KING JESUS
Like several of you, Wilma and I had watched the
Coronation of King Charles III from our hotel room in Philadelphia. What a
beautiful and richly meaningful ceremony. I read the Coronation Liturgy
afterward and was fascinated by the two prayers in the ceremony. One was by the
Arch-Bishop of Canterbury, who prayed before he placed the Crown on King
Charles:
"King of kings and Lord of lords, bless, we
beseech thee, this Crown, and so sanctify thy servant Charles upon whose head
this day thou dost place it for a sign of royal majesty, that he may be crowned
with thy gracious favor and filled with abundant grace and all princely
virtues; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with thee and the Holy Spirit
liveth and reigneth, supreme over all things, one God, world without end."
The second prayer was by King Charles himself, "God
of compassion and mercy whose son was sent not to be served but to serve, give
grace that I may find in thy service perfect freedom and in that freedom
knowledge of thy truth. Grant that I may be a blessing to all thy children, of
every faith and conviction, that together we may discover the ways of
gentleness and be led into the paths of peace. Through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Whatever my thoughts might have been for the rest of
the ceremony, I could wholeheartedly say, Amen, to these two powerful prayers.
As I watched the ceremony, the Lord reminded me who truly is the King of the
world and whom only we must trust.
Psalm 146:3-5, "Don't put your confidence in
powerful people; there is no help for you there. When they breathe their last,
they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them. But joyful are
those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord
their God,"
In our Kingdom Life series, we want to look at who our
King truly is and how He will rule, His Kingdom. Today we want to learn about King
Jesus, of whom there were no predecessors and will be no successors, and He
is the one and only one. Isaiah 9:1-7.
I.
The beginning of God's Kingdom
Vs.1, "Nevertheless, that time of darkness and
despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be
humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles,
which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be
filled with glory." Who were these two tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali, and
why were they humbled?
Before entering the promised land, the twelve tribes
of Israel were gathered on Mount Ebal. Moses assigned six tribes to pronounce
blessings of obedience and six to pronounce curses of disobedience to God's
commandments. Zebulun and Naphtali were among the six that pronounced curses of
disobedience. Upon entering the Promised Land, Zebulun and Naphtali failed to
drive out the Canaanites living in the land (Judges 1:30-33).
This was in complete disobedience to God's clear
command to drive out all the inhabitants of the land (Numbers 33:51-52). The
land of Zebulun and Naphtali later became known as Galilee in Northern Israel.
Moses' blessing on the tribes was that they would one day prosper in their
overseas dealings with Gentile nations (Deuteronomy 33:18-19, 23).
Isaiah prophesied, "In the past [God] humbled the
land of Zebulun . . . but in the future, he will honor Galilee" (Isaiah
9:1). Isaiah's prediction is Messianic: Galilee (including Zebulun and Naphtali)
would be honored as the first to hear Christ's preaching, and this would more
than compensate for their humiliation at the hands of the Assyrians centuries
before.
This prophecy was fulfilled centuries later when Jesus
preached in Galilee. Matthew 4:14-17. "From then on, Jesus began to
preach, "Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is
near." This was the beginning of God's Kingdom. In our gloom and despair,
we fear our sorrows will never end. But we can take comfort in this certainty,
like how God restored the fortunes of Zebulun and Naphtali; he will rescue us
when we return to Him.
II.
Who is the King of God's Kingdom?
Vs. 2-6 "The people who walk in darkness will see
a great light. For those who live in a land of deep darkness (a land where death
casts its shadow), a light will shine." Vs.6, "For a child is born to
us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he
will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of
Peace."
Let's see who is this child that the prophet Isaiah
prophesied about. He was the miraculous son of Mary and Joseph. The angel
Gabriel said to Mary, "You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you
will name him Jesus. He will be very great and will be called the son of the
Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And He
will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end." Luke 1:26-33.
Who was the great light? Mary's son, Jesus grew up to
be a man and ministered in the territories of Zebulun and Naphtali; this is why
they would see a "great light." The apostle John referred to Jesus as
the light." John 1:9, "The one who is the true light, who gives light
to everyone, was coming into the world." Jesus referred to himself as the
light of the world.
John 8:12, "I am the light of the world. If you
follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness because you will have the light
that leads to life." In a time of great darkness, God promised to send a
light who would shine on everyone living in the shadow of death."
That light is Jesus, also known as Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. Jesus came to
establish God's eternal Kingdom and deliver all people from their slavery to
sin and Satan, "the ruler of the kingdom of the air." Once, we lived
in the Kingdom of darkness, but when we repented of our sins, God "rescued
us from the Kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear
Son, who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins." Col 1:13-14. Now we
belong to King Jesus and His Kingdom of Light.
III.
King Jesus and His eternal Reign.
Vs. 7, "His government and its peace will never
end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor
David for all eternity." This scripture points to the eternal and peaceful
Kingdom that Jesus will establish upon His return. He will sit on the throne of
his ancestor David as King and rule the world with fairness and justice. Under
Jesus' Kingship, all wars, trouble, pain, suffering, oppression, inequality,
and even death will come to an end.
On the final day of judgment, "the world becomes
the Kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and
ever." (Rev 11:15). "At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in
heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus
Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Phil 2:10-11.
The words "kings" and "lords" are
mentioned over 10,000 times in the Bible. But "King of kings and Lord of
lords" is revealed only three times. Who is this King of kings and Lord of
lords? Jesus Christ. I Timothy 6:15, "For, at just the right time, Christ
will be revealed from heaven by the blessed and only almighty God, the King of
all kings and Lord of all lords."
Rev 17:14, Together they will go to war against the
Lamb, but the Lamb will defeat them because he is Lord of all lords and King of
all kings. And his called and chosen and faithful ones will be with him."
"On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and
Lord of all lords." Rev 19:16. It's important to note the ESV, NIV, and
other translations use "King" and "Lord" for Jesus but
"kings" and lords" for earthly leaders. This difference
distinguishes Jesus as supreme King and Lord over all creation (Colossians
1:15-20).
Our King Jesus is indescribable, incomprehensible, and
absolutely incomparable. Yet he is humble and gentle and will not despise a
broken and contrite spirit. He reigns in the hearts that are open and repentant. May
God open our eyes so that we will love and worship our King Jesus.
