 We're going to be looking today at verses 11 through 21. And so I'll begin reading at verse 11. And let's see, I'll read to verse 16, and we'll get into our study. Revelation chapter 11, beginning at verse 19, beginning at verse 11, John writes, Then I saw heaven open and behold, a white horse. And he who sat on him was called faithful and true. And in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. And the armies in heaven clothed in fine linen white and clean, followed him on white horses. Now out of his mouth goes a sharp sword that with it he should strike the nations, and he himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He himself treads the wine press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he has a name on his robe and on his thigh, a name written, King of Kings. All right, here we go. Let me give you a background, give you some things, and then we'll develop this passage. As we've already seen, chapter 19 picks up where chapter 16 of Revelation concluded at the Bowl judgments. And so what we have here is the conclusion of what has been referred to as the Bowl judgments. And so as we enter it into chapter 19, I'll review for just a moment, give you a couple of things that we've already looked at in verses 1 through 10. In verses 1 through 10, we saw how heaven explodes in praise to God, because the evil on the earth has been judged. We saw how God has judged mystery Babylon. And his judgment has been declared to be true and righteous. As he did so, as he brought this judgment, he has avenged the blood of the martyrs who have been crying out for his justice. Remember how it says that they cried out with a loud voice saying how long, oh Lord, holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth. So he has brought this vengeance, he's avenging them. Those who have been martyred. So in bringing this judgment, we see that heaven in chapter 19 explodes with rejoicing and worship for him. Now all are called to worship God because God is the one who reigns. It says in verses 5 and 6 here in chapter 19, a voice came from the throne saying praise our God, all you his servants and those who fear him both small and great. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thundering saying alleluia for the Lord God, nipotent reigns. And as I've been sharing with you, we have this misconception I think in many ways that heaven is some very quiet, boring place, but you don't get that picture. What you hear is thunderous worship and praise to God. And so that's what we see here as this is taking place. And so as that was, as we looked at that, we also looked at the marriage of the lamb. That's where the church, the bride of Christ is to be joined to Jesus in deepest intimacy as it says in Ephesians chapter 5 verses 25 through 27, how it says there husbands love your wives just as Christ loved the church gave himself up for her to make her holy cleansing her by the washing with water through the word and to present her to himself as a radiant church without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. So the body of Christ is regarded as the bride of Christ. And we looked last time at this marriage supper. So what we're moving to now in verse 11 very briefly and very powerfully really as we open the word here is we are moving to what is called the second coming of Jesus Christ. So I'm going to give you some information about that develop that with you and then look at these verses verse by verse as we go through this chapter. Notice how he says in verse 11 that he saw heaven opened and behold a white horse he was out on him was called faithful and true. The return of Jesus Christ to planet earth. Let me begin by saying the return of Christ is what you call an essential to the Christian faith. It is an essential to the Christian faith. There are certain biblical beliefs that constitute what is called basic Christianity. We believe that in what is called biblical inerrancy. We believe in the virgin birth, the substitutionary atonement. We believe in a literal resurrection. These are all essentials to the Christian faith included would be what is called the doctrine of the second coming of Christ. When you look into ancient manuscripts, the scripture itself and you will see this and I'll give you a number of scriptures tonight about this. But when you look into some of the ancient documents concerning the church and its beliefs, there were what are called Cretal statements, statements concerning the essentials of our doctrine or the things that are most important in Christian beliefs. You have what are called Cretal statements and some of us, and I wonder, I'll even ask, I've never really even asked this, I've just always just kind of said it and just moved on, but some of us learned something called the Apostles Creed. How many of you have heard of that? Just raise your hand so I know. Most of you. How many of you memorized it? A lot of us did. I memorized the Apostles Creed when I was seven years old. It was part of our catechismal classes that we took when I took religious instruction. And the Apostles Creed, the earliest document related to that or documentation of it comes from around 390 AD. And in essence what it was looked at at that time and continued through the history of the church traditionally was that it was a summation of what we as believers most dearly cling to, the things that are most essential. And so it was basically put into this Cretal statement or Cretal form in order for those who are learning the basics of Christian theology so that they would have in this poetic form, if you will, the essentials of their faith. And I memorized it, but in order so that I don't mess up, I have it in front of me. But this is what it says. It says, I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ is only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell. On the third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church. The word Catholic is small C, it means the universal church, the church throughout the world. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of dead, life everlasting. Amen. Right? That was the Apostles Crete. It was broken down, the essentials of the things that we believe in. I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ is only Son, conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, was buried. He descended into hell. On the third day he rose from the dead. He ascended into heaven. So we memorize that. Those are essences of the Holy Spirit. Those were from the beginning and they were basically just put into form because one of the essentials of your faith is the return of Jesus Christ. It's the return of Jesus Christ to planet earth. It is a promise that he gave. Believers in all ages have had the desire for the Lord to come. Even in the Old Testament you see prophetic insistence on that. Isaiah 64 verses 1 and 2, oh that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you, as when fire sets twigs ablaze and causes water to boil. Come down to make your name known to your enemies. I mean you're seeing this in Isaiah seven centuries before Christ. The church has always embraced a belief in the return of Jesus Christ and has been encouraged, exhorted in Scripture to have a longing for that to take place. The writer of Hebrews in chapter 9 verse 28 writes it like this. He says, so also Christ is the one who is the one who is the one who is the one who is the one who is the one who is the one who is the one who is the one who writes it like this. He says, so also Christ died only once as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, but not to deal with our sins again. This time he will bring salvation to all those who are eagerly waiting for him. Eagerly waiting for him. There is a research center called the Pew Research Center, and it disclosed something very interesting. Christians, they said, believe the second coming. They had surveyed a number of Christians. Christians believe the second coming will occur sometime, they say, in the next 40 years. Nearly half of U.S. Christians believe that Christ will definitely, 27%, or probably 20%, return to earth in or before the year 2050. And so what does that say? That says we have an expectation. Are they date-setting? No. What they're saying? We have an expectation. That Jesus is going to return. And there are those that say, you wild-eyed Christians have been saying that for 2,000 years. He hasn't come yet. All that means is he's one day closer. That's all that means. He's one day closer. And we have been waiting. You see, we've been looking at the tribulation period here from chapter 6. And as we've been looking at the tribulation the seven years of God pouring out his wrath, seeing that tribulation, we have seen that earth, planet earth, has been in incredible chaos and has undergone terrible destruction. We've seen Satan and demons. We've seen the Antichrist and the false prophet. And they've all been rejecting God. Mankind itself is obstinately refusing and opposing God. And as we've seen, even through the tribulation, men will refuse to repent. They harden their hearts. They fight against God and they reject his gospel. But ultimately what happens is the forces of heaven and hell will meet in a great battle. Battle of Armageddon. Jesus' enemies in that battle are vanquished. And that's when his kingdom is established. Zechariah chapter 14, 3 and 4 says, the Lord will go out and fight against those nations as he fights in the day of battle. On that day, his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley and half of the mountain moving north, half moving south. So they will form a great valley. And somebody says it's going to be called Chino Valley, but I'm not sure. And so what we have here is a picture of the return of Christ. Now notice again, verse 11, I saw heaven opened and behold, he says, a white horse. Now in chapter four, verse one, John saw a door open in heaven, letting him, if you will, see what God was preparing. But here heaven opens to let Jesus out to bring judgment. Now Jesus in Matthew 24, verses 27 through 31, said it like this, Jesus said, for as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather. Immediately after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time, the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call and they will gather his elect from the four winds from one end of the heavens to the other. And so Jesus has prophesied, has said, this is what's going to happen. You will see me coming with power. You will see me coming with great glory, not Greglory, with great glory, though Greglory will be with him. As it speaks, you're noticed in verse 11, it speaks of a white horse. Now think with me for just a moment, I'll give you a little bit on this. Jesus enters in to the city of Jerusalem in what is referred to as his triumphal entry. And remember with me that when Jesus entered into the city of Jerusalem, he was riding on a donkey, the fall of a donkey. He had given orders to his men to go and secure these animals so that he may be able to enter in. And that's exactly what he does. Now, when Jesus chose to ride into Jerusalem, and this is an important point, when Jesus chose to ride into Jerusalem on a donkey, that was communicating something. One, it was fulfilling Zechariah's prophecy concerning that. But two, when a king came in peace, he rode on a donkey. But when he comes with war, he rides on a horse. And so what you have here is Jesus no longer riding on a donkey. He had come to Jerusalem because he is the one who was bringing peace. And they rejected him. Now he comes from heaven on a white horse because he comes making war. Why is it a white horse? Because white is a symbol of purity. It would represent the holy character of Jesus himself. Why is he riding on a horse? Because he's come to vanquish his enemies. Now notice in verse 11, he who sat on him was called faithful and true. And in righteousness, he judges and makes war. He who sat on him is called faithful and true. Why don't you let that settle in your heart for a moment? That's what Jesus is. He's faithful and he's true. Oh, you can take that role. I could start talking about that just in human relationships. And part of the problem that I see with a lot of people today is they have had a mother or a father or both who are not faithful nor true. And what that has done is caused children in our generation to be raised up without a trust for any authority whatsoever. Because the ones that were supposed to have the love, the commitment, and all of those things were void of two basic things. They were void of faithfulness and they were void of truthfulness. Well, I want to tell you tonight that there is somebody who is faithful and true. And that's Jesus Christ. He is faithful and he is true. I have told this church before. I haven't said it recently. Might as well say it now as it's coming to mind. You know, if you put your eyes on me, I will fail you. But if you put your eyes on Jesus, he never does. He is the one who is faithful and he is the one who's true. Always remember that. He is the one who's faithful and true. Now, it's a proper name for him because he is faithful to his promises and he always speaks the truth. And because he is faithful and true, his judgment will be righteous. In Acts chapter 10, verse 42, it says, he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that it is he, that it is Jesus who was ordained by God to be judge of the living and the dead. So the one who is coming is faithful and true and therefore righteous and able to make proper judgment. His eyes, verse 12, were like a flame of fire. And on his head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except himself. The eyes, now, I'm going to take a moment to look at that with you for a moment. His eyes were like a flame of fire. These eyes that are being described and we'll look at why it's referred to in that way. But these eyes are being referred to as being like a flame of fire are the same eyes, the same eyes that would look at small children with a tenderness and a love. He was so loving when he would look at you that he could, even with his eyes, he could just, he could be so appealing just by looking at you or he could be so convicting just by looking at you. Have you ever had somebody in your life can just look through you? You just, you know, my pastor Chuck, when I was first getting to know Chuck, I would go to speak to him and I had this weird kind of, I don't even know where it came from, but I would talk to Chuck and I'd say, think good thoughts, think good thoughts when you're talking to him because he can see right through you. It was just really weird. I admired and loved him so much. It was just weird like that until I finally got to realize he's a man like I am. But I'll tell you something, you know, these, these eyes of the Lord Jesus Christ, they, they're the eyes that wept over a friend by the name of Lazarus. When Jesus was told, your friend Lazarus is sick and then when he was taken to the tomb that ultimately Lazarus who had died was placed in, the shortest verse in the New Testament, chapter 11 of the Gospel of John simply says, as Jesus was there by the tomb, it simply says this, Jesus wept. These eyes, these eyes that we're looking at that are a flame of fire are the same eyes that wept when a friend died and there is by his tomb weeping. They're the same eyes that wept when Jesus was entering into Jerusalem and viewing Jerusalem on one occasion and he began to weep over the city. The same eyes, the same eyes that would look at the Apostle Peter on the night that the Apostle Peter had denied Christ three times and Jesus is being led away through the courtyard and Peter comes by as being taken by him and Jesus is there in that courtyard, beaten, brutalized already and the scripture simply says as Peter was going by that he looked and Jesus looked at him and these are the eyes that pierced the soul of the Apostle Peter and caused him to weep bitterly over what he had done. These eyes that we're talking about here are now referred to as being a flame of fire. So the eyes that wept over friends, cities that can convict you or be so warm and tender that they're inviting are now described to us as being eyes that are a flame of fire. What does that mean? That means that's a picture of judgment. That's what the picture is, a flame of fire. Fire represents a burning and often judgment in scripture. It speaks concerning the fact that on his head were many crowns. These many crowns obviously reveals that he is the king of the whole earth. He is the king of all kings. This name, which is interesting where it says he had a name written that no one knew except himself. It's not worth speculating what this name is. There are some who sometimes will say, well, I think it was. Well, it doesn't say and therefore it's not worth us trying to figure it out. I know what it is. I won't tell you. No, it's a name that's only known to himself. In verse 13, he was clothed with a robe dipped in blood and his name is called the word of God. Now, he was clothed with a robe dipped in blood. Now, what blood would this be referring to? There are those commentators who would say this is a picture of the redemption that he had won, but it's not really that. It's more than likely that the blood on his garments of his enemies that he has slain. Why would I say that? Isaiah 63 verses 2 and 3, the question is asked, why is your apparel red and your garments like one who treads in the wine press? I have troddened the wine press alone and from the peoples no one was with me. For I have troddened them in my anger, trampled them in my fury. Their blood is sprinkled upon my garments and I have stained all my robes. This is a picture of the Lord victorious in battle and it's his enemy's blood that has been splattered on him. Do you picture Jesus as a warrior king? Super seal, ranger, do you see him that way? Yeah, airborne. He's airborne. No, we don't. We just don't. We see Jesus meek and mild. We see him with a lamb over his shoulder or helping little children over a bridge that's going over troubled waters. And there's some boards that are out and he's guiding them. And you know, he is that. He is our shepherd. He does love us. He does hold us. He is tender. I mean, that is the most comfortable image for me as a believer to realize how gracious, loving, kind, caring. I have always identified since I came to Christ and began to look at the lives of the apostles. You know, I can be as impetuous as the apostle Peter, but I admire the most the apostle John. And I'll tell you why. Because John was the one that you see in scripture who will refer to himself. How does he refer to himself? The one whom Jesus loved, the one whom Jesus loved. How many of you would feel comfortable saying, I'm the one that even my wife loves? I would almost feel arrogant. I mean, I'm the one Marie loves. I would, I hope I am, am I? Can you say that about yourself? I am the one whom Jesus loves. See, to me, for the longest time, I saw that as kind of arrogant, kind of arrogant. But I've shared this with you before. It bears repetition at this moment. The apostle Peter says to Jesus, though all forsake you, I never will. I would even die with you, right? You all know that passage. I would even die for you. And when you're saying that, though all forsake you, what do you think? The guys are all around you. And it's kind of like you're saying, get them. I, well, what are you saying? What are you saying when you say that? I'll tell you what you're saying. You know what he's saying. I love you more than these. That's what he's saying. I love you more than these. And yet, when Jesus is betrayed, and I think that the apostle Peter, by the way, I should exonerate him a bit. I believe that he believed what he said was true. You need to take something into consideration. Maybe you haven't thought about recently in the context of the story I'm telling you about him. He was a very powerful man. I don't know if you know that about the apostle Peter. How do we know he was powerful? There's no description of his body because he by himself pulled up 153 fish in a net. By himself, he drew the net on. That man was powerful. And men who are physically powerful are also very often very confident in their strength. How many men can do that, right? So when Melchus comes with the soldiers to take Jesus, it's the apostle Peter who pulls out a sword. Time to take care of some business. And he swings at Melchus and takes off a piece of his ear. So he, I believe, really confidently thought that he would die for Christ. And yet, like everybody else, he forsook him and fled. So when you see Jesus at the cross, I find it interesting to note the absence of the apostle Peter at the foot of the cross. But the one who is mentioned as being at that cross, you remember who was there? John. John was there. Where was the apostle Peter? And take that a step further. When Jesus brings restoration to the apostle Peter, do you remember what he asked him? Peter, do you love me? Because earlier, you said you would even die for me. Do you love me more than these? You know all things. You know the best I can muster up at this moment is the word filet. Oh, I love you as a brother, as a friend. You don't have a copy of this all-encompassing, sacrificial love? Heaven, I already proved to you that I don't. The best I can say now in a humble way is I love you as my friend, filet. What was it that brought John to the foot of the cross and kept the apostle Peter from being there? John said, I'm the one whom Jesus loves. Love and the confidence of that love drove him to be there next to the one who loved him. It wasn't pride or arrogance at all. It was a humble recognition of how much he needed Jesus Christ. Peter was still showing him what he could do for Jesus when John knew what Jesus could do for him. That's how it works, by the way, in the kingdom of God. It's not what you can do for God. It's what God has done for you. It's not the amount of love you have for God. It's the amount of love that God has for you. And when you understand how even a little bit of how much God loves you, you stop trying to prove your love for God and you start living out your relationship with God. The difference between religion, where you're trying to do something to earn favor and relationship, where you simply are, because you're at peace with the one who loves you. That's how it works. And so the Lord Jesus Christ is ministering here and he is indeed the one who is that King. And he has laid his life, well actually he's taken those who have rejected him and he is now judging them. Now, as we move back into our study, when it says in verse 14, the armies in heaven clothed in fine linen white and clean followed him on white horses. The armies of heaven will include us. Colossians chapter three, verse four says, when Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Now in these armies of heaven, you have the bride, that's us. You see that in chapter 19, verse eight. You see the tribulation saints, they've been mentioned in chapter seven, verse nine. Old Testament saints would be included, Daniel chapter 12, verses one and two, and you have the angels. In second Thessalonians chapter one, verses seven through nine, Paul said this, he said, 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 in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don't know God and on those who refuse to obey the good news, the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction or ever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power. And so as this has taken place in the armies of heaven, and I had some brothers in the fellowship saying, see, we're gonna be cowboys in heaven because we're riding horses. I don't know. I know there's no country music in heaven. I know that for sure. But it says in verse 15, out of his mouth goes a sharp sword that with it he should strike the nations. He himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He himself treads the wine press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. So this mouth out of his mouth goes a sharp sword. This gospel message that had brought life to those who receive is now what is bringing judgment. This sword reveals that deadly and final power of Jesus' word. He speaks of ruling with a rod of iron. When that term rod of iron is used, it speaks of an absolute fashion. I don't know if you remember this or realize this. I'm having to learn it every day basically, to be honest with you. But we as human beings are required to serve the Lord faithfully. And we conform to him through the way that we live. We're being conformed to him as our obedience and the Holy Spirit works within us. As Jesus rules and reigns when he does, and we're gonna be looking at this in more detail when we get into chapter 20. I'll be touching on some of these things then. But he will be the ruler and he will be ruling with this rod of iron. In Psalm chapter two, verses eight and nine, it reads only ask and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, the ends of the earth as your possession. You will break them with an iron rod and smash them like clay pots. So this is speaking of his absolute rulership. It says in verse 16, he has on his robin and his sire name written King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Well, it's King of Kings and Lord of Lords because he has the absolute right to rule, because he has absolutely triumphed over his enemies. You see, we have what is called the gospel of reconciliation to what Christ was in God, reconciling the world to himself, Paul says. This gospel of reconciliation, this word of reconciliation is a word that is intended. It's a message that is intended to stop two warring parties who are enemies. It is to bring peace and stop or to cease those hostilities. So reconciliation is when people no longer have hostility toward one another. The gospel of Jesus Christ is intended to stop the war between man against his God. When you hear the gospel of reconciliation, the peace that comes through the gospel with God, when you hear that, what happens is God calls you to unconditional surrender. There is no compromising. There is no bartering back and forth. It's like when the United States received the unconditional surrender of Japan to conclude World War II. It wasn't a negotiated peace. It was unconditional surrender. The United States is victor, Japan has lost. There's no negotiation involved. We are the victors. That's the picture with God when he sent his son Jesus to die on the cross in order to break the power of the enemy and set the captives free. When we hear that message, the declaration, this is how you can have peace, the war can end and you are reconciled to God. And so he is the absolute ruler. And that is something that a lot of people don't understand, even believers. And we try to negotiate with him. We try and get him on our side. Can I keep this in, Lord? It's just a little sin. It's just a pet sin. It's a small sin. It's not a big sin. There are other people who have sins in their life. You know that. I see them, they gossip, they overeat. We never talk about those things, do we? They drink, they do drugs, they're brutal, whatever. I'm not like that. It's just a little sin. It's just a pet sin. It's a small sin. I'll keep it in a box. I'll let it out once in a while. It's no big deal. It's okay if I keep it. We negotiate with the Lord. Sometimes we pretend it's not even there and like he doesn't even see it. And it only comes out once in a while. You know, I had to deal with those kinds of things and I'll count us with you. I'll just take a moment to do so. I was an alcoholic. So there were times, well, I got saved. I'm free. You know, a couple, two, three months into my walk with the Lord, I have a toothache. Well, it's too late to go to the dentist. I can't get to the dentist. And there's so much pain. A couple of beers. That won't hurt. Just a couple of beers. God understands, because I'm in pain. I asked him to heal me, he wouldn't. There are people who do that. I also had a friend who used to try to argue me into smoking dope. Marijuana. He said it's an herb and God created herb and noticed in the Bible it says and it is good. And man, it is good. Especially if it's from Macapulco, it's good. See, we try to negotiate God into allowing us to just keep this little thing for ourselves. You know, God knows I have a temper. He saved me anyway and I can't help it. I'm gonna tell you what's on my mind. I'm gonna give you a piece of my mind. Some people give so many pieces of their mind, it's amazing that they have any left. They give it to everybody. Just a little sin, just a little sin. Put this in your heart. He is the king of kings. He is the Lord of lords. There's no negotiating with him. He's your king, keep that in mind. In verse 17, I saw an angel standing in the sun and he cried with a loud voice saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, come and gather together for the suffer of the great God that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great. And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, their armies gathered together to make war against him who sat on the horse and against his army. Then the beast was captured and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast, those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone and the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of him who sat on the horse and all the birds were filled with their flesh. What a picture. This great battle that has been taking place called Armageddon, it comes to a conclusion. The angel is standing in the light of the sun and that angel has even a greater brilliance than the sun. Instead of the supper of the lamb which we saw in verse nine, the birds are eating the flesh of the conquered. Proverbs 16, five says, everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord though hand joined in hand he shall not go unpunished. So even after the birds have gorged themselves the bodies of the armies that were gathered on the bodies of those who were gathered in Armageddon even after eating their fill it is gonna take months to dispose of those bodies. There's so many soldiers. Ezekiel 3912 says for seven months the house of Israel will be bearing them in order to cleanse the land. That's how huge this is gonna take place. It's such a terrible carnage that will take place when all of these armies are joined in opposition to Jesus. And I want you to notice, it's not like it's, oh, it's gonna take some time. It's just over now. It's just done now. There's no in between. It just simply says that they're there to make war against him. And in verse 20, the beast was captured. That's it. That's it. It doesn't say, and then Jesus had to fight nine months and then he had to strategy. Now that's it. It's just over. It says, when it says in verse 19, I saw the beast and the kings. Now this beast is leading the 10 kings that had made up his empire. You see that in chapter 17 verses 12 through 14. They are all taken. And then finally in verses 20 and 21, the beast was captured with him, the false prophet. And they are cast into the lake of fire. They are the first to enter final judgment and punishment. All the armies it would seem are exterminated at that point. And those who rejected mercy have received judgment. There's no negotiating at that point. It's over. You know, the most important thing for us is to make sure we're right with God. And so I'll close with a couple of thoughts. This return of Christ, the second coming. The scripture teaches us a couple of things. One, we should be waiting with anticipation. Titus chapter two, verse 13, speaks of while we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. We are to be waiting with anticipation because he's even at the door. Two, we should love his appearing. Second Timothy chapter four, verse eight tells us, there is in store for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, not only to me, but also to all who have longed for or loved his appearing. Here's something for you. And I don't know how to put this. See, I'll have to say it quickly. I came out of a time in the history of Christianity in the United States. I came to Christ in a revival called the Jesus movement. I came to Christ in a time when people were saying, he's coming, he's even at the door, back in 1970. So it'll be 44 years next month that I came to faith in Christ. And I long for his appearing. Do you, I look, or do you think that he's delaying? We've been saying this for 44 years and he hasn't come yet. You know what Jesus says? We're studying the gospel of Matthew. You'll see this when we get there in about six years. Jesus says it is the evil servant who says my Lord delays his coming. It's the evil servant who says that. The other one says he's even at the door and you live in anticipation of his soon return. He could be here any moment, any moment, he can't. The next prophecy to be fulfilled is the rapture of the church. That's the next, that's, there's nothing that needs to be fulfilled. That's the next one. So there's this desire to be with Jesus that the church, please, I know, this may seem melodramatic to some, but it's just my true heart to you right now. Please, fall in love with Christ, love Jesus. That love for Christ that he has in his return for what he's had for you has brought me through so many valleys, so much pain, so many disappointments, so many betrayals, so much rejection. It's Jesus, he takes you through it. He never leaves you, he never forsakes you, he loves you and one day you'll look at him eye to eye. What are you gonna say? I already know, I love you, thank you. What else can you say? Maybe I won't say anything, maybe I'll just be on my face before him, just saying you're too much. Yeah, no more pain, no more sorrow, no more tears, no more disease, no more disappointment, no more betrayals, no more loneliness, no more rejection, no more having to explain myself. Love is appearing, love is appearing. The way I loved seeing my wife when she came to me when I married her, wow, it's too much. Love her, love is appearing. And finally, live holy lives. In 1 John 3, 2 and 3, it says, dear friends, we are already God's children. We can't even imagine what we'll be like when Christ returns, but we do know that when he comes, we'll be like him, for we will see him as he really is. And all who believe this will keep themselves pure, just as Christ is pure.