Author: Gary Witcher
Company: none

Jesus: King

     God called Abraham out of his homeland and led him to Canaan.  God watched over Isaac, Jacob and the twelve Patriarchs.  God carried the descendants of Jacob out of Egypt.  Once the Israelites were in the promised land, God raised up judges to lead them.  These were God's people, and He took care of them.
     But the people were never satisfied.  They complained constantly while Moses was directing them.  The pattern of the time of the judges was one of disobedience.  And, then, they wanted to be like all the other nations around them.  They wanted a king.
     "But this thing was displeasing in the sight of Samuel," we read in 1 Samuel 8:6-9, "when they said, 'Give us a king to judge us.'  And Samuel prayed to the Lord.
     "And the Lord said to Samuel, 'Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me from being king over them.
     "Like all the deeds which they have done since the day that I brought them up from Egypt even to this day - in that they have forsaken Me and served other gods - so they are doing to you also.
     "'Now, then listen to their voice; however, you shall solemnly warn them and tell them of the procedure of the king who will reign over them.'"
     Samuel tries to explain to the people that a king will take the best of their land, flocks, produce and children.  But the people refuse to listen.
     Sure enough, most of the kings lead the people farther and farther away from God.  Only a few, such as David, recognize that God, and not they, must rule if things are to go well for the nation.
     "The Lord is King forever and ever," David recognizes in Psalm 10:16.
     "The earth is the Lord's, and all it contains," David acknowledges in Psalm 24:1.
     "Who is this King of glory?" David asks at the end of this psalm.  "The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of glory."
     "For God is the King of all the earth," the psalmist points out in Psalm 47:7.
     Instead of looking to God for guidance, though, most of the kings follow their own ways.  They lead the people into disobedience and, eventually, into captivity.  But God is still concerned about His people.  So He sends the Messiah to establish a new kingdom.
     "He will be great," the angel Gabriel announces to Mary in Luke 1:32-33, "and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end."
     "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?" the wise men ask in Matthew 2:2.  "For we saw His star in the East, and have come to worship Him."
     As this child grows up and eventually begins His ministry, He starts to call disciples to follow Him.
     "Rabbi, You are the Son of God;" Nathanael acknowledges in John 1:49 upon meeting Jesus, "You are the King of Israel."
     The devil sometimes uses kingship as a temptation to cause Jesus to turn in the wrong direction.  In Matthew 4:8-10 the devil offers all the kingdoms of the earth if Jesus will fall down and worship him.  Of course, Jesus does not fall for this temptation.
     The people try in John 6:15 to take Jesus and force Him to be their king.  Once again, the Lord does not consent.
     Later in His ministry, the wife of Zebedee asks in Matthew 20:21 that her two sons be seated at either hand of Jesus in His kingdom.
     As Jesus enters Jerusalem in Matthew chapter 21 He is received by the people as their king.  But this king is not what the Jewish leaders want.  They are looking for someone to lead the nation in rebellion against the Romans.  So the people are turned against Jesus.  Much of the Lord's trial centers on His claims to kingship.
     As we read in Luke 23:38, Pilate places on the cross an inscription which reads, "This is the King of the Jews."
     A few verses later we notice that one of the thieves being crucified with Jesus recognizes His position and asks to be with Him in His kingdom.
     Jesus is king.  In fact, He is identified in Revelation 19:16 as, "King of Kings."  But what does the Bible teach us about His kingdom?

     What does the Bible tell us about the kingdom of Jesus?
     The first thing we should understand is that the kingdom is now.  The New Testament does not promise a kingdom which is to be established after the second coming of Jesus.
     "Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household," Jesus teaches in Matthew 13:52, "who brings forth out of his treasure things new and old."
     Notice that Jesus speaks of the kingdom as something within the reach of the scribes of His day.  In fact, the Gospels refer to the kingdom as something which is "at hand" or coming soon.  After the death of Jesus and the establishment of the church, the references switch to past tense.
     "Truly I say to you," Jesus promises in Mark 9:1, "there are some of those who are standing here who shall not taste of death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power."
     "For He delivered us from the domain of darkness," Paul writes in Colossians 1:13-14, "and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
     "He has made us to be a kingdom," John claims in Revelation 1:6.
     Another thing we must understand is that the kingdom of Jesus is not of this world.  It never was.  It never will be.
     "My kingdom is not of this world," Jesus tells Pilate in John 18:36.  "If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting, that I might not be delivered up to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm."
     The kingdom of Jesus is one which cannot be shaken.
     "Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken," we read in Hebrews 12:28, "let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe."
     One other thing we know about this kingdom is that it will be transferred to God after the second coming of Christ.  Notice that this is exactly the opposite of the teaching of some who are still looking for a kingdom to be established on the earth after the return of Christ.
     "But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ's at His coming," we learn from 1 Corinthians 15:23-24, "then comes the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power."
     Many of the parables of Jesus are designed to teach us about the kingdom.  Let's consider just a few of the parables from the book of Matthew.
     Chapter 13 of the Gospel of Matthew contains seven parables designed to provide instruction about the kingdom.  Included are stories about a man who sows seed on various kinds of soils, a mustard seed, a hidden treasure and a pearl of great price.  Lessons from these parables deal with hearing, obedience, faith and faithfulness, sound doctrine and commitment.
     A parable in chapter 18 tells of a forgiving king and an unforgiving slave.  In the next chapter we learn the importance of humility in the kingdom through an observation about little children.  Parables in following chapters mention landowners and laborers, a king and a wedding feast, 10 virgins waiting for a wedding party and the distribution of money to servants.  And each teaches an important spiritual lesson about the kingdom.
     Jesus is the King.  And the church is His kingdom.  That makes Christians His subjects.
     "You who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ," Ephesians 2:13 points out.
     "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens," verses 19-22 add, "but you are fellow-citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit."
     "For our citizenship is in heaven," Paul stresses in Philippians 3:20.
     "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession," Hebrews 2:9-10 points out, "that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy."
     Isn't this great news?  We have the opportunity to be released from the kingdom of darkness and become part of the kingdom of the King of Kings.  All we have to do is obey the truth, and the King will set us free.

Unless otherwise noted, "Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE(R), (C) Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission." (www.lockman.org)