5 King of the Church?

Why does the Spirit of God never refer to Jesus as King of the church? 

Perhaps you have never thought of that before. What we find in scripture is that Jesus is called the Lord of the church and the head of the church, but never the King of the church. It is right for we in the church to recognize Christ as King, but it is also important to notice that this title is reserved for an earthly kingdom that does not exist yet.

This distinction is not merely a question of word choices that mean the same thing. My prayer for as many as involve themselves in this study, will have it become clear as to why that is so.

We are beginning our study of this earthly Kingdom by 'piecing together' what the Bible says about the Kingdom. Presently we are laying a foundation for that study. When putting a puzzle together, it is customary to find the corner pieces and the border pieces to provide an outline of the whole picture.

Let's review the corner pieces of this kingdom puzzle:

An earthly Kingdom is necessary because:

• God is good and He is good all of the time. This is the basis for our restoration back to God. His goodness is revealed in the person of Christ as our Savior.
• God is faithful. His promise of salvation is as secure as His covenant that He made with Abraham. 
• God is just. If a thief steals diamonds and he/she is caught, convicted and sentenced, does he/she get to keep the diamonds? Even so, the kingdom was stolen from God through Adam by the devil. The Kingdom must be restored when the devil is caught, convicted and sentenced to prison.
• God is omnipotent. He must be proclaimed victorious in the very arena in which His goodness was treasonously brought into question.

Human history forms the myriad of puzzle pieces that fit together as the outworking of God’s justice. Not only will this reestablish the kingdom but also populate it with redeemed and loyal subjects.

The following panorama depicts the timeline, the border pieces of the puzzle if you will, where all of human history fits into.

 

The church age that we are presently in, does not replace Israel's promise of an earthly Kingdom. That promise has not been cancelled but postponed. The church is presently called to bear witness of God's anointed King, Christ Jesus. 

He cannot take His place on His throne in Jerusalem until Israel is tried during the tribulation period. When Israel submits willingly to Jesus their Messiah, He will return to be crowned King of kings and Lord of lords.

If the Kingdom is future and reserved for an earthly people, what role will the church play in the Kingdom?

"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also [trusted], after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory." - Ephesians 1:11-14 KJV

We are called to receive an inheritance “unto the praise of His glory”;  Just as there is a responsibility to bring honor to our family name and rightly using an inheritance on earth, there is also a responsibility with our heavenly inheritance to bring glory to the name of Christ both now and in the coming Kingdom.

Everyplace where Jesus is called King in the NT, it is always in reference to the Jews or in reference to His future acceptance by Israel as King of kings and Lord of lords.

There are at least three reasons why Jesus in never called the King of the church:

1. Jesus is the Christ (the anointed King) and He has not yet been restored to His earthly Kingdom as King of Israel.
2. The church is heir to the Kingdom, but the church is not the Kingdom.
3. When Christ Jesus does come into His Kingdom, the church shares in His Royal office as an element of His revealed glory. He is our head, we are His body so we are one with Him as Royalty in His reign.

When the Lord comes in glory for His bride, the church, not only will we be in glory, we will be glorified in Him, and we will be the glory of the King. Jesus title as King is reserved for an earthly people, Israel. We, the church, are called as a heavenly people to be one with Him in Royal Glory. We are presently being groomed for that glory.

Our present state of existence is nothing compared to the glory that is to be revealed in us, who are the Lord's church. That hope of glory belongs to all who have placed their trust in Jesus as their Savior. Be very sure that you are not trusting in anything but the blood of Christ as payment for your sin.

Doing the best that you can, going to church, praying, reading scripture, etc. can never bring peace and the assurance of your entrance into His Kingdom. If you have never done so, ask the Lord to save you and trust that He is all that you need.

smc