For the last week and a half, we have all been inundated through the T.V., newspapers, internet & idle chatter & gossip, of the sudden & tragic death of Michael Joseph Jackson, the King of Pop. When the news first broke on Thursday, June 25th at around 4:30 pm, all of the news media outlets were saying… “The Self-Proclaimed, King of Pop, Michael Jackson is dead!” Self proclaimed? Are you serious? Who else BUT Michael could sell over 750 million albums world wide?
Some of us can’t even pack a church for our choir’s anniversary? Who else but Michael Jackson could shut down & jam up the internet? Facebook was face down! Twitter had become bitter! Everyone everywhere was talking about it….DID YOU HEAR? DID YOU HEAR? DID YOU HEAR?
At first, I was caught up in the emotion of it all. I used to be a Michael Jackson junkie! Mike had issues just like me. Mike had drama…just like me. Mike had mess….just like me. Mike had all the fame, & fortune that some of us would love to have for 1 day….but all the money, all the fame, all the fortune, all the notoriety did not make him exempt from his appointment with death. I must tell you though, after the 1st 24 hours of the news coverage & empathizing with his kids…I was an am OVER it!
No man, especially in DEATH, should have THAT much power & air-time! Yeah, he was the King of Pop…but guess what! The KING IS DEAD!
Our text this morning is a very poignant reminder of Who the KING REALLY is! The Book of Revelation is the last book of the Bible. It IS the end of the story. It IS the end of ALL things. John the Beloved is told by God Himself to write these things….Don’t add to or take away or send for revision! Just simply…WRITE! Chapter 19 starts off with John over hearing Praise & Worship up in Heaven! He says,
1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia;
Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God.
(praise party…why)
2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did
corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her
hand.
(Rome, Jerusalem, Russia, USA – simply the evil modern society as a whole or the earth as we know it. Vengeance is mine sayeth the Lord. He WILL fight your battles & He WILL be victorious!
The Hebrew word Halleluya as an expression of praise to God as a superlative expression of thanksgiving, joy, and triumph. At the most literal, Alleluia means "All hail to Him Who is."
Anytime the Lord does something for us, we ought to be able to say Hallelujah!
So we get to verse 11…the apex of the whole bible! This is the part where you STOP eating your popcorn. This is the edge of your seat moment! This is the WILL YOU SHUT UP part of the story!
It says, 11 And I saw heaven opened…, now I understand David saying, I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills… Now I understand the Angel when it spoke to John, Peter & James on the Mountain of Transfiguration. Why stand ye gazing up into the heavens….There are only about 2 other instances where HEAVEN just opened. The 1st time was when Jesus was baptized in Matthew 3:16 where it says And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
The other is in Acts 7:56 after Stephen has preached God’s Word and is about to be stoned. It says And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
11 And I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse (before it was on a donkey); and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, (what he personifies, adjectives, characteristics) and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. When he walked the earth as a man, Jesus was meek, humble, etc, but NOW he is not personifying any sacrificial lamb, now He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, and he comes to judge and make war! The great whore has already been judged…now it’s time for the rest of the earth to receive their judgment! It is appointed for man to die..and after death, the judgment!
12 His eyes were as a flame of fire…He ain’t no punk, He’s coming back to set it off!...... and on his head were many crowns;
Let’s set the record straight, when we go back to Jesus on trial before Pilate, in John Chapter 18:33-37 it says 33Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the King of the Jews? 34Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me? 35Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done? 36Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. 37Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice. What’s your point Russ….He was ALREADY King when He dwelt among men. The very reason He came was you and I to see the truth. In John chapter 8 Jesus says: “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” But the problem is…just like Tom Cruise in A Few Good Men, in my best Jack Nicholson voice…YOU CAN’T HANDLE THE TRUTH!
and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself… Only YOU know who you REALLY are. Only YOU know who you are when nobody else is looking. Yeah, I may have been born Russell Murray Rillie, the 3rd child and only son of Rosebud Pew & Murray James Rillie. Yeah my Birth Certificate says Russell M. Rillie. My social security card says Russell M. Rillie, my driver’s license says Russell M. Rillie, but there is a name written, in the bosom of my heart, there is a NAME written in the depths of my soul, there is a NAME written in the confines of my thoughts that NOBODY knows but me. Yeah, I know it NOW, but I didn’t always know it then. What you saying preacher, we ain’t what we think we are. Precisely…it doesn’t even MATTER what folk name you and how folk PERCEIVE you…. More importantly what does GOD call you and how does GOD perceive you? The very day that you were converted, you changed identities. Abram became Abraham, Sarai, became Sarah, Jacob became Israel, Saul became Paul and Russell became……..Do you even know who you REALLY are! Psalms 138:8 says The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.
13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. Now I understand the songwriter when he says My eyes have seen the Glory of the coming of the Lord. He has trampled out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored. Church, the Lord is going to trample out some things. He’s gonna trample out sickness, disease, EVERYTHING has got to bow down. IT SHALL BE UNDER HIS FEET! We are known by what we wear. At my job, I’m known for my suits..and I’m known for my ties, I’m known for my shoes & I’m known for my cologne. But thank God, It’s not my clothes that make me. Like Mary Mary sings…It’s the God in me! His vesture is dipped in blood. I’m so sick of all these little boys talking about they gang banging, some say they crips, so everyday they’re crippin’. Some say they are bloods, so they rep the bloods, well I’m SOOOOOOOOO glad that I rep God! I’m sooooooo glad, that I rep Christ! He don’t need a GANG of Bloods, HE IS THE blood. It was HIS blood that saved me. It was his blood that HEALED me. It was HIS blood that delivered me.
For you to understand verse 13, you have to go back to Revelation chapter 6 verses 9 & 10. After the 5th seal was opened, it says I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? Church don’t get it twisted, if you preach this word, if you sing this word, if you teach THIS word, if you live this word and if you have a testimony about THIS word then the Word of God will avenge all those that talked about you, all those that hated on you all those that persecuted you. NOW I understand Matthew 5:10-12 where it says 10Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. You can hate me NOW, but on Judgment Day, like the King of Pop said…YOUR BUTT IS MINE! And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. It doesn’t say his name WAS The Word of God, it says his name, the name that nobody knows was CALLED The Word Of God. Hmmmmm, doesn’t that sound eerily familiar, I think that sounds like John chapter 1. 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning.
3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
14And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. Now I understand the songwriter that said, We are soldiers in the Army. We have to fight although we have to cry. We have to hold up the bloodstained banner, we have to hold it up until we die. Now I understand the congregational hymn that says I’M A SOLDIER, In the army of the Lord. If I die let me die, in the army of the Lord, I got my war clothes on, in the army of the Lord. Do you have your war clothes on? Ain’t it funny how the Commander in Chief has on all white, on a white horse with his vesture dipped in blood to remind him of who he is fighting for. But the rest of the army has on fine white linen & they are following him into what is to be a bloody war? No helmets, no shields, no swords…all they need is JESUS and that’s enough. It’s going to be a bloody war, but you won’t have to lift up a hand! All you have to do is let the Word speak a WORD!
19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. In Genesis chapter 1 it says in the beginning God created the Heavens and the earth, simply by saying A WORD. All we need is ONE word.
Lastly my brothers & sisters verse 16 says And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
We live in a society where EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE KING. Everybody wants to be on top. We idolize heathens, pedophiles, drug abusers, drug dealers, rappers, pastors & preachers! YEAH I said it! WHAT? We give Titles of Notoriety to people based upon a much diluted WORLDLY concept.
Benny Goodman (King of Swing), Otis Redding (King of Soul), There’s a TV show called King of Queens, & another one called King Of The Hill, Lion - king of the beasts, Eagle - king of the air, Owen Hart (King of Harts), Howard Stern (King of All Media), Elvis Presley the King of Rock & Roll, was simply called THE KING & Michael Jackson was the King of Pop.
Well, the last time I checked, Benny Goodman died in 1986. Otis Redding died in 1967. James Brown died on Christmas Day, 2006. Owen Hart died May 23, 1999. The Final Episode of the King of Queens aired on May 14th, 2007. King of the Hill is set to go off the air after 14 Seasons this fall. Howard Stern is still alive, but heck he LOOKS dead! Elvis Presley died August 16, 1977 & Michael Jackson died June 25th, 2009. Those Kings are Dead…., Long Live THE KING! Matter of fact, last time I checked, Buddha died in 400 BC….but HE didn’t get up! Muhammad died June 8, 632..but he didn’t get up. Joseph Smith died 1844…but He didn’t get up. Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson died June 12, 1994…Jews all over crown heights are STILL waiting for HIM to get up! One day our Lord and Savior went up to Calvary……HE GOT UP! All Power!
He’s coming back again. And when the Lord cracks the sky. The king of England has got to bow, the king of Scotland has got to bow, the king of media has got to bow, cancer, bad dept. when you see the white horse rider coming your way, know that it is the end of all things. He said in the last chapter of the last book…
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen
