. And in righteousness, He judges and wages war. Of course, the Word of God is bringing about righteousness. That is why He speaks. It's what He does. And that is why His enemies will not stand. That is why His eyes are a flame of fire.

That is why there are many diadems upon His head. You cannot oppose the Word of God, and all of heaven and earth are going to get that. What about you? Oh, do you see what's before you in the manger today? A King. Oh, a royalty so majestic. Throw yourself down before Him boldly, quickly, thoroughly.

He is King of kings. He is the Word of God. Many diadems. Nothing rules over him. He proceeds from Father God himself. He is one with Father God. And that is why total surrender to him in word, thought, deed, in every sector of creation, in heaven and earth belong to him.

That's the royalty. That's the splendor. That's the surpassing greatness of this king. So we've looked this morning at the presentation of Jesus Christ. We looked at his first advent and the presentation of his second advent. And as we have looked, I hope you have seen a surpassing royalty this morning that moves you to want to aggressively worship him, to aggressively prostate every sector, prostrate every sector of our lives to him.

Throw yourself before him, mind, heart, and soul. This is the last. Crushing, or this is the crushing of that last great anti-God forces on earth. He is the lion, Revelation 5:5 from the tribe of Judah, the root of David and the lamb who was slain. That's heaven's surpassing royalty.

Let's bow before him. Heavenly Father, we want to bow before you. Take this word that has been declared, preached, written. Take this, Father, apply it deep within our hearts. Move us to truly paying tribute to your Son. The angels lit up the sky. The angels came praising, worshiping, announcing your birth.

Father, let us not isolate the manger from the cross or isolate it from this glorious second coming. We thank you. May you be exalted in Jesus' name. Amen.