Thoughts About Horses Dan Fick, February 13
Horses make the worlds go-round, this one and the next.
Revelation 19:11-14 “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. 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. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.”
I believe I am correct in that horses are the only domestic animals mentioned as being part of Heaven. The word horse is found 143 times in the NIV Bible from Genesis to Revelations with additional mentions of horsemen. I truly believe that God laid a singular prominence on the horse during the sixth day of the Creation.
There must be a million quotes about the horse. Winston Churchill said, “There’s nothing better for the inside of a man than the outside of a horse.” Saint Augustine tells us that, “Will is to grace as the horse is to the rider.” The first quote talks of the pleasures we derive from riding a horse, the rhythmic motion, the speed, the ability to travel great distances often through rough terrain. The second quote is more complex perhaps meaning that grace through faith controls our free will as a rider controls a horse. Our will should only go where grace takes us. Histories, countries, and cultures have been made on the back and through the strength of the horse. That man references the horse in countless sayings demonstrates the value and prominence of the horse to man, and the great God-given gift the horse has been to man.
Horses have always been of great value to man. King Solomon had 12,000. Many American Indian tribes placed a man’s worth on the number and caliber of the horses he possessed. In the Old West, stealing a man’s horse was a capital offense. Horses have been traded as a commodity forever, and still today, a stallion and broodmare may bring over one million dollars at a horse auction.
But, what is the value of the horse to God? Zechariah 6:5 tells us that the four chariots pulled by powerful horses each of a different color were, “The angel answered me, ‘These are the four spirits of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world.’” In Revelations 6:1-8 is the introduction of the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” – conquest, war, famine, and death. These are horses of a different color depicted as delivering the beginning of God’s judgment at the end times. In Revelations 19:11-14, most interpretations see Jesus riding out with His heavenly army to conquer the world through the Word, the spreading of the gospel just as Jesus proclaimed in the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20.
Revelation 6:1-8 (NLT) – “As I watched, the Lamb broke the first of the seven seals on the scroll. Then I heard one of the four living beings say with a voice like thunder, ‘Come!’ I looked up and saw a white horse standing there. Its rider carried a bow, and a crown was placed on his head. He rode out to win many battles and gain the victory.”
I envision the horse as God’s messengers, delivering riders bearing His Word throughout history making disciples in a troubled and uninitiated world. Now, in the age of machines – cars, trucks, trains, boats, and planes – it is certainly appropriate that “horsepower” is the term to describe the capacity to perform in today’s messengers.
Zechariah 1:8-11 (NLT) – “In a vision during the night, I saw a man sitting on a red horse that was standing among some myrtle trees in a small valley. Behind him were riders on red, brown, and white horses. I asked the angel who was talking with me, ‘My lord, what do these horses mean? I will show you,’ the angel replied. The rider standing among the myrtle trees then explained, ‘They are the ones the LORD has sent out to patrol the earth.’ Then the other riders reported to the angel of the LORD, who was standing among the myrtle trees, ‘We have been patrolling the earth, and the whole earth is at peace.’”
Gracious God, our Heavenly Father, thank you for Your precious gift of the horse. Teach us to appreciate our horses even more than we already do. May we always be able to ride like the wind on the back of a horse for real and in our dreams. We pray this in Your Son’s precious name, Jesus! Amen.
Trust Standing confident in faith He is with you all the time all the way. Live
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