Jesus the True King

Introduction

Our year through the Bible is almost at a close—it’s October

And we have finally gotten to the NT

I hope our time in the OT was insightful and spoke to you

We can see God’s faithfulness time and time again

But after 400 years of silence… we get to the NT

Scripture Reading

Matthew 2:1–12 (CSB)

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star at its rising and have come to worship him.”

When King Herod heard this, he was deeply disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. So he assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people and asked them where the Messiah would be born.

“In Bethlehem of Judea,” they told him, “because this is what was written by the prophet:

And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah:

Because out of you will come a ruler

who will shepherd my people Israel.”

Then Herod secretly summoned the wise men and asked them the exact time the star appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. When you find him, report back to me so that I too can go and worship him.”

After hearing the king, they went on their way. And there it was—the star they had seen at its rising. It led them until it came and stopped above the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overwhelmed with joy. Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their own country by another route.

Old Testament Ending

So in our wrap up of the OT the past several weeks we looked at what happened after the exile

God’s people eventually returned to Jerusalem

They rebuilt the temple that had been destroyed

They restarted the priestly system

They rebuilt the walls

But the OT ends on a bad note...

All of this change and reform fizzled out

All of the vows and dedications were broken

God’s people were just as broken and worldly as they were before

And it is a cliffhanger...

There were no prophets for 400 years...

And in this time, things got worse...

Persians overtaken by Greeks

The Roman Empire came and set themselves up as their rulers

The Romans were brutal—they ruled harshly—Pax Romana

God’s people continued on their path, wandering from God

Some, like Matthew the Tax collector, sided with the Romans—compromising themselves for comfort ability

Some, like Simon the Zealot, tried in their own strength and planning to bring liberation and freedom to God’s people

Some others, like Peter, were just so caught up in the every day demands of life that the God of Israel had become distant and not a reality

And the religious leaders and priests—the ones entrusted with leading God’s people

Had either become corrupt OR spiritually insulated—wrapped up in false holiness

As the NT opens—it is a mess

But there is one thing that many of the Jewish people had in common—a longing for a savior

They knew their God had promised to save them

They knew God’s promise to Abraham and David

They were desperate for a new king—from the line of David that would come to make all things right

So imagine the water God’s people are living in

Pain and turmoil—oppression from the Government

And a longing and searching for someone to fix it all

So the Jewish people’s eyes were open for a messiah—an anointed one from God

Josephus—a historian of the Jews at the time—writes about different false messiahs that came up before Jesus

They claimed to bring peace and freedom to Israel—fought and lead battles

But ultimately they were executed by the Romans for their rebellion

So there is tension in the air

And then Jesus enters the scene

The Arrival of an Unexpected King

And I know a lot of you know this—But Jesus was an unexpected king

Born to young woman before she was married

Grew up poor, lived in Egypt as a child

From the nowhere town of Nazareth

They were expecting a strong leader to lead a revolt against the Romans

This story in John after the feeding of the 5,000 reminds me of the deep longing they had for a leader

(SLIDES)

John 6:14–15 (CSB)

When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, “This truly is the Prophet who is to come into the world.” Therefore, when Jesus realized that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

we also live in a world with a longing for a savior

a leader to fix our problems

this is part of the political tension we live in today

expound

But in the gospels we don’t see a leader that comes to take power by force

When we read of the life of Jesus we see a humble, and compassionate teacher—telling us to love our enemies and bless those who persecute you.

We have a teacher who tells us that if we want to follow him—we have to pick up our cross daily, deny ourselves, and follow him

To this day—Jesus is an unexpected king

an unexpected king in his day

and in our day

and his Kingdom is here

The Gospel — The Kingdom is Here

How would we define the gospel?

cross

resurrection

heaven

How does Jesus define the gospel?

(SLIDES)

Mark 1:14–15 CSB

After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

The gospel—the good news to our world—Is that the king we’ve all been longing for is here—that Jesus is king—that Jesus reigns—and his kingdom is here

We have a home—an eternal home with a unshakeable foundation

We don’t have to place our trust in the kingdoms of this world,

we don’t have to fear at the kingdom of Satan,

we don’t have to strive at building and maintaining our own personal kingdom of control

We have our home as citizens of the kingdom of God

This is one of the most important factors of what it means to follow Jesus—We are pilgrims/sojourners

This Earth is not our home—yes we live here—but we belong to someplace better now

And I know this is in our heads—but how does it get into our hearts? (Expound)

I think that the gospels give us very tangible examples of what the kingdom of God looks like

What are some things we see in the gospels? What does Jesus do?

Heals the sick

Forgives sin

Performs miracles

Casts out demons

Executes Justice

Calls out injustice

Cares for the weak and overlooked

Loves people (even his enemies)

Self-sacrificial

This is what the kingdom of God looks like

Jesus’s life and ministry were signposts to the kingdom of God

Trailers/Teasers

Jesus wasn’t taking something bad and making it good

He was restoring its original intention in God’s creation

Casting out demons

Healing

Forgiving sins

So this is a kingdom of restoration

And I don’t know about you—but I need so much restoration in my life

I can’t place my hope in politics

I can’t place my hope in my own kingdom and plans for my life

But I can place my hope in the Kingdom of God

And when we step into this kingdom, as we live as citizens of this kingdom—we begin to reflect our king

These are the ways of the kingdom, every culture has rules and customs

And as we do this, we actually are a part of God’s work to bring his kingdom on this Earth fully

Like we pray every Sunday in the Lord’s Prayer

Matthew 6:10 (CSB)

Your kingdom come.

Your will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.

We are conduits of this kingdom coming

John gives a metaphor for this kingdom—light

(SLIDES)

John 3:16–21 (CSB)

For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God. This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed. But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.”

In a dark world, a light has dawned

We have an invitation to walk in the light

The time of darkness is coming to an end

An Invitation into the Kingdom — Repentance

I want to wrap up today with an invitation into this kingdom

And it’s not because the alternative is hell and if you don’t give your life to Jesus you’ll suffer for eternity—that is true but its not the motivation

I want to invite you because I believe this is God’s will for your life—this is what he wants

You have been created by God and for God and you will only find your true purpose and happiness in him

God deeply desires relationship with you

(SLIDES)

Psalm 139:13–16 (CSB)

For it was you who created my inward parts;

you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I will praise you

because I have been remarkably and wondrously made.

Your works are wondrous,

and I know this very well.

My bones were not hidden from you

when I was made in secret,

when I was formed in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw me when I was formless;

all my days were written in your book and planned

before a single one of them began.

God sees you, God knows you (the good and ugly), and God loves you

He sees all of you mistakes and brokenness

And instead of running away from you he runs towards you

His desire is for us to return the love—for us to give back what he has given to us

Like the story of the prodigal son

Like we read previously:

(SLIDES)

Mark 1:14–15 (CSB)

After John was arrested, Jesus went to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”

Guys, the kingdom is here

Will we enter it?

Our natural inclination is to hide in the darkness

Its to turn our back and walk away from God

That’s why Jesus says “repent and believe the good news”

Repentance is an action

Its a turning back

It entails acknowledging your mistakes

this is the way

But the entrance to the kingdom is through the cross

The invitation to follow Jesus is not light

Jesus died for our sins to cleanse us, to wash us, to make us new so that we can enter his kingdom

Imagine for a second, a glorious kingdom of gold, silver, gemstones

And you live outside, covered in mud, scrapes, and dirt

Jesus left his glorious home in heaven to come down into our messed up world

And he died for us so that we could be clean, blameless, and presentable in his kingdom

And I’m asking you to not just see Jesus as your savior, but as your king

Yes, Jesus has saved me, but hes so much more than my savior

He is my Lord, my allegiance is to Jesus

As best as I can I seek to remain faithful to him and his ways

To reflect him and his heart to others

And living for Jesus actually gives you joy and life in this world

(SLIDES)

CS Lewis:

“Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth 'thrown in': aim at Earth and you will get neither.”

or in Jesus’s words:

(SLIDES)

Matthew 6:33 (CSB)

But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.

So this is my plea, my invitation: repent, believe the good news—the Kingdom of God is here

If you’ve never trusted Jesus with your life—I am so happy you are here today

God is inviting you into an adventure of life with him

If you’ve trusted Jesus in the past—but now you aren’t

God is calling you back home

frustrations with other kingdoms

And If you are already set on following Jesus

Press into the kingdom—fix your eyes on Jesus

Pain, sorrow, and suffering will come your way—but don’t lose sight of your king