Today we begin a new series asking the question: “Who is Our King?” But why ask that question?Well, first of all, human beings need authority. Though we often resist and resent authority, we need it – even desire it. We see this in children. We tell them no. They freak out, throw a tantrum, tell us that we’re the meanest parents in the world and that they’re not going to get us anything for Christmas, maybe even draw a picture illustrating how mean we are, but then, after they explode and we threaten to sell them to the zoo, and some time passes, they crawl into our laps and sniffle their “sorrys” and we hug and kiss them. Children resist authority, but they are glad it is there. They need it to be there.
We are the same. We need authority. We were made for it. Think about it: every society or culture throughout history and across the globe has structures of authority (tribes have chiefs, teams have captains, even our “democracy” has elected officials). Government is a need and a gift, for anarchy is unsustainable.
Secondly, we need to ask the question because this year is an election year. We will elect a new president in just a few weeks. Sometimes we treat the election of the president like the election of a messiah. We believe that the president will save us from economic downturn, foreign enemies, the fuel crisis, climate change; he will solve every social, educational and economic problem on a national level and every military, political and humanitarian crisis on a global level. In addition he will also save us from whatever we believe the opposite party (if elected) will inflict upon us.
We expect our president to be all-knowing, all-talented, all-efficient and exceedingly righteous – a role model in fact. Some even say that we want our president to ‘lead us in righteousness’. Well, if you mean by that that you want the president to lead in a righteous manner with honesty, truth and integrity then yes - “lead us in righteousness.” But if you mean that the president is elected to be our moral and spiritual head, then no! The president is not the pope (or even a pastor), nor is he the high priest, prophet and king of a new Israel, nor is he a god. Sometimes we place all our hopes on the outcome of an election. If our candidate wins then evils will be outlawed, morality will thrive, birds will sing and revival will come. But if the other one wins, Armageddon.
Now, I believe that the Presidency of the United States is an extremely important position. I do not deny that a president can work for great good or for great evil. However, the president is not the end all and be all; he is not the resting place for all our hopes; he is not the “most high”. The president is not our messiah. The president is not our king.
Thirdly, we ask the question because we human beings tend to gravitate toward false kings and false messiahs. The Bible calls them idols. You see, though we were made to live under the authority of God and our rejection of God’s authority creates a vacuum in which idolatry (in its various forms) can arise. Within humanity there is a hole which we try to fill with little gods and upstart kings. However, human beings were created to belong to God and our hearts are restless until they rest in Him.
So, who is our King? The resounding answer that we find in Scripture is that the LORD God Almighty is our King. We see this clearly in Psalm 47.
Psalm 47 can be summarized by the following statement: “God is King over all the earth.” Our God has revealed Himself as the One “who was and is and is to come.” And so, I want us to look at this psalm through that revelation.
The first section (vv 1-2) focuses on the One Who Is. God created us to belong to Him and to worship Him. Therefore, we read, “Clap your hands, all you nations.” To clap hands could mean to clap one’s hands together in terms of applause or approval. But it can also mean to clasp or strike hands together in agreement (like a handshake). And so, the peoples of the earth are called to agree with one another regarding their relationship to the LORD. And they are to shout to God with cries of joy. Human beings were created to praise the Lord.
Why? Because the LORD is the “Most High, the great King over all the earth!” And He is “awesome” or as it literally says, He is “to be feared”. The Lord is awesome and is to be feared. He deserves our awe and reverence and respect. And He deserves it because he is the “Most High”. There is no one greater than our God. He is superior to every other so-called god (whether it be a pagan deity, a person or a possession). The LORD is the Most High - the great King over all the earth. He is not simply a king (one among many) nor is He merely the King of the people or land called Israel, He is the King over all the earth. All the nations, all the peoples belong to Him.
Next, in vv. 3-7, we focus on the One Who Was. We read in v. 3-4, “He subdued nations under us, peoples under our feet. He chose our inheritance for us, the pride of Jacob, whom he loved.” The picture is of the Exodus from Egypt and the conquest of the Promised Land – of deliverance and inheritance. The writer of this psalm could look back and remember how the Lord had rescued his people from Egypt and had brought them into a land flowing with milk and honey – the land promised to their forefathers. God had delivered them and given them an inheritance. We, as Christians, have likewise been delivered and given an inheritance. We can look back, not only to Egypt and Israel, but to the cross of Christ and the new life and the Spirit given to those in Christ. God has delivered His people and dwells among us. As we read, “God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the LORD amid the sounding of trumpets.” He is enthroned in the midst of His people. Therefore, we can join in the celebration: “Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise.”
And finally in vv. 8-9, we focus on the One Who is to Come. “God reigns over the nations.” The tense of the verb reigns tells us that that is an accomplished fact, not a hoped-for event. However, because it is an accomplished fact, it means that we can depend upon it in the future. God reigns now and he will continue to reign forever! “He sits on his holy throne” and no one can remove Him. God is sovereign over the nations and one day His sovereignty will be unmistakable. For we read, “the nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham.” What was called for at the beginning of the psalm will one day take place. All the nations will recognize and agree that the LORD God Almighty, the God of creation, the God of Israel, Father, Son and Holy Spirit is King. (Take a look at Isaiah 45:22-24 and then Philippians 2:10-11.) God is the One Who is to Come. He will come and every nation will recognize Him and every knee will bow before Him.
I’ve mentioned before that I sometimes use Starbucks as an emergency ‘second office’ to study and write. Sitting there this past week while working on this message, the question arose in my mind: “What does the fact that ‘God is King over all the earth’ mean in Starbucks? What does the reality that this psalm presents mean to all the different people sitting around me?” I came to the conclusion that it means nothing … and everything.
It means nothing in that I think people reason: Who bought this venti mocha double-shot non-fat latte? I did. Who owns that Range Rover parked outside? I do. Who controls my life? I do. It’s very easy for us to think that we have it all together and believe that we are in control. Starbucks is a fascinating place because it is filled with human interaction. But sometimes all of our human interaction keeps us from seeing Divine reality. If we’re always looking around at each other or down at our all our stuff, we can’t look up to see God’s reality. The fact that God is King doesn’t seem to matter.
But what happens when we can’t afford the lattes anymore? What happens when the Range Rover gets totaled? What happens when investments fail or we lose our job or life falls apart? We quickly recognize that we are not in control (as much as we may look and act the part).
We are being reminded of that these days. We are in the midst of a financial crisis. The stock market is declining, people are losing jobs, investment portfolios are going belly-up. And this crisis is stacked on top of the fuel crisis, environmental and humanitarian problems, war in Iraq and Afghanistan, political instability in the world and political change in our country. It is an anxious time because we are being reminded that we are not ultimately in control. We are being reminded of how fragile we truly are. Try as we might, we are not the captains of our fate. And so the fact that “God is King over all the earth” means everything.
I started this message by stating that we as humans need authority. Look at how we are scrambling to find some authority in our current financial mess. We look to the Fed, Congress, the president, bank leaders and world leaders. We even ask those running for president how they are going to solve the problem. We’re scrambling to find someone who can help. Well, above the Fed, above Congress, above current and potential presidents, above world leaders, above bank ceos, there is a Great King – the Most High – the LORD is His name! He is sovereign over the nations and the problems we face are not too big for Him. He is the King and He is good.
Isn’t it ironic that on our money (the very object of this crisis – of our fear and anxiety) is written “In God We Trust”. So do we or don’t we? Do we trust God? Do we recognize Him not only as King but as our King?
And do we recognize that though God reigns over the nations, he is still near to us when we call upon Him? Don’t miss that in this psalm. God is the Most High and yet He is also the Most Near. He rules the world and yet we find that He showed concern for the little people of Israel - He loved them. God is not distant and aloof, He is near and concerned. God is love.
“God is King over the earth” is not only Good News because it means someone is in control, but because this God, who is in control, is good and loving and near to those who call on Him.
So in the midst of this financial crisis – sing praises to our God, sing praises.
In the midst of political uncertainty – sing praises to our King, sing praises.
In the midst of world turmoil – Clap your hands, all you nations.
In the midst of personal struggles – shout to God with cries of joy.
And that is not a call to simply “whistle in the dark” – to expect something good to happen when it most likely won’t. It is not a call to be naïve or Pollyanna-ish. It’s a call to take life seriously but to take God even more seriously. It’s a call to seek and to praise God in the face of difficult circumstances. Why? Because our God reigns over the nations and over us. He sits on His holy throne and dwells in the midst of us. He is our King.
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