One day in heaven …
- Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9–11 NIV84).
But what about now?
That was my thought. Yes, one day everyone will bow before the King. But why wait? What about now? And I have to admit that I was thinking more of Christians at the time, those who profess allegiance to the King of kings and Lord of lords.
I had been “sitting on” these thoughts for about a week and then was motivated by a friend’s Facebook post this morning. “Kim Jong-Il and Christopher Hitchens have both discovered that Jesus Christ is Lord.”
Too late …
Too late for Kim and Christopher. They won’t wake up from the bad dream and discover that it is Christmas morning after all. No Scrooge experience for them. For the first time ever their eyes will be open to the reality of life and the reality of God. Their blind eyes now see but not until they were dead. Now they know. Tragically too late.
Now on a dark planet far from the throne room of the great King …
What about us?
Think of the opportunity we have as Christians to bow before God now, to live under the rule of King Jesus now in every aspect of our lives.
The ideal place to bow …
A planet shrouded in darkness, ruled by an evil despot and far from the throne room of the King is just the place to bow. Everyone will bow in heaven but what about now? Excellent opportunity indeed that God has presented to us.
- In a land of the blind, we see.
- In a land of the dead, we live.
- In a land of haters, we love.
- In a land of the rebels, we bow.
We bow …
We bow, we bow, we bow! Yes and amen! Far from the throne of God we bow and live under the rule of King Jesus. Praise the King! Praise the name of Jesus!
So my Christian brothers and sisters, what about now?
Are we making the most of this fantastic opportunity to bring glory to our King? Often it doesn’t seem so. Too much of us. Too much of our agendas, our feelings, our desires. Too much taking care of ourselves, too little trusting in the benevolent rule of King.
Just think for a moment how careful you will be in dealing with some of the people who profess Jesus in your life this week. Careful not to offend, not to say the wrong thing, because you know there is a price to pay if you do. People who don’t bow usurp the authority of the King and seek vengeance. (See Romans 12:19 for the King’s own words.)
Do you know why we don’t bow?
Because we don’t trust the King to care for us. And we don’t trust because we are not tasting his goodness. And we are not tasting his goodness because we do not take refuge in him.
- O taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him (Psalm 34:8 NASB95)!
The blessing comes in the refuge of the King. We must trust God with our lives, our real lives, not merely our professions of belief and theological assent, but our lives. We will never taste his care if we do not submit ourselves to his care.
The best place in the entire universe …
The best place in the universe is bowed before the King. Whether still on the dark planet or in his throne room, there is no place that is as right and true as the created one bowed before the Creator, the redeemed one bowed before the Redeemer.
Now is the time to bow low before King Jesus.
All hail King Jesus! All hail Emmanuel!
- Let all the world look to me for salvation! For I am God; there is no other. 23 I have sworn by my own name; I have spoken the truth, and I will never go back on my word: Every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will confess allegiance to me.” 24 The people will declare, “The LORD is the source of all my righteousness and strength.” And all who were angry with him will come to him and be ashamed (Isaiah 45:22–24 NLT).
- It is written: “ ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God’ ” (Romans 14:11 NIV84).
- Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9–11 NIV84).
