His appearing Revelation 19v11
"And I saw heaven opened, and, behold a white horse; and He that sat on him......."
In the book of Revelation, thus far, we have seen a door opened in heaven(4v1), seven seals of judgment opened (6v1-8v1), the temple of God opened (11v19), the testimony in heaven opened(the Divine law 15v5) and now heaven itself is opened. There are a number of times when heaven in scripture has been opened before (Ezekiel 1v1, Matthew 3v16, Acts 7v56, Acts 10v11), and in each of these cases it was opened to individuals at crucial times in their lives or of the overall programme of God. This opening of heaven however is unique and we will look at it in two ways:
- The appearing of Christ will be visible.
- The appearing of Christ will be victorious.
Under these two headings we shall understand the wonder of what is here.
The appearing of Christ will be visible.
Heaven has always existed, even before we have existed, but at no time has it ever been visible to all living creatures. The appearing of Christ changes all this. For the first time the world will see an opened heaven. The cry of the prophet in Isaiah 64v1 was this "oh that Thou wouldest rend the heavens, that Thou wouldest come down." The understanding of the prophets was that heaven was veiled to the human eye. What angels have known in all their existence, what demons have known, but have been expelled from it, what the blessed dead have come to know, will become visible to the entire world. In Revelation 1v7 this is made clear "behold He cometh with clouds and every eye shall see Him, and they also that pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him." Notice the emphasis in this verse "every eye shall see Him" and in case there is any doubt in our minds this will include all Jews, and all Gentiles, in other words everyone. Jesus said when He was here that His coming would be like when the lightning covers the sky, "For as the lightning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be" Matthew 24v27. According to the same writer, immediately prior to the appearing, the universe will be pitch black......." the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven......". Other verses say the same; there are many words in the Greek to describe the appearing, one of them is "epiphaneia" which is translated "brightness" in 2 Thessalonians 2v8. When the apostle Paul was confronted by the glorified Jesus on the Damascus road he recorded "... at midday o king, I saw in the way a light from heaven above, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me......"( Acts 26v13). What will it be when that same glorious one appears in full- orbed glory, accompanied by visibly glorious angels, and innumerable glorified saints of the Church whose bodies will be like His?!(Philippians 3v21). Against the dark background of a blackened universe, the Christ will appear in "power and great glory".
The appearing of Christ will be victorious.
"Behold a white horse"; the thought here is of the returning of the victorious Roman general from the theatre of war. The white horse symbolised victory in conflict; but here is something unique, the Christ is arrayed in battledress, and proclaims the victory before the battle! In truth there is no battle, it will be a walkover. This aspect of the white horse is confirmed in chapter 6v2, where the rider of the white horse is associated with "conquering", and although this refers to the beast, the principle remains the same. The victory of Christ took place at Calvary; the songwriter caught the mood;
Psalms and Tunes", c. 1770 (S.M.)
1 HIS be the Victor's name
Who fought the fight alone;
Triumphant saints no honour claim,
His conquest was their own.
2 By weakness and defeat,
He won the meed and crown;
Trod all our foes beneath His feet
By being trodden down.
3 He Satan's power laid low;
Made sin, He sin o'erthrew;
Bowed to the grave, destroyed it so,
And death by dying slew.
4 Bless, bless the Conqueror slain,
Slain in His victory;
Who lived, who died, who lives again ---
For thee, His church, for thee!
Who fought the fight alone;
Triumphant saints no honour claim,
His conquest was their own.
2 By weakness and defeat,
He won the meed and crown;
Trod all our foes beneath His feet
By being trodden down.
3 He Satan's power laid low;
Made sin, He sin o'erthrew;
Bowed to the grave, destroyed it so,
And death by dying slew.
4 Bless, bless the Conqueror slain,
Slain in His victory;
Who lived, who died, who lives again ---
For thee, His church, for thee!
The interpretations of the new testament proclaim the victory of Calvary in no uncertain terms.
- Colossians 2v15, referring to the cross "having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it". Note the past tense to describe the certainty of what was yet future.
- Ephesians 4v8 "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men."
What took place on the cross ensures the victory over sin and death and hell.
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