Pomp and Circumstance
Coronation Day–did you watch it? Yesterday Charles III of Great Britain was crowned. What a sight! It was certainly a feast for the senses.
Gorgeous regalia, rich in color and meaning, was displayed in dress and banners and flags inside the magnificent Westminster Abbey.
The building itself rather makes one stare in awe. That place is incredible.
And what about the music? Oh, my goodness…they presented truly majestic compositions, played and sung to perfection. I hope you had the sound cranked up, enough to relish the lovely, lofty sounds of music. I did.
Come, step inside this Abbey and see a king enthroned. See the golden crown come down upon his head. Hear him swear his fealty, even as he kneels and promises good things in the Name of God Almighty.
We somehow want a king to hold the globe under the cross, to bear the royal scepter, and to walk tall and strong in his majestic, regal authority. We need a leader. We need one better than us. We need a king.
Yet, in all honesty, this king will not do. I mean, Charles Philip Arthur George, now known as “Charles the Third, by the Grace of God of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of His other Realms and Territories, King, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith” is after all, only a man.
There is no monarch upon whom a people or a nation or an individual can honestly set their hopes. We need a King Who is perfect in every way; One to whom we can bow the knee with all zeal, and reverence, and adoration.
We Need The King of Kings
Watching an earthly king crowned, like many millions around the globe did yesterday, was something pretty special. It was full of ritual, bringing into our modern lives a bit of days gone by, of centuries long past, when kings were the norm.
Yet what we observed is pretty much nothing. Zip. Zero. It is only a tiny little foretaste of what real majesty looks like. At some future day, we shall know more.
The Bible says that one day every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of Father God Most High.
Enjoy with me this amazing passage from a letter Paul wrote to his friends at Philippi.
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant,
being born in the likeness of men.
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Philippians 2:5-8
Note how we are invited to empty ourselves of our pride, and to join Christ in humility and service. He is our example. God, being pleased with this work of His Son, has rewarded Him with exaltation. Read on:
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:9-11
We can somehow bear the reality of what Christ accomplished, all He went through for the world, because of the eternal rewards from His Father. It will be the best day ever, that day when he returns, sets all things to rights, and reigns upon the renewed earth.
In my vision in the night I continued to watch, and I saw One like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence.
He was given dominion, glory, and kingship, that the people of every nation and language should serve Him.
Daniel 7:13-14
How shall we bear it, on that day, when we catch a glimpse of that throne-room, where our Lord resides? So much more beautiful than Westminster Abbey. It will be worth the wait.
One Day
One day a great throng of believers will gather together and unite our voices in praise. There will be many of us, so very many, together at last, offering Him our anthems of praise.
We will fall down before the perfect, all-knowing, all-loving Majesty of all time and all places.
This is real. It’s not some pie-in-the-sky happy notion. It’s not just words in some ancient text. See it; close your eyes and apprehend it. You, my friend, who love and follow the Lord Jesus, will be there, joining your voice with all the others in musical numbers even more amazing than what was heard yesterday in Westminster Abbey.
But let’s not wait till then. Lift up your voice in song to your Monarch today! Here are just a few: Worship His Majesty, We All Bow Down.
Gifts Fit For a King
Yesterday Charles III was given some amazing gifts.
He was given a sword.
He was given a globe and a scepter and a robe made of golden thread.
He was given a crown.
He was given a kingdom.
And, he was given something else. There was something else, an item far better than those others. It was the best gift of all.
The gift was not the show-piece of the day. I mean, Charles showed up for the crown.
The folks showed up to see their golden-clad king in a golden-clad carriage.
What is this gift? Do you know of what I speak? He got it pretty early on in the ceremony.
He seemed genuinely touched to receive this gift. In fact, when it was removed, the king seemed genuinely saddened.
Did you see the moment when he was gifted with The Book? It was pretty cool.
The Most Valuable Thing the World Has to Offer
The RT Reverend Ian Greenshields, Moderator of the General Assembly of Church of Scotland, presented the Scriptures to the king, that he might recognize the authority of the Word of God.
The book was made just for this man, to be presented to him on his coronation day. There isn’t another like it. One of one.
Here is what the RT Reverend said to Charles III, as he presented his gift.
“Sir, to keep you ever mindful of the law and the gospel of God, as the rule for the whole life and government of Christian princes, receive this Book, the most valuable thing that the world has to offer.
Here is wisdom.
This is the royal law.
These are the lively oracles of God.”
The short speech seemed to register with the king. It was a touching moment. If you can find the moment online it’s a beautiful thing to behold.
As the RT Reverent Greenshields finished his short speech, he bent down and took the book back.
The king seemed reluctant as he watched it go. There was almost a wistful look, a moment of longing, perhaps, as he sadly watched his beautiful new Gift get moved aside.
May we live our lives in recognition of this most valuable gift!
May we desire it, love it, and read it. May we, too, never want to let it out of our sight. O may we live our lives in humble obedience to its teachings and in communion with its Author.
The Bible is, after all, the most valuable thing that the world has to offer. Here is wisdom. This is the royal law. These are the lively oracles of God.