Kings

What does it mean to be a king?

We know that a king has the complete power and authority to rule over his sovereign nation as he sees fit. Historically, monarchs have inherited their throne through their genealogy, or otherwise they’re appointed due to their military prowess or leadership abilities.

But what does it mean to rule?

The good kings exercise their authority when they deem it necessary to preserve peace and promote prosperity.

The bad kings abuse their authority by exploiting their own people for their own selfish ends. When this happens, their kingdoms are eventually lost through wars, revolutions, invaders or usurpers.

Kings and tyrants

What’s the difference between a king and a tyrant?

The famous iconography of “Christ the King” has become more popular lately as the slow progression of government infringement on human rights has begun to awaken some out of their slumber.

Interestingly, tyranny is blossoming even without a king or a tyrant on the throne.

Yet the phrase, “Christ is King,” has not been well-received by some, as it has been dubbed too narrow-minded and “exclusionary” towards other religions.

It also doesn’t include those who profess total allegiance to political parties and their leaders.

So how can Christians make such a bigoted claim?

Well, this forces us to consider: Is it really bigoted if it’s true? And, isn’t that the point–that Jesus Christ’s divine Kingship transcends worldly religions, governments and leaders? That He is the rightful king of all creation in existence (Col 2:9-10)?

Yet we know that declaring Jesus Christ as “king” can have ugly consequences if we live under a tyrannical government.

For example, we know this was true for Mexican Catholics not that long ago during the little-known Cristero War of the 1920’s. President Plutarco Elias Calles’ bloody “Calles Law” resulted in the martyrdom of thousands in an effort to stamp out Catholicism in Mexico. It didn’t work.

Interestingly, the battle cry of the Cristero Freedom Fighters was “Viva Cristo Rey!”—Long live Christ the King–and were often their last words before being murdered by the government’s firing squad.

But why do we (especially Americans) wince at this talk of sovereignty and kingship? Isn’t it nothing less than our pride with the inclination to make ourselves kings of our own mini “sovereign nations?”

And where has this gotten us?

Slaves and usurpers

This is no different than the tantalizing lie the serpent whispered to Eve, “You will be like God,” right before our First Parents gave God the proverbial middle finger, denouncing His divine Fatherhood and declaring Him to be a tyrant.

The lie was that they would be free when, in fact, they and their posterity were made into slaves.

Since we are religious beings, we all serve something–whether it is ourselves, our devices, our busy to-do lists, our routines, our addictions, our comfort-compulsions, or our favorite hobbies–it matters not–we are beings made for worship.

It stands to reason therefore that, in order serve God, we have to usurp our allegiance to these things.

But what happens when we are stuck? What if we are slaves to our own inclinations, guilt, fantasies and entertainment and cannot be servants of charity to the God who loves us?

That is why Jesus Christ came. He alone is the sole authority because He is the Personification of God, and the only rightful King we should serve.

Under the kingship of Jesus Christ, we can become the usurpers and truly be free.

Earthly kings

Yet for all the abuse of power, there is one thing some kings of Christendom got right: their authority fell under the authority of Jesus Christ and their kingship was not divorced from their service to God.

King Jan Sobieski who led the charge at the Battle of Vienna, sang the Polish-Lithuanian battle hymn, “Bogurodzica” (“Mother of God“), the national anthem of Poland, with his men leading up to battle. He is an example of a king who relied on the power of God.

This was their powerful hymn:

In English it is translated:

“Virgin, Mother of God, God-famed Mary!

Ask Thy Son, our Lord, God-named Mary,

To have mercy upon us and hand it over to us!

Kyrie eleison!

Son of God, for Thy Baptist’s sake,

Hear the voices, fulfill the pleas we make!

Listen to the prayer we say,

For what we ask, give us today:

Life on earth free of vice;

After life: paradise!

Kyrie eleison!”

But many of these kings also fell into the temptation of absolute power and control without reverence to God.

And when Christian kings don’t comply with God’s laws (the Ten Commandments), they are no better than their pagan counterparts whose kingdoms disintegrate from the moral rot within.

They become no longer kings but tyrants.

Freedom

Yet we are made to be free.

And if there isn’t an objective moral code to live by, how can we ever truly be free?

The confusion lies in the definition of the word, “freedom” which, like many other words such as “love” and “judgement,” has also been redefined to suit the purposes of the world.

Christian freedom is defined by the amount of free will we possess without other impediments limiting that will.

For example, the person addicted to pornography has limited freedom and has made himself into a slave. The person possessed by a demon has almost all his freedom taken away, yet his soul remains untouched because it is the property of God alone.

The worldly deception of freedom rests on our pride–to be our own reigning arbiters of morality–just like Adam and Eve.

But this cannot be because all action (or inaction) has consequences, for better or for worse. And without Jesus Christ as the foundation for all our decisions, we will always fall into slavery by our own sinfulness and by the grave sins of others.

The divine King

It is no accident that Jesus always referred to the work He did in the framework of establishing a “kingdom.” In His very first sermon He cried, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt 4:17).

Of course by doing this, Jesus declared Himself the divine King and usurper of Satan, the reigning “tyrant” of the world.

By giving His life for us, He established His definitive sovereignty over heaven and earth—not with a scepter or a crown of gold–but with a Cross and a crown of thorns.

And it is only by our continual acceptance of His Kingship that we truly remain free–even amid the looming prospect of increasing tyranny in the world.

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Mt 28:18-20).