One planned on making his horse a senator (Caligula). Another loved to sing but was so bad at it that he had to post guards to keep people from leaving the room when he performed (Nero). And still another dressed in a lion skin and carried a club because he fancied himself the Greek god Hercules (Commodus). The emperors of Rome, like kings from every age and nation, could be downright silly. We should count our blessings that our leaders today aren’t nearly as zany. But even if our mayor was a Caligula, our premier a Nero, and our prime minister a Commodus, it wouldn’t matter because Christ, our saviour, is king supreme. He rules over all creation for all those bound for salvation. Let’s find out how this reality is an everyday comfort for us.
The Christians of Colosse, a city in present day Turkey, needed to hear that their Jesus was king supreme. False teachers had infiltrated their midst suggesting that believing in Jesus wasn’t enough for salvation. They encouraged the keeping of Old Testament laws like resting on the Sabbath. They also suggested that the Colossians worship angels. To make sure that the Colossians understood why Christ was all they needed for salvation the Apostle Paul wrote: “[Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together…For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him” (Colossians 1:15-17, 20).
Many of the Roman emperors were considered gods. Sure, they did some impressive things like build monuments that still stand hundreds of years later, but so what? The emperors themselves didn’t actually design or build these temples and aqueducts. They didn’t put compass to drafting paper, or hammer to nail; they had to rely on other people to do these things. Jesus, on the other hand, personally made everything you see and can’t see. It is he who made the stars – medium-sized ones like our sun (still 109 times the diameter of the earth), and big ones like Becrux, 8.1 times the diameter of the sun. He made the white blood cells that tear around your body attacking germs. He made the wind…and controls it, using it to determine where every seed from a dandelion will land. Jesus can do all this because in him dwells the full divinity of God. Your Jesus is not half-God, like a bag of potato chips only half full even though you paid full price for it. Everything that makes God, God, is found in the person of Jesus. That seems impossible doesn’t it? Just as impossible as trying to cram all the potato chips in the world into one bag. But Jesus is the real deal. He is God and therefore king supreme because he rules over all creation.
Now when Roman emperors thought they were god over all that was bad news for their subjects. In their delusion these emperors demanded that everyone wait on them hand and foot, no matter how crazy their desires. Jesus is not a king like that. Listen to what Paul says. “…[God] rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins…19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” (Colossians 1:13, 14, 19, 20).
God the Father sent Jesus on a mission: rescue us from the dominion of darkness. The dominion of darkness is that place where Satan holds sway. It’s not a place we have to journey to; we’re born into it. Let me compare it to the inside of a trash bin for just a minute. The inside of a trash bin is a dark place. In a way that’s good because if you end up in one, you can’t see all the gross stuff that surrounds you like the half-eaten spring roll, the morning oatmeal, or the soggy tissues. But that darkness is also bad because you can’t see how messy and gross you are! And so it shouldn’t surprise us that when we were stuck in Satan’s dominion of darkness, we didn’t think our situation too dire. Oh sure, we knew we stunk a little, but we didn’t think that we were as bad as that rotten apple at the bottom of the heap. It isn’t until someone opens the trash bin and shines a light down on us that we realize the predicament we’re in. And that is the purpose of God’s law isn’t it? It reveals how spiritually gross we are. The light of the law shines through our sweet smile and winning personality to reveal immoral behavior in the most “innocent” of us. Immoral behavior like thinking because we’re the hardest working employee we can work less hours than we’ve promised in our contract. Or supposing that because we put the food on the table we can verbally abuse our children and spouse with unloving and impatient remarks about the way the house looks. Or that because we’ve cleaned up our room we’re entitled to boss a sibling around who is still working on theirs instead of being a servant and helping them. We’re a spiritual mess. We really are. Fit for nothing but the incinerator.
Thankfully Jesus didn’t just come to reveal what a mess we are. He pulled us out of the trash and clothed us with his righteousness to make us beautiful and useful in God’s eyes. The way he did this proves he is king supreme who rules for his subjects. Instead of storming into the world, guns a blazing like a cowboy ready to bust his compadres out of a jailhouse, the Son of God quietly slipped in to exchange places with us on death row. That explains why Jesus had to become human. He had to be able to take our place and suffer and die for our sins. Yet he had to remain fully God to free us all, the way only an officer with the rank of general can trade places with his captured men so that they all go free, a whole platoon of them.
But don’t think that our supreme king’s reign ended at the cross. The cross just marks a decisive battle in the war against sin, death, and the devil. Another decisive battle took place when Jesus rose from the dead. Because our king supreme lives he continues to reign and does so especially on behalf of those bound for salvation. Paul put it this way: “And [Jesus] is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy” (Colossians 1:19).
Do you get worried when scientists say that it won’t be long before our world runs out of resources? Do you wonder when the war on terror will hit close to home? Are you afraid that you won’t find the right job, an adequate house, or decent friends? Don’t! As Christians we are part of Jesus’ body. He will take good care of us the way we take care of our body when we buckle up before driving, or put on a coat when it’s cold outside, and eat when we’re hungry. Jesus does even better than that. Since he is the king supreme he manipulates world events for the benefit of his people. When you’re tempted to forget that, remember this story. A father wanted to read the paper but was being distracted by his little son who was playing in the same room. In order to get some peace and quiet he ripped a sheet out of a magazine on which was printed the map of the world. Tearing it into small pieces, he gave it to his son and said, “Go into the other room and see if you can put this together.” After just a few minutes, his son returned and handed him the map correctly fitted together. The father was surprised and asked how he had finished so quickly. “Oh,” he said, “on the other side of the paper is a picture of Jesus. When I got Jesus in his place, then the world came out all right.” Friends, when our focus is on Jesus, the king supreme, then we will rest assured that everything in our world is all right. I’m not saying there won’t be hardships. There will be. But they are hardships the king knows about, is controlling, and is using for our eternal good.
Yes, we can be thankful that we don’t have the likes of Caligula, Nero, or Commodus ruling our country. But even if someone worse than they were to take the helm, there’s no reason to fret for Paul has assured us: “…[God] rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves” (Colossians 1:13). It’s an accomplished fact. We are standing in Jesus’ kingdom right now. This is the message of Christ the King Sunday. A message worth calling to mind everyday because it’s an everyday reality. Amen.
