Dear friends in Christ,
Jesus is a king. Almost from the beginning of his life on this earth, others referred to him as a king. The Wise Men when they came from the East looking for him asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?” (Mt 2:2). Nathanael’s comment when Jesus called him as a disciple was, “You are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” (Jn 1:49). Soon we will hear that Jesus’ triumphal parade into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday fulfilled Zechariah’s prophecy, “See you king comes to you…” (Zec 9:9).
On Good Friday the Jews accused Jesus of being a king. Pilate asked Jesus whether he was a king. Jesus did not deny or sidestep the question. He gave a clear answer, and in that answer we find our next name of his wondrous love for sinners – King. We will examine the king they wanted and the king we need.
Skipping ahead a bit, “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS” were the words Pilate had ordered written on the titilus affixed to Jesus’ cross. The Jewish leaders weren’t happy about that. “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews,” they protested (Jn 19:21), but to no avail.
It wasn’t that those religious leaders didn’t want a king. They very much wanted the Messiah to be one. They wanted a king who would pat them on the back and tell them how holy they were. They had been waiting for a king to bring Israel back to the glory days of David and Solomon. When Jesus wouldn’t do those things, the religious leaders rejected him.
When Jesus called them whitewashed hypocrites and poisonous vipers, he had to go. On Good Friday those vaunted religious leaders stood outside the judgment hall of this Gentile, Pilate, not wanting to go in lest they defile themselves. Yet, at the same time, they were demanding the murder of a king who was innocent. They went so far in their hypocrisy to tell Pilate, “We have no king but Caesar,” (Jn 19:15).
The common people also had their ideas as to what kind of king Jesus should be. When he had filled their stomachs with miraculous fish and loaves in the wilderness, they thought they had the king they wanted. This Jesus could be their permanent social security, the one who would take care of all their needs and satisfy all their desires. They couldn’t get beyond the earthly miracle to its heavenly meaning. As a result they missed the King who was the Bread of Life for hungry sinners.
What kind of king do we want Jesus to be? Of course, we want our sovereign to watch over us on this earth. We want and need the monarch who provides our daily bread and protects our daily breath. He does this by wisely measuring and graciously supplying our daily needs.
Don’t we at times want even more from our King? Don’t we want him to keep all problems and pains away from us? Don’t we want more bread than we need today? Or, more days on this earth forgetting that he knows what’s best for us? When that’s not the way life goes, what’s our reaction? Does the question “Is this the King I want?” stick its foot into the door of our hearts? Even worse, do we begin to question our King’s wondrous love for us?
Jesus graciously forgives us for the times we’ve questioned his kingship. May he send his Holy Spirit through this sermon to show us again that Jesus is the King we need.
What kind of king is that? Jesus told Pilate: “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.” (Jn 18:36) Earthly rulers can map out how far their reign extends and make plans for its extension. Earthly kings have armies at their disposal to enforce their will upon their subjects and to defend against enemies. Earthly potentates can levy taxes and fill their coffers with the peoples’ coins. As a representative of the greatest world power at that time, Pilate was well aware of what the kings and kingdoms of this world were all about. Now Jesus, the King of wondrous love, was trying to tell him about a better kingdom from a far better place.
“You are right in saying I am a king,” Jesus continued. “In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world.” (Jn 18:37) Jesus was speaking not only to Pilate but to us. In wondrous love our heavenly King reaches out mwanting more than anything else to have us as citizens in his kingdom. Jesus says, “I am your King. I want to rule over your hearts with my love. I came to earth to pay for you with my precious blood. To make you mine not with royal pomp and power but with the simple truths of salvation. Through the power of my gospel, I want to live in you and I want you to live for me. Finally, I want you with me in heaven. This wonderful truth, this blessed truth that all who believe in me shall not perish but have eternal life, I came to prepare and to offer to all the children of man. When you have this King, you have it all.”
“Are you a king?” Pilate asked and heard Jesus’ amazing answer. Unfortunately, as we heard last week, Pilate didn’t really listen. Instead of kneeling before the King of wondrous love, he handed him over to the cross.
By God’s grace we can sing again this Lenten season, “Crown him the Lord of love—behold his hands and side, rich wounds, yet visible above, in beauty glorified. No angel in the sky can fully bear that sight, but downward bends his wond’ring eye at mysteries so bright” (CW 341:2). Thank God, you and I this Lenten season can raise eyes of faith to that matchless King and can confess in wondering love, “He is my King.”
Our King has still more waiting for us. Look where he has promised to take us—to his kingdom above where there will be no more death to slay me, or sin to stain me. There he has perfect care waiting for us, his subjects, and perfect peace for our hearts. In that heavenly kingdom, we’ll raise with all the saints who have gone before the hymn of praise, “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever.” (1 Ti 1:17) Amen. <SDG>