WE NEED A KING <br> <br> <br> <br>I think we intuitively know that the perfect world is one where a good King is on the throne. The fairy tales that move us most are the ones about the coming of a strong and good king -- who’s totally devoted to his people and whose people in turn give him their love and their loyalty – like King Arthur of Camelot or Tolkien’s Aragorn of Middle Earth. <br> <br>But that’s just in fairy tales, right? <br> <br>No. It’s not just a fairy tale. It’s the great story of the universe. We have a king – a true king – and his name is Jesus. He is the God/man king. <br> <br>God has revealed who he is through his names and one of the great names he gives himself is King – Yahweh is your king – -- your Melek -- he is majestic, he rules, he does battle for his people. <br> <br>The awesome thing about Jesus is that he IS Yahweh. Jesus is Yahweh come to his people as their king. And he is also the Son of David – a man like us -- the fulfillment of God’s promise to David that he would establish his throne forever. <br> <br>His is our king and everyday as believers we need to bow our knees to him. Every day we need to remember the battle he fought for us – fought and won, And every day we need to let the beauty of his majesty fill our hearts with joy. <br> <br>Let’s do that now. Let’s marvel at his majesty as we watch him -- fighting and suffering and winning the battle for us: <br> <br>John 18:3-11 “The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a battalion of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove. <br> <br>Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him. Stepping forward to meet them, he asked, “Whom are you looking for?” <br> <br> “Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “I am he,” Jesus said. Judas was standing there with them when Jesus identified himself. <br> <br>And as he said, “I am he,” they all fell backward to the ground! <br> <br>Once more he asked them, “Whom are you searching for?” And again they replied, “Jesus of Nazareth.” <br> <br> “I told you that I am he,” Jesus said. “And since I am the one you want, let these others go.” <br> <br>He did this to fulfill his own statement: “I have not lost a single one of those you gave me.” <br> <br> <br> <br>Jesus wasn’t taken by force; He gave himself up voluntarily and we know that because of what happened when he said “I AM.” I AM –Yahweh. God told Moses to tell the people “My name is I AM”. Jesus says “I AM” and what happens? A whole regiment of tough Roman soldiers fall on their faces. <br> <br>This is Yahweh our king, releasing a little of his power and glory, just enough to set his own terms: <br> <br> “Since I am the one you want, let these men go.” <br> <br>Our king is going into battle alone. He’s going into battle to save his people – to save us. <br> <br> <br> <br>John 18:12-23 “So the soldiers, their commanding officer, and theTemple guards arrested Jesus and tied him up. <br> <br>First they took him to Annas, the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. <br> <br>Caiaphas was the one who had told the other Jewish leaders, “Better that one should die for all.” <br> <br>Inside, the high priest began asking Jesus about his followers and what he had been teaching them. <br> <br>Jesus replied, “What I teach is widely known, because I have preached regularly in the synagogues and the Temple. I have been heard by people everywhere, and I teach nothing in private that I have not said in public. <br> <br>Why are you asking me this question? Ask those who heard me. They know what I said.” <br> <br>One of the Temple guards standing there struck Jesus on the face. “Is that the way to answer the high priest?” he demanded. <br> <br>Jesus replied, “If I said anything wrong, you must give evidence for it. Should you hit a man for telling the truth?” <br> <br> <br> <br>Jesus is tied up, under arrest, seemingly powerless. And yet, he is still Yahweh and his sovereign authority comes shining through. He triumphs even in the words of his enemies. What Caiaphas meant was, “Let’s get rid of him so the Romans won’t come down on us.” But what he said was really an awesome truth – “this one man, this King, is going to die for his people.” <br> <br>And then there’s the way the trial gets turned around. Jesus is supposedly on trial but whenever anyone tries to act as his judge, he turns the tables. He asks the questions and they end up beings the ones on trial. <br> <br>You can see Yahweh’s authority at work in Jesus even when his hands are tied. <br> <br>Next the high priest takes him to the Roman governor, Pilate, and tells him Jesus is claiming to be a king. That of course would be a challenge to the Roman Empire. Pretenders to thrones have to be punished and humiliated as an example. But Pilate isn’t convinced that Jesus is a dangerous political radical: <br> <br>John 18:33-38 “Then Pilate went back inside and called for Jesus to be brought to him. “Are you the King of the Jews?” he asked him. <br> <br>Jesus replied, “Is this your own question, or did others tell you about me?” <br> <br> “Am I a Jew?” Pilate asked. “Your own people and their leading priests brought you here. Why? What have you done?” <br> <br>Then Jesus answered, “I am not an earthly king. If I were, my followers would have fought when I was arrested by the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.” <br> <br>Pilate replied, “You are a king then?” “You say that I am a king, and you are right,” Jesus said. “I was born for that purpose. And I came to bring truth to the world. All who love the truth recognize that what I say is true.” <br> <br> “What is truth?” Pilate asked. Then he went out again to the people and told them, “He is not guilty of any crime.” <br> <br> <br> <br>Pilate was sneering at the idea that Jesus could be king: “Are YOU the king of the Jews?” But what Pilate didn’t know was that if Jesus IS the true king of the Jews that means he’s the king of kings, the true king of the whole earth <br> <br>Which means that Pilate was asking a bigger question than he knew. <br> <br>And Jesus’ answer was “Yes.” His kingdom is from another place, it’s not of this world, He is the Lord, but he’s come in the flesh to tell the world the truth. And when we receive his truth we come under his rule. And we begin to live with a great hope – that one day his kingdom – the Kingdom of God -- will transform the entire world. <br> <br> <br> <br>John 19:1-6 “Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. <br> <br>The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they struck him in the face. <br> <br>Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.” <br> <br>When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!” <br> <br>As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify! Crucify!” <br> <br> <br> <br>You can see the rebellion of God’s world against its true king in all its ugliness here in this scene. It’s not just the Jews and the Romans on display here; it’s all of us. We put this mock robe and this mock crown on Jesus. <br> <br>But he is majestic. He suffers silently. He is beautiful in this moment of humiliation -- because he is voluntarily doing it out of love for his people. And he of course we know the rest of story – Jesus went all the way to the cross and won the battle and through his death and resurrection the Kingdom of God has come. <br> <br>Pilate said, “Here is The Man.” He is THE man -- the Son of Man. Let me read you what Daniel saw in his vision about him: <br> <br>Dan. 7:13- 14 “I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” <br> <br> <br> <br>That’s a future glimpse of the worship we will give to King Jesus – who is truly a man like us – and yet truly God – Yahweh - the one who alone is worshipped. One day every nation, people of every language will bend their knee to him – some of them will only submit through force – like those Roman soldiers. But for those of us love him and honor him as our king – what a day it will be when we can finally see him, when we can finally be with him forever! We won’t have to be forced to bend to our knees. We will worship him forever for his beautiful majestic sacrifice. <br> <br> <br> <br>Come quickly King Jesus!
The Names of God Bible (Hardcover)
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One of the best ways to get to know God on a deeper level is to know the names and titles both he and his people give to him. Now the bestselling author of Praying the Names of God reveals the richness of God's character and love found in his...
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The Names of God Bible (Leathersoft)
For a gift of $40.00 or more
One of the best ways to get to know God on a deeper level is to know the names and titles both he and his people give to him. Now the bestselling author of Praying the Names of God reveals the richness of God's character and love found in his...
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