Conqueror of Kings and Darkness
Revelation 19:11-16
“Now I saw Heaven opened, 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 in robe dipped in blood, and His name is called the Word of God. And the armies of 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 winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”
I can still never get enough of this description of Jesus. It rocks the very core of me and tears down any man made image of Jesus that is placed in my mind. This is a description of a King who fights for justice. Not for rights to vast amounts of oil, power and money. It’s the description of a King who fights for the people He created for Himself. Some may wonder why He hadn’t done this before the world went sour. You want the Truth? Here it is:
He’s been fighting for His people since the moment Adam and Eve fell in Eden.
I’m reminded of the account of three young Jewish men in the Old Testament: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. (Daniel 3) Israel had been captured by the Babylonians under the rule of Nebuchadnezzar. These three young men had found favour in the eyes of the Babylonian king. However this changed when they refused to bow down to the image of the king. Not because they were at all rebellious but because they refused to compromise their faith in God and bow down to a false god. This infuriated the king and he ordered the furnace be heated seven times it’s normal heat and the three men bound and thrown into it. The furnace was so hot that even the men who were throwing the bound men into it were consumed by the flames and killed.
You would probably think that at this point the three young men are also dead and that’s the end of the story. Actually, at this point the king was astonished because not only were they alive and walking around unharmed in the fire but there was a fourth man walking with them, who the king described as “the form of the fourth is like the Son of God”. This account took place a good few centuries before the birth of Jesus, so this fourth Man, must’ve been pretty glorious and indescribable for an unbelieving king who, along with the rest of the world, has not seen the Son of God. This fourth Man brought a king, who forced men to worship him, to his knees and began to declare the praises of the Most High God.
Here is Jesus, bringing the most powerful king in the world to his knees for the sake of His people.
Then there’s the matter of the Cross. There was no physical king on the planet, who being defeated, could separate man from the clutches of sin and darkness. Sin and Darkness itself needed to be conquered and the only man who had the ability to do that was the fourth Man in the furnace. The only man with the Heavenly Authority to make an exchange for man’s righteousness. The deal was this:
Jesus’ had to die on the cross in exchange for the righteousness of every man, woman and child.
I’m sure satan was quite chuffed with himself. He thought he had backed God into a corner forcing him to die the most dreadful death in order for His people to be free and sin removed, if they chose to believe. The only problem is that, satan didn’t realise that the removal of sin meant the removal of death, and the removal of death meant Jesus could rise victorious over sin and darkness. The transaction was fair, Jesus just knew that the removal of the cause would also mean the removal of the result.
Jesus’ death caused the self -proclaimed king of darkness to be brought to his knees and be conquered. As believers we are no longer under the rule of darkness. We walk around in the flames of despair, death and sin but we are unscathed, unburned, because the Son of God walks with us. The king of darkness still tries to win us back but every time we proclaim the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we remind that defeated foe that our Saviour - Jesus - is a conquering Saviour, the fourth Man in the furnace, who fought for the freedom of His people for 4000 years, and won. That same Man, will return as Revelation 19 says He will, and will end the existence of the kingdom of darkness in order for every man, woman and child to be utterly free from even tempation, and for the Kingdom of Heaven to be restored to Earth, all for the Glory of our Most High God. And in that place, we will worship Him:
The Lion of Judah
The Lamb of God
King of Kings
Lord of Lords
Prince of Peace
Son of God.
Jesus - our Conquering Saviour
If you’re reading this today and recognise the need for a Saviour, the need for forgiveness, I ask that you pray this prayer and be welcomed into redemption. Into the arms of Jesus.
Lord Jesus, I thank You that you died for me, so that I could be raised to Life again with You. Today, I put my faith in You as Saviour, Redeemer, Father and Friend. Thank You that Your blood was enough to wash me clean of sin forever so that I may have relationship with you as my Father and trust You as Daddy. I put my life in Your loving and gracious hands today Father, and ask that You would lead me into everything You have for me, as Your son/daughter. Amen.
If you prayed that prayer and would like to tell someone, please I encourage you to email me on dwaine.hohne@telkomsa.net so that I can give you something more to read, or you can tell a friend who you know to be a Christian. It is an absolute joy to me and to the host of Heaven today, if you did pray that prayer. But more so, Jesus is glad you’re back where you belong...with Him.
