There are lots of conversations happening today about the kingdom of God. These conversations are seeking to answer several questions: What is the relationship between the kingdom of Heaven and the kingdoms of Earth? How are Christians to be active in society? Who determines what ethics are the standard? Is America a Christian nation?
These questions have their time and place to be asked and answered. But, before any of those questions can be answered wisely, we need to first ask: What does it mean for Christ to be King?
What Does Scripture Say Of Christ?
Holy Scripture declares that Christ holds a threefold office in His “humiliation” (His life on Earth in His being born, living, suffering, dying, etc.) and in His “exaltation” (His life in Heaven as He reigns and rules as the Ascended GodMan). This threefold office includes Christ being a Prophet, Priest, and King. All the prophets, priests, and kings of the Old Testament—for better or for worse—pointed to the need for the ultimate Prophet-Priest-King to come. In Christ, all three offices would meet in Him.
Christ is not merely a king but The King. In 2 Samuel 7, God made a covenant with David and promised to bring about a son from his lineage who would be the ultimate King. Psalm 2 prophesied in poetic form that this great son of David would come—someone who would be Lord of David and yet equal to the LORD. Hebrews 1:5 definitively declares that Jesus, and not even any of the angels, is the only one who is this King. In Acts 4:25-26, we see the early Christians seeing the persecution of the Church as a type of fulfillment of Psalm 2’s prophecies of persecution of God’s Anointed (implying that Jesus is that Psalm 2 King). Jesus also declares in Matthew 28 after His resurrection from the dead that He has all authority in Heaven and on Earth (i.e. that He is the Sovereign King).
In other words, there is no one in a higher position of authority and control than Jesus Christ. That is why Philippians 2:10-11 says, “So 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.” You only do this to a King—and Jesus is that King.
The Book of Revelation makes abundantly clear that no government nor religion matches the power and authority of Jesus Christ. Abraham Kuyper once said, “No single piece of our mental world is to be hermetically sealed off from the rest, and there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’” Revelation, along with the rest of the Bible, declares boldly and unapologetically that Jesus Christ is the one King and all others must submit to Him. That Kingly authority means that there is not a single realm in all creation (physical or spiritual) that is outside of Christ’s sovereign rule.
What Change Does This Actually Make?
This is phenomenally good news for numerous types of people. For those who feel exhausted from their troubled thought life: Christ’s Word is of greater authority than any tormenting or anxious thought you might have. You can and must rest in His grace for you! For those who are tempted to fear other people more than God: You not only don’t have to live enslaved to others’ opinions of you, you ought never to! God Almighty declares you His child, His loved one, His Bride. No one else’s opinion of you comes close to the reality you have in Christ. For those who see the current state of world affairs and are tempted to be anxious: You need not worry, for God Almighty is undefeated in carrying out His will and He has promised that He will work all things for your good and His glory.
This is also the call for some to repent. For those who want to pick and choose what parts of Scripture they will submit to: You are rejecting Christ’s very authority by rejecting even the smallest portion of His Word. For those who want to continue to go on a sin-hunt with His people: Christ will judge you with the utmost severity while He will justify His people (regardless of their sins) if you do not hide yourself in Him. For those who are seeking to put their trust in government (whether Republican, Democrat, or whatever other view): You will only witness your unrealistic expectations collapse as your idol of politics continues to rule your heart. For those who treat the secular world as having the ultimate truth: You need to understand that Christ’s Word (i.e. the Bible) is more authoritative than the latest theory in any academic realm no matter how many PhD’s that person might have.
Whether you acknowledge it or not, Christ is the King. If you belong to Him, Christ is your King. And because He is your King, you can be sure that He will protect you, provide for you, rule for you, defeat your enemies, redeem your life, and bring you into His glorious consummated kingdom. We won’t see that in this life but we do what we can to live all of life for His glory. In Him we trust.