Destined To Be King Series

It was just a few days before Christmas, when two men decided to go sailing while their wives went Christmas shopping. While the men were sailing a storm came up-a mighty storm that tossed the boat back and forth across the water. Finally the tiny sailboat was forced upon the shore of a small island. The men jumped out of the boat tried to push it back into the water. Suddenly, they realized they were being fired upon by the island’s hostile natives. As they dodged poisonous darts, standing waist deep in freezing water in the middle of a storm, one said to the other, "I realize that today hasn’t exactly gone as planned, but this sure beats Christmas shopping, doesn’t it?!" I hope your Christmas experience doesn’t become as drastic as these two guys and that today you can find a few moments of relief from the rush of the Christmas season as we focus on the life of Jesus Christ, the true reason for the season.

Last week we began our Christmas trilogy with a message on Christ’s birth and the parallel with the film Lord of the Rings, where in the rings Aragon is the heir of Isidur who’s origins were from the distant past and how he had been appointed to lead his people and in the process experienced suffering. Then comparing his fabled life with that of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is not fabled but recorded through eyewitness accounts and through past prophetic words written down in Scripture as one who came from the distant past to save His people from condemnation and through His suffering, His death on a Cross and subsequent resurrection has indeed delivered His people from eternal destruction to eternal life.

Why use Lord of the Rings? Because it provides a bridge for many people to understanding the truth of Jesus Christ. If we are unwilling to invest in the interests of people, we will never have the opportunity to invite them to understand the truth of Christ. That is why we use contemporary themes to share the timeless truth of the Bible. That is what Jesus did and the disciples did and what we should also be doing, building a bridge to tomorrow through investing in the current conditions of today so we can bring others across with us. That is how we will build people and build dreams for the Kingdom of God.

In Lord of the Rings, Aragorn comes to the place of his kingship, the destiny he was born at age 87. Jesus assumes his role, his destiny at age 30 when His earthly ministry begins.

Time. Abraham Lincoln said “Nothing valuable can be lost by taking time” The Apostle Paul said in Galatians 4 …when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law.

You might want to underline the phrase, when the time arrived that was set by God the Father. Have you ever heard the phrase, “Timing is Everything.”

The timing Paul wrote of is the right time for the one destined to become king. Its found in Luke 2 4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

VIDEO CLIP – SILENT NIGHT

There is a message here, a message that goes beyond a baby in a manager, it is a message of hope, a message that says God had a plan for mankind which was fulfilled in the fullness of time, and if He had a message of hope for the world which was predestined before the foundations of the earth began, than He also has a destiny for me. And that destiny is not determined by age but by time.

In Zephaniah 3 we read how God is with us, how He is might to save us, how He delights in us, how He is going to remove the struggles of life that have been part of us. In verse 20 we then read these words, At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the peoples of the earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes," says the LORD.