Praise the Lord for this fabulous Friday. It is warm and brilliant. Alice is in Boston being busy being a young grandma. Jessica is coming home for the weekend. Her boyfriend Tom will be joining us for the weekend too. We are planning for a full and joyful weekend of fellowship and worship. It is a great honour to worship Jesus our King and our Lord.
The titles we give people are very important. They communicate power, authority, respect, integrity, honor, and trust. Titles are symbols of status and position. We give people titles like doctor, professor, Reverend, Honorable, Senator, Congressman, President, General, Admiral, Prince, King, Magistrate, and the list of titles could go on. You know, the interesting thing about titles is that their meaning and importance is negated if the behavior of the one bearing the title proves to be unbefitting the title. Titles only have power because people voluntarily agree to submit to the power and authority the title represents. If the trust of those who empower someone with the inherent authority of a particular title is broken, the title is absolutely meaningless. Sure, a person may still hold a title based on their vocation or position, but by their actions have proven themselves unworthy the distinction, privilege, and responsibility of the title. Respect and trust must be earned. Any good leader knows their authority is won on the basis of strong relationships and reliable decision making. Titles increase in power and authority when the one holding the title proves themselves trustworthy. Human leaders frequently fall from “grace.” Human leaders prove the titles they hold to be just that, a title describing what they do, not who they are. Today i would like to focus on Christ as the King. To be called a king means something. It means you are responsible to lead and govern a certain group of people and there are a whole series of expectations that come along with that position. But to be called The King means something altogether different. It means you are the King of Kings, the ruler. Jesus is the King of the whole universe and He deserves the title because His character proves Him worthy. He is a King unlike all other rulers and leaders. Christ our King will never fail us or back out on His promises to us. He is a person of flawless character, who speaks only the truth all the time, who is perfect in every way, deserving of our love and devotion because of His love for and devotion to us. Today we come to behold Christ, the King of glory. The book of Revelation, the final book of the Bible, is often misunderstood because people find it confusing and a little scary. It is a book containing the prophetic vision of John, the gospel writer and disciple of Jesus. The book is often referred to as the Revelation of John, but the book calls itself a revelation of Jesus Christ, both revealing further things about Christ and providing an expansion of Christ’s message to the believers living in the interim period between His first and second comings. John takes us into the throne room of heaven. In that place we are given some vivid images of Jesus. Jesus is described as: the faithful witness, the first born of the dead, ruler of the kings of the earth, Alpha and Omega, and the Almighty. Each tells us something important about Jesus, our King. In Revelation(1:4b-5c) we read about Jesus the Risen one , who has ascended to heaven, as Christ our King .The Bible, in 1 Timothy 6:15, says that Jesus is, “the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords”(NIV). The Bible also says in Rev. 17:14, “They(the enemies of God) will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because He is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with Him we will be His called, chosen and faithful followers” (NIV). Failing to acknowledge Christ the King does nothing to change the reality. He is God’s appointed one and He desires to be King of our hearts and Lord of our lives. This is who Jesus is. As Christians, we must wrestle with what this means for our lives. What areas of our hearts are yet to be subject to His rule? What pockets of sin and darkness do we cling to, dividing our loyalties and preventing us from devoting ourselves wholly to Him? Christ is King over all, but have we made Him the King of our lives?Revelation (1:5d-6). Reveals the work of Christ our King. It is written, “To Him who loves us and freed us from our sins by His blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen” (Rev. 1:5d-6, NRSV). Revelation 1:8 says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty” (NRSV). What is God saying here? He is telling us that He is eternal God. If He is alpha (the first letter in the Greek alphabet) He is the one who was from the very beginning. God is and was and always will be. He is the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Nothing exists that God’s hand has not made. There is no king like our God. He is the Almighty. The Greek word here means, “ruler of the universe,” or “ruler of all.” No king can match the mighty power of our God; all others are subject to His reign and rule. He alone is Almighty God.Our God, the God of the whole universe, wants to reign in every human heart. God doesn’t want to burden you with a bunch of rules and regulations. He wants to make your heart alive in ways you could never otherwise know. No amount of wealth, pleasure, or success can compare to the fulfillment of God’s good plan in a person’s life. The reign of God begins in our lives the moment we acknowledge Him for who He is. The Bible says, “Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-10, NIV). Thelma and Victor Hayes struck it rich. In August of 2005, the Canadian couple won more than $7 million (Canadian) in the lottery. There are a few additional facts that make the story interesting. According to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Commission, Thelma and Victor are one of the oldest couples ever to win such a large jackpot. At the time they won, the Hayes’ had been married 63 years, and both of them were 89-years-old. During a televised interview, Thelma and Victor were asked the typical question, "What are you going to do with the money?" The couple responded that, at this stage in life, they were unlikely to become "giddy high spenders." In fact, they intended to remain in the retirement home where they lived. While her husband planned on buying a Lincoln Town Car, Thelma’s personal shopping list contained only one item. She told reporters, "I’m getting a new pair of nylons." Thelma’s response was widely reported as at least comical, if not foolish. How could someone win a fortune and change nothing but her nylons? Often we are just like Thelma. We have “struck it rich” in Jesus and yet we live like we have no idea He exists. We are content living lives that are less than we were created to live. We get comfortable in the chaos and mess that we find ourselves in and we choose to stay put rather than invite Jesus in to change things around for us. May the Lord stir our hearts to love Him with all our hearts and serve Him with recklessness and joyful abandonment.
In Christ,
Brown
"Most Gracious God, You showed Your love in sending Jesus Christ into the world that all might have life through Him. Pour out Your Spirit upon Your Church, that it may fulfill Your command to preach the gospel to every creature. Send laborers into Your harvest, fill them with the Holy Spirit and with faith, defend them in all dangers and temptations, and hasten the time when Your will shall be done, on earth as it is in heaven; through the grace of Jesus Christ our Lord. ."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3w7t9DyGkqg
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