Christ is King!

The reign of Jesus from the Messianic Throne began following his death, resurrection, and exaltation.

The New Testament is clear. God made Jesus of Nazareth Lord, King and Messiah, and there is no other. His reign began when God exalted Christ following his resurrection. “God has made this same Jesus both Lord and Messiah!” – (Acts 2:36).

Salvation is found only in Jesus, the Son of God, who was crucified and raised from the dead to reconcile men and women with their Creator. Christ alone conquered sin and death. Again, there is no other.

[Photo by Paul Zoetemeijer (THE NETHERLANDS) on Unsplash]

This salvation concerns much more than the forgiveness of sins, as vital as forgiveness is. This includes the creation itself - the redemption of our bodies and inauguration of the New Creation in which righteousness prevails. God has appointed His Son as the Lord of the Cosmos. Nothing is beyond his sovereignty, not even death – (Isaiah 65:17, Acts 3:19, Romans 8:20-23, 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 1:17-18).

• “For us, there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through him” – (1 Corinthians 8:6).

• “And there is salvation in no one else, for neither is there any other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved!” – (Acts 4:12).

The exaltation and present lordship of Jesus are forever linked to his past death and resurrection. The New Testament applies messianic texts from the Old Testament to demonstrate this reality. For example:

• “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming OBEDIENT UNTO DEATH, indeed, the death of the cross. Wherefore also, GOD HIGHLY EXALTED HIM, and gave him the name which is above every name,  that in the name of Jesus, EVERY KNEE SHOULD BOW, of things in heaven and things on earth and things under the earth, and that EVERY TONGUE SHOULD CONFESS, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” – (Philippians 2:8-11. Note the verbal allusions to Psalm 89:27, Isaiah 45:23, 52:13 and 53:12 [“Because he poured out his soul unto death…”]).

• “Which he energized in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and made him TO SIT AT HIS RIGHT HAND in the heavenlies, far above ALL RULE AND AUTHORITY AND POWER AND DOMINION, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come” – (Ephesians 1:20-21. Note the verbal allusions to Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:27. Compare Acts 2:34-36, Colossians 3:1, Hebrews 1:1-4, 10:12).

The present reign of Christ was confirmed when God raised him from the dead, appointed him the ruler of all things, and authorized him to bestow the Spirit of God on his people. The Crucified Messiah is now Lord – (Luke 24:46-49, Acts 1:8):

• “Assuredly, then, let all the house of Israel know that God has made him both Lord and Christ, even this same Jesus whom you crucified!” – (Acts 2:36).

• “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed, HANGING HIM ON A TREE. God exalted him TO HIS RIGHT HAND, a prince and a saviour, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins” – (Acts 5:30-31. Compare Deuteronomy 21:23, Psalm 110:1, Acts 10:39, Galatians 3:13 [See also “the tree of life” in Revelation 2:7, 22:2, 22:14]).

Two passages from the Psalms are used multiple times in the New Testament to confirm the enthronement and reign of Christ:

• “But I have been made king by him on Zion, his holy mountain, declaring the ordinance of the Lord. The Lord said to me, You are my Son. This day, 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 will shepherd them with a rod of iron. You will shatter them as a potter's vessel” – (Psalm 2:6-9. Quoted from the Septuagint version).

• “The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool” - (Psalms 110:1).

Note well the following examples of how the authors of the New Testament use these two passages:

• “And the high priest said to him, I adjure you by the living God, tell us whether you are the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus said to him, You have said; nevertheless, I say to you: From now on, you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER AND COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN” - (Matthew 26:63-65. Note the combination of Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:13).

• “And we bring you good tidings of the promise made unto the fathers, that God has fulfilled the same for our children, in that he raised up Jesus, as also it is written in the second psalm, YOU ARE MY SON. THIS DAY, I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU” - (Acts 13:32-33. Compare Hebrews 1:5, 5:5-6).

• “HE IS AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him” – (1 Peter 3:22. Compare Romans 8:33-34, 1 Corinthians 15:22-28, Ephesians 1:20-23, Colossians 1:15-20).

• “Many part and many ways of old, God spoke to the fathers in the prophets; upon the last of these days, He spoke to us in a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the ages, who being the radiance of his glory, and the precise image of His essence, upholding all things by the word of his power, having achieved the purification of sins, SAT DOWN ON THE RIGHT HAND of the Majesty on high” – (Hebrews 1:1-3).

In Matthew 26:63-65, Jesus identified himself as the Messiah before the high priest of Israel and asserted his destiny to reign from the throne of David, as promised in the Scriptures. Many other passages likewise confirm that his messianic reign has been a present reality ever since his death and resurrection.

THE LORD OF ALL

Jesus is not waiting for a future event to become king. His reign is a present reality, and the Book of Revelation demonstrates this in several ways. Moreover, Christ’s sovereignty fulfills Scripture.

For example, John sends greetings that include verbal allusions to several Old Testament passages, words of salutation from the One who is, from the Seven Spirits of God, and from Jesus Christ:

• “The FAITHFUL WITNESS, the FIRSTBORN OF THE DEAD, and THE RULER OF THE KINGS OF THE EARTH. Unto him who loves us and cleansed us from our sins by his blood; and he made us A KINGDOM, PRIESTS for his God and Father. To him be the glory AND THE DOMINION FOREVER ever. Amen” – (Revelation 1:5-6. Note also the allusions to Exodus 19:5-6 and Psalm 89:37).

• “He will cry unto me: You are my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. I also will make him my firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth” – (Psalm 89:26-27).

• “And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which will not pass away, and his kingdom that which will not be destroyed” – (Daniel 7:14).

The passage from the Book of Daniel is used several times in Revelation to describe the present reign of the Messiah, the “one like a son of man” who receives the kingdom for the saints.

The phrase ‘faithful witness’ refers to Christ’s death, and ‘the firstborn of the dead’ to his resurrection. Thus, the present sovereignty of Jesus is based on his past death and resurrection. This understanding is confirmed a few verses later, and in the letters to the churches of Smyrna and Philadelphia:

• “Fear not! I AM THE FIRST AND THE LAST, and the Living one. And I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I HAVE THE KEYS of death and of Hades” - (Revelation 1:17-18. Note the verbal allusions to Isaiah 22:22, 44:6).

• “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These things declares THE FIRST AND THE LAST, who was dead, and lived” – (Revelation 2:8).

• “These things declares he that is holy, he that is true, he who has THE KEY OF DAVID, HE WHO OPENS AND NO MAN SHUTS, and WHO SHUTS AND NO MAN OPENS” – (Revelation 3:7. Compare Isaiah 22:22).

In Chapter 5, Jesus is the Slain Lamb, the Messiah of Israel, and it is the Lamb who is declared worthy to receive all power and authority because he gave his life to redeem humanity. Jesus was installed on the divine throne as the result of his sacrificial death and resurrection:

• “And they sing a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the book, and to open its seals, for you were slain and purchased for God with your blood men from every tribe AND TONGUE AND PEOPLE AND NATION, and you made them a KINGDOM AND PRIESTS for our God, and they reign on the earth. <…> Worthy is the Lamb that has been slain to receive the power and riches and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing. <…> Unto him that sits on the throne and unto the Lamb be the blessing and the honour and the glory and THE DOMINION FOREVER AND EVER” – (Revelation 5:9-13. Note the allusions to Exodus 19:5-6 and Daniel 7:13-14).

Beginning in Chapter 5, ‘Lamb’ becomes the primary designation for Jesus in the Book of Revelation, a total of twenty-eight times. It is the Lamb who is sovereign over the Cosmos and the nations of the earth. Even his fiercest enemies, the Dragon and the Beast, cannot execute their plans without the consent of the Lamb – (for example, “it was given to the Beast to make war with the saints” - Revelation 13:7).

In Chapter 11:7-8, the two witnesses are killed by the Beast after they complete their testimony. Their corpses lie unburied on the streets of the Great City, “where also their Lord was crucified.” And so, the martyrs of Jesus are closely identified with him and his sacrificial death, and it is the crucified Christ who is designated “Lord.”

After the seventh trumpet is heard, heavenly voices declare that “THE KINGDOM OF THE WORLD IS BECOME THE KINGDOM of our Lord and of his Christ, and HE WILL REIGN FOREVER AND EVER” – (Revelation 11:15. Note the verbal allusions to Daniel 2:44, 7:14, and 7:27).

[Photo by Kevin Andre (CHICAGO) on Unsplash]

Moreover, it is the Slain Lamb who is declared to be the King and Lord who reigns over all things, including every political authority and every kingdom on the earth:

• “These will make war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for he is LORD OF LORDS AND KING OF KINGS” – (Revelation 17:14. Note the allusion to Deuteronomy 10:17, Daniel 2:47).

• “And he has on his garment and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” – (Revelation 19:16. Note the verbal allusion to Daniel 2:47 [“Of a truth, your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings”]).

Thus, Jesus has reigned over all things since his death and resurrection, but it is the crucified messiah who sits on the throne. As Christ himself declared after his resurrection:

• “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations” – (Matthew 28:18).

• “The Father loves the Son, and he has given all things into his hand” – (John 3:35).

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[Citations of Old Testament passages in this article are based on the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint (see the links here and here). Text printed in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS represents quotations and verbal allusions from the Old Testament. The Septuagint is represented by the Roman numeral for ‘seventy’ or LXX based on the Latin name of the translation, ‘Interpretatio septuaginta virorum’]

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SEE ALSO:

• The Lamb - (Jesus is the Lamb and the true Messiah of Israel. He was sent by God to redeem men from every nation by his sacrificial death)

• One Like a Son of Man - (Revelation’s first vision presents Jesus as the Son of Man, the high priest who watches over his people – Revelation 1:9-20)

• The Ruler of Kings - (Jesus, the Faithful Witness, now reigns supreme over the Kings of the Earth, and he is shepherding the nations to the Holy City of New Jerusalem)

• On David's Throne - (Following his Resurrection, Jesus began his reign from the Messianic Throne as prophesied by David – Psalm 2:6-9)