Sermon Tone Analysis

We have a new king!

You probably heard.

:P

With the death of Elizabeth II, His Majesty Charles III is now King of Australia.

But you know what, for most of us it is probably and insignificant matter.

Eventually our currency will change, and various official documentation of government will be updated too, but in day to day life it is rather irrelevant to us who is the monarch of Australia.

This is not least because the role is largely ceremonial these days.

So for most of us this is our only lived experience with a King (or the Queen beforehand).

There is a distant figure, who doesn’t even live in the same country as us.

He has little impact on our outlook on the world and the choices we make.

He is historically significant, but as a curiosity to us rather than as a valued leader.

You know, many people think about Jesus Christ that way:

A distant figure,

from a different time and different country,

who has no impact on my worldview,

and no impact on my daily choices,

yes he is interesting, but mostly as a historical curiosity.

Perhaps that describes you?

Is that how you think about Jesus?

I can understand why you would think that way.

The modern world is intent on burying Jesus, either willfully or in ignorance.

Many people know Jesus name only as an exclamation or expletive, having no idea who the man was.

Yet, year after year the calendar in most western nations revolves around two big holiday seasons: Christmas and Easter.

Both times centered on celebrating Jesus Christ.

So no matter how we might overlook him, it is not long before we are once again presented with another holiday where we need to choose to either ignore the reason for the season, or face the events that bring such joy to Christians the world over!

The fact that you’re here today leads me to believe you’re probably interested in the Birth of Jesus Christ, or at the very least you may be sympathetic to that family member who convinced you to come! ;)

Whether you’re here because you’re relishing the birth of Jesus Christ, or or you’re here to get your religious fix for the year, or here as a favour to a friend, it doesn’t matter to me.

I’m just glad you’re here.

You know why?

Because the enigmatic life of the historical figure Jesus Christ is the most important thing you need to know about right now.

War in Ukraine, climate change, voice to parliament, cost of living, human rights... all of these things pale in comparison to this topic we’re looking at right now, because Jesus Christ is not just a distant historical figure, he is a reigning king.

And no ceremonial king, but an actively reigning king!

Today!

The child that was born, and laid in a manger was a promised King.

He was long awaited, and on that fateful day about 2000 years ago, the King Arrived.

The King is Here.

The King is Here, and it changes everything!

Let me give you 3 reasons why this changes everything,

1.

He is King over the World

King over the world?

That’s a bit of a far fetched claim right?

Some kid born out of wedlock to a young woman in Palestine centuries ago, king of the world?

Yes!

You see, to become a king you need a few things,

You need a kingdom to rule over, to be born into the right family and/or be given the kingdom.

This is the case with Jesus Christ.

The records of Jesus Life in the Bible go to great lengths to point out that Jesus was a descendant of kings.

He was a great, great, great.... grandson of King David of Israel.

That’s why Jesus was born in Bethlehem, because his family was descended from King David, and for the census they were returning to Bethlehem which was the ancestral hometown of the family.

King David was a great king over Israel in it’s hey-day.

And the people of Israel looked favourably back on his reign.

Through prophesy God had told Israel that he would restore the kingship to David’s descendants, but not only that, the king would reign forever.

Not just for a lifetime, but for all lifetimes!

Baby Jesus, laid in a manger was that promised King.

He had the claim through birthright.

Many of the royal families around the world have intermarried to strengthen their claims on their thrones and to build strong alliances.

In fact the reason that Scotland and England have one king today, is because at one time the King of Scotland was also inline to the English throne, and the crown fell to him when others died.

Jesus, was not the product of intermarriages like these, but he did have another linage that would cement his kingship - he was the Son of God!

This is why the virgin birth is key.

Mary was a virgin, no way that she could fall pregnant.

God miraculously made Mary pregnant by the Holy Spirit.

God sent angels to announce this both to Mary and the fiancee Joseph to explain what was happening.

The fact that Mary was a virgin made it clear that the baby Jesus was not merely a man, but that he was divine.

He was from God himself.

If anyone had a claim to rule in Israel, it was the child who was both descended from David and who was divine.

This was the God-man.

God was born into human flesh, in a child who was an heir of King David.

The angel said as much to Mary:

So there we have it, Jesus is king of Israel, so there’s the kingdom, he has the birthright.

God is going to give him the kingship.

So that’s all well and good for Israel, but I said that Jesus is King over more than just Israel, he is king over the world!

Yes!

Jesus has taken up kingship over the whole world.

God, who is the one with all authority and power over the universe, gave Jesus not only kingship over Israel, but over all people everywhere.

This matters to you because you are a person in a place, and you need to come to grips with the idea that there is a king right now who claims the right to rule over you and everybody else.

No longer is everybody left to their own devices, but all nations and people come under his jurisdiction.

This is the ancient prophecy!

That baby born in Bethlehem was royal blood.

Born in meager circumstances, to an ordinary working class couple, yet one who was destined to reign over all humanity.

Yet, the that kingship isn’t fully realised yet.

The world doesn’t say with one voice that Christ is King.

As we said before, Jesus is often considered a far off and irrelevant figure.

It is all well and good to say that Jesus is King over the world, but how?

And why do so many doubt his claim to the throne over humanity?

Because, even though the King is Here, and it changes everything, the kingdom is still being established.

Let’s look at how...

2.

He is a Conquering King

Jesus is the king who changes everything by conquering all the enemies of His kingdom.

It’s not warmongery, it’s for the defence and safety of the kingdom to tackle the threats that face them.

So for humanity, what is the biggest threat?

What is our biggest enemy?

You could say it is ourselves.

We are our own worst enemy - hurting one another, killing, pilliaging, greed, cowardice, stealing, cheating, etc.

The list goes on and on.

In religious language, we call this “sin”.

It is all the bad things we do, It is all our failures to be good people.

It is ultimately breaking the King’s laws, because God has told us what is right and wrong.

When we do something that is immoral or unethical we are sinning against God.

And this sin is really our worst enemy.

Sin is the infection that has spread throughout all humanity and needs to be healed.