Tag: King of kings

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All or Nothing

Daily Reading

Acts 24-26

Daily Thought

Paul summarized his life’s purpose to the elders of the church in Ephesus, “I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24). Paul was willing to die for the cause of Christ, and to this cause, Paul saved many and angered more, especially the Jews in authority. They tried to silence the gospel by arresting Paul, but their efforts lifted him to his biggest stage, placing Paul in court before the governor of Judah, then the king, and ultimately the Caesar of Rome.

The charges against Paul were brought by the chief priest and leaders of the Jews, who “had certain points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who was dead, but whom Paul asserted to be alive” (Acts 25:19). The cross has always been the crux of the matter. If the cross was the end of Christ, it was the end of Christianity, but if Jesus lives, Jesus reigns, over governors and kings and Caesars, over the Apostle Paul, and over me. Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords and reigns over all. In well written words from C.S. Lewis, “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” All or nothing and nothing in the middle.

Daily Prayer

Savior God, there is no other Name than Jesus Christ by which we are saved. Jesus, Son of God, You left heaven, came to earth, sacrificed Your life, saved many. But not all. Some say no. You gave your life for them anyway. That’s how much You love us.

Thank You for displaying Your love to me in such a way that my will wilted and I could do nothing else but embrace You. Your grace compelled me to make You Lord and Savior. God, in my life and the lives of all who call You Lord, may Your grace be displayed and cause all who see it to bend our knees and call You Savior and Lord.

Amen

Daily Question

In what ways does the resurrection of Jesus Christ affect your life?

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Happily Ever After

Daily Reading

2Kings 23-25

Daily Thought

A siege is slow relentless death, and, in the original Hebrew, the fall of Jerusalem is told in one long methodical twelve-verse sentence, 2Kings 25:1-12. (The translation into English adds periods to ease the read.) “The ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month” stretches “till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah, on the ninth day of the fourth month” and in eighteen months all is done. The wall is breached, the Chaldean army rushes in, and the last king of Judah is chased into the plains of Jericho, the same place where it all began when Joshua fought the battle of Jericho and the people shouted and the trumpets blew and the walls came tumbling down (Joshua 6).

There is no emotion in this account. God’s prophet Jeremiah weeps over the fall of Jerusalem in his book of Lamentations, but here in 2Kings is the dispassionate voice of a court reporter recounting the execution of judgment. Judah had her good kings, but not enough, and the country is judged for the whole of her sins. Josiah’s reign (2Kings 22-23) had been a brief righteous reprieve, but he was followed by Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim and Jehoiachin and Zedekiah and a nation cannot endure evil upon evil upon evil. So Judah was taken into exile out of its land (2Kings 25:21). “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 3:23) for nations, as well as for you and me. 

The story seems over, but this is only the end of a chapter, not the book. This is God’s story, not ours, and a new King will come to Israel and the world, and time will change from B.C. to A.D. Death does not end the reign of this righteous Lord and Savior; rather, Jesus conquers death and rises in victory because, at last, the throne belongs to the eternal King of kings and Lord of lords. Fairy tales are not the only stories that end with “and they lived happily ever after,” because fairy tales are shadows of the real story, and this is the story of God–“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

Daily Prayer

My God, You are righteous and good and holy and just. I am not. Created in Your image, I chose my own way rather than yours, and my sin led to judgment and that judgment is death. There was such hopelessness in life without You. Thank You for rescuing me, for delivering me from death, returning me to hope, and giving me a life that overflows with Your love.

May my thankfulness be evident in a life changed by Your love. May I walk in Your truth, full of grace, sharing Your goodness by word and deed with all who cross my path. May I seek opportunities to share Your love in the same way You sought me. Thank You for so great a salvation, such a wonderful Savior.

Amen

Daily Question

Where is God found in the story of your life?

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Image of God

Daily Reading

Mark 12-13

Daily Thought

Jesus had been telling stories, called parables, and in many of them the Jewish religious leaders fared badly–so badly, they wanted him gone, if not dead. To this end, they posed questions of him publicly to discredit him. Some Pharisees and Herodians came together (Pharisees and Herodians seldom come together–they do not like each other) to ask Jesus, “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” (Mark 12:14).. The Herodians were pro-Rome, while the Pharisees were fiercely anti-Rome, and therefore pro-Israel. and there lay the trap of the question. Pay or not, either answer, Jesus would be picking one side and offending the other, so he said both. 

Jesus asked for a coin, “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it”  (Mark 12:15). He did not have one, but the religious leaders do, “and they brought one. And he said to them ‘Whose likeness and inscription is this? They said to him, ‘Caesar’s’” (Mark 12:16). They handed Jesus a coin with an icon of Caesar and an inscription that read, “Caesar Tiberius, Son of God Augustus.” One King, Caesar, owns all the money in the kingdom. His picture is on every coin. One King, Jesus, has nothing at all, not even a denarius.

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant.” ~Philippians 2:5-7

Noting the inscription and the image of Caesar on the coin, Jesus said, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Mark 12:17). It has his picture on it, so give it to him; likewise, give to God what bears his image. 

“So God created man in his own image, male and female he created them.” ~Genesis 1:26

Caesar can have his taxes. Caesars come and Caesars go, but there is a another…

And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed. ~Daniel 7:14

You belong to God.

“And the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.” ~Revelation 17:14

Daily Prayer

Lord God, I look forward to Your return. I know when You come back, it will be as victorious Savior, King of kings. You will put all things in order. Sin, evil, pain, and tears will be no more. The world will be filled with Your glory, holiness, love, beauty. It will be good.

May I be a light in this world, illuminating Your Kingdom to a world that needs to see what is ahead. When You come, Lord, may You find me living a life reflecting Your glory.

Amen

Daily Question

How much of your life do you give to God?

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All or Nothing

Daily Reading

Acts 24-26

Daily Thought

Paul summarized his life’s purpose to the elders of the church in Ephesus, “I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24). Paul was willing to die for the cause of Christ, and to this cause, Paul saved many and angered more, especially the Jews in authority. They tried to silence the gospel by arresting Paul, but their efforts lifted him to his biggest stage, placing Paul in court before the governor of Judah, then the king, and ultimately the Caesar of Rome.

The charges against Paul were brought by the chief priest and leaders of the Jews, who “had certain points of dispute with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who was dead, but whom Paul asserted to be alive” (Acts 25:19). The cross has always been the crux of the matter. If it was the end of Christ, it was the end of Christianity, but if Jesus lives, Jesus reigns, over governors and kings and Caesars, and over the Apostle Paul, and over me. Jesus is King of kings and Lord of lords and reigns over all. In the well written words of C.S. Lewis, “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” All or nothing and nothing in the middle.

Daily Prayer

Savior God, there is no other Name than Jesus Christ by which we are saved. Jesus, Son of God, You left heaven, came to earth, sacrificed Your life, saved many. But not all. Some say no. You gave your life for them anyway. That’s how much You love us.

Thank You for displaying Your love to me in such a way that my will wilted and I could do nothing else but embrace You. Your grace compelled me to make You Lord and Savior. God, in my life and the lives of all who call You Lord, may Your grace be displayed and cause all who see it to bend our knees and call You Savior and Lord.

Amen