When you think about royalty what comes to mind? Crowns? Power? England? The Lion King? There are countless books about kings reigning and their kingdoms. The truth is that we serve the God of the non-fiction book, the Bible. Within its pages we see continuous references to His Kingship and the kingdom of heaven. Today we are going to dive deeper into what does it mean that Jesus is the King of Kings.
Old Testament Prophesy
Jesus is prophesied as the coming King throughout the Old Testament. The people of God were waiting for a Messiah. The book of Daniel has prophetic messages of the coming Savior. Daniel 7:13-14 tells of Daniel’s vision of the son of man coming in the clouds, the Ancient of Days. He describes Him as powerful and authoritative. Daniel says that His kingdom will not end. Isaiah also shares about events that will one day take place. Isaiah 9:6-7 shares about the coming Messiah being born as a child. He has powerful names and He is going to be on the throne of David.
The people of God were waiting for their Savior to come. Many of them had interpreted these previous Scriptures to paint an earthly ruler who would reign, but God’s ways are not our ways and His are higher than ours. The exact Savior Jesus who was born as King of kings was born in a manger in a small town. The King they wanted to take authority on other nations, ended up dying on behalf of all people, Jews and Gentiles who would accepted His gift.
Every king that Israel had failed them in one way or another. They were all sinful. There was no perfect king. We see horrible decisions made of idolatry, adultery, murder, and oppression take place generation after generation in 1 and 2 Kings. The Lord revealed that no person, no king on this earth is sufficient for us. We needed a perfect King, we needed Jesus.
Jesus’ Time on Earth
While Jesus was on earth, we read of many times where He mentions what the kingdom of heaven is like. He shares to become like little children. (Matthew 18:3) He tells us that worldly greed does not get you there. (Matthew 16:19) Then, many times Jesus shares about the kingdom of heaven compared to seeds that fall on four types of soils. (Mark 4:26-29) The kingdom of heaven is also mentioned like a king who gives a wedding feast, laborer’s in a vineyard, and like a dragnet cast into the sea.
The point of all of these examples is the realization that Jesus offers His gift of salvation to all, but not everyone will accept Him and be apart of His kingdom. We are either in the kingdom of heaven or the kingdom of darkness.
Colossians 1:13-14 says, “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”
When Jesus was being held on trial, we see Him admit to being King. John 18:37 says, “Therefore Pilate said to Him, ‘So You are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.’” Jesus knew His mission, He was fully aware that the way in which He would come to earth, suffer, and die was not what the religious rulers had in mind. Our minds are so often focused on the temporary. How are you trying to box in Jesus in your life? Maybe He is trying to reveal Himself as King in a greater way than what you imagined.
John 18:36 says, “Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.’”
Jesus’ Eternal Reign
When Jesus is referred to as the King of kings, it is because He is the eternal ruler, He is the one who will reign forever, He is the one who is worthy. 1 Timothy 6:15b says, “He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.” All the idols that we have ever attempted to put in the place of Lord are all failures. None of them compare, none can be our King.
Throughout Revelation, Jesus is referred to as our King. Think about how amazing that in a world where we could never approach royalty without invitation, because of Jesus, we have a permanent invite to approach His throne, not only that we become His heirs.
Revelation 17:14 says, “These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.”
Revelation makes it clear that this name is even written on Jesus’ thigh. Revelation 19:16 says, “And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
As we reflect on the magnificence of our great God, may this truth of Jesus being King of Kings sink deep into our hearts. May this truth humble us before the Almighty God. May we be in awe of His glory and splendor. May we be filled with gratitude for a King who came down to rescue us. The Lord is our eternal authority, He is the perfect Ruler who never has and never will let us down. We can rest in the safety of being protected by our King Jesus and forever seals by His Spirit, in His family.
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Emma Danzey’s mission in life stems from Ephesians 3:20-21, to embrace the extraordinary. One of her greatest joys is to journey with the Lord in His Scriptures. She is wife to Drew and mom to Graham. Emma serves alongside her husband in ministry, she focuses most of her time in the home, but loves to provide articles on the Bible, life questions, and Christian lifestyle. Her article on Interracial Marriage was the number 1 on Crosswalk in 2021. Most recently, Emma released Treasures for Tots, (Scripture memory songs) and multiple books and devotionals for young children. During her ministry career, Emma has released Wildflower: Blooming Through Singleness, two worship EP albums, founded and led Polished Conference Ministries, and ran the Refined Magazine. You can view her articles on her blog at emmadanzey.wordpress.com