Easter, Revelation-style

There are three verses in Revelation chapter 19 which are the essence of what we call Easter. The results of the events we celebrate during this season, however, are seen after-the-fact. Read how they were revealed to John:

 11. And I saw heaven opened; and behold, a white horse, and He who sat upon it is called Faithful and True; and in righteousness He judges and wages war.
 This may seem strange, but apparently heaven is not a wide-open place. Rather, at least with respect to this sin-riddled earth, heaven is protected from evil (Matthew 3:13-16-17, Acts 7:54-56-60, Revelation 4:1, and Revelation 15:5). One should be aware that Hades is within sight/hearing distance of Abraham's boson (heaven?). The need to protect heaven from evil should also make us much more alert to the foibles of the devil The devil is very crafty and will be able to deceive many (like the sand of the seashore - Revelation 20:8) after the millennial reign of Christ.

This may also explain why the New Jerusalem (heaven) has gates (Revelation 21:12).
The WHITE HORSE symbolizes power and warfare from a righteous, pure, and holy army. The commander-in-chief, here denoted as HE, is none other than Jesus Christ. While we have seen how Jesus Christ looks in heaven (Revelation 1:12-16), here we find Him in his "military" role and as Messiah (John 4:25-26).
This ties back to Jesus being called "The Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the Creation of God....(Revelation 3:14). The Creator of this earth is coming back to earth as Commander-in-chief  with his armies (Revelation 19:14) to reclaim the earth as the rightful owner.

In human terms, we never can be FAITHFUL and TRUE because of the sin curse placed upon us. So we hear phrases like "fair" or "impartial" used; but even these are hard to confirm. Comparing among earthlings always leaves room for untruth. Not so with Jesus Christ; He is CALLED (by God, we assume) FAITHFUL and TRUE;
Because Jesus is TRUE, He is able to JUDGE and execute this WAR against evil. We, as His supporting army, should have been faithful during our basic training (Ephesians 6:10-12-20). Then we will be able to wage war along side Jesus. Sadly, too many so-called Christians never go to 'boot camp'; it is doubtful they'll be part of the army (Revelation 19:14).

12. And His eyes are a flame of fire, and upon His head are many diadems; and He has a name written upon Him which no one knows except Himself.
It is Jesus' EYES that test our faith. The result will be that we may give praise and honor and glory at this time (1 Peter 1:3-7-9). We know that this was the physical attribute given to HIS EYES in Revelation 1:14, but clearly this set of verses here in chapter 19 is spiritual in nature. The spiritual side is totally open to Jesus. On earth we can be a fake Christian, acting the part in church, and being a model to those around us, and yet, when Jesus' EYES pierces into/through us, He will judge the thoughts and intentions known only to us (we falsely believe). We may have hidden that secret self from those around us but not from Jesus (Hebrews 4:12-13).
Contrast this with what the dragon (Revelation 12:3) and the Beast (Revelation 13:1) wore on their head(s). "Many" implies more diadems than any other. Jesus is imbued with royal dignity. How different this is from the crown of thorns (Mark 15:16-20).

There is an account in the Old Testament of the conquering king removing the crown from the conquered king and placing it upon his own head (2 Samuel 12:26-30-31). In a spiritual sense, this finalizes the fall of the kings of the earth who committed acts of immorality and lived sensuously with her (the harlot - global economic materialism, Revelation 18:9). Perhaps these diadems symbolize Jesus' final conquest over the kings of the earth.
Contrast this with the many blasphemous names the harlot took for herself (Revelation 17:3). Without a name, it is hard to brag or boast. That's important to the devil, you know. He feels he should be the one riding out of heaven on the white horse.

The name is written upon Jesus presumably by God the Father. Its meaning is hidden from us. Some scholars believe that at some time, we believers will know what that name is, just as mysteries of God had been revealed to some of the apostles (Ephesians 3:1-4-13). However, it really is immaterial whether we will get to know that name. What is important is that we now know "JESUS" and accept him as our Lord and Savior here and now.

13. And He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood; and His name is called The Word of God.
Often this phrase is compared to the 'vengeance' passage in Isaiah 63:1-6. This implies that the ROBE is covered with enemies' blood. While this may be, it is more likely that this is Christ's own blood. He is coming from heaven (verse 11) and the battle hasn't been enjoined yet (Revelation 19:19). Moreover, in the Revelation, the blood mentioned is always Christ's blood (Revelation 1:5; Revelation 5:6, 9; Revelation 7:14; and Revelation 12:11).

Symbolically, we are seeing salvation portrayed. It gives us our white robes (Revelation 7:14 and Revelation 22:14) when we ride into 'battle' (Revelation 19:14). We are seeing the pure revelation of Jesus Christ. That is, righteousness expunging evil (Hebrews 9:11-22).
In item (5), we see that Jesus has a name written on Him which 'no one knows except Himself', and now we are told His NAME is called 'THE WORD OF GOD".  One could look upon item (5) as an endearing nickname that is used by a parent for his child (Matthew 3:13-17). Here in item (7), His NAME is essentially how Christ is or should be known by us, His bride (Revelation 19:7). It is the essence of God's spiritual nature (John 1:1-5) placed in us when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior (John 15:1-17).

During our present period of grace, we most often take 'THE WORD OF GOD' to mean the Gospel or Good News, and that meaning still is included here. However, a broader meaning is implied. As commander-in-chief (verse 11), the WORD OF GOD is now mostly judgments or vengeance as requested (Revelation 6:9-11 (5th seal)). Words come from the mouth .... recall what comes from Jesus' mouth (Revelation 1:16 and Revelation 19:21). Again, we see righteousness supplanting evil using military imagery.

Placing items (6) and (7) together reinforces the idea that the BLOOD on the ROBE is CHRIST'S own BLOOD. NO enemy (evil) can come close to Christ as long as that sword (WORD OF GOD) of pure truth comes from His mouth. The devil introduced Adam and Eve (and the whole world) to evil (Genesis 3:1-5-7); now Christ is restoring the world to its pristine nonevil state prior to the millennial reign (Revelation 20:4-6).

Taking a composite look at the 7 spiritual items in these three verses, we realize that we have just been given the Revelation of Jesus Christ.