I'd like you to turn your Bibles to Matthew chapter 2.
Actually, we're going to skip around a little bit today, but we're going to start there in chapter 2.
And I'm going to read a few verses from that passage.
It's interesting in the Gospels that very little is said about Jesus' birth.
Of course, Mark and John do not even mention Jesus' birth.
Most of the time when Jesus referred to his early life, he talked about coming down from heaven.
He spoke very little of, like one time I think mentioned something with reference to Bethlehem birth.
Luke gives us the most information.
Matthew mostly just tells us at the end of chapter 1 that Jesus was born.
And then chapter 2, now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king,
behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem saying,
Where is he who has been born king of the Jews?
For we saw his star when it rose, and we have come to worship him.
When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
And assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people,
he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
They told him,
In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet,
And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah.
For from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.
Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly, and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared.
And he sent them to Bethlehem, saying,
Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word that I too may come and worship him.
After listening to the king, they went on their way.
And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose,
went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was.
And when they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.
And going into the house,
they saw the child with Mary his mother,
and they fell down and worshipped him.
Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.
When an heir to the throne is born, it causes quite a stir.
For some, there is great joy in celebration.
For others, there is despair and maybe even some panic.
Matthew records this meeting between King Herod and some magi from the east
who came searching for the one whom they had discerned had been born in Bethlehem.
The magi assumed that the present king of the region would certainly know something this monumental.
So they scheduled a meeting with King Herod.
Herod was king, was the ruler over this portion of the Roman world.
He was known as King of the Jews.
He had been in this position at this point for about 30 years.
The magi were anxious to find this baby king so they could worship him.
Possibly, the possibility of a new king in town was, to say the least,
rather unsettling to this reigning king.
We'll see that pattern repeat.
Warren Wiersbe wrote a little booklet called His Name is Wonderful.
He made the case that the names that Jesus wears are the blessings that he shares.
He was referring to the words that we just sang,
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.
Well, we know his name from the outset when the pregnancy was announced, even before that,
His name was to be called Jesus, which means Savior.
And he certainly shares his name with us, and then he gives us his salvation to all who believe he is Savior.
He is Jesus.
He's also called King.
And as King, he exercises his sovereign rule over everyone.
For all who believe, that's a great blessing.
For those who don't, not so much.
Sovereign rulers call all the shots.
They have all the power.
Those who fall before them are responding appropriately.
Those who fail to submit to that sovereign authority will be in a battle that they cannot win.
Everywhere the king appears, there are the same reactions.
Joy and fear.
Admiration and hatred.
Attempts to exalt.
Efforts to destroy.
So we're going to follow some of those responses as we consider Jesus as the king as described in the New Testament.
So we're going to start with when the king came to Bethlehem from the passage that we just read.
And we're going to discover some interesting witnesses who express the understanding, at least in some form,
and the awareness that Jesus came as king.
The first testimony comes from the Magi.
Where is he who was born king of the Jews?
It shouldn't surprise us that a king is among Jesus' earliest titles.
For centuries, it was promised that God would send a king who would sit on the throne of David.
How many times do we read that in the Old Testament?
But this king would not be subject to the same challenges that were faced by the former kings of Israel.
Prophet Micah prophesied that this king would come from Judah.
He is, according to Micah, one who is to be ruler in Israel.
He shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
He shall be great to the ends of the earth.
Micah's contemporary, Isaiah, said, again, for the passage we're learning,
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.
If you continue in the passage, it reminds us of the increase of his government,
and of peace there will be no end.
And of the throne of David over his kingdom to establish it and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore.
So at his birth, Jesus was the fulfillment of these prophecies.
He truly was the king of the Jews.
So the Magi come searching for Jesus, they find him, they treat him as a king, and even more.
They worship him, they give him royal gifts.
The Magi's testimony collectively was, he is a king, and they were delighted.
That was not so much true for the current king, Herod.
But in a strange way, Herod also acknowledges and testifies that Jesus is king.
Herod was a ruthless ruler.
He, having murdered his own wife, several sons and relatives, mostly to protect his position.
When he heard that there was a king of the Jews that had been born,
he wanted details regarding this infant's whereabouts.
Now he said, I'm going to worship him, but that was hardly his intent.
He was to arrange a murder of this rival king.
The news troubled the king, and when the king was troubled, everyone else felt the pain.
Herod called together the chief priests and the scribes of the Jews
to find out when and where this Christ was to have been born,
and they shared an understanding of Micah's prophecy.
I find that kind of interesting, where here you have these scribes and rulers of the law,
and we sometimes think very negatively of them, which is probably appropriate,
but they understood the Old Testament scripture, and they quote from Micah's prophecy,
and they share that information with Herod.
Now make no mistake, Herod believed Jesus to be a king.
He wanted no part of this rival.
His extended quote may help us, this extended quote may help us understand this ruler a little bit better.
This comes from a MacArthur commentary on Matthew.
MacArthur writes,
Because he was not Jewish, Herod married a Jewish heiress.
In order to make himself more acceptable to the Jews, he now ruled.
He was a clever and capable warrior, orator, and diplomat.
In times of severe economic hardship, he gave back some tax money collected from the people.
How about that?
During the Great Famine of 25 BC, he melted down gold objects in the palace to buy food for the poor.
He built theaters, racetracks, and other structures to provide entertainment for the people.
In 19 BC, he began the reconstruction of the temple in Jerusalem.
If you read history, you'll find that it's known as the second temple,
or sometimes referred to simply as Herod's temple.
Continuing the quote, he revived Samaria.
He built the beautiful port city of Caesarea in honor of benefactor Caesar Augustus.
He built the remarkable and almost impregnable fortress of Masada,
where in AD 73, nearly a thousand Jewish defenders committed suicide,
rather than to be captured by the Roman general Flavia Silva.
But Herod was also cruel and merciless.
He was incredibly jealous, suspicious, and afraid for his position and power.
Fearing his potential threat, he had the high priest Aristobulus, who was his wife's brother.
He had him drowned.
After which, he provided a magnificent funeral where he pretended to weep.
He then had his wife killed, and then her mother, and two of his own sons.
Five days before Herod's death, about a year or so after Jesus was born,
he had a third son executed.
At that same time, he had the most distinguished citizens of Jerusalem arrested and imprisoned.
And then shortly before Herod died,
he knew that no one would mourn for him, for his death,
so he gave orders for these distinguished citizens,
these prisoners to be executed the moment he died,
in order to guarantee that there would be mourning in Jerusalem.
By his horrific actions, however,
Herod was declaring that Jesus was the true king.
And then we have a testimony of the people in verse 3.
When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
Now, to be fair, the reaction of the people had not too much to do with Jesus' birth,
and almost everything to do with Herod's reaction to it.
As we've learned, when Herod got mad, people got hurt.
It's true that people react to the deeds and attitudes of those in power,
both positively and negatively,
even when they know little or nothing about the issues in question.
But what I'm proposing is that when Jesus came to Bethlehem,
he came as king, even as a baby.
And his coming as king shook up the place.
One way or another, most of Israel was affected,
even if they knew little about King Jesus' birth.
Because of Jesus' birth as king of the Jews,
you recall that several families lost their infant children
at the hand of a jealous king.
Well, this is not the end of the record of King Jesus,
so what we're going to do is leave this scene.
We're going to fast forward about 30 years toward the end of Jesus' earthly ministry.
We're going to take a look not when Jesus came to Bethlehem,
but now when Jesus came to Jerusalem.
I'm going to turn first, just to jump ahead of that,
or behind it just a little bit,
but we're going to look at how the people wanted Jesus to be king.
In John chapter 6, verse 15,
this was following the miraculous feeding of the 5,000,
5,000 men plus women and children.
John writes this,
Now this technically wasn't in Jerusalem,
this was in Galilee,
but this will help us to see what was happening.
Jesus came as king,
but he didn't come as the kind of king the people were looking for.
You see, they didn't want Jesus to rule over them,
they wanted Jesus to rule over the Romans.
You can see the difference.
Sometimes people today want Jesus to be king to rule over the bad guys,
but not really that interested in ruling over them.
When he refused to submit to their wishes,
they wanted no part of Jesus.
We'll see that in a little bit.
So, people wanted him to be king.
Well, when a little bit later in John's gospel,
in chapter 12,
people even declared Jesus to be king.
You recall the passage of Jesus entering the city of Jerusalem,
this, we sometimes call it the triumphal entry.
In John chapter 12, the passage goes like this,
the next day,
the large crowd that had come to the feast
heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.
So they took branches of palm trees
and went out to meet him,
crying out,
Hosanna,
blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,
and then the next phrase,
even the king of Israel.
Jesus didn't reject their acknowledgement,
but he did not bow to their desires.
A week later,
they were calling for his demise.
I doubt that it can be proven,
but I wonder if some of those who cried out,
Hosanna,
blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,
even the king of Israel,
were not among those who were calling for his crucifixion.
So, the people tried to force him to be king.
They acknowledged that he was king.
But then you have the scene,
just a little bit later,
where Jesus has been arrested,
now he's been brought before Pilate,
the soldiers have worked him over,
and there's a mockery that takes place.
But it's interesting that they mock Jesus,
and they emphasize the idea of king.
Listen to the passage in John 19,
verses 1 to 5,
Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him.
And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns
and put it on his head,
and arrayed him in a purple robe.
They came up to him, saying,
Hail, king of the Jews!
And struck him with their hands.
Pilate went out again and said to them,
See, I'm bringing him out to you
that you may know that I find no guilt in him.
So Jesus came out,
wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe.
Pilate said to them,
Behold the man.
Now earlier, they'd had a discussion,
Jesus and Pilate.
Pilate asked him,
Are you the king of the Jews?
Remember that?
And there was this response from Jesus and Pilate,
very interesting and intriguing time.
Pilate's contemplating this whole idea
of Jesus being king.
And again, there's mockery involved by the soldiers,
and there is somewhat of a mockingness
toward Jesus by Pilate.
But nevertheless, there's an acknowledgement there
that Jesus is king.
Pilate and the soldiers were making light of the truth,
but speaking the truth without intending to do so.
Jesus was the king,
and all they did to him did not change that truth.
So they determined to kill him.
But as Jesus is hanging on the cross,
remember what the sign said over him?
That was to be the charge.
A sign was put on the cross typically to say,
This is what this person died.
This is the crime they've committed.
So that those who would pass by
would see the crime,
and would think to do that crime
results in this punishment.
So here's the crime.
Jesus of Nazareth.
You finish it.
King of the Jews.
So even the charge that's printed
is a declaration that Jesus truly is king.
Now you remember,
the people didn't want that up there.
The rulers didn't want that there.
He said he was.
Look, now what I've written, I've written.
So, you have these testimonies.
The people.
Let's now fast forward
to the very end of the story.
Revelation chapter 19.
We've looked at Jesus,
when Jesus came to Bethlehem,
and when Jesus came to Jerusalem.
Now we're going to see
when the king comes to reign over the world.
Revelation 19, verses 11 through 16.
Then I saw heaven opened.
Behold, a white horse.
The one sitting on it
is called faithful and true,
and in righteousness he judges and makes war.
His eyes are like a flame of fire,
and on his head are many diadems.
He has a name written
that no one knows but himself.
He's clothed in a robe dipped in blood.
And the name by which he is called
is the word of God.
And the armies of heaven,
arrayed in fine linen,
white and pure,
were following him on white horses.
And from his mouth comes a sharp sword
with which to strike down the nations.
And he will rule them
with a rod of iron.
He will tread the winepress
of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.
On his robe and on his thigh,
he has a name written,
King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
What kind of king is this Jesus?
Well, from that passage,
we could do an exposition of that,
but I want to do something
a little bit shorter than that.
I want to think about
when the Apostle Paul at one point
was talking to Timothy
about who God is
and this concept of the idea of king.
He actually uses a very,
sort of a summary
of what we just read in Revelation 19.
It's 1 Timothy 1, verse 17.
Here's the verse.
To the king of the ages,
immortal, invisible,
the only God,
be honor and glory
forever and ever.
Amen.
Again, what kind of king
is this King Jesus?
Well, he's the forever king.
He's the king of the ages.
It's true that Paul
could have been speaking
more generically
about the triune God
than specifically about Jesus
in this verse,
but surely this applies to Jesus.
He is the king
and he is the king of the ages.
As far as I understand,
the Greeks had no word for eternal.
So in order to describe eternity,
it would be unto the ages
or unto the ages of the ages.
In other words,
when the ages are past,
he remains.
He remains as king.
His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.
It's an unshakable kingdom.
It is a kingdom
that is incorruptible.
It is a perfect kingdom.
It's a kingdom
of which he,
Jesus,
is king
and he is the forever king.
He is fully
and publicly,
he will demonstrate this
fully and publicly
in his return.
In chapter 19 of Revelation,
there was talk
of the diadems,
the crowns on his head.
There was talk
of the power
of his ruling
with a rod of iron
and his title
was king of kings
and lord of lords.
He is the forever king.
What kind of king
is Jesus?
The forever king.
He is also
the God king.
Paul described it
as immortal,
invisible,
the only God.
Many kings
believed themselves
to be gods.
Nebuchadnezzar
thought he was a god
to be worshipped.
It cost him
his mind
for seven years.
I wasn't going
to read this
but I've got to read this.
This is great.
This is from
a pagan king.
Nebuchadnezzar,
king of Babylon.
And in Daniel
chapter 4.
Listen to this.
Nebuchadnezzar
had been
under judgment
by God.
He'd been
eating grass
and all this
for all these years.
And now at the end
of the days,
I, Nebuchadnezzar,
lifted my eyes
to heaven
and my reason
returned to me
and I blessed
the Most High
and praised
and honored
him who lives forever.
Here's his description.
This pagan king,
here's the description
of God
where his dominion
is an everlasting dominion.
His kingdom
endures
from generation
to generation.
All the inhabitants
of the earth
are accounted
as nothing
and he does
according to his will,
according to the host
of heaven
and among the inhabitants
of the earth
and none can stay
his hand
or say to him,
what have you done?
And then he concludes
this way.
Now I,
Nebuchadnezzar,
praise and extol
and honor
the king of heaven
for all his works
are right
and his ways
are just
and those who walk
in pride
he is able to humble.
That's amazing
coming from this king.
King Herod Agrippa I
thought he was a god
or at least god-like
but he failed
to publicly
give God the glory
after giving
this great oratory message.
It cost him his life.
If you read
Acts chapter 12
it ends with
a very ugly scene
of him being
eaten by worms
and dying.
The prince of this world,
the devil
has a hold
on this world's kingdoms
right now.
He even offered
all of his dominion
to the Lord Jesus
in the temptation
accounts
if Jesus would have
bowed down
to worship him.
He so wanted
to be like God
to rule over all
including God
but that temporary
permitted dominion
my friends
is just about
to come
to an end.
It will cause
Satan an eternity
of torment
in the lake of fire.
There is one king
who is worthy.
It's King Jesus
and he's the God king.
There's one king
there is the God king
the forever king
but Paul also mentioned
he is the honor
and glory forever king.
The honor and glory
forever and ever.
Honor has a way
of turning
into disrespect.
glory
has a tendency
to fade.
The trophies
of the past
become dusty
and corroded
and finally
discarded
but there is one
whose glory
never fades.
It grows brighter
through eternity.
It will never
become old
or routine
to declare
the glory
of King Jesus.
We will be doing
that forever
and we will be
thrilled to do it.
I read somewhere
this
we are not
saved from sin
and changed
into righteousness
for the sake
of pride
but for the sake
of praise.
And when God's
work on us
is done
and we stand
perfected before
Christ in the last
day
we will not
exult in our worth
but we will sing
with millions
of angels
worthy is the lamb
that was slain
to receive power
and wealth
and wisdom
and honor
and glory
and blessing.
Do we get it?
Jesus was
and is
the king.
He is the king
of all wisdom
and knowledge.
There is nothing
that we can do
to con the king.
No question
we can ask
to stump the king.
He is the king
of all power.
There is nothing
we can do
to outmaneuver
the king
or defeat the king
or run from the king
or hide from the king.
He is the king
of all glory
and we must not
think that
we somehow
can siphon
some glory
for ourselves
or accept
from others
what to do
alone to him.
He is the king.
To him belongs
our allegiance
our obedience
our worship
our dedication
to serve him
and to speak well
of him
throughout our lifetime
both with words
and actions.
God's government
is not a democracy
it is a dictatorship.
He alone
is the supreme ruler.
He needs
and receives
no counsel.
He is in perfect control
and he will accomplish
all that he has planned
to do.
To resist him
is foolish
and futile.
To embrace him
and follow after him
and to be subject
to him
is the only response
that makes any sense.
And when we understand
who he is
that response
is pure delight.
In a weird sort of way
the people declared it.
Herod declared it.
Even Satan declared it.
But in a perfect way
God has declared it.
Jesus
is the king.
And I would like
to declare it as well.
He can be
your king.
Now perhaps
you're not convinced.
Let me make
one final appeal
in scripture.
The final appeal
is in
Psalm 2.
I encourage you
to take a look
at that.
Here's the passage.
Why do the nations
rage
and the people
plot in vain?
The kings of the earth
set themselves
and the rulers
take counsel together
against the Lord
and against his anointed
saying
let us burst
their bonds apart
and cast away
their cords from us.
He who sits
in the heavens
laughs.
The Lord
holds them
in derision.
Then he will speak
to them
in his wrath
and terrify them
in his fury
saying
as for me
I have set
my king
on Zion
my holy hill.
I will tell
of the decree
the Lord said to me
you are my son
today I have begotten you
ask of me
and I will make
the nations
your heritage
and the ends
of the earth
your possession.
You shall break
them with a rod
of iron
and dash them
in pieces
like a potter's vessel.
Now therefore
kings
be wise
be warned
oh rulers
of the earth
serve the Lord
with fear
rejoice
with trembling
kiss the sun
lest he be angry
and you perish
in the way
for his wrath
is quickly
kindled
blessed
are all those
who take
refuge
in him.
Kings of the earth
the rulers
continue to take
counsel against
the Lord
and against
his anointed
they continue
to want to
break free
from the
what they sense
is the bondage
that God has
on them
they want to
do their own
thing
they want to
reject God
they want to
be rulers
themselves
what a foolish
idea
he's king
no wonder
God sits
in the heavens
and laughs
not a funny
laugh
a laugh
of scorn
because he
has set
his king
Jesus
on the throne
no wonder
he says
at the end
therefore
oh kings
be wise
be warned
oh rulers
of the earth
serve the Lord
with fear
rejoice
with trembling
kiss the sun
that's an odd
statement
isn't it
James Boyce
helped me
with this
a little bit
he wrote
this is what
these rulers
will not do
of course
it's why
they are
in danger
of final
fierce destruction
make sure
you're not
among them
the rulers
of this world
rage against
Christ
but why
should you
the hands
he holds
forth
for you
to kiss
are hands
that were
pierced
by nails
when he was
crucified
in your place
one day
he's coming
back
coming as a
great judge
of all
on that day
the wicked
will be punished
but today
is the day
of his grace
blessed are
all who take
refuge
in him
it's a reminder
says voice
that the only
refuge
from the wrath
of God
is God's
mercy
unfolded
at the cross
of Jesus
Christ
he's king
is he your
king
let's pray
father how
we thank you
for your
great plan
and purpose
we thank you
for the season
that we
celebrate the
coming of
Jesus
in the flesh
all part
of your
wonderful
glorious
remarkable
providential
purposeful
plan
to redeem
those
whom you
had
chosen
before the
foundation
of the
world
to be in
your family
you revealed
here in your
word
how Jesus
comes as
king
and how
he will
rule and
reign
over all
we
I think
I hope
I believe
we in this
local family
of believers
love that
you are our
king
we rejoice
that we are
able to be
able to bow
to your
authority
we even
pray
when we pray
your kingdom
come
we are
praying
that you
will rule
and reign
in our
lives
every day
that we
will not
try to
usurp
your
authority
we will
bow to
what you
called us
to do
may that
increase
in our
daily
walk
may we
not only
live
in light
of the
fact that
you are
king
but may
we declare
your rule
and reign
to all
who will
hear
thank you
for this
great privilege
of worshiping
the king
of heaven
in Jesus
name we
pray
amen