The Word of the King

      Matthew began his gospel very interestingly. For us, it is quite boring, but for his original audience, it was riveting. They had been looking for the seed of Abraham, from the tribe of Judah who would be the branch of David. Thus, they kept meticulous genealogies. Matthew 1:1-17 may put us to sleep, but it woke his original audience up.

      Who was this son of David, son of Judah, son of Abraham? Was He the promised one? Would He fulfill the prophecies? Would He be the king? Take note that 15 of the 40 names in this genealogy were kings. Jesus was the descendent of Israel’s kings. He had a right to the throne of the Jews.

      Matthew went on to tell the story of Jesus’ birth and the later visit of the wise men from the east. In Matthew 2:2, they asked, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?” They were coming to see the baby who would be king. The wise men were told to look in Bethlehem because the Shepherd of God’s people was to arise from there. When the wise men came to the house (not a stable—Matthew 2:11) they did not see a mere child. They saw the future king. They saw the one who would be our king.

      Ecclesiastes 8:4-5 says, “Since the word of the king is authoritative, who will say to him, ‘What are you doing?’ He who keeps a royal command experiences no trouble, for a wise heart knows the proper time and procedure.”

      Jesus is our king. We must not question His words, but submit to them. Further, when we do, we will avoid trouble. At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told a parable of two builders. The wise builder built on a strong foundation; the foolish did not. The wise man’s house withstood the storms; the foolish man’s did not. The wise man is the one who hears and heeds Jesus. The foolish is the one who hears and goes on his own merry way. Notice, the wise man did not avoid the storms, but he did avoid the terrible trouble caused by them. If we follow the King’s words, we will not avoid storms, but our house will withstand them.

      In just two Sundays, we will begin our Fall Focus. This year’s theme is The Gospel of the Kingdom: Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. We will spend an entire month focusing on the concentrated essence of Jesus’ message for our lives. We will be reading the words of our King. If we wish to avoid real trouble, we need to study, learn and live these words. Then our house will be built by the Lord on the proper foundation. Make your commitment now to be part of this study. Sign up for a small group, plan to be at all the assemblies, commit to read and work through the daily devotions.

      It is going to be an exciting month. It is going to be a challenging month. It is going to be a life-changing month. Get ready. It is going to be great.

Edwin L. Crozier