Who Is This King of Glory?

Who Is This King of Glory?


Words from song by Third Day.

Who is this King of Glory that persues me with his love
And haunts me with each hearing of His softly spoken words
My conscience, a reminder of forgiveness that I need
Who is this King of Glory who offers it to me

Who is this King of angels, O blessed Prince of Peace
Revealing things of Heaven and all its mysteries
My spirit¹s ever longing for His grace in which to stand
Who's this King of glory, Son of God and son of man

His name is Jesus, precious Jesus
The Lord Almighty, the King of my heart
The King of glory

Who is this King of Glory with strength and majesty
And wisdom beyond measure, the graceous King of kings
the Lord of Earth and Heaven, the Creator of all things
Who is this King of Glory, He's everything to me

The Lord of Earth and Heaven, the Creator of all things
He is the King of glory, He's everything to me

(Song by Third Day) Click link to hear song.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aqo-adRyM_k


“Open up, ancient doors, and let the King of glory enter.” (Psalm 24:9) So the psalmist writes, and then he adds this question, calling for our reflection: “Who is this King of glory?” (Psalm 24:10a) That is our question this morning. Today we look upon this man Jesus, riding into Jerusalem, and we ask, “Who Is This King of Glory?”

Well, on Palm Sunday, he certainly looks like a king of glory. Cheering crowds, palm branches, cloaks spread on the road--a triumphal entry into the royal city, Jerusalem. What a scene of joy and triumph it is, fulfilling the ancient prophecy: “Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey— riding on a donkey’s colt..” (Zechariah 9:9)

But by the end of the week, that Holy Week, instead of a triumphal entry, there is a tearful exit. The daughters of Jerusalem who were rejoicing on Sunday are weeping on Friday, as the King of glory is led out of town in shame and sorrow. Who is this King of glory?

On Sunday Jesus is acclaimed as the messianic king: “Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Luke 19:38) On Friday he is accused of claiming to be that king: “This man has been leading our people astray …. claiming he is the Messiah, a king.” (Luke 23:2)And Jesus doesn’t deny it: “So Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus replied, “You have said it.” (Luke 23:3) Who is this King of glory? Soldiers array him in splendid clothing, only to beat him up and mock him. Who is this King of glory?

Glory? Glory, you say? Where is the glory in being nailed to a cross, and having a sign placed over your head, “This is the King of the Jews”? (Luke 23:37b) No garments strewn before him, now his own garments are stripped from him.

Strange king, indeed. On Sunday he rides in triumph on the Way of Glory. On Friday he staggers, condemned, on the Way of Sorrows, the way of the cross and darkness and degradation. Who is this King of glory?

The world today would just as soon forget about this king, this puzzling man, Jesus. They want to put him on the shelf, push him out of sight, out of mind, and get on with their lives--their busy, distracted, no-need-for-God lives. Instead of cheering crowds--or hostile crowds, either, for that matter--now there are just busy crowds, bustling crowds, too-busy-to-be-bothered and too-bored-to-care crowds. What a vacuous lot we have become! Overloaded with information, but starved for wisdom. All too busy, and yet filling our lives with nothing. Junk food for the mind. Junk food for the soul. No time or need for this man Jesus. Who is this King of glory? “Don’t bother me, I don’t want to know.”

Ah, poor Jesus! Poor, neglected, forgotten, obsolete Jesus! Shed a tear of nostalgia for those days of yesteryear, when religion was important and people cared about Jesus. Shed a tear, and then let me get back to my I-Phone. I-Phone, I-Pod, I-Pad--I, I, I. Ay, ay, ay, what fools we have become!

No, do not shed a tear for Jesus. Jesus would tell our TMZ culture: Shed a tear for yourselves! Weep and mourn, and let your laughter turn to lament! Do you think you will escape judgment, you who have no need for God’s mercy and his Messiah? How will you escape? When death intrudes, when cancer comes calling, when judgment comes crashing down, how will you stand? What will be your support to lean on, to enable you to stand in the day of God’s judgment? Will it be your inherent goodness? Your pleasing personality? Don’t kid yourself. Those supports are all too flimsy. They will collapse and crumble. You need some stronger stuff than that. What we e all need to lean on in the Day of Judgment is the cross of Christ my Savior. He is our only hope. And that’s the only hope and support we need, is this one with which God supplies us.

So maybe we should take a second look at that man Jesus and ask again the question, “Who is this King of glory?” There’s something special about him, something unique that takes hold of us. The more we look, the closer we look, the more we realize we need him.

What is special about this man? We pick up some clues from the story. When Jesus is about to enter Jerusalem, he tells two of his disciples: “Go into that village over there,” he told them. “As you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it.” (Luke 19:30-31) A colt no one has ever ridden. And the Lord has need of it. Hmm. . . .

Then on Friday, after the crucifixion, Joseph of Arimathea takes down the body of Jesus and lays him in a tomb cut in stone, “a new tomb, never used before.” (John 19:41)Hmm. . . . A colt no one has ridden. And a tomb that has never been used. What’s going on here?

It appears there are some divine arrangements going on here. That’s what it is. God has set apart some divine preparations, some never-used vessels, a colt and a tomb, set apart and reserved for a most special purpose, a most special guest. These are vessels fit for a king, this colt and this tomb. Yes, both the colt and the tomb, set apart and planned by God. That’s the point: Both Sunday and Friday are part of God’s plan.

The plan all along was for this Jesus to ride in glory into Jerusalem, and his glory, God’s glory, would be seen and shown and brought to fulfillment precisely in Jesus going to the cross. The cross and tomb are part of the plan--indeed, the heart of God’s plan, his plan for us! Who is this King of glory? He is the King who suffers and dies for us.

Yes, us the sinner. Us the “die-ers,” the person who dies. We, who would come under God’s judgment ourselves--we need Jesus to bear our sins and die for us and suffer that judgment in our place. That’s why he rides into town. Only Jesus could do that job.

Who is this King of glory? Some more clues from our text: Pilate, the judge, says of Jesus, “I find nothing wrong with this man!” (Luke 23:4b) A second time Pilate tells the accusers, “You brought this man to me, accusing him of leading a revolt. I have examined him thoroughly on this point in your presence and find him innocent.” (Luke 23:14) Neither did Herod, for he sent him back to us. Look, nothing deserving death has been done by him.” And then a third time Pilate said to them, “What crime has he committed? I have found no reason to sentence him to death.” (Luke 23:22)

Even the thief on the cross can see this truth about Jesus: “this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” Luke 23:41b) And the Roman centurion likewise: “Certainly this man was innocent!” (Luke 23:47b) Now Pilate and the thief and the centurion all spoke truer than they realized. Not only was Jesus not guilty of any crime, not only was he innocent by the world’s standards, Jesus was even innocent and righteous by God’s standards. Truly righteous, totally innocent, no sin or guilt that he should die in any way, much less die the death of a criminal.

But you and I--we cannot manufacture a verdict like that for ourselves. You and I have done wrong, we have sinned, in a hundred ways, a hundred times a thousand. Maybe not capital crimes in the world’s eyes, but sins, grievous sins nonetheless, in God’s sight. In countless ways, we have sinned against God--in thought, in word, in deed, from as far back as we can remember, all the way to the grave--we have made false gods for ourselves, worshiping the idols of our own making, our own opinions and ideas of right and wrong. And the Lord God looks down on this folly and says of all those who would trust in themselves, “Where are their gods, the rocks they fled to for refuge?” (Deuteronomy 32:37)

No, only God, the true God, can deliver us. Who is this King of glory? The psalmist tells us: “The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle!” (Psalm 24:8) “Who is the King of glory? The Lord of Heaven’s Armies— he is the King of glory.” (Psalm 24:10) Yes, only God can deliver us. And that is why he sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to do the job we couldn’t do. The holy Son of God, true God from eternity, born of the virgin Mary--this Jesus, God in the flesh, Jesus, the God-man Savior--he is the King of glory who saves us from sin and death.

We need to cling to him in faith, lean upon his cross as our only support, and we will be strong to stand in the day of trouble. In Christ, for us the Day of Judgment becomes the day of our salvation.

This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all. 16 But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. 17 All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen. (1 Timothy 1:15-17)

Who is the King of glory? He is Jesus Christ, our Savior and your King! (Luke 19:38)