I'm going to read in Matthew 28, starting at verse 9.
And after verse 9 and 10, we're going to skip to verse 16.
This is God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, and sufficient word.
It's God's very own word for you, his people.
After I'm done reading, I'll say this is the word of the Lord.
If you receive it that way, you can say thanks be to God.
Matthew 28, verse 9.
And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, Rejoice.
So they came and held him by the feet and worshipped him.
This is the risen Lord appearing to his followers.
And then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid.
Go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.
Now please look at verse 16.
Then the eleven disciples went away to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.
When they saw him, they worshipped him.
But some doubted.
Verse 18.
And when Jesus came and spoke to them, saying,
All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.
And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
Amen.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
You may be seated.
This green grass that you have your feet on will soon fade in a couple months.
These beautiful flowers all around us, they will fade as well.
But this is the word of the Lord that will endure forever.
Let's pray.
Lord, will you please speak to your people.
And to those that you will call.
And to those that need to hear truth today.
Please speak in a powerful way, Lord.
Illuminate the word that you've revealed by your Holy Spirit.
Amen.
I want to talk to you today about the King of Kings.
Jesus is the King.
All authority has already been given to Him.
Amen.
And it may be harder for us to receive this glorious truth that Jesus is the King.
Because we live in a democracy.
In a democracy after a few centuries, the virtues that have been commonly held, very quickly those virtues go mad.
And get pushed to extremes.
And end up turning the moral law of God upside down in the minds of fallen people.
But Jesus is King.
And His kingdom is already in effect.
If you visit a more ancient country than ours, and you go to visit a palace, you'll be able to see in the architecture, the way that that city developed.
Wherever the palace of the King is, around that palace, you'll see mansions.
All the noblemen wanting to be as close as they could to the King.
And those who can afford to be that close in the capital where the King would go to hunt, more in the countryside.
There's the retreat palace.
The wealthy of that region will try to build their homes and their estates as close as they can to the King.
If you're close to the King, you share in the status.
You share in that citizenship of the kingdom.
It's hard for us to understand this in our modern society.
Even before us, during World War II, C.S. Lewis observed,
where men are forbidden to honor a king, they honor millionaires, athletes, and film stars instead.
For spiritual nature, like bodily nature, will be served.
Deny it food, and it will gobble up poison.
Do you understand what C.S. Lewis was writing?
Your spiritual nature needs to worship a king.
And if you deny that to your soul, your soul will gobble up poison instead.
If you don't worship the King of Kings, you will worship an idol.
Unless you worship King Jesus, you will be giving your soul poison.
Listen, He alone is the King of Kings.
And He has declared in verse 18 of our sermon text,
All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
So for today's sermon text, your expectation, it's really that phrase, verse 18, that I want to open up for us today.
The authority of King Jesus.
First, let's understand what type of authority.
All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
It's all of the authority that was promised to David.
And through further revelation, long after David was dead and buried.
And it's all bound up in what we've described last week as the Davidic covenant.
The name of David shows up in the New Testament in many places, but nowhere more than in the book of Matthew.
16 times is David mentioned in the book of Matthew.
More than anywhere else in the New Testament.
I know we're just jumping into this book as part of our theme and series.
But what you need to know about the book of Matthew, it's one of the four gospels.
Every gospel has a different audience and a different purpose.
During the Middle Ages, when the church was illiterate,
they would use art to depict the themes of books of the Bible and of Bible stories.
John was depicted, as we saw, as an eagle.
It soars.
The divine theology in the book of John is so high and elevated.
Luke was depicted as an ox, which is the head among the bovines.
And it was the sacrificial system that was focused in Luke.
So in Luke, we get detailed accounts of how perfect Christ is
as the final sacrifice to do away with the blood of animals.
In the Gospel of Mark, it's the shortest.
It's very fast-paced.
And the word immediately is always used to show the fast pace.
It's like a galloping lion.
And that's the image associated with the Gospel of Mark, is a lion.
Well, what about Matthew?
And the image for Matthew is a man from heaven,
or a messenger that's divine.
It's been depicted like an angel,
showing the heavenliness of this messenger,
but the face is the face of a man.
Do you see the point?
Jesus Christ, God Himself, became a man.
Not just any man.
He became the man that was promised in the covenant,
associated with the name of David.
All authority has been given to me, Jesus says.
Earlier in the book of Matthew, Matthew 8, 9,
a centurion from the Roman Empire had used that exact same word.
And he told Jesus,
I am a man under authority.
In other words, the power that I have,
the might of my army,
it's only as far as it's been given to me by Caesar himself.
I'm a man under authority.
But with that authority, the centurion said,
the soldiers under me will do whatever I command.
If I say go, they go.
That's the same word Jesus uses to say,
all authority has been given to Him.
Authority.
It's the might, the strength, the force,
the jurisdiction, the magistrate of Jesus.
It's the rule that He has over His government.
It's the right and power of Him
whose will and commands must be submitted to
and obeyed by others.
Just like the centurion in the Roman army.
That's the type of authority Jesus is claiming.
I want to walk through four ways
that this authority is given to Jesus.
First, He is the King.
And He has all the authority
promised to this royal Davidic line
from within national Israel.
He is now the risen, glorified man.
And as He ascends into heaven,
in the same passage,
He's raising up, blessing His disciples,
promising the Holy Spirit.
He is now lifted up
to show that He's the one fulfilling
all of those forever promises
of a throne that will last and never end
and will endure for every generation to come.
Would you turn in your book of Matthew?
I want to walk through several ways
that David is associated with
what Christ fulfills.
Turn back to Matthew chapter 1.
In the introduction to each of the four Gospels,
there's a different focus.
What is the focus in the book of Matthew?
Matthew chapter 1, verse 1.
Well, He tells us very clearly.
He says,
this is the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ.
So He's interested in the exact bloodline of Jesus.
And notice how Jesus is described.
Jesus Christ, the son of David.
So He comes from this royal line of David.
King Jesus also has authority
as God's conquering warrior.
He is coming on His mission on earth
to drive back Satan
and to undo the curse of sin.
Turn next to Matthew 9.
Just a few pages forward.
Matthew 9, verse 27.
We read of two blind men
that start to follow Jesus
as He's on this mission
pushing back the power of Satan
and of darkness.
And these men, like many others,
they cry out to Jesus
and look at what they say.
Son of David, have mercy on us.
Let me give you just one more example.
Turn to Matthew 15, verse 22.
Matthew 15, 22.
In Matthew 15, 22,
a woman from Canaan came from that region
and cried out to Jesus saying,
Have mercy on me, O Lord, son of David.
My daughter is severely demon-possessed.
She's calling on the authority
that Jesus has,
as the royal king from the line of David
who's conquering and advancing
the kingdom of heaven
and pushing back the powers of darkness.
Number three,
King Jesus has all the authority
of the long-expected Messiah.
Messiah means anointed one.
David was anointed by Samuel
and the king was to always be anointed,
receiving this power from God
to rule over God's people.
Now look at Matthew 21, verse 9.
The long-expected Messiah,
the anointed one.
Matthew 21, verse 9.
Then the multitudes who went before
and those who followed cried out,
saying, Hosanna to the Son of David.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
This is what the crowds cry out,
recognizing this is the anointed Messiah,
the promised one,
the Son of David.
But look at the reaction
of those ruling in power in verse 15.
When the chief priests and scribes
saw the wonderful things that Jesus did
and the children crying out in the temple,
saying, Hosanna to the Son of David,
they were indignant.
Jesus came and his own recognized him
as the promised Messiah,
the long-expected anointed one.
And fourth,
King Jesus has all authority as God.
He has the authority of God himself
in the flesh,
fully God,
now fully man,
to rule as king over all.
See, David and the promised kings of Israel
were man,
and God was to be the king of Israel.
But in this Davidic covenant,
we're told that it will be a man
from this line of David.
And this would be God himself in the flesh
fulfilling his own covenant.
Look at Matthew 22, verse 41.
Matthew 22, verse 41.
While the Pharisees were gathered together,
Jesus asked them, saying,
What do you think about the Christ?
Whose son is he?
And they said to him,
The son of David.
And he said to them,
How does then David...
I'm sorry.
Jesus said to them,
How then does David in the Spirit,
he's referring to Psalm 2,
call him Lord?
If David calls him Lord,
how is he his son?
Jesus brings before them this mystery
that unless the Holy Spirit illuminated
and God accomplished it,
they could never make sense of this.
This promised Messiah,
this anointed one,
David himself would call Lord.
The anointed Messiah would be God himself
coming into the line of David.
So Jesus fulfilling this
is claiming the authority of God himself,
who David would call Lord.
Lord.
In the Gospel of Matthew,
we see Jesus time and again
driving out demons,
pushing back the powers of darkness.
See, the spiritual battle has existed
as long as sin entered God's creation.
What changed at the Incarnation
is that this spiritual battle
that's taking place in the heavenly realm
was brought to earth.
Christ, who had been at war
with sin and Satan in the spiritual realm.
He took on flesh.
He was incarnate.
And the forces of Satan
in the demonic realm
are fighting him now in the flesh.
In Matthew 9, 6,
Jesus heals a man
and he says,
so that you can know
that the Son of Man has power.
It's the same word as authority
on earth
to forgive sins.
And for this reason,
I say,
get up and walk.
King Jesus
has the authority
of the Davidic covenant.
The King of Kings
now in the flesh.
The man,
the divine man
coming to fulfill
the promise.
So that's the type of authority
Jesus claims.
Now,
what does he have authority over?
Authority
over what?
He says in our sermon text,
it's Matthew 28,
verse 18,
all authority
has been given to me
in heaven
and on earth.
Authority over what?
Over heaven
and earth.
Well,
in Genesis 1, 1,
that same phrase is used,
that in the beginning,
God created
the heavens
and the earth.
God created
the ground
and the sky.
He created the land
and the water.
And so as God the Son,
Jesus Christ
already held
all that authority
as creator.
We read in John 1, 3
that through Christ
all things were made.
But the heavens
also refer to
the spiritual realm.
The heavens refer
to that invisible realm
in which our souls
and our spirits exist.
In Psalm 123,
we read that God
dwells in the heavens.
In Ephesians 2,
verse 2,
we're told that
the prince of the power
of the air,
Satan,
the spirit who now works
in the sons of disobedience,
he's in the power
of the air,
so to speak.
So this is referring
to heaven
as the spiritual realm.
In Philippians 2, 9,
we read that God
has now exalted Christ
and given Him
the name
which is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bow.
Listen.
Of those in heaven
and those on earth
and those under the earth
and that every tongue
should confess
that Jesus Christ
is Lord
to the glory
of God the Father.
In the finished work
of Jesus Christ,
He has all power
in the spiritual realm.
He has all power
in the heavenlies,
in the air,
in the realm
of the spirits.
but He also
has all power
on earth
right now.
Jesus is king
over all the earth.
He's Lord of all.
He says that
all the authority
over heaven
and earth
belongs to King Jesus
and He's fulfilling
what was prophesied
in Daniel 4,
verse 34,
that His dominion
is an everlasting dominion
and He does
according to His will
in the army of heaven,
listen,
and among
the inhabitants
of the earth.
King Jesus rules
heaven
absolutely.
King Jesus rules
over earth
right now
by grace.
but there's a day
that's coming
where His absolute reign
in the spiritual realm
will be just so absolute
on earth
as it is in heaven.
Now is the day
for King Jesus
to call sinners like us,
poor and wretched,
to come to Him
by grace.
Now is Jesus
portrayed for us
with His arms
open wide,
welcoming any sinner.
Come to Jesus
now
while His rule
is gracious.
There will be a day
when every knee
will bow,
not in humble contrition
beholding His loveliness,
but in a conquering way
when His absolute rule
over the spiritual realm
will be realized
on earth.
And that day
it will be too late
to cry for mercy.
Now is the time
of mercy.
Some of you
need this reminder.
If God is so merciful
to a sinner
who doesn't want
to hear His word,
who doesn't want
to pray and sing to Him,
how much more merciful
is He still to you
who believe in Him,
who love Him?
Remember,
He rules over you
now by grace.
Be encouraged,
be comforted
by that truth.
Well, we've seen
what type of authority,
we've seen authority
over what.
Next,
authority to whom
and by whom.
Matthew 28,
verse 18 says
that all authority
has been given
to me.
Who gave it?
Who received it?
Given
means to be granted,
to have something
put into one's hands,
have something delivered
over to you,
bestowed to you
as a gift,
can mean to be
appointed as an office.
It's been given.
In Matthew 4 and 9,
we read that
all things
I will give you
if you fall down
and worship me.
And that was
the words that Satan
used to tempt Jesus
in the wilderness.
I, Satan,
will give you
all the things
on the earth
that you want.
And our Lord Jesus,
hearing this,
trusted instead
in God's word.
Satan's head now
is crushed.
But Satan
is still allowed
to terrorize
anyone outside
of Christ
on this earth.
In Ephesians 6,
we read of rulers
in the darkness
over this present
evil age.
These are principalities
and powers.
A spiritual host
of wickedness
that continues
to cause damage
in the spiritual realm.
But,
Jesus says
to His church,
to the apostles,
through them
we get the New Testament
and we receive this,
that all authority
has already been given
to Him
by the Father.
So this means
God the Father
representing
the one
holy triune
Creator
has given
the authority
to Christ.
The perfect,
righteous,
risen,
and glorified
mediator.
Jesus Christ,
fully God,
fully man.
God the Son
who took on
a body forever.
He has received
all authority
from God.
When did this happen?
Christ received
this authority
at His resurrection.
In Matthew 28,
Christ has not yet
ascended
to the right hand
of the Father
in His glorified body.
He's still with
His disciples on earth,
but it's already
been given to Him.
So this authority
over heaven and earth
was given to Jesus
when the Father
rose Him from the dead,
when the Spirit
brought that breath
back into His lungs,
and when Christ
took up His own life
again just as He
had laid it down.
At His resurrection,
Jesus rose victorious.
Ever since His resurrection,
Jesus now holds
the keys of life
and death.
King Jesus has already
crushed the ancient
serpent's head.
He has already
broke the bonds
of sin
over His people.
He's already
killed death.
The Son fulfilled
that covenant
of works
that the Lord
had given to Adam
and Adam failed
to keep.
The triune God
has already fulfilled
the eternal covenant
of redemption
that God
in His freedom
counseled
Father, Son,
and Holy Spirit
to redeem
a people for Himself
before the foundations
of the world.
and God the Father
now has given
our Lord Jesus Christ
the reward
of His obedience.
He has blessed
the suffering servant
with everything
that He promised.
So the work
of the Son
is finished.
That means that
Jesus Christ
can never lose
the blessings
that He merited
for us.
It means that
His place
as the King
of kings
cannot be shaken.
all authority
has already
been given
to Him
never to be lost.
Where does
your assurance
come from?
All authority
in heaven
and on earth
has already
been given
to Christ
for His sake alone.
Nothing can take
you out of His hands.
Praise the Lord.
Well, that's
who gave the authority
and that's who received
this authority.
Now, how much
authority?
How much authority
did the Father
give the Son?
Well, it's one
little word that
anyone here
who can read
first or second graders,
you can see
in Matthew 28
verse 18,
how much authority
did God give
Jesus?
All authority
has been given
to me.
Just as King David
had all authority
over national Israel,
over all the enemies
that God would
deliver to Him
at the edge
of every single
border of the nation.
In the same way,
Jesus has all
authority
over His kingdom.
The word all,
every authority,
any authority,
the whole authority.
There's no authority
not given to Jesus.
It's the same word,
all,
that's used in
Matthew 3.15,
that Jesus came
to fulfill
all righteousness.
That same word
is what Jesus
now says,
all authority
has been given
to me.
There's not a single
act of righteousness
God did not fulfill
in Jesus Christ.
And all that allness,
that fullness
of His righteousness,
He claims to say,
the same amount
of authority
is what I have now.
This is such good news.
Ephesians 1.21,
we read that God
has placed
our Lord Jesus Christ
above all rule
and authority
and power
and dominion
and above every name
that is named,
not only in this age
but also in the age
to come.
And that God the Father
put all things
under the feet
of Jesus
and gave Him,
our Lord Jesus Christ,
as head
over all things
in the church.
That's the gift
we receive from
the Father.
It's Christ.
with all authority
given to you
as your head,
as your king.
Just as David
took all the land
of Israel,
he took it
by conquest.
The mighty men
rose up,
they charged
with David.
The whole nation
pushed back
these rebellious ones
who hated God
and preferred idols.
He pushed them
back by conquest.
And so our Lord Jesus,
He takes over
your soul
and mine
by conquest.
He owns
your whole life
as king.
If you are united
to Him,
He has purchased you
by His blood.
There is no
corner
of your soul
for the lusts
of your flesh
to hide their head.
He owns
all of you.
King Jesus
is Lord
of all.
That's how much
authority the Father
has given Him.
The last question
I want to bring
to you
before I invite
you to respond
is authority
given for what purpose?
For what purpose
does Christ
have this authority?
All authority
has been given
to me
in heaven
and on earth
for what purpose?
In Luke 22
verse 29,
Jesus sets
this pattern.
He says
that the Father
promised to bestow
the Son
a kingdom.
And now
Jesus turns
to the disciples
and says,
now disciples,
I bestow
to you
a kingdom
just as my Father
bestowed
a kingdom
to me.
That word
bestow a kingdom.
In the Greek
it's to covenant.
My Father
covenanted
to me a kingdom
and in the same way
I am covenanting
a kingdom
to you,
my church.
one observer
pointed out
that as the Father
made this covenant
of redemption
with the Son,
so now Jesus
representing the covenant
of grace
to His people,
He covenants
in a binding way
that He fulfills
fully for you.
And in John 20
verse 21
He says,
as the Father
sent me
so I am sending you.
Do you get the pattern?
the mission of God
is mediated
through Christ.
As the Father
initiated this
ministry
of covenanting
of people
through the Son,
the Son continues
this ministry
through His church.
The kingdom
of God's
gracious covenant
is extended
to all
through the church.
Our Lord Jesus Christ
shares His authority
with His church.
Authority for what?
To make disciples
as you go.
Verse 19
Go and make disciples.
Our Lord Jesus
shares His authority
with His church
to call all disciples
to Christ
from all the nations.
Verse 19
Our Lord Jesus
shares His authority
with His church
to baptize disciples.
Give those whom
I have called
the outward sign
of their inward union
to me.
And our Lord Jesus Christ
shares His authority
with His church
to give His name
to His people.
Baptize them
in the name
of the Father,
the Son,
and the Holy Spirit.
Let them be assured
that they are adopted
into my family.
They belong to me.
The church has the authority
to do that
in the name of Jesus.
Our family adopted
one of our children
and that's a day
we'll never forget.
It's a renaming ceremony.
From this day on
this precious little child's name
will be this.
And this represents
our family.
This child belongs
to this household.
This child
is blood of our blood
and flesh of our flesh.
That's what happens
in a baptism.
The name of Jesus.
The name of God the Father,
the Son,
and the Holy Spirit
through the ministry
of the King of Kings
with the authority
the Father gave Him
and He extends
to the church
is put on
a child of God.
Your identity
is secure
in Him forever.
In Christ
we are blood of blood
and flesh of flesh
because we are united
in Christ Jesus.
Our Lord Jesus Christ
shared His authority
with His church
to teach disciples
spirit-empowered obedience.
Amen.
Teaching them
to observe
all things
that I have commanded you.
The logic flowing
from the theme
of authority
is very clear.
If you're a citizen
of the kingdom
you're near to the king.
You're noble.
You're welcome
among His courts
and His garden.
Citizens
love to obey
their king.
And when your king
is so gracious
like Jesus
His law
is a blessing.
His rules over you
are a joy
to receive that.
I just get to be
in your kingdom.
What a blessing.
Philippians 3
20 and 21
Our citizenship
is in heaven.
You already have it.
And from it
we await
a Savior
the Lord Jesus Christ
who will transform
our lowly body
to be like
His glorious body
by the power
that enables Him
even to subject
all things
to Himself.
So that's the purpose
of this authority
is to extend
His kingdom
through His church.
Jesus
is already
King of kings.
Amen.
He rules
with all authority
over heaven
and over earth.
So before you
leave today
respond.
When you behold
the risen
Jesus Christ
who holds
all authority
you too
will do
like His followers.
We saw in verse 9
of our sermon text.
When you behold Him
you will
run up to Him
and you will
hold Him
by the feet
and you will
worship Him.
King Jesus
also says to you
do not fear
but rejoice.
He is King
so you can rejoice.
He says
observe all things
that I
your King
command you
by what strength
by what power
for how long
by my strength
says Jesus
by my power
until I return.
And here's the promise
in verse 20
for lo
I am
with you
always
even
to the end
of the age.
and look
at how He's
been true
to His promise
through every
century
of the church.
Your spirit
will be served.
If you deny
your spirit
food
it will
gobble up
poison.
Don't deny
your soul
the worship
it was created
to enjoy.
King Jesus
is worthy.
He is worthy.
worthy.
We sing
that He is
worthy
of all
blessing
and honor
and glory.
The good news
is you're not
just near
His palace.
You're not
just on the
suburbs
trying to be
close to the
kingdom of God.
You're inside.
You're in it.
You're already
a citizen.
You're behind
the gates
and the walls.
You're secure
with Jesus
ruling over you.
And He's
gone to prepare
a place for you
in His Father's
house.
And He sealed
this covenant
promise of grace
to you with His
own blood.
And He says
I can't wait
for that day
when we're going
to drink
and celebrate
at this feast
together.
His only
is the name
above all names.
Jesus alone
is worthy
to be praised.
Enjoy peace
under His
authority now.
And praise Him.
Praise how
majestic He is.
How mighty.
And how great
is our God
in the finished
work of Jesus
Christ.
Amen.
Let's pray in
response
to who He is.
Let's pray in
response to who He is.