Day 40 | The Return of Christ

Read Revelation 19:11-21

At this point in the book of Revelation, the apostle John had already seen Jesus portrayed in two other visions. Now he sees Jesus as the rider on the white horse. The only other time in Scripture that Jesus had ever ridden an animal was on a donkey to enter Jerusalem shortly before His death. But in this vision, Jesus is seen riding the traditional white horse that victorious Roman generals would ride through the streets of Rome in triumphal procession. The weapon of choice the Rider uses is His Word (the “sharp sword,” verse 15). Just as God spoke the universe into existence, He will, with His Word, vanquish His enemies forever. This scene is a fulfillment of the central theme of Revelation- that Jesus is returning as King to conquer death and Satan forever.

Describing this scene as miraculous is a bit of an understatement. In our lives, we see the effects of death and Satan everywhere we go. In fact, everything that goes wrong in life is a result of our fallen state. The pain, heartache, dysfunction, disease, disasters, violence, war, deceptions, and perversions of this present age are simply symptoms of a world under the curse of sin and the leadership of Satan, “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). Our lives in this fallen, broken world involve dealing with these symptoms each and every
day. But the great hope of the Christian faith is that a day is coming when the root causes of these symptoms are dealt with once and for all by King Jesus. No more cancer. No more tornadoes. No more sexual abuse. No more tears or broken hearts. In His grand finale of miracles, Jesus will conquer them all.

How should that reality shape our lives now? As those marked by the Rider on the white horse, we are to live as people of hope. We know because our lives are hidden in Him (Colossians 3:3) that our future is secure. If we are in Christ, whatever comes against us in this life cannot change the reality of our eternity.

Pray for 10 minutes