Today’s Reading: II Kings 15-16, Matthew 21
Kings, princes, rulers, emperors, and leaders all have one thing in common…they are human. There were 23 kings of Israel and 19 kings of Judah. The split of kingdoms occurred after Solomon. The kingship of Christ is from the line of Judah. Christ is the High King and final in the lineage of King David. I believe one of the best lessons learned from this passage is that not all kings are perfect, but if we have a relationship with God we can have amazing things happen for them.
Here are three themes that I have gotten from this passage:
Not all kings are saviors
In the beginning of the kingships for Israel which started with King Saul, the people were looking for a central figure to help them in the human form. They were not able to grasp the concept of God being available to help them out in spirit and needed someone tangible to make decisions for them. They were looking for a savior to keep them safe from other forces. But because the kings were human, they were not able to fully save everyone from everything.
Not all kings are merciful
There are some kings that love their people and will put their life in the place of the people. They are committed to the people for eternity. There are some kings that will sacrifice their own children for their benefit as Ahaz did in
II Kings 16:2-3.
Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God, as his father David had done, 3 but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. He even burned his son as an offering,[a] according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.
Not all kings have your best interest.
Many times kings will pursue the best arrangements for their kingdom. They will make the best decisions to make the kingdom prosperous. Some kings will be selfish and attempt to do what is good for the king.
Throughout our world and throughout history, we see that the kings and rulers are human. Sometimes they can be altruistic and thinking for others, but many times we can see that the rulers think of themselves. It’s only when God is in the midst of their reign and they acknowledge it; then they can lead and be prosperous. We are fortunate that we have a great king in Jesus, that is our savior, who is merciful, and has our interests center of his being. When we have a relationship with Christ, we are able to connect and be part of his kingdom. We do not have to be dismayed by the world, in regards to our king. Let us acknowledge, and be aware of the blessing that we have in Christ Jesus as our king. Let us not be dismayed by the world or its shortcomings because we have a relationship with God.