Christ the King
There is no recording of this week’s sermon.
Scripture: Ephesians 1:17-23
17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him… Read more…
Looking to Sunday
by Elaine Poproski
Sometimes I need the Jesus who welcomed children, the Jesus who walked on water and invited His friend to do the same, the Jesus who lamented the sight of a corrupted temple, the Jesus who yelled at oppressors. Sometimes I need the Jesus who was a man with flesh and blood and a mother and father. Sometimes I need the Jesus of the Gospels. And sometimes I need a different kind of Jesus.
Sometimes I need the Jesus who sits on a throne surrounded by wild and fantastical creatures who bow down and worship Him. Sometimes I need the Jesus who rides the clouds and is announced by trumpets. Sometimes I need the Jesus whose eyes are like fire and whose voice is like the ocean. This is the Jesus we’re invited to meet this Sunday. He’s the Jesus of Revelation. He’s the Jesus of Daniel, given dominion and glory and kingship.[1] He’s the Jesus of Ephesians, seated at God’s right hand, commanding authority over all things.
These aren’t different Jesuses. They’re the same. The Jesus of the Gospel who I envision as my brother, who I imagine sitting at my table to share a meal, is the same Jesus who holds all the power of heaven, who rules over all creation. Sometimes, when the world is particularly unwieldy, I need King Jesus more than I need Brother Jesus. I need to know that nothing in this world is beyond His ability or His authority to manage. I need assurance that all that is dark and evil, even working in tandem, cannot unseat Jesus from His throne.
But these aren’t different Jesuses. They are the same. On Sunday I hope we meet King Jesus. And I hope we are awed and amazed by Him. I hope we are a little bit cowed by Him. I hope we glimpse His majesty and His power. Because then, when we gather together at His Table to drink the juice and eat the bread of Communion, how astonishing will it be to recognize that it is this King who is also our host; it is this King who welcomes us to feed us, to nurture us, to give us life.
As you prepare for Sunday, I invite you to spend some time considering which Jesus you need today. Consider if the way you imagine Jesus takes into account the full picture presented in the Bible. Do you only know the Jesus of the gospels or do you also know the Jesus of Revelation and Daniel and Ephesians? Are you excited to spend time with King Jesus or does that idea frighten you a bit? Imagine yourself sitting at a table, sharing a meal with the One seated on the throne. This is the God we gather to worship.
[1] See Daniel 7:14