Christ the King

Matthew 27:27-31

27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole cohort[a] of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him. 29 They twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand, knelt in front of him, and mocked him by saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 They spit on him, took the staff, and hit him repeatedly on his head.

31 After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

Our King is not a normal King. When most people think of kings, they think of earthly splendor, might, and power. They think of beautiful robes made of costly material. They think of a crown made of precious jewels. 

But in our sermon text, we have a very different picture of a king. Yes, he's wearing a scarlet robe. And yes, He is wearing a crown. But the crown he wears is not made of jewels. It's not gold. Instead, it's made of thorns. The thorns pierce into his head, and blood streams down his face. 

This king has soldiers surrounding Him. But instead of protecting Him, they are beating Him with a staff. They are mocking Him. They address Him as a King. But not with any sort of respect. Instead, they are making fun of Him. They say "Hail, King of the Jews."

The world looks at Jesus and doesn't see anything great. He looks so humble. Even weak. He doesn't demand that the soldiers stop beating Him. He doesn't use His authority to punish those who harm Him. Instead, He patiently bears his affliction. He obediently goes along with His fate, all the way to crucifixion upon the cross. You see, Christ is Our King. But Not the King the World Expects. Instead, He is the King the World Needs. 

Our King rules a spiritual kingdom. You can't see it here on earth. You can't touch it. But it's real. And you are part of this kingdom by faith in the King, Jesus Himself. 

In order to make you part of His kingdom, Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, came down from His heavenly kingdom. He assumed a perfect human nature, which means he became a man. He willingly put aside all of His glory for you and Me. He became one of us. He did all of this to live a perfect life in our place, never once sinning. And He didn't stop there, but he continued forward, even though He knew that horrible suffering and death awaited Him. You see, our King, the great King of the Universe, became a man so that He could die for the sins of the world.

What type of King does that? What type of King leaves His heavenly throne so that He can die? Definitely not the type of King the world expects. 

Most people expect a King to appear great and glorious. Most people want a great show of power and might. And it's unfortunate, but we can find ourselves thinking the same thing. 

The sinful nature resents Jesus, the King. It doesn't want anything to do with suffering. Therefore it doesn't want anything to do with Jesus. The sinful nature resents how humbly Jesus comes to us. It resents the suffering. It resents the cross. Instead, the sinful nature puts it's wholehearted devotion into other things. Perhaps even leaders of this world, who promise to make our world better. Perhaps technology, that contains so many promises to improve our lives. Perhaps even yourself, because the world teaches that you need to be first, before anyone else. The sinful nature does not like the idea of a suffering King.

And yet it is only in Christ's suffering and death upon the cross that we can truly see our King for who He is. The world can't understand. The world can't see. But it is only in suffering and the cross that God is seen for who He truly is. 

He is a King of infinite love. He loves His people so much that He is willing to take their place. He was willing to even take the place of those who resent Him. Why? Because He loves. He loves even the unlovable, like you and me. We hear in John chapter three verse sixteen: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life." The King of the universe put aside all of His power. All of His might. All of His glory. He humbled Himself to the point of death. That's love. That's grace. That's mercy. As true God and King of the universe, His death is sufficient. Your sins are forgiven!

The world looks at Jesus and scoffs. He looks too humble. He appears too weak. But as Christians, we look at Jesus and see something completely different. We see someone strong enough to forsake everything He has to save the unlovable. We see someone who loves sinners with such a fierce love, that He was willing to die. Even for you. Even for me. 

Our King is no longer dead. He is now alive. He rose again. He is now triumphant over sin, death, and the devil. He is no longer in His humble state. But now He is exulted. He now uses all of his divine attributes. 

Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is the Alpha and Omega. No earthly king or ruler is even remotely comparable to Him. Earthly kings die. Nations fall apart. But Christ's "Dominion is an eternal dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will not be destroyed." He rules over everything, including all the earthly kingdoms here upon this earth. As the divine King of glory, nothing is impossible for Him. He speaks, and it is. And not only that, but He has a whole host of angels at His command. They are ready to do His bidding.

That's our King. He is the King that the world desperately needs. Because of sin, we all need a Savior. Christ the King desires everyone to be saved, and to be part of his kingdom of grace.

Faith receives the King. And faith isn't something that you do. It's not about your works, or how good you are. Instead, faith is a gift. And it is created by Word and sacrament. 

You see, even though He is all powerful, the King comes humbly. Just as how we learn about who Jesus is through His suffering and death, we also receive Him in a way that is unexpected. Christ the King comes through the humble means of the Word, and baptism, and the Lord's Supper. 

Again, the world scoffs at these things. But we know that our King's Word is powerful! He speaks, and it is. His words define reality. Just as a earthly King commands and people scurry off to do His bidding, so also Jesus commands, and it happens. Jesus says: "My word that goes out from my mouth will not return to me empty. Rather, it will accomplish whatever I please, and it will succeed in the purpose for which I sent it." His Word makes you part of His kingdom. And so in Baptism, the water is not mere water. But it is water connected with Christ's command and promise. The Word with the water truly washes away your sin. It creates faith in Jesus. It's the same with the Lord's Supper. The bread and wine are not merely a "little snack," but they are Jesus true body and blood, as the words declare. 

You see, we have what the world desperately needs. Right here, at church, our King feeds us spiritually through Word and sacrament. He gives us the forgiveness of sins. He gives us eternal life. He wants everyone to hear the gospel. And so He uses His servants, including you, to spread the gospel to all people. And so maybe it's a neighbor. Maybe it's someone at work. Maybe it's even a family member that you can share the good news about Christ and his Kingdom. You can invite people to come to church, where our King speaks to us, and makes us His citizens.

And one day, He will come back. When He comes, He will not be in humiliation, but He will be the exulted lord over all. In Philippians chapter two we hear "Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." 

Even though we are part of His kingdom, we still wait for our King upon the earth. During this time, we face many uncertainties. We face sickness, hardships, and even death. Every year it seems that we come closer to facing persecution. Just as Christ appeared weak upon the cross, the church also appears weak. Christ doesn't promise that our lives will be easy. He doesn't promise that we won't face persecution. He doesn't promise earthly wealth and glory. He doesn't promise that your life with be wonderful. In fact, living in Christ's kingdom means facing many difficulties upon this earth. But we have a truth that cannot be taken away from us: Christ is our King! He died for us! Just as Christ was exulted after His death, you too will be exulted in heaven. You will receive your crown of glory.

Our King is the ruler of the universe. He lives in heaven. And one day, He will take you there to be with Him. There you will no longer suffer. You will no longer be held in contempt by the world. Instead, you will have a glorified body. You will serve Christ as a perfect citizen in a perfect Kingdom. You will no longer sin. There will be no more pain. And no more death. "Blessed is the man who endures a trial patiently, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life, which God promised to those who love him.”

Our King is not a normal King. He was willing to humble Himself for you and me. And he not only rules over the earth, but he also rules over an invisible, spiritual kingdom. Trust in your King. Serve Him. For your king loves you so much that He was willing to die for you. When you wonder how much your king loves you, then just read these verses. Jesus did all of that for you and me. He suffered and died. He is definitely not the king the world expects. But he is the king the world desperately needs. In Christ, the King, your sins are forgiven. In Christ, the King, You are part of his invisible kingdom. In Christ, the King, you receive forgiveness through word and sacrament. And one day, the King will come to bring you to His heavenly Kingdom. All glory, honor, and power belong to Him. Amen.

Pastor Samuel Johnson

11/26/23