KING and LORD
Revelation 19:11-16
April 2, 2017
What would you say is the most important event in history? If you had to vote or be part of a group of people, making that determination, what would you say is number 1 and beyond.
Well, in 1954, the publishing house of Grosset and Dunlap brought together a panel of 28 educators and historians and asked them to select the 100 most important events of history. After listing the top 100, they were then supposed to rank them in order of their importance.
Eventually the panel reported that they considered the most important event of history to be - - - the discovery of America. In second place was the invention of the Gutenberg printing press.
They could not pick a clear cut 3rd place, so 11 different events tied for 3rd place. Five events tied for 4th place. Those included - - the writing of the U.S. Constitution, the invention of ether, the development of the x-ray, the Wright Brothers successful flight, and the crucifixion of Jesus.
Religion made its first appearance not really tied for 4th place, but in what I would call a tie for 14th place. I shudder to think of where Jesus would stand if that same survey was taken in today’s culture.
Yet, that shouldn’t come to us as a surprise, because in reality, Jesus often seems to be an afterthought. He's important during baptisms, weddings, funerals and when someone is sick. But, at other times, He’s not quite as big of a consideration.
But let me make this very clear - - - - so clear that there can be no mistake about it, Jesus is not tied for 14th place, He must always be first. He is not tied with anybody or any invention.
So, if that is true for you, what does that mean about the way you live your life? Shouldn’t it mean that Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords? That’s what He is, but do we really believe it, and if we believe it, do we practice that? That’s really a loaded question, because too often we’re going to fall short of the glory of God. Which is precisely the reason the Father sent the Son into the world . . . not to condemn us, but to give us life and hope.
For the past few weeks, we’ve been looking at who Jesus is and how He is so important in our lives. We’ve talked about the fact that Jesus was real, that He was not created, He’s not an illusion, but He came into this world as a man, to live and suffer and die for us.
We’ve seen how Jesus came into this world not with a sense of entitlement, but with a desire to serve others, He was the lowly Shepherd who came to care for His sheep. He was the humble servant, who didn’t just practice humility, He lived it.
So, Jesus while living a life of humility, was at the very same time the King of kings and Lord of lords. For the rest of our time today, I want to look at the what it means for Jesus to be our King of kings and Lord of lords.
In Revelation 19:11-16, John gives us this very vivid depiction of Jesus. He wrote about his vision this way ~
11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The One sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.
12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written that no one knows but Himself.
13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is The Word of God.
14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him on white horses.
15 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.
16 On his robe and on His thigh He has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Now, we can spend a lot of time picking this passage apart. Suffice it to say, Jesus is the One on the white horse, He is the One who is called Faithful and True. He is the righteous One, who judges. He has many crowns on His Head, He is called the Word of God, He controls the heavenly armies as the Lord of Hosts, and He will ultimately defeat His enemy when the time for the final battle has come.
It’s that last verse that should strike us . . . Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords.
Now, what does it mean that is King of Kings and Lord of Lords?
In Luke 23:3, Pilate asked Jesus, “are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus answered him saying, “It is as you say.” In other words I am the King, but not just of the Jews, but over all humanity.
As a king, Jesus rules over us, He commands us and we are to obey Him.
We are to follow Jesus, we are to believe in Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God, the Savior of the world. Because of this, we are to repent of our sinfulness, turning away from that sin, turning 180° in a different direction - - as we confess Jesus as Lord, which we’ll get to, are baptized, and live our lives in a manner which honors and glorifies Jesus.
Yet, there is really one super important commandment Jesus lays out for us - - We can think of a few, but we are told this one is central - - one, actually two which are the greatest. When asked which is the most important commandment - -
29 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.
30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’
31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
This is not an optional commandment of the King. Can you imagine as a parent if you gave a command or told your child what to do, but they always had the option to say, “nah, I’m not feeling it today!” I can’t imagine doing that to my parents, yet, do we not do this pretty regularly to the King . . . “Nah, I’m not feeling like loving my neighbor, and by the way King, I’m pretty ticked at you that you have not answered my prayer, so I’m not going to love you with all of anything.”
Is this not how we often react to God? When we don’t love God with all that we have and when we don’t love our neighbor, we’re no better than the non Christ follower. We must honor the King of kings.
Loving God and loving one another is so central to the Christian message. Without it, we don’t have much.
So, we refer to Jesus as not only King, but also as Lord!
In Romans 10:9-10, Paul wrote these words which I say at baptisms ~
9 if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. – Romans 10:9-10
That’s so important for us when we are first proclaiming our faith in Jesus. If we proclaim to one another and to the world - - that Jesus is Lord, and if we believe in our heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, we will be saved! Great news!! Paul adds, with the heart we believe and is justified - - and with the mouth we make that confession and we gain salvation!
So, what does it mean to have a Lord? When you call someone your Lord, it means they are over you, in essence they own you. You are their slave or servant.
They are your superior, they have power, authority, or influence over you, they are your master or ruler. So, when we call Jesus our Lord and Savior, it means He owns us and has saved us.
It means everything we have is really His. We don’t own anything, Jesus is really the owner and we are allowed to use what He has given us. Which is why we are always called to be good stewards of everything God has provided us with.
So, that is a little snippet of what it means. But what does it mean for us in practical terms?
Even this may not sound like it, this is what becomes so cool . . . it means Jesus has absolute authority over everything and everyone. He does not control us, He gives us free will to choose, yet He is sovereign and that is one of the great mysteries of our faith.
God’s sovereignty means - - - “God is in control.” There is absolutely nothing that happens in the universe that is outside of God’s influence and authority. As King of kings and Lord of lords, God has no limitations. Consider these ~
God is above all things and before all things. He is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. He is immortal, and He is present everywhere so that everyone can know Him. Listen to these scriptures about Jesus - -
6 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. – Revelation 21:6
16 For by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things were created through Him and for Him. – Colossians 1:16
33 How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways!
36 For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. – Romans 11:33, 36
17 ‘Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you. – Jeremiah 32:17
13 For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. – Psalm 139:13-14
OK, I’ll stop . . . We can go on and on and describe the beauty and the majesty and the power of God Almighty
God is the source of all power, authority, and everything that exists. Only God can make those claims; therefore, it’s God’s sovereignty that makes Him superior to all other gods and makes Him, and Him alone, worthy of worship.
Just as we saw last week in Philippians 2, in the Christ hymn, Paul tells us - - -
9 God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. – Philippians 2:9-11
A number of years ago Billy Graham was on the Johnny Carson show and at one point during the interview, Carson said, “You know what, I bet if Jesus ever came back to earth, we’d do Him in again.” Billy Graham leaned forward in his seat, and said, “In the Bible we read that Jesus promised He would return to earth again. The first time He came in love. But the next time, He’ll come in power. And no one is going to do Him in.”
It’s a reminder that Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords.
At the end of His life, Jesus could say - - - "The mission is accomplished. I have finished everything I set out to accomplish.”
As a result, His victory, has not necessarily made life easier for us. In some ways it is more difficult. We realize life is a battle. Life can sting and hurt. And we ultimately all find ourselves in the battle. Some of you are new to the battle, and your uniforms do not yet have the stains which accompany battles.
And there are others of you who have been in the battle for a long, long time. You carry the scars within and they are evident on your face. At some point, we will all hear that final trumpet sound in the battle. And all battles shall end!
But if we belong to Christ - - - if we belong to the King - - if we belong to the Lord - - if we belong to the Savior of the world - - - then we will find the power of Christ through His Holy Spirit within us, and we will be conquerors and we shall dwell with God, our King and Lord for all eternity . . . victorious, because He was victorious!!
So, if you’re asked to say what’s the most important event in history, my simple answer would be Jesus! He’s the most important person and event . . . all in one, because He’s my King! He’s my Lord! He’s my Savior!
