In this weeks session of Multiply by Francis Chan, we get reminded, enlightened and educated about what a Kingdom is, the difference between king, emperor, prime minister and president.
We live in a world today that seems to be out of control, or in constant chaos. We have heard for years of a president, we learn of other countries having a queen, princes, princesses, and even prime ministers. These roles are not clearly understood, and it results in not really knowing their role or how it relates to our lives.
In the world today, there is a constant declaration proclaimed that everyone is their own ruler. “Don’t tell me what to do”, “I’ll do what I want” and we live in a situation where we take on the challenge of being responsible for all we are. Here are some basics.
There is a structure of government (rule over) that is a monarchy. Our best known today is England. In a monarchy, the head of state is by birthright. They begin with a king and queen, and then the family tree, where they get in hierarchal order to be head of state. In a monarchy, they are head of state, but do not have responsibility or involvement in their government. That is where the prime minister comes in. The prime minister of the government is elected. So people live to honor a monarchy and are accountable to the government and prime minister of the country.
A Prime Minister is the head of government, not the head of state. They are generally the first minister of the elected executive (i.e the leader of the party in Government and head of Cabinet), where an overarching sovereign exists (like a monarch or president).
The key difference is their powers. The monarch or President generally have far-reaching executive powers to act (whether they use them or not). The Prime Minister usually has far less power (technically) and has to work through the Parliament to do anything.
A President is an elected head of state. In a country that is designed along the lines of Montesquieu’s theory (three branches, Executive, Legislative, and Judicial) he is also the head of the Executive branch and has veto power over new legislation.
A monarch is an unelected head of state, but one chosen according to legal and traditional means (i.e. not a military dictator or something of that ilk). A constitutional monarch may also have veto power over new legislation. An absolute monarch may, in addition, propose new legislation.
A Prime Minister is the head of government, not the head of state. In a parliament, he is the chosen head of the governing party. As Parliament unites both the Executive and Legislative functions of government, he has responsibility both for executive actions and legislation. He’s generally much easier to get rid of than an unpopular President, as Parliament can dissolve itself with a simple vote of non-confidence (forcing a new election) and the party itself can turf out a Prime Minister who isn’t likely to lead the party to victory in the next election.
We read in the bible about the king of kings, king of darkness and they seem so distant, because we don’t live in that culture. In the beginning a king was appointed and the king ruled over the people of the territory. There was full rule and reign by the king. The king represented the people, and determined all the rules and laws. The people and area that the king ruled over is known as their king-dom. All kingdoms have a king, otherwise, they are not a kingdom, but a country or region.
Humanity was made to function under God’s kingship. But when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, they abused their freedom and rejected God’s kingship. With this simple act, God’s rule on earth was challenged. Adam and Eve chose to follow the serpent, Satan. This reversal is so significant that Satan is now referred to as “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31). The reality in which we now live would have seemed inconceivable to Adam and Eve before the fall. Could God’s kingship really be disputed in the world He created? Would humanity really reject God’s reign and live in defiance? As strange as it would have sounded before the fall, this is the struggle we experience every day of our lives.
Can you describe the variations of president, king, queen, and governments? What does it mean for you to have a king of your life?
When we do not have a specific ruler in our lives, the lines begin to get grey. Just like the act of stoning, there is no clear definition of who is responsible. We go back to the Old Testament to understand more of the struggle to be clear of where we are today and how we got here.
The True King of Israel
We have seen the king flex his muscles for his kingdom in the old testament. God showed his power with the plagues to pharaoh and more recently with the feeding of the people and the dramatic event at the Red Sea. The covenant that God made with His people at Mount Sinai was an expression of His kingship. This type of covenant, where the the conquering king would establish terms for how his people would relate to him, was common for nations of the time. God was the King, and the people of Israel were His Kingdom. The tabernacle and the temple were the dwelling places of the King. The ark of the covenant was representative of the footstool to the throne. (1 Chron 28:2, Ps 132:7) These dwelling places were not a museum, but a dwelling place acknowledging the kingship of God in the midst of His people, ruling over and caring for them.
After God led Israel into the Promised Land, the people constantly chose to move away from God and the clear direction He had laid out for them at Sinai. Instead, they chose to do whatever seemed good to them at the time. We read in the book of Judges: “In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (17:6, 21:25). Not only does this statement indicate that Israel ignored God’s laws, it also suggests a solution: Israel needed a king. God was the rightful King of Israel, but they were unwilling to view Him as such. It looked as if God’s kingdom would never be fully established in Israel.
The need for physical king
During the time of the Judges, it was chaotic, where there was no one authority (sound familiar today?). Every nation that surrounded Israel has a physical king. All the Israelites had was a mobile tent and imperfect leaders whom God appointed to govern His people for a time. These are the thoughts that led the Israelite people to ask God for a normal king. Let’s read God’s response, paying attention to the warnings that God gave
Read 1 Samuel 8
What does this passage tell us about the significance of Israel’s choosing to be ruled by a human king?
The problem is apparent right away: Israel wanted a king so they could be “like every other nation.” But Israel had never been like the other nations—and that is basically the point throughout the Old Testament. Israel was to be unique because their God was unique. They were set apart from everyone else because they had Almighty God dwelling in their midst. Becoming like the other nations was a huge step in the wrong direction.
Israel’s physical king
First, God appointed Saul as the king, but he turned out to be a poor representative of God’s reign. God called Samuel to anoint David, a shepherd, as the next king. The concept of anointing is important. The king of Israel would literally be anointed with oil, and ten he would be known as “the Lord’s anointed”, and idea that finds its fullest expression in Jesus.
It took time, but eventually David became the earthly king whom God could relate to His people as their heavenly King. David acknowledges his alignment with God and wanted to honor God by building a temple. Let’s read about David’s situation in 2 Samuel 7 and pay attention to the promises God made to David.
2 Samuel 7
What were some of the promises God made to David?
The Coming King
What God did through David as the king of Israel is a picture that reflects what He had been doing through His people from the time He formed them. But it also points forward to what God would do through His Son, Jesus Christ. It shouldn’t surprise us that David ultimately failed to be the perfect king of Israel. He failed in several respects, most memorably by impregnating Bathsheba and then having her husband murdered in an effort to hide his sin. David received God’s forgiveness and was still the standard by which all other kings were compared, but his imperfect obedience left God’s people longing and waiting for another Ruler.
God’s future for Israel was very much tied to the concept of Israel as a kingdom under the reign of the Lord’s Anointed, who would mediate God’s sovereign rule. Notice the imagery God used as He spoke about the future of His people in Ezekiel 37:
24 “My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes. 25 They shall dwell in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children’s children shall dwell there forever, and David my servant shall be their prince forever. 26 I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore. 27 My dwelling place shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 28 Then the nations will know that I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.” – Ezekiel 37:24-28
Now knowing some of these promises, how does the concept of a King arising from the line of David set the stage for Jesus’ arrival in the New Testament?
Searching for the Kingdom of God
After the reign of King David, Israel had a disappointing line of kings. Eventually, the kingdom of Israel grew so wicked that God sent them away from the Promised Land and into exile (a period in Israel’s history that we will explore in the next session). Once Israel lost the kingdom, their national identity was at stake. They desperately wanted to regain the kingdom. But not until the arrival of Jesus would this become a reality.
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah record a partial return of God’s people from exile, but there is still no kingdom, no King. The book of Daniel promises that the kingdom will come in the future and that the “Son of Man” will rule all the nations.
As we move through the end of the Old Testament and begin reading the New Testament, we find that the kingdom of God is still a major issue. In fact, Jesus came onto the scene preaching “the gospel of God,” saying,
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel. – Mark 1:14–15
Let’s read about the announcement of Jesus’ birth
Luke 1:26-33
How does the language used in Luke help us see Jesus in light of the Old Testament kingdom?
Why is it important for us to see Jesus as the culmination fo the kingly line of David?
New beginnings
Most of us are more familiar with the teaching of the New Testament, but understanding the Old Testament helps us see more clearly what the New Testament is telling us. Ultimately, the New Testament is all about Jesus Christ. That term Christ is a title, not a last name. It is actually the Greek translation of the Hebrew word for “Messiah,” or “Anointed One.” When Jesus walked onto the scene, He came as the anointed King of Israel. His role is to mediate the sovereign reign of God over His earth and His people. We still have a part to play in this, but first we need to see that the kingdom of God has a long history.
Our kingdom association
In the video clip supporting this session, Francis and David challenged us to look at our lives. We declare that Jesus is our king, and what that means is that he rules the kingdom we are in. But do we live that way? Do we have multiple territories and some are ruled by the King, and others ruled by others (us, spouses, children, organizations).
Are there areas of your life that you do not submit to King Jesus?
We know the Sunday morning answer, but the reality is that we all struggle from time to time, finding ourself sitting on the throne of an area of our life and wonder how we got there.
What are some areas of your life that still are a challenge to surrender to the true King?
This coming week we will finish up the Old Testament readings with the following devotionals
Deuteronomy 28
Jeremiah 52
Lamentations 5
Daniel 9:1-19
Jeremiah 31:10-37
Ezekiel 36:22-36
Jeremiah 33
Isaiah 40
Isaiah 64
The following is the supporting video for the next sesion
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
Chan, Francis. Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples David C Cook. Kindle Edition.