Your God Reigns: From Cosmic Victory to Evangelistic Participation

Introduction

Isaiah 52:6–7 LSB

6 “Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore in that day I am the one who is speaking, ‘Here I am.’” 7 How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who proclaims good news, Who announces peace And proclaims good news of good things, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”

This is perhaps the most poignantly preached gospel in all of scripture. It condenses down the gospel to the bare essentials: Your God Reigns.

And that is what the gospel is Romans 1:1-5

Romans 1:1–5 LSB

1 Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle, having been set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning His Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, 4 who was designated as the Son of God in power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we received grace and apostleship for the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of His name,

All paul really does here in his introduction of the gospel he has been sent apart unto is zoom in on the idea of the Isaiah 52 motif: your God reigns. He says the gospel (greek word ευαγγελιον, which is the word for good news especially concerning a military victory) is that the Christ (the lord’s annointed the transliteration of the hebrew word for king) has come down to this earth in fulfillment of God’s gospel promises in the holy scripture.

And God’s son who came down was born of the seed of David according to the flesh. Often times we rag on thinking in terms of “according to the flesh,” however here the according to the flesh clause is of utmost importance. In 2 Samuel 7:12–14 God makes a very importnant promise to David. “12 “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up one of your seed after you, who will come forth from your own body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 “I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will reprove him with the rod of men and the strikes from the sons of men,”

And this is the promise that is recapitulated in Psalm 2:7–8 “7 “I will surely tell of the decree of Yahweh: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. 8 ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth as Your possession.”

And so Jesus, being the son of David, is the one to whom the Davidic inheritance of an eternal kingdom is given.

And Jesus, being born of the seed of David according to the flesh, makes all the difference because he has this right and David’s seed to an earthly kingdom.

Secondly