The King is Coming

 Intro: Welcome to week 5 of our series, “On the Edge of Eternity.”

So far we’ve examined what the Scriptures teach regarding:

the Rapture of the Church — the Rise of the Antichrist — 

the Saints at the Judgment Seat of Christ and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb — The 7-Year Tribulation.

Today let’s examine what Scripture teaches about the Second Coming of Christ and Armageddon.

Scripture never teaches believers to look for the Antichrist, the Mark of the Beast or any other prophetic end-time occurrence.

Scripture simply teaches us to look for Jesus.

Our focus in this series is NOT to get everyone to agree exactly on “what happens when.”

Our focus, rather, is to remind us as the New Testament Church that… “MARANATHA!” 

(Greek word meaning… “Rejoice!  Jesus Is Coming!)

Revelation 22:7 NLT “Look, I am coming soon! Blessed are those who obey the words of prophecy written in this book.”

The Second Coming of Christ

In a vision, Daniel sees Jesus Christ coming to establish His reign over all the nations of the world.

Daniel 7:13-14 NLT As my vision continued that night, I saw someone like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient One and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, honor, and sovereignty over all the nations of the world, so that people of every race and nation and language would obey him. His rule is eternal—it will never end. His kingdom will never be destroyed.

Jesus is coming to earth once again.

Remember at the Rapture, He met the saints in the air. This time He comes and sets foot at the exact place He left earth.

Acts 1:9-11 NLT After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. 10 As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”

With the completion of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, the King of kings now leaves with the armies of heaven (the church) and descends to the earth.

Revelation 19:11-16 NLT Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war. 12 His eyes were like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns. A name was written on him that no one understood except himself. 13 He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his title was the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed him on white horses. 15 From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress. 16 On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.

Revelation 19:14 says that when Jesus returns to judge the world, not only will angels be with Him but also the armies of heaven, “dressed in the finest of pure white linen.” 

Such a description identifies those with Jesus as the raptured believers who are already in heaven, who have been before the Judgment Seat of Christ, and who have enjoyed the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

When Christ returns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, He will be followed by all the saints as well by an army of angels.

2 Thessalonians 1:7-8 NLT And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, 8 in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus.

John says (v.11) “I saw heaven opened” – the heavens will literally open up in order to make way for this vast military procession as the King of Kings and his armies move toward earth and Armageddon.

What a sight this will be! The King of Kings and Lord of Lords in full array, mounted on a glistening white horse will lead the saints of the ages to the climatic battleground on the earth.

Listen to what Zechariah writes about Christ’s return:

Zechariah 14:4-9 NLT On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem. And the Mount of Olives will split apart, making a wide valley running from east to west. Half the mountain will move toward the north and half toward the south. 5 You will flee through this valley, for it will reach across to Azal. Yes, you will flee as you did from the earthquake in the days of King Uzziah of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all his holy ones with him.

6 On that day the sources of light will no longer shine, 7 yet there will be continuous day! Only the Lord knows how this could happen. There will be no normal day and night, for at evening time it will still be light.

8 On that day life-giving waters will flow out from Jerusalem, half toward the Dead Sea and half toward the Mediterranean, flowing continuously in both summer and winter.

9 And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day there will be one Lord—his name alone will be worshiped.

4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem. And the Mount of Olives will split apart, making a wide valley running from east to west. Half the mountain will move toward the north and half toward the south.

— This prophecy will be fulfilled by Jesus Christ at His final coming, when He returns to the place from which He left. 

(Luke 24:50-51; Acts 1:9-12)

The literal feet of Jesus which have the nail prints in them will actually stand on the Mount of Olives, and the mountain will be split at that time, half the mountain will go north and half will go south, with a valley running between it from the east to the west.

This impressive force that comes with Christ will only be observers of the battle. Jesus will wage war with Satan, the Antichrist, the false-prophet and the armies of the world and He will be victorious simply by the power of His Word!

THE BATTLE of ARMAGEDDON

Revelation 19:11-21, 16:13-16; Daniel 11:40-45

Revelation 19:11-21 NLT Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war. 12 His eyes were like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns. A name was written on him that no one understood except himself. 13 He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his title was the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed him on white horses. 15 From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron rod. He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress. 16 On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.

17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, shouting to the vultures flying high in the sky: “Come! Gather together for the great banquet God has prepared. 18 Come and eat the flesh of kings, generals, and strong warriors; of horses and their riders; and of all humanity, both free and slave, small and great.”

19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the world and their armies gathered together to fight against the one sitting on the horse and his army. 20 And the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who did mighty miracles on behalf of the beast—miracles that deceived all who had accepted the mark of the beast and who worshiped his statue. Both the beast and his false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 Their entire army was killed by the sharp sword that came from the mouth of the one riding the white horse. And the vultures all gorged themselves on the dead bodies.

Revelation 19:15 NLT From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations… 

The sharp sword is the spoken word of God. It is by His Word that Jesus will defeat and destroy the nation’s armies.

This matches how John described Jesus in chapter 1:

Revelation 1:16 NLT He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came from his mouth. And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance.

His Word and the brightness of His coming will be the weapon He uses to defeat the Antichrist.

Isaiah prophesied that the power of the Messiah would be visible through His words:

Isaiah 11:4 NLT He will give justice to the poor and make fair decisions for the exploited. The earth will shake at the force of his word, and one breath from his mouth will destroy the wicked.

Hebrews 4:12 NLT For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

2 Thessalonians 2:8 NLT Then the man of lawlessness will be revealed, but the Lord Jesus will slay him with the breath of his mouth and destroy him by the splendor of his coming.

I am convinced Jesus simply says “I Am!”

John 18:4-6 NLT Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. “Who are you looking for?” he asked. 5 “Jesus the Nazarene,”  they replied. “I Am he,” Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) 6 As Jesus said “I Am he,” they all drew back and fell to the ground! 

Revelation 19:15 NLT … He will rule them with an iron rod…  

— This is symbolic of the absolute authority with which Christ will rule the nations of the earth.

Revelation 19:15 NLT ... He will release the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty, like juice flowing from a winepress. 

— speaks of the total judgment and inescapable terror of the anger of the Lord.

Revelation 19:16 NLT On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords.

Revelation 19:17 NLT Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, shouting to the vultures flying high in the sky: “Come! Gather together for the great banquet God has prepared. 18 Come and eat the flesh of kings, generals, and strong warriors; of horses and their riders; and of all humanity, both free and slave, small and great.”

Before the battle even begins, an angel invites scavenger birds to come to a feast!

After this epic battle, the entire losing side will be nothing but devastation and carnage. Who will clean up the aftermath of the battle?

This shows us the basic truth, that in death, all the unsaved are equal. The invitation given to the scavenger birds of the earth is that they might gorge themselves on all the flesh of these dead men. Some of these will have been generals, captains, and leaders of men and scores will be ordinary unknown men. To the scavenger birds it will make no difference.

Even though it appears that every soldier of the armies of the nations will be killed, we must remember that this does not mean annihilation of all human life. 

The upcoming Judgment of the Nations will include the countless numbers of mankind who have survived the Tribulation period. 

It is the military might of the earth’s nations that are destroyed.

Revelation 19:19 NLT Then I saw the beast and the kings of the world and their armies gathered together to fight against the one sitting on the horse and his army. 

First we had the invitation given by the angel standing in the sun (v.17), then we saw the menu that was for the fowls. 

Now John sees the actual amassing of the armies under the leadership of the Beast. They gather for a final try at defeating the King of Kings, and His glorious army, the Church.

Verse 19 will find the forces of the earth united, and under the leadership of the Beast. They will have forgotten whatever things had divided them, and join together to stop the Son of God.

So in summation of the Battle of Armageddon, we see that the forces of evil versus the forces of righteousness is what it all boils down to. A battle of hell against heaven; Satan verses Jesus Christ; condemned men against redeemed men. The King of Kings will be a total victor, not one loss will be dealt to the armies of glory. Entire defeat and loss will be suffered by the forces of Satan, the Beast, and the False Prophet.

Revelation 19:20 NLT And the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who did mighty miracles on behalf of the beast—miracles that deceived all who had accepted the mark of the beast and who worshiped his statue. Both the beast and his false prophet were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 

At the conclusion of the battle, the Beast and his False Prophet will still be alive, and in this state, they will be confined to the Lake of Fire. This makes the Beast and the False Prophet the first to enter the Lake of Fire. This Lake of Fire is the final destiny of all lost men and women, as well as Satan.

Revelation 19:21 NLT Their entire army was killed by the sharp sword that came from the mouth of the one riding the white horse. And the vultures all gorged themselves on the dead bodies.

With the exception of the Beast and the False Prophet, all the combatants of Armageddon will be slain and become the feast for the birds of prey, and the scavengers.

Zechariah 14:6-7 NLT On that day the sources of light will no longer shine, 7 yet there will be continuous day! Only the Lord knows how this could happen. There will be no normal day and night, for at evening time it will still be light.

v. 6 On the very day Christ appears on earth and the battle of Armageddon is fought, the light will neither be clear nor dark; but at evening time all will become light. This perhaps refers to the change in the light of day and night in the Millennium. The light of day will be 7-times brighter, and the light of night will be as that of the present day (vs. 7; Isaiah 30:26).

v. 7 The battle shall last only one day; by evening it will all be over and the new light increase will take effect (Isaiah 30:26).

Isaiah 30:26 NLT The moon will be as bright as the sun, and the sun will be seven times brighter—like the light of seven days in one! So it will be when the Lord begins to heal his people and cure the wounds he gave them.

Anytime we talk about end-time events, questions arise for many people. Our hearts and minds are curious.

God in His sovereignty didn’t provide all the details of what is to come, He only gave us a glimpse.

Listen to how Paul describes our inability to understand everything: 1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.

The reality of what we will see when we return with Christ can never be described in a way that our feeble minds could understand.

1 John 3:2-3 NLT Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. 3 And all who have this eager expectation will keep themselves pure, just as he is pure.

We do not have the capacity to even dream of the majesty and glory that is coming.

The things John saw, he tried to describe in earthy terms as best as he could understand.

One day the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of the glorious sights and sounds we will one day behold.

Until then, keep looking for Jesus.  The King is Coming!

We should not be focused on figuring out the details, or trying to understand everything. We must simply be looking for Jesus.

We must live ready to meet Him, either through death, or the Rapture.