The Lord's birth

… Wir freuen uns, heute Abend einen Vortrag über Gottes Wort zu hören. Wir freuen uns, heute Abend einen Vortrag über Gottes Wort zu hören. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee, therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And behold thy cousin Elizabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren, for with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. Now chapter 2 And verse 25 And behold there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Ghost was upon him. And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord Christ. And he came by the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him after the custom of the law, then took he him up in his arms and blessed God and said, Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace according to thy word. For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all the people, a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel. Recently one has been impressed with the end of the dispensation as we find it in the Gospels. I mean the end of the law dispensation. So few were waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. I think we could count them all very easily. We have Joseph and Mary, blessed by the Lord. We have Elizabeth and Zacharias. We have Anna, an elderly woman. And we have Simeon. There may have been others, but these set their attention to in the chapters that we have read in Luke's Gospel and in other chapters, the beginning of Matthew particularly. Now, one feels that this is a very sad reflection on what the law could accomplish after all the centuries of prophecy and the presentation of the law, how few there were ready to receive the Messiah. Sad, sad reflection on the law. But then when we think of the present moment, as we wait for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ to fulfill his promise, what would the difference? There are millions upon earth at the present moment who are looking for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, what a wonderful indication of the value of the death of Christ and his resurrection and his ascension and the gift of the Holy Spirit. The fact that millions have been secured through that wondrous death of his and they are waiting for him at the present moment. I think this indicates a very real thing to us, that where man failed under responsibility in connection with the law, God has succeeded in the presentation of Christ in the Gospel in securing men and women for himself. But that's not what I want to speak about. I want to speak about the greatness of Christ because this is the real blessing that can encourage and refresh and build up every believer who loves him. His greatness, his glory, whether it be present or future, anything connected with Christ is calculated to encourage us. So we find the angel coming to Mary, telling her that she's highly favored, the Lord is with her, blessed art thou among women. Now I know that we don't want in any way to be affected by the kind of worship or shall we say idolatry that the Roman Catholics give to Mary, the way they give her such a place, such a place alongside Christ. And we might sheer off from giving her any honor or any blessing. And yet we would be wrong in this because the scripture makes a great deal of Mary and the angel here tells us that the Lord is with her and that she's blessed among women. She has a unique place. She was favored by the Lord to bring the Son of God into this world, a highly unique place of privilege and favor. And for that reason we think of her affectionately as the one who was used in this way. But the angel has something more to say to her. It's obvious she was just like any of us. She was troubled at his saying, perhaps worried to her mind what this salutation should be. But the angel puts her at rest and says, Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with God. Now that again is another indication of the unique character of Mary that she was chosen by God for this particular service. We know it was in fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecy, A virgin shall be with child. And she stole not to fear. Fear not, Mary. Wonderful personal salutation. Wonderful indication that she was known to heaven and chosen by heaven for this particular service. Then he goes on to say, Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. Now here's something that we should stop and consider for a moment. Sometimes in talking about the Lord Jesus, we speak about his miraculous birth. And while no one would quarrel with the expression, that's not just exactly right. It's the miraculous conception, the power of the Holy Spirit, and Mary performing this tremendous work, the incoming of the Son of God into this world. The reason why we draw this distinction is because we can refer to at least four miraculous births. There was Isaac. And there was Samuel. And Samson. And John the Baptist. And there was a miracle performed in each of these cases when these little babies were born. It was because of divine power. And they certainly were miraculous births. But with the Lord Jesus, all the scripture is careful to guard against any idea of human generation he was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And this points him out uniquely, infinitely greater than any other person. And so we find this expression, and shall call his name Jesus. Now again, I want to draw your attention to something that's often said, that it's his lowly name. I don't think so, dear Christian friends. I think it's the name of glory and distinction that the lowly man bore. Because we remember that the name Jesus means Jehovah the Savior. Jehovah is salvation. And really, it's God manifest in flesh when we think of this wonderful name, Jesus. Certainly his personal name that he bore here upon earth so often referred to in the epistles and in the gospels, this same Jesus. Bearing about in our body the dying of Jesus. Giving him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow. So this name is used again and again, and I think I can say in a company like this, that name is precious to all our hearts. But it's a name of greatness. It's not a lowly name. It's a name of greatness. A name of power. A name indicating salvation. A name indicating that God was now amongst his own people in flesh and was going to bless them. Thou shall call his name Jesus. I think I'm right in saying that the Lord Jesus only refers to himself in this way on two occasions. Personally, I mean. You remember when Paul, or rather Saul of Tarsus, was on the Damascus road? The Lord appeared to him, and when Saul says, Who art thou, Lord? He says, I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest. And then in the book of Revelation, we have those wonderful words, I, Jesus, have sent mine angel to testify of these things to the churches. I, Jesus. And so this personal name that he bears is a name of greatness and glory and distinction spanning this public life and spanning the time that he is here, that he's at the right hand of God, and spanning to that time when Israel shall be brought back to God. So let us remember, whenever we read this name, Jesus, it's a name of distinction, a name of unique glory, a wonderful name, and the only one who bore it with all the truth connected with it. Because we do read of other Jewish personages called Jesus, we find them in the scriptures, but none of them could in any way bear that name in the same way as Jesus did because it was true of him in every possible way. He shall be great. Oh, how great he is. If you turn to the minor prophet Micah in chapter 5, I think it's verse 2, there you will find this explicitly stated by the prophet that the one whose goings forth were from of old, the one who would come forth unto God to be the ruler in Israel, would be great. And all we know how great he was and how great he is. In the Gospel by Luke and in the Acts of the Apostles, Luke uses this word again and again, great, what is great. And here he is using it in connection with the one who is supremely great. If we think of him as creator, what greatness. We are accustomed now to be told about things that are really outstanding and really beyond our ken. The radio telescope can probe into the vast distances that are connected with space and we are left in a, shall I say, our minds in a boggle as to the vast distances involved. But he created them, the creator. And it was within his power and wisdom and understanding and ability and although we might not understand, we know that he did. As he created the universe, the display of his power and wisdom. What greatness. Oh, when we see him coming into this world and stepping out in public witness for God. What greatness. He was able to deal with Satan, able to deal with demons, able to deal with disease, able to deal with the depressed, able to raise the dead, heal the blind, all the various ailments of mankind, the Lord Jesus in the greatness of his power was able to deal with these things, set people free and send them on their way rejoicing. How great he was. And oh dear friends, when we think of the work upon the cross and his rising out from amongst the dead and then rising from this scene into glory, there we are confronted with a greatness that is beyond any understanding. His atonement, the sufferings that he bore, the pressure that he passed through on our behalf. Oh, how great he was. No one could do that work but himself and he did it, thank God, in perfection so that we are here this afternoon with the knowledge of our sins forgiven. We are here with the knowledge that we are bound for glory and we owe it to the one, the great one, who gave himself on Calvary Street. And then how great when he rose out from amongst the dead. In fact, the scripture speaks of this, the great shepherd who rose out from amongst the dead. Oh, how great. No one else could do that wonderful thing, to rise out from amongst the dead, triumphant over death and Satan's power. Again, a feature of his greatness. Now, when you consider the time that the Lord Jesus Christ has been at the right hand of God and he has cared for every individual saint, he's protected the testimony of Christianity and all the various vicissitudes that it has passed through and all the attacks by Satan and Satan's agents. He's cared for those who were depressed, those who needed help of various kinds. Think of the magnitude of the work of that character. And he said that he would do this. I'm with you to the end of the age, he says, to his disciples and of course that includes every believer. As the head of the body, he has provided resource and encouragement for every member from Pentecost up till the present moment. He has protected assemblies passing through difficulty. He has provided for missionaries in different parts of the world in danger and in difficulty. All these things he has done in the power that he has and in the greatness and glory of his person. You see, sometimes we just limit the activity of the Lord to our personal life. And that's a very small thing in one sense. Very great to us, very small to him. Oh, when we think of the magnitude of the work done by the Lord Jesus Christ over the last 2,000 years in relation to his people, how great he is. And we're not forgetting that along with that by him all things subsist. Not only has he created the universe but in divine power it subsists through him and in him. So we're under no misunderstanding as to his greatness when we start and think about it. We must be impressed with the magnitude of the work that the Lord Jesus Christ does every day, every moment. This work is going on in preserving and caring for his people. No wonder he's the object of worship and praise. Now it says he shall be called the son of the highest and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David. I believe there are two suggestions here. The highest would always connect us with the thought of the nations and of course the throne of David connects us with the nation of Israel. And here is the one who is going to look after all the nations and bring them into blessing. Here is the one who is going to sit upon the throne of his father David and bring blessing into the life of that persecuted nation Israel. Now the reason why I say the highest is connected with the nations is because Scripture does connect the highest in this way. You remember Daniel tells us that Nebuchadnezzar came to this understanding that the most high ruleth in the kingdoms of men. And Moses in the book of Deuteronomy tells us that the most high assigned to the nations different boundaries, different places where they were to be. He put them in their different places. The most high. And we believe the most high is a millennial title and has to do with all the nations that eventually shall be blessed. Who is going to do it? The son of the highest. Now at the present moment we are witnessing the collapse of all the ideas of men. Democracies and dictatorships and whatever you like they've all had an opportunity and the mess is there for us all to see. I know that the world has passed economic troubles in the past and they have got over them and things have gone on again. But one wonders if now we are seeing a total collapse of all that man brags about, boasts about and considers is the cure for the ailments of men. No matter what they try it seems to fail. Well then, who is going to succeed? The son of the highest. Time will come when he will bring blessing to the nation that exists when he rules but before he deals with the nations he is going to sit upon the throne of his father David. Now it's a very wonderful thing to think about this. One day in the city of Jerusalem where he was crucified where he was rejected by the leaders of the nation he will publicly in person sit upon the throne of his father David. Now you might say how can that be? It's easy to visualize it. For 40 days after the Lord Jesus rose out from amongst the dead he met with his disciples he spoke with them, he ate with them and so there he was a living person out of death they could handle him they could see that he was in flesh and bone condition not in spirit condition and so what was true in those 40 days will be true especially when he sits upon the throne of his father David in Jerusalem. His feet shall touch the Mount of Olives he'll come to the help of his beleaguered nation and he'll bring in power and blessing what a wonderful day that will be for himself oh let us think of this in the place where he was rejected there he is going to be exalted and glorified. I think we all like to be a success and perhaps in a certain area where people have scoffed and jeered at us in one way or another we've experienced that kind of thing and then to prove through God's help that we've been blessed and we're able to find our way in the world and have a success in business or in any other way, scholastic well that's a table stand and it's not that we feel proud but we're deeply thankful for what the Lord has done for us in spite of all the scoffing and jeering now what will it mean to Christ oh my dear friends what will it mean to him in the very city that had the opportunity to accept him it refused him and in that city he's going to be manifested in glory he's going to sit upon the throne of his father David the fulfillment of the covenant made to David and he in person is the direct fulfillment of it and what a fulfillment it will be and for a thousand years there will be a reign of blessing, a reign of glory a reign of plenty no dynasty has ever lasted a thousand years no empire has lasted a thousand years Hitler boasted that the third reich would last for a thousand years, but it didn't it didn't last twenty years oh my dear friends, when we think of the wonder of the reign of Christ for a thousand years, the land will be blessed the world will be blessed and righteousness shall reign oh what a demonstration what an exhibition of his greatness and glory now it says and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there shall be no end great kingdoms, great dynasties have risen and fallen, sometimes through internal dissension other times through other powers coming against them and overpowering them, this will never happen in the kingdom of the sun, this will never happen when he reigns, he shall reign forever, it will be an everlasting kingdom and it will be for the glory of God now we can understand Mary saying to the angel how shall this be? I know not the man and the angel answered and said unto her the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee the power of the highest shall overshadow thee therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God I'm sure you're acquainted with the teaching of the meal offering in the book of Leviticus and we are reminded that the fine flour was mingled with the oil and we believe this is a beautiful picture of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, the incarnation as we call it, the clothing of the Lord Jesus with flesh now the mingling with the oil would suggest how intricately the spirit was occupied or the spirit was engaged in the birth of our Lord Jesus we read in the meal offering that the meal was anointed with oil and we believe that would refer to the moment when the Lord Jesus set out in public witness for God and was anointed with the Holy Spirit at Jordan here we believe we have an expression of the meal offering, the flour mingled with oil, the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee then there's this distinction that the Lord Jesus Christ is described as that holy thing that shall be born we are reminded in the Psalms that we are born in sin and shaped in iniquity we are all suffering because of Adam's fall and we all inherit a fallen nature and although we might deny it it's not very long before we express it in disobedience and in an aptitude for sin that clearly indicates we have this fallen nature not the Lord Jesus Christ he was born that holy thing he came into the world holy untainted by sin as he passed through it and offered himself in the power of the Spirit without spot to God absolutely intrinsically holy not a blemish, not a spot or a stain or a sin but in a way connected with the Lord Jesus now we live in days when people who ought to know better say that it was possible for the Lord Jesus Christ to sin but perhaps they say in faithfulness but he never sinned when they speak about the temptations and the other things that he passed through and they say what's the point of him going through temptation if he couldn't have sinned the point is this the first man sinned in beautiful conditions in conditions that God created for him in conditions where we might have thought he'll never sin well the first man did sin in those conditions the second man out of heaven tried in far worse conditions to prove powerful enough to overcome Satan's wiles that's why he was tried that his divine perfection might be shown in all its work and in all its greatness now John in his epistle tells us that the divine nature cannot sin he says that explicitly and that's referring to Christians Christians having the divine nature cannot sin what God has given to us cannot sin, it's an impossibility now then if the Lord Jesus could have sinned that surely implies that he had a fallen nature and then the saint that loves him would repudiate such a suggestion no my dear friends he was the holy thing that was born intrinsically so it wasn't that he made progress in holiness he was ever holy spotless and pure and so the angel says that holy thing which shall be born shall be called the son of God oh how great here we have depths that we cannot possibly consider, that we cannot possibly plumb, the son of God coming into this world as a little infant so helpless outwardly and yet still the creator and upholder of the universe the son of God oh how great he is and oh the glorious things that he was going to accomplish and oh the great things that he has continued to do since he went on high the son of God of essence with the father same nature oh how great the son of God he shall be called the son of God I can't say any more than what I've said about him how great he is and one would like to have a greater command and language just to express how great he is he shall be called the son of God, not the son of Adam not the son of anyone else although perhaps he was called the son of Joseph or the son of David but pre-eminently above all others the son of God, wonderful glorious person and how he proved this in his life now we turn over from that that was heaven's communication to Mary now we find a man upon earth under the guidance and control of the Holy Spirit and he has some appreciation of the Lord Jesus Christ divinely imparted to him and how satisfied he was but look at him, Simeon I don't know how old he was tells us that Anna was an elderly person but here we find Simeon and it says he was just and devout and he was waiting for the consolation of Israel and the Holy Ghost was upon him now why I want to say a few words about this passage is because it brings us in now while it was uniquely in connection with Simeon that this happened and we must again for him the blessing that was his in being guided and controlled by the Spirit to perform the service towards the infant Jesus yet I believe the principles connected with this man could easily be connected with us the first thing is he's just and he's devout he's not leading a life of sin or self-will self-indulgence or wickedness, he's a man who has some appreciation of God and some idea of what it is to live before God and to such a one the Holy Spirit comes and gives him direction and what a wonderful opportunity he had now it seems to me my dear hearers that we are in this position if the Holy Spirit is going to teach us in relation to Christ then we believe there is this rectitude of life that is necessary a life that is pleasing to God a life of obedience a life of devotion and to such persons the Holy Spirit is free to teach the great things of our Lord Jesus Christ perfectly obvious you wouldn't go to a wicked man and ask him for some appreciation of Christ, he wouldn't be able to give it the Holy Spirit wouldn't teach him the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit and he delights to unfold the things of Christ to those who have some appreciation of him and whose lives are an indication of this so I think this is a beautiful sight this man Simeon just and devout just and upright a good man in Jerusalem waiting for the consolation of Israel very sad that here upon earth there wasn't a great stir thinking about the coming of Christ and the fulfillment of the prophecies in Matthew's gospel we do find that the city was troubled and we find that Herod was troubled too, but all that seemed to pass away so quickly but there were just a few who really were waiting and who could be used by the Spirit in this wonderful way and so it says the Holy Spirit was upon him now we've often been taught and rightly taught that in the Old Testament we find a few references to the Holy Spirit being upon persons and when whatever service they were to render was finished then the Holy Spirit was taken from them or he left them, but in the New Testament we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and he indwells us forever he's never taken from the individual or from the church, the believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit and this morning as I was thinking about this I said to myself what a tremendous blessing that a divine person indwells us I believe no one person is able to have the fullness of the indwelling Spirit and I must be careful about what I say because I may be entirely wrong in this, but we are indwelt by the Spirit, our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit and the Spirit directs us to the Father and to the Son and empowers us for every Christian privilege and every Christian responsibility what a marvelous blessing to have the indwelling Spirit not to be taken from us, always with us, so while it was a pond Simeon, we can claim on the testimony of the Word of God this Spirit indwells us, so if we feel that we are very weak in connection with Christian testimony, thank God for that feeling because that is just how we should feel and that throws us back upon the divine power that we have in the indwelling Spirit and if we feel that we are quite unable to witness and worship, then good for us if we feel that way for again the Spirit is the power to help us to worship and write either the Lord Jesus or the Father now it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ it's not very often that we get God called the Lord in the New Testament but here is one of the occasions the Lord's Christ the Lord's anointed I think in this case Jehovah's anointed what a marvelous communication Simeon got it doesn't tell us how he got it, except by the Spirit, but in what way it was communicated, but he received this communication that he wasn't going to die until something happened, until he had seen the Lord's Christ for himself now down through the ages of prophecy thousands of people were waiting for this, and here was one man who was told specifically Simeon, you're not going to die until you've seen with your eyes Jehovah's anointed wonderful, wonderful blessing and the time came when he was led by the Spirit into the temple and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him after the custom of the law they took him up in his arms and blessed God what a moment for this dear servant that he's privileged to take into his arms this little babe who is none other than Jehovah's anointed perhaps he wouldn't understand that he was the creator, he was the son of God and other great things that we've been speaking about, he had been told specifically that he would see the Lord's anointed and now the moment had come what a moment of fulfillment and realization for that dear servant of the Lord to hold the Lord Jesus in his arms, what a privilege and so he says, Lord and he uses a different word there it's the word that we have for desperate, Lord now let us bow thy servant depart in peace according to thy word for mine eyes have seen thy salvation I think that's a wonderful statement he's saying, I have nothing more to live for, I have no more interest here, my time has come to an end, I'm completely satisfied, I've seen thy salvation not only had he seen the Lord's Christ, but he saw the one in whom salvation would be secured the one in whom salvation would be available, the one who would effect the work of salvation himself, mine eyes have seen thy salvation now dear friends when we see the Lord for the first time, we won't be saying this kind of thing we won't be saying, we're ready to depart, we'll be there forever what a moment what a moment of realization when we all see the Lord Jesus Christ, he might be entirely different from the way he is portrayed by the artists but one thing we are assured of we'll recognize him, we'll know him and know what a moment it will be, a moment of complete and eternal satisfaction when we see him we're all accustomed to perceiving things here upon earth perhaps we want to go to some city where there are some great sights to be seen and we go there and the first visit oh it's a wonderful place, we're thrilled at what we see, and then gradually it dies off and it all more or less becomes commonplace it will never be like that in glory the first view that will so thrill our hearts will be the same thrill that we'll have throughout all eternity, what a wonderful moment, what a wonderful realization, and what a wonderful end to this great salvation that the Lord Jesus Christ secured for us for Simeon, it was to see the one in whom salvation would be secured, for us it will be salvation behind us and all that that means and then an entrance into the glory that he prayed about in John 17 he says I want them to be with me I want them to share my glory I want them to have the same love upon them as I had when I was here in this world, as I received from the Father, he says I want them to enjoy that, what a wonderful person he is, and how anxious he is, if I could use that word for our present and eternal blessing, now he says which thou hast prepared before the face of all the people, a light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of thy people Israel while I believe that Prince of Galilee Simeon is thinking of the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies and there are many that indicate that Israel will be blessed and the Gentile nations will be blessed with them, I want to apply this to the present day in which we find ourselves because we find many passages in the New Testament that tell us that both Jews and Gentiles are blessed together and they form one body in Christ without any national distinction they are one before him and oh how true it is that he's a light to light the darkness of the Gentiles he's the glory of Israel that he fulfills all the prophecies in relation to them so whether we think about it in the present or think about it in the future, those statements are true in Christ alone could Jews and Gentiles be blessed without any racial hatred or distinction and be brought together in one and we do thank God that in the future this also will be true the Middle East problem great and complex will never be settled until Israel is reconciled to its Messiah and then the rest will be simple that's the real problem not the problem between Jew and Gentile not the problem between Arab and Israel the real problem is Israel refused its Messiah rejected and crucified him and until they get right with him, this problem will be outstanding oh the wonder of it, that when they see the one whom they crucify and pierce and they're reconciled to him, the process of the Lord's government will go on for their blessing and the blessing of the nations and those complex problems that man cannot deal with will be dealt with by the Son of God oh let us rejoice that at the present moment the Lord Jesus has put away all the national distinctions that cause so much strife upon earth and in the truth of the church he brings people of all nationalities together without any color, bar or social status or any other kind of status and he brings them together as one body in himself members one of another all connected to him the head and he blesses them according to the greatness of his person my dear Christian friends how great he is and so with these few thoughts I would ask you to again and again consider him more and more because whatever else might be passing he remains in all his greatness and we can turn to him at all times to find resource and blessing and encouragement and you know this passage that we've been considering, it's not a huge campaign with thousands of people, it's not a large turnout in a vast auditorium it's just a few but there's divine blessing there I'm not putting any premium upon a small company, but I do say this, that a small company is not shut out from the blessings of God, a small company can be blessed by God and as it was at the beginning, so it can be now, that wherever there are hearts that show any appreciation of Christ, we can be sure that all the interest of heaven is focused upon them and they can get resource and help and encouragement through the Holy Spirit, so we can take courage, whether there are two or three, or whether there are two or three hundred, the same applies that wherever the truth of Christ is maintained, there will be divine blessing and resource, may we know more about it, for his name's sake …

… O, and serve diligently for the young child, and when ye have found him, bring me word again that I may come and worship him also. When they had heard the king, they departed. And lo, the star which they saw in the east went before them, and it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down and worshipped him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way. Now the Gospel by John, chapter 18, verse 33. Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called to Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the king of the Jews? Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me? Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me. What hast thou done? Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants find that I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now is my kingdom not from hence. Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born. And for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Everyone that is of the truth, heareth my voice. Pilate said unto him, What is true? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and said unto them, I find in him no fault at all. Now a few verses in chapter 19. Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given me from above. Therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin. And from thence forth Pilate sought to release him. But the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend. Whosoever maketh himself a king, speaketh against Caesar. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha. And it was the preparation of the Passover in about the sixth hour. And he said unto the Jews, Behold your king. But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate said unto them, Shall I crucify your king? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar. Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus and led him away. There are two portions in the book of Revelation. Revelation chapter 18. And in the book of chapter 17. Revelation chapter 17 and verse 14. These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them. For he is Lord of lords and King of kings. And they that are with him are called and chosen and faithful. Now chapter 19. And verse 11. And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse. And he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True. And in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns. And he had a name written, that no man knew but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. And the angels which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron. And he treaded the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. I think it's obvious from the scriptures that we have read this afternoon that we want to say a word about the Lord Jesus Christ as the King. We should say that in connection with the assembly we did not find the Lord Jesus presented as King. He is never referred to as the King of the church, or even the King of the individual. Other terms are used, for instance Lord, or head of the body of the assembly, or the bridegroom. But the King speaks of his supremacy in the coming day when in this world publicly he shall receive adoration and obedience and worship. And that's why I want to speak about him this afternoon in this way. Because we are all anticipating that time and we believe it's very near when this world will acknowledge him as such. I think it's right that we should begin at the Gospel by Matthew. That first verse describes him as the son of David and the son of Abraham. I think if we had been writing that we would have put Abraham first because he does come first chronologically. But the Spirit of God says no, son of David first and then son of Abraham. And the reason being that the Gospel by Matthew presents the Lord Jesus Christ as King. So immediately we are confronted with this name, this title, that points him out as the son of David, the King. The one who is going to rule over Israel, the one who will make up everything up for God for his glory. Now it's very interesting that when God made a covenant with Abraham he promised him two things. He promised that he would have a seed and that all families of the earth would be blessed in him. And he promised him a land. So we have two things very definitely promised to Abraham by a covenant, a seed and a land. But then the covenant to David was that of himself, of his loins, there would come a king and there would always be one belonging to his family sitting upon the throne of David, the throne of Israel. So we find that the promise to David is that there will always be a king reigning in his name. Now we know that when we read in the book of Chronicles, in the book of Kings, many of the kings of Judah were unworthy of the name. And eventually because of the failure of that part of the nation they are put into captivity and for a time kingship lapsed. But with the incoming of the Lord Jesus Christ we have the fulfillment of the prophecy in Micah and we have the chain of blood stretching from David to the Lord Jesus Christ and now we find God's king and the true son of David coming to take up the kingship. Now then you can see why the Spirit of God presents a king first. The king, the one who has the legal right to the throne and the genealogy that follows establishes that. He has the right to reign over Israel. He has the right to reign over Abraham's seed. He has the right to reign over the land promised to Abraham. But oh when we find the unfolding of the story, what a sad story it is. Even in chapter 2 we find immediate opposition to this little babe who is born king. Herod the Great, a tyrant, a monster of a man, immediately began to oppose this born king. Oh what hatred he expressed toward him. But then, thank God, God was able to deal with that opposition and worship and praise and honor was bestowed upon the infant king. And that's what we want to be occupied with. I've said enough about the first verse of chapter 1 to indicate what God thinks of his son. What God has in mind for his son. What a wonderful person he is and God will make sure that he is honored and glorified. Now we come to chapter 2. And if there are those who oppose, there is the king, Herod, and he's certainly anxious to maintain his place. So he's going to kill this young king if he can. And we read about the slaughter of the children in this gospel. As the king tries to kill the one who has been born and who is described as king of the Jews. So at the very outset, there is Satan's attempt to destroy God's king. We're not surprised at that. You remember the story in the Old Testament when the enemy sought to destroy the seat royal. But one was preserved alive, Josiah, the young king. And the line was kept. God saw to it that his king was maintained. And much more so in connection with his glorious son. So we find that steps are taken to protect the young child. And guidance is given to those wise men coming from the east. They always say there are three. Perhaps it's because there are three gifts. The truth is, we don't know. There are legends and stories, some of them very beautiful to read. Some of them very instructive, but legends nevertheless. But we're confining ourselves to what the word of God says. That there were wise men who came from the east, guided unerringly by God to where the little child was. And out of their treasures they worshipped him. We should say that before this, inquiry is made by the king to those who should know. Inquiry is made to the scribes. Where is it that the young king is to be born? And they say to him, oh, Bethlehem Judah. That's what Micah says. That's what the word of God says. Oh, they were very good, very accurate at telling the king where the real king was to be born. They never moved one step to go and see for themselves. Not one step. It says all of Jerusalem was troubled. They perhaps shared in the trouble, excitement or concern at such an account that one had been born who was called the king of the Jews. And they never took the trouble to go and inquire. Oh, what a sad picture it is. Hatred, enmity, murder on the part of the king, Herod. Indifference on the part of the religionists. How refreshing to think of the wise men traveling over a vast distance, bringing their treasures and ready to bestow them upon this little child. What a wonderful picture it is. The unerring guidance of God that his son might be worshipped with gifts fit for a king. We've often been reminded that those gifts represent his own person. The gold indicating his deity. The indescribable greatness of the son of God. The gold. The frankincense. The fragrance of that wonderful pathway that still had to be trod. And the myrrh, his passion, his suffering, his sorrow on the cross. And all these things provided substance for real worship towards this glorious person, none other than the son of God. And I think it's very important to notice that while Mary is mentioned with him, they worship him. Next year the Lord tarried, but I don't suppose it will make much difference. If the Lord comes, I suppose the visit will still go on. But a visit is being arranged for the Pope to come to Britain, the head of a system that makes much of Mary and perhaps not so much of Christ. But this scripture would clearly indicate that the Lord is the one who is to be worshipped. Not Mary, the unique woman that she was, blessed amongst women, favoured by God. But it's the Lord himself who is worshipped. So unerring guidance by the star. Wonderful joy in their hearts as they found the little child. And wide discernment on their part when they worship the child and not the mother. And so what a wonderful thing it is that the young king born into this world should be worshipped in this way. Perhaps it's the kind of thing that heaven desires. No ostentation, no clamouring of the elite of the world, the great men, the governors, the rulers, the proud religionists. All informed that the king is going to be born. And then a big show, a big demonstration and the consciences untouched. No, heaven doesn't work in that way. Heaven wants the approval of hearts. Or rather it wants to see hearts. It is that that heaven approves of. Hearts and consciences affected by the greatness of the person and ready to sacrifice in order to show their appreciation of him. And I believe all this is expressed in these wise men as they opened what they had, their treasures. Carrying them with them, ready to bestow them upon this little child. I suppose this has a lesson for us. What have we got that we treasure in connection with the person and Christ? Or do we delve into our memories and bring out the old phraseology, the things that we've been accustomed to say? Is this the kind of worship that we give to the Son of God? Or is it the freshness that the Spirit of God would give to us as we think of him? As we really appreciate his glories, his greatness, his passion, his pathway. All this fresh in our spirits and ready to be bestowed upon him from free and happy hearts. Thank God for the direction that we have received, each one of us. To know the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. To be guided by him so that we can worship him in a way that meets with heaven's approval. Not with all the fuss and flourish that perhaps the world approves of. But in the simplicity of heart and conscience that is so pleasing to God and so pleasing to the Holy Spirit. Yes, he does guide unerringly the Spirit of God. He does give us the right things to say and from our hearts in a right condition. Oh, how wonderful to find the Lord Jesus Christ the center of our worship and appreciation. We would be persons marked by the greatest possible ingratitude if we hadn't something to offer to the Son of God. When we think of how much he has done for us. How much he has cared for us and provided for us. And how much he has yet to prepare for us. Indescribable, beyond belief, the things that we will enter into when we are with him in glory. And so, how wonderful that in this day, shall I say, of maturity, it's not now a little child. Still to grow up into a man. Still to tread a pathway of glory for God. Still to die and to rise out from amongst the dead and ascend to heaven. All that was future was this little day. Now we are in the knowledge of it. Thank God somewhere in the game of it. And how right it is that willingly, happily, we should worship this glorious person. Well, the end of day didn't stop. The king was anxious that they should bring him back to work. But God said, no, don't you go back to hell. I'll show you the way to go. And he showed them another way so that they could avoid this end of day. Not only to themselves, but specially to the little baby. So, there are a few thoughts, not very many, connected with this glorious person who was born King of the Jews. It's often said that some persons have greatness thrust upon them. Some live due to merit of greatness. Thank God he was born great. Intrinsically great. The glorious son of God coming into this world. And all the future was still before him as to what he had to pass through. But the greatest glory still awaits him. When with his church complete, at his side he shall reign in this poor sad world. So we move over to John's Gospel. John's Gospel. John says to him, art thou the King of the Jews? And the Lord Jesus says, sayest thou this thing of thyself? Or did others tell it thee of me? I would answer, am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me. What hast thou done? Imagine the creature saying this to the creator. Imagine this man having authority delegated to him, saying to the supreme authority, what hast thou done? Oh, what bigotry, what calmness, what grace and humility marked the son of God as he allowed himself to be interrogated in this way by this representative of their own power. I've read this passage and the passage in the next chapter to say that not only was the Jewish nation guilty of the rejection of the son of God, but the representative of the Gentile power was also directly responsible, and for reasons known to himself, for the rejection of the Lord Jesus too. So the Lord Jesus says, my kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight that I should not be delivered to the Jews, but now my kingdom is not of this. In the gospel by John, the world is always presented as a system ruled by God in opposition to the Father, to the Son, to the Holy Spirit, and to those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. It's a very powerful system indeed. Three times over, Satan is referred to as the prince or the ruler of this world. And so the Lord Jesus says, I'm not going to rule over the world. My kingdom is not from hence. I have another kingdom, a heavenly kingdom that Paul speaks about. There is going to be rule from heaven when I go there, and the subjects of my kingdom will be persons who subject their will to the will of God. They'll own me as Lord. They'll own no other authority as Lord. And so my kingdom is not from hence. He doesn't refuse what Pilate has asked, that he is a king. This, of course, was true. And he says, this is why I was born. Born a king. Oh, how wonderful the replies of the Lord Jesus. And how sad. How sad the rejection by Pilate. But you see, the earthly kingdom is in abeyance, but the heavenly kingdom is in function. And that's a very wonderful thing to consider. That at the present moment, every one of us, obeying the Lord Jesus Christ, owning him as Lord, knowing him as Savior, we are members of that kingdom, subjects of it. He the head, he the Lord, he the supreme one in that kingdom. And we are reminded what kind of kingdom it is in the epistle to the Colossians when Paul says we've been delivered from the authority of darkness and we've been translated into the kingdom of the son of his love. That's a wonderful kingdom. It's not a question of subduing evil or even an administration in connection with good. It's a kingdom marked by love. And the supreme one in it is the supreme lover. And we are the ones who bear it. The kingdom of the son of his love. But we go on to chapter 19. And we find that someone says to Pilate that the Lord Jesus is the son of God. Pilate is very much afraid. He wants to release the Lord Jesus. And then the Lord says to him something that must have astounded Pilate. Thou couldest have no power at all against me except it were given thee from above. Therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin. I suppose this proud man might have often said to himself as he was in New Zealand, I'm the representative of the greatest political and military power in the world and I can call to my aid tremendous resources. I can quell any disturbance. I can use the power that is invested in me to deal with any opposition. And now he's told by this prisoner whom he has in his presence, Pilate, you have no power against me at all except it were given thee from above. In other words, what is happening before you as Pilate is ordained by God himself and I'm quite willing to fit into that plan in order to accomplish God's will. Do you remember what the Lord Jesus said to Pilate? Not to Pilate, to Peter rather. I could summon twelve legions of angels. I think I might be saying, I'm subject to correction, that a Roman legion consisted of 6,000 men. Pilate says, the Lord says, I could get twelve legions, 72,000 men, 72,000 angels rather. Now, we go back into the Old Testament and we remember the story of the vast army that came against Jerusalem and when the destroying angel passed through their ranks, 175,000 soldiers lay dead. One destroying angel. Think of 72,000 angels with a limitable power operating on behalf of the Lord Jesus and we realize how puny and helpless his enemies were. Oh, the grace of our Savior as he allowed himself to be submitted, allowed himself to be attacked and criticized and ridiculed. Oh, what grace was in his heart as he submitted to all that man heaped upon him. So, dear friends, it was all because the scripture had to be fulfilled. It was all because his love had to be expressed in giving himself for us. And so we find that Pilate sought to release him. Well, might he seek to do this? I believe in his heart and conscience. He was afraid. He was afraid. He had heard things that had touched him and he sought to release the Lord Jesus. And then they say, if thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend. Whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar. I think it's right to say that at that time many persons rose up and tried to thwart the mighty power of Rome and gathering armies around themselves and seeking to overturn this great power. And of course, they were all defeated. And Caesar was very, very jealous of his power and authority. And anyone who claimed to be a king was immediately dealt with. And so they used this powerful weapon to cause Pilate to take action and crucify the Son of God, which they did. We have no king but Caesar, they said. No king but Caesar. Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus and led him away. It's a sad picture, isn't it? We remember the story of the little boy who was given a portion of the scriptures, one of the gospels. And he read and read and read until he came to the story of the crucifixion. And he ran and he told his mother, oh mother, they've killed him, they've killed him, they've killed him. And then he read on. And he came back with his face smiling, oh mother, he's alive, he's alive. He read the story of the resurrection. Oh, we've begun. We have childlike faith and simplicity that can accept the scriptures like that. And the joy of them and the reality of them that the Lord is alive. Now I've read those portions in chapter 18 and 19 as a background for what we read in Revelation chapter 17 and chapter 19. If we read Revelation aright, we'll find that there are two threads running through it. There is the great power of the Gentiles and it's coming to an end. And the one who is going to deal with that power is the one who was crucified by the representative of the Roman power. Also the apostate Jewish nation, it also will be dealt with. The nation that crucified its Messiah, it also shall receive God's government. And it's right that it should be so. In 69 AD, I think it was, when Nero set fire to Rome and most of it was burned. And we believe the discipline of God, the chastisement of God against that proud power. In 70 AD, Jerusalem was laid low by Titus, leveled to the ground, a million and a half people slain. Very, very strong governing hand of God in chastisement upon those two powers that crucified his son. But that was only a temporary matter. Then we find when we read in the book of Revelation, further judgments. Judgments upon the portion of land where Rome rose. Judgment against the nation that crucified the Messiah. And that too is temporary. Oh, the awful time when those who have refused the Son and crucified and rejected Him will find their place in eternal punishment in the lake of fire. Never ending, sad, sad ending for those who have crucified the Son of God. In chapter 17, the beast makes war against the lamb. I will remember many, many years ago as a young Christian, listening to a brother, Brother Rick McCallum, many of you will remember him, preaching on prophecy. And he says, look at those beasts described for us in the book of Revelation. Grotesque beasts. Beasts that have no part in the natural kingdom. And look at them in all their power, in all their enmity, in all their wickedness. Look at them. Who's going to deal with them? Nobody is powerful enough to deal with them. Look, look what is coming, he says. A little lamb. Oh, how ludicrous to think that a little lamb can deal with those grotesque animals. Ah, but he said, look, who is the lamb? Revelation 17 tells us the little lamb is Lord of Lords and King of Kings. Yes, gracious, sacrificial, humble. All these things come to our minds as we think of the lamb. Oh, now, it's not so much the gentleness, not so much the humility, not so much the readiness to die that is presented in Revelation 17. It's power, authority, the ability to judge, the ability to overcome evil. The Lord of Lords and King of Kings. What a transformation. The patience of God is exhausted. For 2,000 years, opportunity had been given to men to accept the Lamb of God and the precious blood that He shed for the forgiveness of their sins. 2,000 years rolled its course and very few were concerned about bowing and accepting the Lamb of God. And then that awful period of time, known to us as the Tribulation, when men seemed to reach the height of blasphemy and enmity against God. Still unconcerned, in spite of all the judgments that God puts upon the earth, not repenting of their blasphemies, their witchcraft, their murders, not concerned about these things, blaspheming God. And the time has come to call a halt. Oh, what a day it will be when the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings exercises the power that He has and puts down those evil pestilences in all the power that He can present. Awful moment for them, awful moment for those who follow them. Perhaps we can say there is a great deal of dignity conferred upon us in that we are with Him in sharing His judgment. Not that we can exert the judgment, but we are with Him. The armies of heaven follow Him. We come now to chapter 19. And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. I understand that when the Roman general returned from his successful campaign, he entered into Rome in a great procession, and riding upon his white horse lay evidence that he had been triumphant, and what a glory it was to this particular general. And so the Spirit of God uses this figure to describe the triumph of the Lord Jesus. Not this time riding into Jerusalem on the fold of a mass. Not to be rejected by the nation, by the city. Not this time. He's coming as Faithful and True, riding upon a white horse. Success is guaranteed. No possibility of mistake. No possibility of defeat. In righteousness he's going to make war. I suppose many, many wars have been waged. Unrighteous wars and untold suffering and sorrow because of the greed and the desire of man to acquire power. But here is a war that will be conducted in righteousness. A campaign where all the opposing forces of evil will be put down and put down again. Never to raise their head again, at least those who are being put down here. The Faithful and the True. He has the moral right to judge and make war. In his life he proved himself to be Faithful and True in all that he did and all that he said, and he's competent morally and personally to deal with those opposing forces. Then it says his eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns, and he had a name written that no man knew but he himself. Those eyes of scrutinizing judgment, eyes that never make mistakes, eyes that can discern what is right and wrong, eyes that will discriminate between his believed people in Jerusalem and those who oppose, those who have the mark of the beast and those who haven't the mark of the beast. And those eyes will discern, and those eyes will govern the judgment, flame of fire, the holiness of the Lord Jesus Christ as he deals with the enemies that are against God himself. There's no good speculating upon the name written that no man knew but he himself. Surely it would be idle speculation. If no one knows but himself, well, we leave it there. The day will come when it will be declared. Something will learn about the greatness of the Son of God. And he was clothed with a vesture, dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. This doesn't mean the blood that he shed on Calvary's cross available for those who come to him in need. This is the blood of his enemies. This is the scripture in the book of Isaiah would be connected with this. Who is this that cometh from Bozrah? With his garments dyed red. The one who trades the winepress of the wrath of Almighty God. I remember many years ago when we were in Palestine we were shown the winepresses that were hewn out of the solid rock and they just placed the bunches of grapes upon the clean rock and then they stewed on the top of them. And of course you can understand with that weight the juice of the grapes would squirt up onto their garments and would stain the garments. And that's the figure that's employed. The Lord Jesus trading the winepress of the wrath of Almighty God and those bloodstained garments are the evidence of the righteous wrath of God in punishment against those evildoers who have opposed God and the Lamb. His garments dipped in blood and his name is called the Word of God. He's the revelation of God in grace and glory and blessing. He's the revelation of God in righteous judgment and upon the one competent to execute it. And the armors which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. There are so many portions in the Word of God that describe our place with Christ. Paul speaks again and again about us being in Christ in Christ Jesus. The Lord Jesus spoke to the disciples about them being with him in the Father's house. And there were other portions. Here we are described as being with him clothed upon white horses following him upon white horses clothed in fine linen, white and clean. What a wonderful thing that we're going to be associated with the Son of God as he comes out in judgment. We are going to be there not because we have any right to be there in ourselves but because he brings us with him. And you remember the scripture says that those who suffer with him shall reign with him. Paul says, do you not know that ye shall judge angels? That ye shall judge the world? And here we find the expression of it as we come out with the one who is going to be successful. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword that with it he should smite the nations and he shall rule them with a rod of iron and he treadeth the white crest of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Now at the present moment Jesus Christ is at the right hand of the Lord and he is offering blessings to all who will receive it in grace. If only they will repent there is blessing available. In the days to come in the portion that we are reading he is going to rule the blessed. In obedience those who obey him will find blessing. Those who refuse, those who object to his rule those who oppose his rule will be dealt with in a very severe fashion indeed. All my dear friends how wonderful it is to come to the end of this passage he is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Where now the proud rulers of Israel? Where now, I am? Where now all the rulers and kings who gather themselves together against Jerusalem and against the nation of Israel? They are all gone, every one of them. And they are all going to stand before the great white throne. And there he is the one who was rejected and scorned the one who was crucified the one whom they ridiculed. Here he is in all his majesty and glory the King of Kings the Lord of Lords taking precedence above all the greats all the great men of the past. Indeed Paul says he has a name which is above every name not only in this world but also in that which is to come. God will see to it that his King is supreme. And dear friends that King is our Saviour. That is the one whom we love that is the one whom we seek to serve that is the one whom we worship. And here we have one of his glories and much more could be said about this great dignity and glory that belongs to him the King. Much more could be said. There is so much in the Old Testament about this glorious day that is the dawn upon the world when he will be supreme. Isn't this why Paul says that there will be a reward for those who love his appearing? Ah yes! We are waiting for the rapture. We will be free of all the complexities that exist upon earth the pains, the difficulties, the trials the weakness and the other things that come upon us. All those things, yes, they'll go thank God for that. Greater still, we'll enter into the presence of Christ we'll be in the Father's house forever. But then Paul says it's not the rapture that we are to love it's the appearing that we are to love because it means the supremacy of the Son of God in the world that hounded him out that hated him, rejected him and crucified him and every person who loves him must surely look forward to that day when he will be supreme the King of kings and the Lord of lords. May we appreciate him more and more for his mercy. …