The Reign of the King

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Scripture Introduction

Our text this morning will be . If you are using the pew Bible, you will find it on page ???. A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of preaching a sermon from that I titled, Life in the Word. In my introduction I said that I believe (along with many others) that is purposely put at the beginning of the book of the Psalms to serve as a gateway or introduction tot the Psalms. Today I will preach a sermon from , titled “The Reign of the King.” While serves to highlight the blessed life of those whose hearts are bent toward God, puts the wicked on trial for all to see. We will see the staunch rebellion that has been waged against the Lord, his response, and our responsibility of living under the reign of the King.

Scripture Reading -

The New International Version Psalm 2

1 Why do the nations conspire

and the peoples plot in vain?

2 The kings of the earth rise up

and the rulers band together

against the LORD and against his anointed, saying,

3 “Let us break their chains

and throw off their shackles.”

4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs;

the Lord scoffs at them.

5 He rebukes them in his anger

and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,

6 “I have installed my king

on Zion, my holy mountain.”

7 I will proclaim the LORD’s decree:

He said to me, “You are my son;

today I have become your father.

8 Ask me,

and I will make the nations your inheritance,

the ends of the earth your possession.

9 You will break them with a rod of iron;

you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

10 Therefore, you kings, be wise;

be warned, you rulers of the earth.

11 Serve the LORD with fear

and celebrate his rule with trembling.

12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry

and your way will lead to your destruction,

for his wrath can flare up in a moment.

Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Prayer for Illumination

Would you pray with me?

Heavenly Father, be with me now that I might handle your word with reverence and confidence, to proclaim the reign of the King. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear this morning. In the name of Christ I pray, amen.

Introduction

After the resurrection of Christ, Jesus appeared to two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus. This scene from the gospel of Luke is one of the most crucial moments in the life of the church, because during this encounter, Jesus opened the Scriptures to them. Luke tells us that “beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” Do you know what that means? It means your Old Testament is about Christ. The Bible, from Genesis to Revelation is telling one cohesive story of redemption and restoration that has its culmination in the rule and reign of King Jesus. Today, we will look carefully at one of these passages. At times we need to make a clear argument to explain why we see Christ in an Old Testament passage. will need no such treatment. While David wrote the Psalm about his own experience, there are several statements in that go beyond the life of David, and they clearly point to a greater Kin to come. But the real reason I’m not going to spend any time proving this point is that the New Testament writers tell us that is a prophetic picture of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul, the writer of the book of Hebrews, and the disciples in all believed and proclaimed that this Psalm is about Jesus. So with that in mind, let’s take a closer look at .

This Psalm is a set forth as a cosmic trial that plays out between earth and heaven. There are four distinct speakers in the Psalm. In verses 1 and 2, David asks why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? Why do the kings of the earth take their stand against the Lord and his anointed?

Then in verse 3 the rebels explain their intent. They want to throw off the constraints and rule of God and his appointed king. They want independence from God. They want to be their own gods (does that sound familiar - it should - it was the sin of Adam and Eve).

In verse 4 David explains that the Lord laughs at this rebellion. In these rebels against God sat in a seat of scoffers or mockers. Now God returns the sentiment. The difference is they mocked out of ignorance, and he mocks their foolishness from a standpoint of vivid clarity. He sees their end.

In verse 6, the Lord himself speaks. He says, I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.

Next we hear from God’s anointed and installed King himself. And the king says, “I will proclaim the decree of the Lord.” In other words, let me tell you what God said to me when he installed me as his anointed King. He said, “You are my Son, today I have become your Father. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter, you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

Finally the Psalmist speaks again. In light of this decree of God, the sure rule of the King, his authority over all nations and all peoples, and the wrath that he will pour out on those who oppose him, the Psalmist offers a gracious plea. He says, Therefore, you kings, be wise. Be warned you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son. In other words, pay homage to the King, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way. For his wrath can flare up in a moment. Finally, he reminds them, that all who take refuge in the King will be blessed.

Now you may ask, “so Eric, why would you preach this passage to us this morning? We aren’t rebels against God, not like that.” And to be honest with you, that’s what I had started to think last week. But then I was reminded that all Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for us. So for just a few minutes, let’s lean into and see what the reality of the rule and reign of King Jesus means for us, the church, and how we should live in light of it.

The Reign of the King Reminds us to check our allegiances

The Psalmist here asks a sort of rhetorical question. Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain. You may remember a few weeks ago when I preached on Psalm one, we looked at the verse that said the blessed man meditates on the word and delights in it. This is a act of worship and acknowledgement of God himself. The same root word is used here in , plot. This time the word is used to describe a sinister act of planning to attached God’s anointed King. In the man meditates on the truth in order to serve. These people in meditate on how they will stand against him. What is the hat i Look at verse 3 again. The rebels want to throw off the chains that God has put on them. The ESV translates this “let us cast off their fetters.” They want free from the rule of any King over them. They see the rule of the God of Israel and his anointed king as limitations on their freedom. They want to set their own agendas, make their own laws, claim any territory for their own.. Ultimately these rebels want independence from God. They see the loving constraints that God has put on humanity as chains of slavery. They detest God and violently endeavor to be rid of him. Does that sound familiar? It should. It was the same desire that Adam and Eve had that led to their rebellion. This rebellion is as old as Eden. What a contrast between these people and the man of . The very thing he delights in and sees as a life-giving supply is the very thing these people rage against and see as bondage. You see, the Christian knows that to be free of Christ is to be in bondage to sin. Jesus said :

“28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Do you see the loving constraints of God as life-giving boundaries or as chains to be shaken off? The reign of the King reminds us to check our allegiance. Do we long to be ruled by Christ, or do we long to be rid of him?

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

The Reign of the King Compels Us to Warn the Rebels of their Doom

Look with me at verse 6. In response to this feeble attack against God, God responds, “I have installed my King on Zion, my Holy Hill. The ESV puts it this way, “As for me, I have set my King on Zion.” And in the next verse, the Anointed King follows that up. “I will proclaim the decree of the Lord.” I mentioned this earlier, but let me belabor the point. When God makes a decree, you can count on that decree coming to pass. The decree of Caesar Augustus wielded enough power, that Joseph put his pregnant wife on a donkey and took her to Bethlehem to be registered. The decree of Darius was so irreversible, that the King himself could not save Daniel from the lion’s den, though he was greatly distressed at the result of the law that he himself had codified. These are mortal men. The degrees of God are infinitely more concrete.

“And God said let there be light, and there was light.” -

“The Word of the Lord is flawless.”

English Standard Version Chapter 55

10  “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven

and do not return there but water the earth,

making it bring forth and sprout,

giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,

11  so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;

it shall not return to me empty,

but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,

and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

English Standard Version Chapter 40

Isaiah 40:8

8  The grass withers, the flower fades,

but the word of our God will stand forever.

God has decreed that Jesus does and shall reign. His rule and reign are the greatest reality in all the universe. And God has given him dominion. There will be no place to hide from the wrath of the Son when he returns to judge the earth. John sees a vision of the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, the slave and the free. And do you know what they are doing. They are hiding in caves. And they cry out to the rocks and the mountains saying “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come” and who can stand?”

Every day that Jesus does not return to this earth is a mercy. His patience with the ungodly is great. Every day, more and more sinners hear the good news of Jesus Christ, they repent, and they believe the Gospel. We are living in a time of grace and mercy. But this season will end. At some point, that day that only the Father knows will come, and he will send his anointed King back to the ground one which he once walked. At his first advent he came in poverty; weakness; at his second advent he will come in the splendor of the riches of heaven. At his first advent he had to be hidden from an evil king for his own protection. At his second advent, he will come with the armies of heaven. At his first advent he came in weakness; at his second advent he will come in unspeakable power. Those who shake their fist at the sky in unrepentant rebellion against the Lord’s anointed will be dashed to pieces like a vessel of clay.

The reign of the King compels us to tell others about the great salvation that this king offers to all who will come to him.

The Reign of the King Invites us to Rest in his Protection and Provision

The Psalm ends with this gracious, heartfelt plea, take refuge in the king. Look at verses 10-12. Therefore you kings, be wise, be warned you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the son. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

CONCLUSION

We live under the rule and reign of King Jesus, the Lord’s Anointed. The man, the one who delights in the instruction of God, the laws of God, the Character of God, and God himself, sees the reign of the King as a time of blessing, peace, and rest. All who take refuge in him are blessed. But those who rage against God, those who long to be rid of him and his constraints have taken their place in a dangerous, futile rebellion against the one who created the universe with the word of his power. With a word he flung billions of stars across the heavens. His words never return to him without accomplishing all that he has commanded. He has set his king on Zion, his holy hill. And King Jesus will dash his enemies to pieces. Yet even now, there is hope for the rebel. There is hope for the one who has spent her whole life trying to be rid of God. Even now the Psalmist cries out to you, Be wise! Stop this madness! Turn from your rebellion against a power that you cannot possibly comprehend. Turn to Jesus, and take refuge in him. says, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” Have you heard his voice today? How will you live during the reign of the King?