Jesus Shall Reign Supreme
God's grace and peace be yours today!
The apostle Paul takes us from the empty tomb to the end of time in a mad dash. He has just affirmed the resurrection, and the truth that the resurrection of Jesus means that we will also experience the resurrection from the dead. When this moment comes in our lives, we will have our physical bodies restored to us, and we will live body, soul, and spirit united once more in the presence of God forever.
But when will that day be? Paul lays it out for us! It is at the end of time when this world has served its purpose and is put away, and all the consequences of the fall and the sin are removed from God's children, and even our enemy of death itself dies!
The apostle Paul says it this way in 1 Corinthians 15:23-28,
But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at his coming, those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be abolished is death. For God has put everything under his feet. Now when it says “everything” is put under him, it is obvious that he who puts everything under him is the exception. When everything is subject to Christ, then the Son himself will also be subject to the one who subjected everything to him, so that God may be all in all.
Paul gives us a chronology of what will take place at the end of time. He tells us what we have already heard, But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at His coming, those who belong to Christ. Christ’s resurrection opens the way for all who believe in Him to be raised to new life when He returns in glory. Paul addresses the very same reality in 1 Thessalonians 4.
Paul then goes on to tell us what happens next! Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. We are told that Jesus ascended to the throne of God where He reigns over all things until the end of time comes. Psalm 110:1 prophesied this was exactly what would happen in the future, “This is the declaration of the LORD to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”
What Paul reveals at this point is that when the end comes, Jesus will joyfully give the completed kingdom to His Father. When all is accomplished and complete, it will be given as a gift for the glory of God!
This begs the question, what is Jesus reigning for now? We don’t see a whole lot of God’s glory in the world today. We still see bloodshed and violence. The strong abuse the weak, the innocent suffer, and injustice reigns around the globe. Is Jesus failing in His reign? What is He seeking to accomplish as He reigns?
If God’s goal was to establish paradise on earth, then the reign of Christ could be considered as failure. If however Jesus is reigning for another purpose, then we must seek to understand what that purpose is and align ourselves with it. What could possibly be the purpose for Jesus reigning upon the throne and over all creation if we do not see the visible fruits of His kingship in the world? The purpose must then be other-worldly!
Other-worldly? What in the world would that mean? It means that God has a divine purpose for Jesus reigning until the end of human history. That purpose is clearly revealed in Scripture, if we would simply listen to what God tells us. Jesus is reigning over all things for the purpose of blessing His Church! He reigns so that the people of God can accomplish the purpose for which we are in the world, which is, the expansion of the kingdom of God and the overthrow of the kingdom of darkness. Jesus reigns so the Church can be the Church which proclaims the Gospel for the salvation of the world.
Paul then tells us the last enemy to be destroyed is death! The last enemy to be abolished is death. On the last great day when the trumpet sounds and Jesus returns, all the tombs and all the graves in all the world for all of history will be empty. Every single person who has ever lived will stand resurrected before Jesus when He returns in glory. Those who had faith will be resurrected unto life eternal. Those who took their stand against God will be resurrected, but they will spend eternity suffering the judgment of God. The point is that death itself dies a miserable death and passes out of existence.
Paul then expounds the relationship of the Son to His Father! The Father has glorified the Son and placed all things under His feet and given Him the reign of His eternal Kingdom. But when the end comes it is the Son who in turn delivers the full and complete Kingdom back to the Father. This is not a jockeying for position, rather a relationship of love by which one seeks to glorify the other and bless the other in every possible way. The Son has done everything to accomplish the return of the children of God to the Father who created them and loves them. Once the work of the Church in the world is complete and the Gospel has accomplished its mission, the children of God are restored to the Father.
For God has put everything under His feet. Now when it says “everything” is put under Him, it is obvious that He who puts everything under Him is the exception. When everything is subject to Christ, then the Son Himself will also be subject to the one who subjected everything to Him, so that God may be all in all.
It is incumbent upon us to understand our role in the Kingdom of God. Christ reigns supreme, the Lord of all. We are blessed to know Him as Savior and serve Him as Lord. Our purpose in this world, the short life we live, is to allow Him to work through us to accomplish what is needful for the salvation of people who are the focus of our Father's heart. It is as we lift up Christ as Savior that the Spirit of God will work to expand the Kingdom of God one heart at a time.
May we be found as faithful subjects who serve our King wholeheartedly.
Pastor Russ
The apostle Paul takes us from the empty tomb to the end of time in a mad dash. He has just affirmed the resurrection, and the truth that the resurrection of Jesus means that we will also experience the resurrection from the dead. When this moment comes in our lives, we will have our physical bodies restored to us, and we will live body, soul, and spirit united once more in the presence of God forever.
But when will that day be? Paul lays it out for us! It is at the end of time when this world has served its purpose and is put away, and all the consequences of the fall and the sin are removed from God's children, and even our enemy of death itself dies!
The apostle Paul says it this way in 1 Corinthians 15:23-28,
But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at his coming, those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be abolished is death. For God has put everything under his feet. Now when it says “everything” is put under him, it is obvious that he who puts everything under him is the exception. When everything is subject to Christ, then the Son himself will also be subject to the one who subjected everything to him, so that God may be all in all.
Paul gives us a chronology of what will take place at the end of time. He tells us what we have already heard, But each in his own order: Christ, the firstfruits; afterward, at His coming, those who belong to Christ. Christ’s resurrection opens the way for all who believe in Him to be raised to new life when He returns in glory. Paul addresses the very same reality in 1 Thessalonians 4.
Paul then goes on to tell us what happens next! Then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father, when he abolishes all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign until he puts all his enemies under his feet. We are told that Jesus ascended to the throne of God where He reigns over all things until the end of time comes. Psalm 110:1 prophesied this was exactly what would happen in the future, “This is the declaration of the LORD to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”
What Paul reveals at this point is that when the end comes, Jesus will joyfully give the completed kingdom to His Father. When all is accomplished and complete, it will be given as a gift for the glory of God!
This begs the question, what is Jesus reigning for now? We don’t see a whole lot of God’s glory in the world today. We still see bloodshed and violence. The strong abuse the weak, the innocent suffer, and injustice reigns around the globe. Is Jesus failing in His reign? What is He seeking to accomplish as He reigns?
If God’s goal was to establish paradise on earth, then the reign of Christ could be considered as failure. If however Jesus is reigning for another purpose, then we must seek to understand what that purpose is and align ourselves with it. What could possibly be the purpose for Jesus reigning upon the throne and over all creation if we do not see the visible fruits of His kingship in the world? The purpose must then be other-worldly!
Other-worldly? What in the world would that mean? It means that God has a divine purpose for Jesus reigning until the end of human history. That purpose is clearly revealed in Scripture, if we would simply listen to what God tells us. Jesus is reigning over all things for the purpose of blessing His Church! He reigns so that the people of God can accomplish the purpose for which we are in the world, which is, the expansion of the kingdom of God and the overthrow of the kingdom of darkness. Jesus reigns so the Church can be the Church which proclaims the Gospel for the salvation of the world.
Paul then tells us the last enemy to be destroyed is death! The last enemy to be abolished is death. On the last great day when the trumpet sounds and Jesus returns, all the tombs and all the graves in all the world for all of history will be empty. Every single person who has ever lived will stand resurrected before Jesus when He returns in glory. Those who had faith will be resurrected unto life eternal. Those who took their stand against God will be resurrected, but they will spend eternity suffering the judgment of God. The point is that death itself dies a miserable death and passes out of existence.
Paul then expounds the relationship of the Son to His Father! The Father has glorified the Son and placed all things under His feet and given Him the reign of His eternal Kingdom. But when the end comes it is the Son who in turn delivers the full and complete Kingdom back to the Father. This is not a jockeying for position, rather a relationship of love by which one seeks to glorify the other and bless the other in every possible way. The Son has done everything to accomplish the return of the children of God to the Father who created them and loves them. Once the work of the Church in the world is complete and the Gospel has accomplished its mission, the children of God are restored to the Father.
For God has put everything under His feet. Now when it says “everything” is put under Him, it is obvious that He who puts everything under Him is the exception. When everything is subject to Christ, then the Son Himself will also be subject to the one who subjected everything to Him, so that God may be all in all.
It is incumbent upon us to understand our role in the Kingdom of God. Christ reigns supreme, the Lord of all. We are blessed to know Him as Savior and serve Him as Lord. Our purpose in this world, the short life we live, is to allow Him to work through us to accomplish what is needful for the salvation of people who are the focus of our Father's heart. It is as we lift up Christ as Savior that the Spirit of God will work to expand the Kingdom of God one heart at a time.
May we be found as faithful subjects who serve our King wholeheartedly.
Pastor Russ
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