One King Rules Them All

“Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” (Isaiah 6:5)

We have an inconceivably great God. He is without error—perfect in every way. He is without equal; there is none like Him. Of the 100 billion stars in our galaxy, God knows them all by name. Of the 350 quintillion gallons of ocean water, God knows every microorganism in every drop. Of the 100,000 follicles on the human scalp, God knows the precise number of hairs on your head.

There is not one inch of creation, not one grain of sand, not one drop of water, not a leaf on a tree, not a snowflake that falls to the ground in the winter, not a cloud in the sky, not a speck of dirt on the face of the earth—absolutely nothing—that doesn’t respond to the behest of King Jesus!

Like No Other

Throughout the Bible, we are reminded that the world is in His hands. He is sovereign over-all, in all, and through all. Don’t miss that. If you miss that, you’ll miss Him. Throughout history, leaders have come and gone, kings have come and gone, presidents have come and gone. However, One King remains, and He rules forever. 

We are accustomed to presidents being in office for four to eight years. King Uzziah reigned for fifty-two years. For many people living under Uzziah’s reign, he was the only leader they’d ever known. As a country, they had been prosperous, and suddenly the king was gone. Uzziah’s absence created a void. People were scared, disheartened, and uncertain about the future. 

Then came the prophet Isaiah with a magnificent message of everlasting hope. The prophet got a glimpse of the one true King, and He hadn’t gone anywhere. Isaiah beheld His glory, and it was unspeakably boundless. The prophet realized that this King was like no other.

Around the King’s throne, Isaiah describes angelic beings ablaze with adoration. We don’t know how many exactly, although John writes, “I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne…” (Revelation 5:11).

Consider that at this very moment, there are multitudes of angels, burning with adoration for Jesus, surrounding the throne of God. Every time we gather for worship, we join a heavenly chorus that is forever echoing the glory of the one true King. 

When we lay down to go to sleep at night, the angels are singing. Every morning when we wake up, they’re still singing. Whether you’re watching television, listening to your favorite playlist, on the golf course, at the mall, on vacation, or whatever else, the angelic chorus is forever singing praises to the King. The word that keeps coming out of their mouth is, “Holy, Holy, Holy.”

The Sovereign King 

God is a sovereign King—over all, in all, and through all. He has never had a wrong thought or motive. He never wakes up on the wrong side of the bed. He never has a bad day. God always does what is right. Even the things that cause us pain and the things we can’t comprehend, He is still causing “all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28).

You may ask, “If God is sovereign, why is there evil in the world?” Because for love to be genuine, it must be reciprocal. Love cannot be forced. That means there must be another option. So, while we are born sinners, we still have the grace of God at work in our lives, giving us the aptitude to choose between right and wrong. In other words, we are born apart from God, yet we have the capacity to choose Jesus. 

That means you don’t have to succumb to the prominent worldview of the day. The Antifa-driven leftists looting and rioting in the streets every time something triggers their emotional instability are not agents of the Kingdom of God. The narrow-minded, race-baiting, alt-right radicals are not representatives of the One True King. Neither the virtue-signaling social justice warriors nor the hate-preaching social media trolls kneel at the feet of the Sovereign Lord. Instead, they have created a king made in their own image—they see this ruler every time they look in the mirror.

May it never be said of my Christian journey that I was more Republican or Democrat than I was a citizen of the Kingdom of God. In my walk with Jesus, my public witness, my preaching and teaching, and in everything I do, may it never be said that there was not evident respect for the Sovereign King of the Universe. 

It is good to know that the world’s fate is not ultimately in the hands of Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, the Democrats, the Republicans, the Socialists, the Capitalists, or any other human entity on the face of the earth. One King rules them all—His name is Jesus!

Not Safe, But Good

Today’s culture is inclined to view Jesus as “nice and polite” or a “good moral teacher.” Many envision Him like a circus Lion, tamed and broken, or even worse, a house cat. They adhere to a version of the Lion of the Tribe of Judah as timid and domesticated—this version of Jesus doesn’t exist.

Nice guys and good moral teachers aren’t arrested and sentenced to death by execution. Jesus was viewed by the crowds that gathered before Pontius Pilot as the exact opposite of the images presented today. One of the primary reasons He was crucified is because He openly exposed the hypocrisy of the religious leaders. In other words, He wasn’t safe.

No doubt, Jesus was graceful; He was kind to people. He wasn’t driven by rage like the extreme groups on both ends of today’s cultural spectrum. Yet, at times Jesus made people so uncomfortable that they left in the middle of His sermons. He refused to compromise the Gospel regardless of people’s contentment level.

In C.S. Lewis’ masterpiece, “The Lion, The Witch, & The Wardrobe,” many of the characters parallel biblical personalities. One conversation has become quite famous as it reveals a deeper layer of Jesus’ nature. Susan is one of the children who stumble into Narnia; Mr. Beaver becomes her guide. The children have yet to meet Aslan, the King of Narnia, who also, to their surprise, is a lion. The following conversation ensues:

“Aslan is a lion—the Lion, the great Lion,” said Mr. Beaver. “Ooh” said Susan, “I’d thought he was a man. Is he quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.” “Safe?” said Mr. Beaver, “Who said anything about safe? Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you…” 

My friends, Jesus is the one King that rules them all! Is He safe? Far from it. At times, following Him is dangerous. Nevertheless, He is good, and that makes all the difference in the world!