Have you noticed all the superhero movies in the last five years? There’s been Superman, Spiderman, Batman, Iron Man, X-Men… It would probably take you a week maybe even two weeks of binge watching to catch up on all the superhero movies. That tells me one of two things: either movie makers have run out of original ideas, or they’ve come to the conclusion that we love superheroes so much that we will pay to watch any movie made about them. That’s why to date there’s been 10 movies about Batman alone! We embrace superheroes, but why when they’re not real?
I think we embrace superheroes because we dream of a world in which the good guy will always triumph. We would love to know that no matter what kind of evil genius tries to take over the world, that there is an even more ingenious good guy who will counter him. Well our sermon text today reveals that we have such a hero—a genuine superhero. This is the superhero that we want to embrace more than we embrace Batman or Superman. This hero is of course Jesus. Though Jesus might not seem hip when compared to the superheroes from the movies, he will be described in our text today in a way that you probably don’t often think of him. Listen to these words from Revelation 19 which the Apostle John wrote: “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. 14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16)
This past Wednesday was May the 4th and so perhaps some of you went to school or even to work dressed in your favorite Star Wars t-shirt. May the 4th has been adopted as Star Wars day because the date, May the 4th, sounds like the Jedi greeting: “May the Force be with you.” But how many of you Star Wars fans realized what important day came after May 4th this year? No, I’m not talking about Cinco de Mayo. I’m talking about an event that comes 40 days after Easter. Yes, Ascension—the day on which Jesus rose up into the heavens! Did you remember to wear your “Jesus Rules!” t-shirts and release helium balloons? No? Well, in this service we are celebrating the Ascension and learning again what it all means.
As I have often said, Jesus’ ascension into heaven was not his retirement. It was his formal re-coronation as king of the universe. And so the Ascension is a good time to remind ourselves that we have a genuine superhero in Jesus who is guarding and protecting us from evil. And in the end, this superhero will reappear to trample evil to bits once and for all like an avalanche wiping clean the side of a mountain. That’s the Jesus that John describes in our text. Let’s take a closer look.
John said he saw a rider on a white horse from heaven. How do we know that this rider is in fact Jesus? John never identifies him as such. But John does say that this rider’s name is “the Word of God.” This was the very title that the Holy Spirit prompted John to give to Jesus when he was writing his gospel. There John said that the Word was with God in the beginning, and was in fact God. We also read that the Word became flesh. So the Word is clearly a reference to Jesus. He’s called the Word because he is God the Father’s message to us sinners, he is the Father’s living love letter to us. Jesus came not only to proclaim God’s favor, but also to win it through his death on the cross which pays for our sins.
John also said that Jesus is called “Faithful” and “True.” We’re happy to hear that aren’t we? Because the superheroes in the movies are not always faithful and true. They make promises that they are not always able to keep and often disappoint those closest to them. But not so with Jesus. Every promise he has made to us is a promise he has or will fulfill. That’s not just true of his promises of love and forgiveness, however, it’s also true of his promise of justice. In fact that’s what John was seeing in the vision—Jesus coming back to judge the world. Listen again to how that truth is described in the vision: “With justice he judges and wages war… 13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood… 15 Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty” (Revelation 19:12-15).
Because Jesus is true to his word to punish those who reject his forgiveness, when he returns, it will be to wage war. And that’s why his robe is dipped in blood. This is not the blood that he shed on the cross to pay for our sins. Rather this is the blood that has spattered onto his garments because he is engaged in a fierce battle. John brings out that truth when he explained how Jesus “treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty” (Revelation 19:15). If you’ve had this picture that God the Father is the “mean” one of the Trinity and Jesus the “softy,” you can get rid of that idea and embrace this genuine picture. When Jesus returns it will not be to pussyfoot around evil or handle with kid gloves those who have rejected him. It will be to trample them and send them to hell forever. And don’t even think of trying to hide from Jesus because his eyes blaze with fire, says John. This is probably a reminder of how Jesus sees and knows all things.
How exactly will Jesus carry out this judgment? He will do so with the sword that protrudes from his mouth. In other words he will reign through his Word, even as he does so now. This sword, by the way, is described as a romphia in the original Greek. A romphia was a large sword used by Thracian soldiers that usually took two hands to swing. So the Word that comes from Jesus’ mouth doesn’t have the paltry power of a butter knife; it’s a weapon of war. I wonder though if we don’t often treat God’s Word like a ceremonial sword? Sure, our Bible sits out on the coffee table or at least on a bookshelf nearby, but when is the last time we opened it and studied it? When is the last time we let that sword cut through our sinful nature? How quick are we to use this sword to fight off our doubts and fears? Don’t wait for a make-believe superhero to take those fears away. Embrace the genuine superhero you have in Jesus. Embrace him by embracing his Word.
No, you’re not going to find all the answers you want about the future or even about your Savior in the Bible. But that’s probably the point when our text says that this rider also has “a name written on him that no one knows but he himself” (Revelation 19:12a). Although we do know a lot about Jesus—that he is true God and true man, that he is our Savior from sin, that he has promised to be with us always, we will not fully understand everything about him, or the way in which he rules this world. But we still can trust that he is doing what is the best for us. The last description of Jesus brings out that truth. John wrote: “On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (Revelation 19:11).
Jesus is THE King and THE Lord. There is no one with more power than he. But who are the other kings (King of kings) and lords (Lord of lords) described in this title? I used to always think it just meant that Jesus was a greater king than any earthly king or lord. While that’s true, consider this other possibility. The Apostle Paul once wrote: “…if we endure, we will also reign with him” (2 Timothy 2:12). WE believers are the kings and lords referred to here! This is what makes Jesus a much better superhero than any movie superhero. You see, when those movie superheroes save the day, they really don’t anything more than get life back to normal. But we pine for more than normal, don’t we? We don’t want a life where cancer continues to reign, or where our economic future remains a question mark. We want a life in which all those worries are removed from us once and for all. And that’s the kind of life that Jesus promises us, a life in which we will forever reign over that which once made us fearful—and that includes reigning over death.
That reign has already started because Jesus ascended to the right hand of the Father. This ought to free us from our tendencies toward frantic fear, even as we watch the news and see what often seems to be chaos all around us. We are not at the whim of dark social and political forces. We are not at the mercy of “Mother Nature.” God raised Jesus and “seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above every rule and authority and power and dominion…and appointed him head over everything for the church” (Ephesians 1:20-21, 23). While his tomb is empty his throne is not.
When the terrorist attacks happened on 9/11, Americans were comforted when the President of the United States returned to the White House. The very image of the nation’s leader at his desk in the Oval Office was a signal that the country’s leadership wasn’t panicking. The President was where he was supposed to be, not hiding out in an “undisclosed location.” Jesus is not in an undisclosed location, waiting until a safe time to reappear. Jesus is enthroned with his Father, moving history toward his goal. His invisibility right now is no sign of apathy or impotence but of patience. He is preparing a kingdom for his people, and he is patiently waiting for others to come home to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). [the last two paragraphs were adapted from a Russell Moore blog]
Do you see why Jesus is worth embracing? And yet could it be that we know more about Batman and Superman? How foolish that will feel when we see the heavens opened and Jesus, the genuine superhero, returning to judge the world. May this Ascension celebration encourage us all to embrace more firmly Jesus, the genuine superhero. For he is ruling right now over all things, even over forest fires and whatever other fire is raging in your life right now. Embrace Jesus and give him those problems to carry. Amen.
SERMON NOTES
What important event on the church calendar happened last Thursday? Did you celebrate it? Why or why not?
The Apostle John described seeing a rider on a white horse come out of heaven. How do we know that this rider is in fact Jesus? List at least four reasons.
How does this vision of Jesus demonstrate that he isn’t a “softy”?
A sword protruded from Jesus’ mouth representing the Word of God. In what ways are we often guilty of treating God’s Word like a ceremonial sword?
Jesus also had the title “King of kings, and Lord of lords” written on his thigh. Give at least two reasons why that title is comforting.
Explain: Jesus’ ascension can be summarized like this: while the tomb is empty, the throne is not.
