Christ the King - part two

If Jesus is King and Lord, why are so many things still wrong, impure and painful in this world? If the Messianic Kingdom, promised in the Old and New Testaments, came about when Jesus went to heaven to be crowned King of the universe, of heaven and earth, and if he is in control of everything, how must we understand the experience that so much of our lives is still about injustice, sadness, sin and death?

The answer simply is:  Until Jesus comes again there are both goats and sheep in the world.

First of all, the truth is that there one day will be a separation of the sheep and the goats. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left!  See Matthew 25:31-46.

There will be a judgment day. King Jesus is coming again. The Son of Man will come in his glory and he will sit on his throne as the royal Judge of all. He will come “to judge the living and the dead.” (Apostles Creed) And in this judgment of all people, there will be a separation: “He will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on his left.” There is no middle ground.

Secondly, the truth about sheep and goats is that this judgment will be on the basis of whether we showed the nature of being one of Christ’s sheep, or if we lived like a goat! He will say, “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink.”  And then, on the other hand he will say, “I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink.” 

Paul also teaches in 2 Corinthians: “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.”

Thirdly, we all know that it is only faith in Christ that can produce the Kingdom works that righteous sheep do. Notice what the King says “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”

Everything is centred on our relationship with the King and the person of the King. If our works of love are done as a result of our faith relationship with Christ, then it is regarded as works of his Kingdom. If we have is no relationship with Christ and has not been done for him, then even what is considered good works in the unbelieving world, make no difference to our status in the Kingdom of Christ.  

We must be linked to Christ and his goodness. We must live as a sheep in his fold and therefore receive the gracious gift by which sinners are accounted as good-in order for there to be any works of love and mercy for Christ. Faith in Christ is the key as to whether our lives will be judged to be works of his Kingdom, or not.

Finally, it is faith in Christ the King that saves. Following the King, accepting him as King and Lord of our lives, turns our lives around and the evidence that our lives have been turned around form being goats to sheep, is a free gift! Pure grace! 

Only Jesus Christ the King gives us this miracle, that we are redeemed from belonging to the flock of goats and turned into his sheep.  His precious blood washes away our sins. His righteousness is imputed to us as a gift. His perfect holiness purifies our imperfect lives, and his Spirit turns us into people who do everything for him in obedience to our majestic King and Lord!

Faith alone saves by grace, but the faith never stands alone. It is always accompanied by the works of the Kingdom of the King that saved us.

Faith works. Like a good tree, it bears good fruit.

The righteous do not proudly keep score of their Kingdom works. They look to the finished work of Christ, who alone can produce works in us that are accepted as good in God’s eyes.

The key to living and experiencing the Kingdom of Christ is to have a relationship with Christ.  It ensures that our sins have been forgiven, washed away by his blood that was shed on the cross. This is the only way through which our impure, selfish lives can be wiped away and be replaced with the very works of Christ the King: your Judge is also your Saviour!

This is how we glorify Christ the King!  We live for him. 

We do things similar to what he did when he was on earth.  Then others can also believe that Christ the King, the Messiah, indeed reigns!  They can believe that they too may believe in him and be saved through faith in him, by grace.