Thursday, May 28, 2009

Psalm 110:1-2 The LORD said to my lord, "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies!

CHRIST OUR KING (II)

Why should so great a King still have enemies opposing Him? Yet He has, as David declares. Why does He have enemies at all? Men do not see Christ sitting on a throne and ruling as men do. They think: what king of King can He be? By despising Him they become fools and think themselves wise. When Christ comes and condemns their spiritual ignorance, they become proud, they rebel and begin persecuting. Their wisdom and power makes Christ appear weak and helpless, for He does not seize them with the strength of men. Men are offended with such a King. Why doesn't He exert His power and crush them? How can He be so great and yet so weak against this opposition? We must learn we cannot see Christ's kingdom with our eyes, we have it only in His Word and in faith. His kingdom is great power and at the same time it is weakness. It must have the glory that it is God's power and rule. He rules in another way than we can understand. To make the wise fools, Christ's kingdom remains a kingdom of faith. He does not annihilate His enemies but subdues them in such a way that He hides His wisdom and power from reason. He will establish His kingdom through the foolishness and weakness of men. He will be a God and Savior, not of the strong, wise, righteous (as reason wants), but of the weak, unlearned, and afflicted sinners who need a God and Savior.

So let the enemies boast and rage as they will. They are already judged and must become Christ's footstool. Let them scheme and attempt what they will, our King rules over them. He either turns their ways to their own defeat or to the good of His Church. Thus does our King seize them, not with the strength and weapons of man, but turns their highest wisdom and strength against themselves. So has Christ ruled throughout history.