Christ Our King

On this day on which we commemorate the death of our Savior on Calvary - a day called "Good Friday," even though things didn't look so good.  Jesus suffered brutal humiliation, enormous pain, and ultimately, He surrendered to death.

But, death could not hold Him - He rose from the dead on that Resurrection Sunday, and He is seated at the right hand of God the Father.  He is the King, the Messiah who was promised.

In Acts 13, in a passage in which he recounts the history of Israel and stresses the significance of Jesus, the apostle Paul declared, beginning in verse 20:

20 After that He gave them judges for about four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet.

21 And afterward they asked for a king; so God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.
22 And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, 'I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.'
23 From this man's seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior--Jesus--

He spoke about the death and resurrection of Jesus and stated:
32 And we declare to you glad tidings--that promise which was made to the fathers.
33 God has fulfilled this for us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm: 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.'
34 And that He raised Him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken thus: 'I will give you the sure mercies of David.'

There is a certain connection between David and Jesus - and there's a new series that recently completed its first season on Amazon Prime.  It's called, House of David, and co-executive producer, and co-director of the series, Jon Erwin was a recent guest on The Meeting House on Faith Radio.

A Christian Post article recently quoted from Greg Laurie, Senior Pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in California and speaker on A New Beginning weekdays at 2:00 p.m. on Faith Radio.  He said: “I think this is one of the greatest evangelistic opportunities in recent history...No movie will ever take the place of the Gospel or the Bible, nor should it. But if it inspires people who've never read the Bible before or have no relationship with God to want to know more, then this is something we should be celebrating, not critiquing.”

The article goes on to say that Greg Laurie...

...served as a consultant on the series, helmed by “Jesus Revolution” filmmakers Jon Erwin and Jon Gunn, and produced a newly released documentary titled “Beyond the House of David,” which debuted the same day as the show’s premiere. He also authored a 30-day devotional to accompany the series, aiming to help viewers deepen their understanding of David’s life and legacy.

About that devotional, Laurie states:

“For me, it was like … David effectively kept a diary,” Laurie said. “He put many of his thoughts down on paper. Probably, many were originally songs. But it’s called the book of Psalms — David’s diary. He’s very honest. When he’s down, he talks about being down. But then he’ll say, ‘Hope in God, for I will yet trust Him.’ He laments, then corrects his own thinking.”

Laurie stressed that this raw emotional and spiritual honesty is why David is called “a man after God’s own heart.” “He didn’t put on pretenses. He was flawed. He knew it. But he had this heart for the Lord.”

The article also notes:

David’s story, of course, is not without profound failure, the pastor said, adding: “People remember David and Goliath, his greatest victory. And David and Bathsheba, his worst defeat. But we must not forget that God forgave David. His life was redeemed. He made it into the Messianic line.”

That redemptive thread, Laurie stressed, is critical for modern believers facing temptation, regret and spiritual distance. “There’s nothing new under the sun,” Laurie said, quoting David’s son, Solomon. “The same God that sustained David on a literal battlefield will certainly sustain the believer today.”

And, according to CBN.com, the lead actor, who plays the role of David, has been impacted by playing the title character.  Michael Iskander says: “I think David is one of the most interesting people because … there’s so much duality in him,” adding, “He’s the epitome of what it means to be human, to make mistakes, but to truly have a heart for God — and a heart that seeks after God’s own heart.”

The article continues by saying:

Iskander, who said he feels “blessed” to be able to tell this story, explained how his experience portraying David transformed how he sees Scripture and the people presented within it.

“Now, I view it from a point of view as just human beings,” he said. “And so I put the context of that time and of these people into the story … it just puts a whole different perspective on the Bible, and I think it makes it that much more interesting to read and to discover.”

Iskander said it’s exciting to be able to have such a fascinating lens into Scripture. He spoke about the importance of trusting God and allowing the Lord to guide His path, citing Proverbs 3:5-6. In the end, he knows “House of David” is entertainment for many, but believes the project is really all about the Lord.

So, on this Good Friday, we honor the Suffering Servant, the Man of Sorrows, according to Isaiah 53, who is our Savior, our Redeemer, and our King. The fifth verse of that chapter says, "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed."

The Bible is full of flawed characters, like David, who experienced the forgiveness and redemption of God.  We are all in need of a Savior, and Jesus, who defeated the power of sin and death and sits at the right hand of the throne of God, desires to sit on the throne of our lives - in Him, we find hope, redemption, true love, and true peace.  We can perhaps identify with David in some of his struggles, as we read about in the Psalms, but we can also see if we identify with Jesus, who paid the penalty for sin, we can also identify with Him in His righteousness and holiness.  We are cursed in our flesh, yet made alive in the Spirit. 

Jesus came to us as a man, and the Bible reminds us that we can follow in His footsteps.  He was an example for us, and He paid the ultimate price by dying for our sins, so that we can consider ourselves dead to sin in Jesus and allow His Spirit to take control of us.  We can worship and serve the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.