The Rider and the White Horse

The white rider in today’s text is Jesus. Take time as you read to compare this picture of Jesus with the picture we see in the Gospels – a gentle and suffering servant. Here Jesus is victorious over all the forces of evil that the book of Revelation has described. Jesus is both the gracious, suffering servant of the Gospels and the mighty, fearsome warrior of Revelation 19. As you read, consider whether your view of Jesus is this all-encompassing and ask God to expand your understanding of our savior.

STUDY THE SCRIPTURE

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REFLECTION

Rider and the White Horse

by Kelsey Bacon

The image of Jesus in this passage is striking--the majestic rider on the white horse--although it should not be unfamiliar to us. In the first chapter of Revelation, John describes Jesus with eyes like blazing fire (1:14) and with the double-edged sword coming out of his mouth (1:16). And although we've read about another rider on a white horse in Revelation 6, this new rider is much different. Although he too comes to conquer, his quest is much different than the first horseman's. Jesus' quest is to conquer evil and redeem those who love him.

We see also in this passage that Jesus is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, but "the armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean" (19:14). Jesus' robe is blood-stained and dirty, while his followers are dressed in white. I love this image. It is the perfect description to me, the perfect way to imagine Jesus. It encompasses his majesty and power, riding his horse into battle and leading an army, but also his humility and sacrifice. He is wearing his own blood, his own death, and in doing that he is wearing the blood and death of all those who follow him. And because he is wearing it, they can all wear white.

This image, this idea of Jesus as a conqueror, is not one we typically talk about. We juxtapose his humble life on earth with that of the conquering kings of those days, because he came as a king and chose not to live in a palace or wear a crown or overtake the Roman empire the way everyone was expecting him to. But this passage in Revelation rounds out our picture of Jesus in a way that reminds us of his true power and majesty. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords, and kings conquer their enemies. Not only did Jesus conquer death by dying humbly and sacrificially on the cross, but he also conquers Satan and his evil cohorts by charging, warrior-like, into battle and throwing down the enemy. That is a true king: one who fights, one who loves, one who sacrifices, and one who wins. And only Jesus does all of those things.

One final thing to note that I think is vital to us today is Jesus' weapon of choice. Throughout much of our study of Revelation, we have asked ourselves, "how does this book apply to us right here, right now?" The sword that comes out of Jesus' mouth is the Word of God, as mentioned in Revelation 1:16. Jesus fights with the truth, fights with the justice of his judgement. He fights with the power of the gospel. And we too, as his followers washed white in the blood of his sacrifice, can fight against evil with his Word.

We can engage our minds in God's Word and live our lives according to it. In Craig Koester's book Revelation; the End of All Things, he writes that "Those whom Christ purifies are, in turn, summoned into a battle of faithfulness, which means resistance to sin and evil" (174). We are summoned to resist sin and evil, and our best weapon in the battle against Satan is the Word of God, the same weapon Jesus chooses. God has given us his Word as a path to him--and a path to him is a path to victory.

UALC’S CAMPAIGN OF PRAYER

THURSDAY: TRIUMPH
Pray for scientists all over the world seeking antidotes to heal the world of this virus. Pray they would be triumphant quickly.