Restoring the world to the Kingship of God

To our modern world with presidents, governors, and other various elected officials, the idea of a king feels foreign. We like our autonomy and take it for granted—self-assured in our ability to run our lives without needing anyone to tell us what to do. And the moment some version of authority attempts to thwart our direction, we bristle like a militant group of Antifa thugs.

But what if our modern world is misguided?

“God is dead”, declared Nietzsche. 

“Do what thou wilt,” proclaimed Crowley

“Did God really say?” whispered the serpent.

From the beginning of time, humanity has sought to undermine God, to wrestle control over our choices, our lives, and our domain. Sure of our knowledge of good and evil, we rule the world. But at what price? At what expense?

As Abraham Heschel describes it, “We ridiculed superstition until we lost our ability to believe. We have helped to extinguish the light our fathers had kindled. We have bartered holiness for convenience, loyalty for success, love for power, wisdom for information, tradition for fashion.”

We cast off the perceived shackles of our maker, only to find ourselves alone, and without guidance, suddenly like naked children wandering. 

To be sure, the desire runs deep, beginning with the slanted view of our own fathers, the sins passing down generation to generation, twisting our perspectives and compelling us to rebel. We have no true picture of the Always Existent One, so we shake off the yoke of our fathers and continue embracing the lie that we can do better on our own. Prodigal sons and daughters, we squander our  birthright until it’s unrecognizable, and find ourselves no further along than when we began.

“The Almighty has not created the universe that we may have opportunities to satisfy our greed, envy and ambition. We have not survived that we may waste our years in vulgar vanities.”
—Quest for God, p151

Buried beneath our pride and arrogance lies a thread, calling us to return to our heritage. A belief and a hope that a good King exists. One not marred by our own dysfunction, One who rules with kindness and fairness, One who loves completely and perfectly.

First, we have to acknowledge that our ways have not produce the outcome we desired—that all of our striving has only led to more self centeredness and a life void of God’s Spirit. We must confess and surrender to the Kingship of the God of Israel in our lives. We must not neglect to nourish the seeds of faith planted in the soil of our hearts as we trust in Jesus who came to show us what one and only God is like.

Too often we stop here. What does it mean to trust a King? Are we content to express devotion with our lips, but convey the opposite with our lives? Do our words contradict the hidden beliefs of our heart? Are we willing to sacrifice our desires and ambitions and trust that this King of the universe wants more for us than we can achieve on our own? That his ways, though not our ways, are the best path towards a life full of meaning and purpose? 

What would it take for you to surrender?

It can be reassuring to know that  we’re not alone in our unease releasing control. For the ancient Israelites, it took 40 years of wandering in the desert, eating miraculous bread, provided daily by God after an awe-inspiring deliverance from slavery in Egypt. The glory of their salvation was quickly forgotten as time progressed, and they declared their desire to take control back from God.

Centuries later, we’re still the same—ready to cast off the yoke of freedom and return to the slavery of our previous masters: pride and unbelief. Perhaps this stems from our misshapen belief in a false god who rules with anger and judgment, disappointment and regret, absent of love. 

How can we begin to understand that the true nature of this King of the universe, revealed to Moses is actually a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness and truth? That he shows mercy to a thousand generations, forgiving the times we miss the mark and try to take control. That even his justice is filled with compassion and a longing for us to trust his ways. Throughout the ages, he hasn’t ceased to reveal his love to us, waiting to bring us back even though we defiantly ran the other way.

Rather than condemn us, he covers a multitude of our failures. Rather than bondage, he gives us freedom. Rather than anger, he gives us comfort. Instead of a spirit of fear and heaviness, he wraps us up in a blanket of praise and thankfulness and joy. He does all of this so that we can be planted as oaks of righteousness, putting down roots of faithfulness as we learn that can be trusted. He uses our seasons in the wilderness to teach us that he always works things out for our good and His glory.

Like the prodigal son, what if you return?

At the end of your rope and tired of trying to make things work on your own, what if you returned to the covering of your King? Repenting of your sin of pride and unbelief. Taking a step of faith to believe that He is good? Returning to a trust in a God who is ruling the world better than you can. Cultivating the soil of your heart so that your actions align with your words. Renewing your devotion to him as you seek to establish his Kingdom in your life.

The whole world has forgotten God, but there is a remnant who are returning. Coming back to an awareness of God’s kingship in our lives. Willing to embrace the unknown and follow wherever his Spirit leads. To stay when he says stay; to go when he says go. To light the way for others who are lost and in search of the truth. To proclaim our allegiance to the one true King who rules the world with grace and truth. 

As we journey through our lives, may we continually point others to this King of the universe. May our lives reflect a courageous belief in the face of plurality. May we represent his ways as we put on holiness over convenience, loyalty over success, wisdom over information, and love instead of power.

And may “the God of all grace—who has called you into His eternal glory in Messiah—will Himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you.

All power to Him forever!

Amen.”