This morning we come to our third series in looking
at Christ as prophet, priest, and king. And so
today we're going to consider the prophecies
of Jesus as a king. Our texts are Psalm 2, Isaiah
chapter 9 verse 6 and 7, and Hebrews chapter
1. Let's begin. With reading Psalm 2. This is
a messianic psalm. Speaking of the coronation
of the Lord's anointed. Why do the nations rage?
And the people plot a vain thing. The kings of
the earth set themselves. And the rulers take
counsel together. Against the Lord and against
his anointed. Say, let us break their bonds in
pieces. And cast away their cords from us. He
who sits in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord
shall hold them in derision. Then he shall speak
to them in his wrath and distress them in his
deep displeasure. Yet I have set my king upon
his, upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare
the decree. The Lord has said to me, you are
my son today. I have begotten you. Ask of me
and I will give you the nations for your inheritance
and the ends of the earth for your possession.
You shall break them with a rod of iron. You
shall dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel.
Now, therefore, be wise, O kings. Be instructed,
you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with
fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss. the son
lest he be angry and you perish in the way when
his wrath is kindled but a little blessed are
all those who put their trust in him i'm going
to be reading the isaiah passage a little bit
later so now we turn to hebrews chapter one chapter
one god who had various times and in various
ways Spoken time past to the fathers by the prophets.
Has in these last days spoken to us by his son.
whom he has appointed heir of all things, through
whom also he made the worlds, who being the brightness
of his glory, and the express image of his person,
and upholding all things by the word of his power,
when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down
at the right hand of the majesty on high, having
become so much better than the angels, as he
by inheritance obtained a more excellent name
than they. For to which of the angels did he
ever say, You are my son, today I have begotten
you. And again, I will be to him a father, and
he shall be to me a son. But when he again brings
the firstborn into the world, he says, Let all
the angels of God worship him. And of the angels,
he says, Who makes his angels spirits, and his
ministers a flame of fire? But to the son, he
says, Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.
A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of
your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and
hated lawlessness. Therefore God, your God, has
anointed you with the oil of gladness more than
your companions. And you, Lord, in the beginning
laid the foundation of the earth. And the heavens
are the work of your hands. They will perish,
but you remain. And they will all grow old like
a garment. Like a cloak, you will fold them up
and they will be changed. But you are the same
and your years shall not fail. But to which of
the angels has he ever said, sit at my right
hand till I make your enemies your footstool.
Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth
to minister for those who will inherit salvation?
Let's ask the Lord's blessing on this time together.
Oh, Father, we are gripped. with the truth of
the kingdom of Christ today and of his lordship
and kingship. We pray, Father, that as we study
into this, into this third office, we ask, Lord,
for your blessing. Lord, we pray that today Christ
would be exalted and magnified. We pray that
he would be worshipped as king and that we would
fall before him and bow to him. We thank you
for this time together and pray that you would
bless the words of my mouth. and pray that you
would send forth your spirit to guide us and
pray that you would open up our hearts to hear
and to understand. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
One day, when Jesus of Nazareth came into the
region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples,
Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? They
answered, Some say John the Baptist. Some, Elijah,
and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets
who have risen from the dead. Jesus then said
to them, but who do you say that I am? Simon
Peter answers and he says, you are the Christ,
the son of the living God. Jesus answers and
said to him, blessed are you, Simon Barjona,
For flesh and blood have not revealed this to
you, but my Father who is in heaven. This same
question reverberates through time and through
history. And we are confronted in every generation
with this question. Who is Jesus? And the answer
is very clear. Because there are many conceptions
of Jesus in various belief systems and the imaginations
of the mind and of religions. To some, he is
portrayed as a divine idea, a demonstrator of
God's healing power, or as the Arians taught,
that he was not co -eternal or co -equal with
God the Father, but was a created being who had
a beginning. This, incidentally, is the controversy
that brought forth the summary of Christian doctrine
in the Nicene Constantinople Creed that we confess
today. Some teach that he is a man or a heavenly
being progressed to divinity. Others, that he
was a great and an enlightened teacher and that
he was an exemplary human being. Like the crowds
of Jesus' day, they say that he was one of the
great prophets, a great man, one who healed people
and spoke words of truth. Now, a right understanding
of who Jesus is is absolutely crucial. And this
is why so many false religions attack this point.
They redefine who Jesus is. Jesus himself said
in John chapter 8 verse 12, I am the light of
the world. He who follows me shall not walk in
darkness, but have the light of life. And he
continues in John 12 verse 32, and I, if I be
lifted up from the earth, will draw all people
to myself. This he said, signifying by what death
he would die. The people answered him, We have
heard from the law that Christ remains forever.
And how can you say the Son of Man must be lifted
up? Who is this Son of Man? Then Jesus said to
them, A little while longer the light is with
you. Walk while you have light. Unless darkness
overtake you, he who walks in darkness does not
know where he is going. While you have the light,
believe in the light that you may become sons
of light. Now in the Advent series of sermons
this year, we've focused on who Jesus is by considering
his offices. We've looked at Jesus the prophet.
The one who foretells, revealing the words of
God to the people, and the one who foretells,
that is predicting future events. Last Sunday,
we considered how Jesus was the priest. He fills
the office of a priest. This priesthood was of
the order of Melchizedek. He was the one who
made an offering for sin by offering his own
sinless body to make atonement and reconciliation
before a holy God, thus bringing sinful man and
a holy God together. He truly was a high priest,
the one to whom all sacrifices pointed to and
foreshadowed. But if we were to stop with these
two offices of prophet and priest, we would fall
woefully short of understanding who Jesus really
is. For it is the third office that completes
the glory of Christ, and it is one to which the
apostles continually spoke of and allude to.
Any understanding of Jesus the Christ that does
not speak of this office as king, has a greatly
diminished and truncated view of the person of
Jesus. I speak of Jesus as the faithful witness,
the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over
the kings of the earth. Revelation 1 and verse
5. He is Lord Jesus the king. He who is the Lord
of lords and the king. Of kings. Revelation 17
verse 14. One might see the benefits of the first
two offices. And yet miss the lordship of Christ.
His kingship over all. Jesus the eternal son
of God. was begotten of the Father, and he lived
on the earth and became man. After his life,
his suffering, his death and resurrection, and
then his ascension, he was crowned as king, not
only over all of the earth, but also of everything
above the earth and of everything under the earth.
Jesus. is the second person of the Trinity. He
is the eternal Logos, the word of God, and he
is king. Today, we want to look at some of the
many prophecies of Jesus as king and then see
how the New Testament declares him to be so with
great clarity and with boldness. Everywhere the
apostles and evangelists went, they pressed this
point home. They would speak the prophetic word
by calling for repentance. They declared the
remission and the forgiveness of sins through
the sacrifice and atonement of Christ. And then
they would declare him to be Lord and Christ.
Acts 2 verse 36. Therefore let all the house
of Israel know assuredly that God has made this
same Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ.
He is King and Messiah. And then again in the
sermon in Acts chapter 5 verse 30 and 31. The
God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered
by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted. to
his right hand, to be a prince and savior, to
give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of
sins. Now, as we begin with the Old Testament
prophecies, there are many of them. They are
numerous. I will not have time today to fully
cover them all. This also indicates the importance
of this office. But we will begin by going all
the way back to the deathbed of Jacob. This is
around 1600 to 1700 years before Christ was born.
So let's get started in the Old Testament prophecies.
Genesis chapter 49 and verse 10. Now Jacob has
lived in the land of Egypt for about 17 years.
This was since the great famine when his son
Joseph became governor of the land. And now he
is about ready to die. He calls for his 12 sons,
gathers them together, and he prophesies over
each one of them. The three oldest all have some
major, major problems. And so his prophecy of
them is not really very good. But then he comes
to the fourth son, to Judah. had experienced
a great redemption. Judah at one time was in
favor of casting away Joseph, but then Judah
has repented of that. He has assumed responsibility
for his brothers. All of this occurred in the
book of Genesis and the whole story and saga
of Joseph. And so to Judah, the fourth son, Jacob
prophesies. He says, the scepter shall not depart
from Judah, nor a lawgiver, from between his
feet until Shiloh comes. And to him shall be
the obedience of the peoples. Now let's unpack
this a little bit. A scepter is a ceremonial
staff. It's held by rulers such as kings, queens,
or emperors. And it serves as a symbol of sovereignty,
of authority, and power. In this prophecy, Jacob
says the scepter will not depart from Judah until
Shiloh comes. What is he saying? That is that
the kingly line throughout all of the history
of Israel would always be a king from Judah.
A descendant of Judah. And this indeed was the
case. We see starting in David and then David.
And of course, there's the covenant made with
David about his kingly line. And then David has
Solomon. Solomon has Rehoboam. And all down through
the whole history of Israel, it's always a descendant
of both of David, which is also a descendant
of Judah. But then he says until Shiloh comes.
So Shiloh here is a name for the Messiah. And
of this, he says that the scepter would not depart,
a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh
comes. And then to him, that is to Shiloh, shall
be the obedience of the people. In other words,
he's going to continue the kingly line. But he
doesn't go any further than that. Because to
him, all people are to obey. They are to bow
down before this coming one. shiloh the kingly
line would continue until messiah would come
and to him then as king and as ruler the peoples
of the earth would be obedient we gain further
in understanding of this in psalm 72 this is
written by david one of the great great great
great great great grandsons of judah Of this,
the son of David would come down like rain upon
the grass before mowing, like showers that water
the earth. In his days, the righteous shall flourish
an abundance of peace until the moon is no more.
He shall have dominion also from sea to sea and
from the river to the ends of the earth. Those
who dwell in the wilderness will bow before him
and his enemies will lick the dust. The kings
of Tarshish and of the Isles will bring presence
the kings of sheba and seba will offer gifts
yes all kings shall fall shall fall before him
all nations shall serve him this is the self
-same messiah it's the self -same shiloh that
judah predicted all nations would serve this
great king now we see this same theme recurring
in many places in the old testament prophecies
including the psalms But so we see here, Judah
predicted this. This is the first one of speaking
of the kingship of the Messiah that we have in
the Old Testament. Then we're going to look at
Psalm 2, which we read. Psalm 2 again, King David
is prophesying about the coming king. This is
in a messianic psalm. There's quite a number
of psalms. Psalms are divided up into a number
of different categories. There's psalms of lament.
There's psalms of rejoicing. There's prophetic
psalms or messianic psalms speaking about Jesus.
There's psalms that are great hymns of praise.
And then there's imprecatory psalms. That is
psalms of judgment against evildoers. So Psalm
2 is a messianic psalm. It begins by showing
the rebellion of rulers and kings against the
Lord and against His anointed. Speaking of the
Son of God, Jesus Christ, against the Lord and
His anointed. Why do the nations rage at the
people's plot of anything? That is, they conspire.
The kings of the earth, they conspire and take
counsel against the authority of the Lord and
His anointed. The Lord Jehovah and His anointed,
Jesus Christ. They say, let us break their bonds
in pieces. Let's cast away their cords. We don't
want them to rule over us. They rebel against
this king. What happens? David goes on to describe
this in verse 4. God laughs at them. Can you
imagine anything more terrible than the laughter
of God against you? You in your weakness as you
conspire against him and God looks at you in
his authority and he starts laughing at you in
derision. You think you're somebody I'm going
to show you. God laughs at them. He who sits
in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord shall hold
them in derision. And in his wrath then he says
and he speaks to them and he distresses them
in his deep displeasure. I will set my king on
the holy hill of Zion. I will declare to the
decree the Lord has said to me you are my son.
Today I have begotten you. Ask of me. I will
give you the nations for your inheritance. In
fact, you shall break them with a rod of iron
and dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel.
To all, all nations who rebel against his son,
Jesus Christ, they will be dashed. And broken
like a clay pot. And then comes the exhortation.
In light of this great truth, what should kings
and rulers and judges do? What are they called
to do? David goes on and he prophesies. Be wise,
O king. Be instructed, you judges of the earth.
Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the son and that's an old image of bowing
down and of worshiping and being obedient to.
You follow the feet and you kiss the feet. And
so that's what's saying here. You kiss the son
in obeisance to him. You serve the Lord with
fear. You rejoice with trembling. You kiss him
lest he be angry. And you perish in the way when
his wrath is kindled but a little. And then he
ends with this blessing. Blessed are all those
who put their trust in him. This is Psalm 2.
This prophecy shows us the importance of Christ
the Son of God as king. And of the relevance
of that truth to all other rulers. For they all
are called to obey him. To revere him. to serve
him in their capacities as king or ruler or president
or judge or congressman or senator or commissioner
or city councilman and all other positions of
authority. They are all called to bow the knee
to Christ, to govern according to his law and
word and to submit themselves to him. They must
then recognize their own authority as one that
is derived and limited because they serve the
Lord Jesus Christ. This is Psalm 2, the prophecy
of Jesus as king. Number three. That one is Isaiah
chapter 9, which we read through that in our
responsive reading. But I'm just going to bring
out especially verse 6 and 7. For unto us a child
is born. Unto us a son is given. And then Isaiah
goes right into this. He shows the kingliness
of this son right away. He says the government
will be on his shoulder. And the government will
be on his shoulder. In other words, there's a
number of metaphors that that can refer to. That
of him bearing the weight of government or them
submitting to him or him bearing the burden of
it. However it is, it's the government is on
his shoulder. And then it goes on. His name is
going to be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty
God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. And
then Isaiah continues again in the same theme.
Of the increase of his government and peace,
there will be no end on the throne of David and
over his kingdom to order it and establish it
with justice and judgment from that time forward,
even forever. And we think, how can this happen?
How can? Jesus, especially with given what we
know now, his lowly birth, him giving himself
as a sacrifice for sin, which is not in view
right here in this particular prophecy. How can
it be that this will actually happen? Well, Isaiah
continues. He says, the zeal of the Lord of hosts
will perform this. It's going to be done. You
don't have to understand it all. It will happen.
This man, this one will come. This child who
is to be born is the son of God. And as a son,
Isaiah prophesied that he will be given authority
over all. He shall rule. The governments of the
world will be vested in him. And we see this
in his names. First of all, that he will be the
mighty God, which testifies that Jesus is God
and therefore he is eternal. And he will be a
father, everlasting father. Now, this is not
confusing the Trinity here in the sense of God,
the father, the first person, but rather that
this father is the sense of being one with the
father and being a father to the church and of
the world to come. The father of the gospel state,
which is being put in subjection to him and not
the angels, like Hebrews 2, verse 5 says. And
then he is the prince of peace. He brings peace
to the world. He sits on the everlasting throne
of David and over his kingdom. So we see the
prophecy Judah gives. David is in this line.
And then God also makes a covenant with David,
talking about him that there would not fail one
who would sit on the throne, which was ultimately
fulfilled in Christ. He sits on the everlasting
throne of David. This kingdom will be established
with judgment and justice. This means that he
is not a figurehead. He's not a token. He is
a real king exercising his authority and his
power as Psalm 2 prophesies. This kingdom then
will endure. In fact, there's no end to the increase
of it, of his government and kingdom. We see
Jesus alluding to this prophecy as just before
he ascends, he gathers the disciples around him
and his words to them are this, all authority
has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
All authority. Direct fulfillment of this passage.
Now there are so many more Old Testament passages.
There's Psalm 110, one and two. The Lord said
to my Lord, sit at my right hand till I make
your enemies your footstool. The Lord shall send
the rod of your strength out of Zion. Rule in
the midst. There's Jeremiah 23, verse 5 and 6.
Now this is his name by which he will be called.
The Lord, our righteousness. And then there's
Daniel. Daniel chapter 7 verse 13 and 14 describes
the ascension of Christ. This is the actual coronation
of Christ. And Daniel prophetically describes
it. He says, I was watching in the night visions.
And behold, one like the Son of Man. Coming with
the clouds of heaven, he came to the Ancient
of Days, and they brought him near before him.
Then to him was given dominion and glory and
a kingdom that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting
dominion which shall not pass away, and his kingdom
the one which shall not be destroyed. Then in
Zechariah chapter 9 verse 9. Rejoice greatly,
O daughter of Zion. Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem.
Behold, your king is coming to you. He is just
and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey.
A colt, the foal of a donkey. This is a direct
prophecy of how Jesus would enter into the temple
mount during Holy Week. Then there's Psalm 45,
1 through 6. I'm not going to take the time to
read it right now, other than just saying that
the exhortation is to gird your sword upon your
thigh, O mighty one, with your glory and your
majesty, and in your majesty ride prosperously
because of truth, humility, and righteousness.
Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. A scepter
of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom.
And then I'm going to classify the last one,
even though it's in the book of Luke, I'm going
to classify it as Old Testament because this
is before Christ was born. But when the angel
comes to Mary and tells her that she is going
to become pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit
and she is going to bear a child, here's what
he says. It's what the angel says. Do not be
afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
And behold, you will conceive in your womb and
bring forth a son and shall call his name Jesus.
Now that he gives this description, he will be
great and will be called the son of the highest.
And the Lord God will give him the throne of
his father, David, and he will reign over the
house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom. There
shall be no end. As I said, there are many more.
This is just some of them. Many prophecies of
Jesus as king. Let's move on then and look at
the fulfillment in the New Testament. Did the
apostles and the New Testament writers understand
Jesus to be king in this way? And I ask this
question because There are some Christian believers
who say that Jesus right now is only king of
the church, that he will be king at his second
coming over everything else. The New Testament
writers did not see it this way, but yet it's
a very common understanding as they go into all
the prophetic time charts and everything that
they put together. They say that Christ is king
now, but he is not king of the nations. He is
not yet. But they did not see it this way. Let's
look at how the New Testament writers speak about
Jesus as king. First of all, he is highly exalted.
He has been highly exalted by God so that all
should bow before him and serve him. This is
now on the other side of the ascension. Of the
work of Christ on the cross. And his resurrection.
His death and his resurrection. And then his
ascension. And so now we have these passages.
How did they see Christ? Who is Jesus? He is
a king. Paul recounts this in the book of Philippians
chapter 2 verse 5. He says to the Philippian
believers. Let this mind be in you. Which was
also in Christ Jesus. Who being in the form of
God. did not consider it robbery to be equal
with God, but made himself of no reputation,
taking the form of a bondservant and coming in
the likeness of men and being found in appearance
as a man. He humbled himself and became obedient
to the point of death, even the death of the
cross. Therefore, God also has highly exalted
him and given him the name which is above every
name, At the name of Jesus, every knee shall
bow of those in heaven and of those on earth
and of those under the earth. And that every
tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory of God the Father. How did Paul
explain the kingship of Christ? Every knee will
bow. He is Lord of all. And including... Everything
in heaven, everything in earth, and everything
under the earth. Jesus has been highly exalted
and is king over all. Next we look at John. John,
in the beginning of that great book revealing
Jesus Christ, that is the book of Revelation,
he describes Jesus in this way. Chapter 1, verse
5. Jesus Christ is the faithful witness. the
firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the
kings of the earth, to him who loved us and washed
us from our sins in his own blood, and has made
us kings and priests to his God and Father, to
him be glory and dominion forever and ever. John
the Revelator, he sees him. He is the ruler of
the kings of the earth. Paul writes of this kingship
in the letter to the Ephesians. After describing
how the Father has chosen us, the Son has redeemed
us, and the Spirit has sealed us in chapter 1,
Paul then speaks of how the Father of glory,
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, worked in Christ
when he raised him from the dead and seated him
at his right hand in the heavenly places. Far
above. all principality and power and might and
dominion and every name that is named, not only
in this age, but also in that which is to come.
And he put all things under his feet and gave
him to be head over all things to the church,
which is his body, the fullness of him who fills
all in all. These are wonderful passages demonstrating
the fulfillment of all those glorious prophecies
that we read. But I want to spend the rest of
my time in the book of Hebrews chapter 1. And
so to that now we turn Hebrews chapter 1. This
first chapter is one of the most sublime and
glorious summaries of the superiority of Jesus
above all others. Jesus is shown to have fulfilled
all of the Old Testament prophecies. He is specifically
shown in verses 1 through 4 as having fulfilled
and filled the offices of prophet, of priest,
and of king. Let's read the first four again.
God, who at various times and in various ways
spoke in time past by the fathers. through to
the fathers, by the prophets, has in these last
days spoken to us by his Son, whom he has appointed
heir of all things, through whom also he made
the world, who being the brightness of his glory
and the express image of his person and upholding
all things by the word of his power, when he
had by himself purged our sins, sat down at the
right hand. of the majesty on high, having become
so much better than the angels, as he has by
inheritance obtained a more excellent name than
they. As the greatest of all prophets, Jesus
is the culmination of all the prophets. There
can never be another prophet after him that is
superior to him. Jesus is the greatest of all.
He is the last and the greatest. There is none
greater. Notice the phrase, in these last days
of this Matthew, Henry says, This is the final,
the finishing revelation given in the last days
of divine revelation to which nothing is to be
added, but the canon of scripture is to be settled
and sealed. It is the revelation which God has
made by his son, the most excellent messenger
that was ever sent into the world, far superior
to all ancient patriarchs. and prophets by whom
God communicated his will to his people in former
times. And thus, Jesus fulfills the office of
prophet. There will not be a greater than he.
There can be no one after Jesus who can rise
up and say, I'm at the level of Jesus. Or you
need to also listen to my words because my words
go together with Jesus' words. No, Jesus is the
last, the final. greater than all others. He
then also has cleansed our sin. We see this in
verse 3. This is the purification, the purging,
the washing away of our sins. This fulfills his
priestly office. So Jesus is shown here by the
writer of Hebrews. He fulfills the office of
prophet. He fulfills the office of priest. And
then he goes on about the king. He says, as God,
Jesus is equal with the Father. He says, he...
has been appointed as heir of all things it is
through Jesus that all the worlds were made and
we're going to get into this in just a bit but
first of all we want to understand this equality
this Jesus and God how how is this here well
look at Philippians chapter 2 verse 6 Jesus who
being in the form of God did not consider it
robbery to be equal with God and this is why
the Jews sought to kill him This is described
in John chapter 5, verse 18. Therefore the Jews
sought all the more to kill him because he not
only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God
was his father, making himself equal with God.
And as the God, man, and mediator, he was appointed
by the Father to be the heir of all things. God
created the world through him. Jesus upholds
all things by the word of his power. And being
the heir and ruler of all creation, he fulfills
the office of king. All of these are found in
these first four verses. In being the heir of
all things, which is here in verse 2, he is appointed
heir of all things. This is how we understand.
that all authority in heaven and earth has been
given to him. I mentioned this already from Matthew
chapter 28, verse 18. But also in John chapter
5, Jesus asserts that the Father has given to
him all judgment. All judgment has been given
to the Son. So he is the heir of all things.
Now God also created the world through him. The
world's both visible and invisible. The old creation
was made through him, and by him comes the new
creation. And Christ rules and governs all, both
the old creation and the new creation. Jesus
also upholds all things by the word of his power.
We see this in verse 3. He upholds all things
by the word of his power. I don't remember exactly
which one is negative and positive, and I have
forgotten about this illustration until right
now. But when you look at the very core of the
atom and you split the atom and it goes three
ways, you know how things both attract and they
pull apart? If it would not be for the overshadowing
power of God and actually of Jesus Christ in
this, Every atom would instantly explode because
they would naturally repel one another because
of the elements that are within them. I should
have gotten the exact details and phraseology
for you, and I'm sorry I don't have that. But
it truly and literally is that Jesus holds together
all things by the word of his power. Else this
world and every atom that is created would simply
explode. Jesus holds all things. and upholds
all things by the word of his power. He then,
as verse 3 brings out, he is the heir and ruler
over all creation. He fulfills the office of
king by sitting down at the right hand of the
majesty on high, which position is much higher
than the angels. Verse 4 brings that out. Begotten
by the Father as a son, he then is to be worshipped
by both men, and angels. Chapter 1, verse 6,
but when he again brings the firstborn into the
world, he says, let all the angels of God worship
him. The writer then effectively delivers the
crowning summation of his kingship by quoting
three Old Testament passages in verses 8 through
13. This is the kingship of Christ summarized
in Hebrews 1. But to the Son he says, Your throne,
O God, is forever and ever. A scepter of righteousness
is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved
righteousness and hated lawlessness. Therefore
God, your God, has anointed you with the oil
of gladness more than your companions. And you,
Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of
the earth and the heavens are the work of your
hands. They will perish, but you remain. and
they will all grow old like a garment, like a
cloak. You will fold them up, and they shall
be changed. But you are the same, and your years
shall not fail. But to which of the angels has
he ever said, Sit at my right hand till I make
your enemies your footstool? This is Psalm 45,
6 -7, Psalm 102, 25 -27, and Psalm 110, and verse
1. He then follows up this glorious truth of
the kingship of Christ. And this is where it
really hits home to us. In chapter 2, verse 1,
he says, Therefore, we must give the more earnest
heed to the things which we have heard, lest
we drift away. For if the word spoken by angels
was... Proved steadfast. And every transgression
and disobedience received a just reward. How
shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?
How is it possible to escape the wrath of God
if we deny his kingship? If we take away from
him his rulership and lordship and atonement,
his offices of prophet and priest and king? We
cannot, we dare not do this. He warns us, watch
out lest we drift away. So in closing then, how
should we then live? Jesus is not an angel. He's
not just a good man, a wise teacher or a healer.
Either he is who he said he was and who he was
prophesied about or else he's an imposter. Or
even a lunatic with grand delusions. You cannot
possibly conceive or call a man a good man who
says what Jesus said about himself and what the
scripture said about himself. He is either who
he said he was or he's crazy and off the rocker.
There is no middle ground. He cannot be a good
man and say those kinds of things about himself.
We would think him crazy, delusional, and demented.
He is who he said he was. Christ was born for
this. He was born to be a king. Hail the heaven
-born prince of peace. Hail the son of righteousness.
Light and life to all he brings. Risen with healing
in his wings. Mild he lays his glory by. Born
that man no more may die. Born to raise the sons
of earth. Born to give them second birth. Hark
the herald angels sing. Glory to the newborn
king. He dearly beloved is our king. And we bow
before him, we reverence him, and we remember
him. And at his birth, we celebrate it, that
he was born a king. Of course, the one other
example we have are the wise men. And we don't
know how many there were. Traditionally, we say
three, but the scripture doesn't say. What do
they do? They bring him great gifts, and they
come and they bow before him. They, by their
actions, are fulfilling Psalm 2, bringing the
gifts and bowing before him. And so I say to
you, behold the regal majesty of Jesus. Be utterly
captivated with his glory, with his beauty, with
his kingly majesty, his rule and his reign over
all things. Bow before him, worship him, serve
him, rejoice in him. Be filled with awe and love,
with honor and with... reverence like psalm 45
verse 3 gird your sword upon your thigh almighty
one with your glory and in your majesty and in
your majesty ride prosperously because of truth
humility and righteousness for indeed the lord
reigns he is clothed with majesty we do not follow
cunningly devised fables, Peter says, when we
made known to you the power and the coming of
our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses
of his majesty. Now, what does a king do? Well,
a king rules. He reigns. He comes to conquer.
He invades. He comes to destroy the evil. And
when we think of Jesus, We need to see him in
this same way. This Jesus is not one who's just
meek and mild and he's a good man. He goes around
and heals. No, he's a king. And he does what
kings do. He conquers. He invades. He destroys
the dragon and slays him. He comes to rescue.
He comes to save and to deliver. He comes to
vanquish evil and to scatter darkness. And this
king came to defeat death. He comes. As the triumphant
king of kings and lord of lords. Whose kingdom
shall have no end. I'm amazed at how many people
sing that most glorious of pieces of music in
Handel's Messiah. And they sing that great and
triumphant hymn. That hallelujah for the Lord
God. For the Lord God reigns. And yet they miss.
The point of it so much. They sing of all the
glories of Christ's kingdom. And yet, how can
you do that and not bow the knee to Christ? And
yet, so many do. If we miss this aspect of Christmas,
we risk missing the point and spirit of Christmas
altogether when a person sees Jesus as he is.
They either fall before him in the terror of
the rod that can dash them to pieces, or they
fall before him in worship, which leads to doxology.
The word of glory and praise to him who sits
on the throne, who lives forever and ever and
ever. And so to you, dear believer, hear these
words of comfort. Speaking of Jesus, the prophet,
the priest, and the king, Jude, worships in doxology
when he says, Now to him who is able to keep
you from stumbling and to present you faultless
before the presence of his glory with exceeding
joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be
glory. and majesty, dominion, and power, both
now and forever. Amen. Worship and doxology.
It's either we fall before him in terror of his
rod and his rule, or we fall in worship and surrender
in bowing to him as our king. We get a glimpse
of heaven as the apostle John describes the scene.
of jesus as the lion of the tribe of judah the
root of david the lamb as it has been slain and
he says now when he had taken the scroll the
four living creatures and the 24 elders fell
down before the lamb each having a harp and golden
bowls full of incense which are the prayers of
the saints and they sang a new song saying You
are worthy to take the scroll and to open its
seals for you were slain and have redeemed us
to God by your blood out of every tribe and tongue
and people and nation and have made us kings
and priests to our God and we shall reign on
the earth. Then I looked. John says, and I heard
the voice of many angels around the throne, the
living creatures and the elders, and the number
of them was 10 ,000 times 10 ,000 and thousands
of thousands saying with a loud voice, worthy
is the lamb. who was slain to receive power and
riches and wisdom and strength and honor and
glory and blessing. And every creature which
is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth
and such as are in the sea and all that is in
them, I heard saying, blessing and honor and
glory and power be to him who sits on the throne
and to the Lamb forever and ever. Let us then,
dearly beloved, worship our king, our prophet,
our priest, and our king. Let's pray.