King of Kings

Each Easter I pull out an old Sandi Patty CD with the song “Who Will Call Him of Kings?” on it. This year as I listened to the song, I thought how Pilate ordered the words “King of the Jews” to be inscribed on a plaque and hung above Jesus’ head on the cross.  It was not only a derisive title but also an indictment as there was only one acknowledged king in the Roman Empire: Caesar. To say otherwise meant certain death.

To call Jesus king means to accept His absolute authority and to completely surrender to Him which often puts Christians at odds with the world. For first-century Christians, calling Jesus king meant the possibility of facing a death penalty. But to do otherwise meant denying and devaluing the truth of Jesus’ identity. Through the centuries, Jesus followers have been and continue to be executed for following Him. That fact makes the declaration, “We will call Him King of Kings” in the Sandi Patty song all the more poignant.

The song not only tells of the early disciples’ faithfulness, but issues a call to action to us today. My favorite line tells of the disciples’ response at the empty tomb: “They ran as fast as feet could fly, ‘The Lord is risen’ was their cry!” That should be our response to Easter Sunday, too. We should run to tell everyone we meet of the good news of Jesus’ resurrection, for it is only His death and resurrection which atones for our sins and assures us of an eternal hope of life with Him.

1 Timothy 6:14-15: “…until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which God will bring about in his own time—God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, ...”