Tag Archives: King of Kings

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Worship, a cure for rebellion

When I really want something, I look on the Bible as a hindrance, getting in the way of what I want. I want to rebel –

 ‘Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.’ Psalm 2:3

I despise my convictions as irrelevant for this situation. The Lord however, has a response:

He rebukes them … saying, ‘I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.’ Psalm 2:5-6

I have become so passionate for what I desire that I have forgotten Jesus. The way back is to focus on Him alone. When I have Jesus in focus, when I have surrendered the passion and spent time with Him, feeding on Him, I find my heart is restored. Then questions of ‘What are the limits I can get away with?’ become irrelevant.

For those unwilling to surrender there is a tragic road ahead –

You will break them with a rod of iron; you will dash them to pieces like pottery. Psalm 2:9

The Lord is clear about His intention. He will not willingly allow us to be drawn away by false gods.

Kiss his son, or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Psalm 2:12

Finding the limit of law is a sideshow. The response He is looking for is to worship Him, to choose to delight in Him, not the trappings of this world, to turn my head around and look passionately at Jesus.

 

The Bible study from which this came – biblebase2adaringfaith

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Freedom from whom?

Many think of freedom as ‘Free from’; free from those who limit us; free from the rules that stop us having what we want. So we blame those who rule over us for keeping us from our desires. In our age however there is such freedom that when we can’t get what we want, the only one we have left to rage against is God. In Psalm 2 we read, “Let us break off their chains.” One would imagine such a cry coming from people who are oppressed, but these words come from ‘The kings of the earth,’ those who are the freest to do as they choose!

In reality, our lack of freedom comes not from the Lord, but from ourselves. We lack the courage to look into our own hearts and acknowledge our failure, our lack of courage to do what is right, or the way we ensnare ourselves through our evil desires. These are the real origins of our chains.

The Lord’s response to the kings is to present them with truth: “I have installed my king on Zion.” Jesus has been installed as my King. If my life is lined up with the Lord and His King then this statement brings joy, peace and freedom for together we can do anything. If however, I am living for my own will, then I respond as the kings do with terror at the Lord’s rebuke. I am terrified by what the Lord might take from me.

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Head held high

My defensiveness towards others inadvertently rubs off on my relationship with God. If He asks something of me that I believe is unacceptable to others I will not fully receive it in case I feel embarrassed.

“Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.” (Ps24)

Many want more of Jesus and ‘lift up their gates’ to let Him in.  As we do so we understand that the king of kings comes both to bring glory and to rule.  We let him in with an attitude of surrender. Yet ‘Lift up your heads’ implies honour. It is the place where I look people in the eye and speak with confidence and a clear conscience. It is not enough to know in my inner world that I have honour. To stand before God and people with head high I need to be willing to trust God with my outer world.

It has taken years for the Lord to lift my head. I have always walked head down, secure in my inner world, insecure in the outer one. The King encourages me to lift my head secure in His honour. He has been proving that confidence by leading me into situations where I may be misunderstood. As I face them with Him by faith and with openness, I learn that Jesus is faithful and can be trusted with my reputation. So, I lift my head and receive more of what He has for me.

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