If your sound is turn on, the music you are hearing is “”Beautiful Name.”

Rev. 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

The first horse John saw was a white horse. White is the color of purity and faith. This white horse represents the people who have appropriated unto themselves the power of faith in Jesus Christ. The rider of this horse is given a crown which means he is a King, and he holds in his hand a bow which is an implement of war. This horseman is Jesus Christ in control of His Church as they spread the Gospel.  Jesus is depicted as going forth conquering and to conquer. He has a bow in his hand for that purpose, but He has no arrows. It can therefore be seen that He does not wage war directly, but spiritually by influencing men to accomplish that which he desires upon the earth. If you want to know where the arrows come from to fill his bow when actual warfare is needed look in the left claw of the American Eagle in the Great Seal of the United States who has arrows but no bow.

Since he is the first Horseman, Jesus is leading the other three. It should be seen then that, in the act of waging spiritual warfare to set all of mankind free from political, economic, and religious tyranny, it sometimes becomes necessary to use the remaining three horsemen to destroy those tyrannies in order to free the people that are held captive by them. Most often this is political tyranny which must be replaced by Democracy, but it can also be religious tyranny which must be replaced with freedom of religion, and/or economic tyranny which must be replaced by free markets. The difference between the cultures formed by men and the culture being formed by Jesus Christ is that men seek to control the culture politically while Jesus controls the people through faith in Him who then must exercise control over the political and economic powers of the culture. In the same way the people are freed from the fear of death through their faith in Jesus Christ. the purpose of this culture is not self fulfillment or enrichment but to serve our fellowman by empowering them to care for themselves and others, thus spreading the culture over ever widening areas of the earth.

King Jesus, the first horseman of the Apocalypse, is shown as being in control of the church as he rides forth conquering and to conquer while the other two forces of political power and economic power follow after Him. As long as Jesus is the head of the church and Christians guide the politics and markets of the culture from within the Christian Mos Maiorum the culture will advance as commanded and commissioned by the Voice of Almighty God. As long as Jesus has control of the culture the forces of Hell will not stand against it until it has achieved God’s purpose, and the forces of Hell will not gain control of the culture until God has accomplished his purpose with it.

Does King Jesus wage war spiritually or in fact? The answer to both questions is Yes. His warfare is spiritual when possible, but it will become actual, physical warfare when necessary to free people from the tyranny of earthly political, religious, or economic powers that are preventing them from hearing and believing the Gospel. Jesus said he did not come to bring peace upon earth but a sword. He told his disciples to arm themselves before he led them to Gethsemane (Luke 22:36-38). Neither Jesus nor His people seek active warfare, but neither do they shrink from it when it is thrust upon them by those who would stand in the way of spreading the Gospel over the earth alongside, and within, the culture that is freeing mankind from political, religious, and economic tyranny. God wants men free to choose to love, worship, and serve him, or reject him by their own choice. God has no respect for religions that are thrust upon mankind by religious, economic, or political tyrants. (I fully understand that some Christians believe that the doctrines of Predestination Election preclude men from having the freedom I have just outlined, and that issue is addressed in the articles on Calvinism and Arminianism in the One BodySection)