Jul
23
2013
Royalty
Imagine if we treated all unborn children as royalty.
I saw that comment on Facebook soon after the future king of England was born.
People tend to park themselves in one camp or another concerning a royal birth.
Interested…not interested.
The birth of any baby is miraculous and a reason to celebrate.
I thought of the concept of royalty vs. commoner while at a restaurant.
My youngest son is part of a worship ministry and plays drums in the worship band.
The praise rally we attended was over at 8:30 pm.
I have not seen him for a few weeks and loved having the extra time with him.
His three sisters and I set out for a local restaurant to get something light to eat.
I looked around wondering about the stories of the other people in the restaurant.
We were all eating quite late.
The hard working waitress took our order and brought the food to us quickly.
She periodically checked on us to see if we needed anything.
By the time we left the restaurant, it was after 10:00 at night.
I thought of the waitresses who probably have their own homes and families.
I thought of how hard working people keep the wheels of our economy turning.
Honorable jobs…jobs that require serving and dealing with the public.
I am sure it isn’t always easy…even on a good day.
I was so thankful for her and for the other waitresses.
They made it possible for us to sit a while and enjoy the time we had together.
Waitresses, hair stylists, cashiers, sanitation workers, janitors…
Teachers, police officers, firemen, soldiers, nurses, emergency medical personnel…
The creme de la creme!
Without those who serve so selflessly, life would be at a standstill.
Talk to someone in the service industry and you will get the pulse beat of our country.
Often our leaders take on the persona of royalty and remain above the “common people”.
They have forgotten what a privilege it is to serve!
They have forgotten that without the “common people”, they would not have a job.
Simply by birth, through no merit of their own, one becomes royalty.
If not a royal, then most of us would be common.
That’s fine with me!
What if all of us were treated like royalty?
What if we were considered children of the King?
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you have not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9,10)
There was a battle cry of the American Revolution. Paul Revere arrived to warn the colonists of the approaching Redcoats. The next morning, the British Major Pitcairn shouted to the assembled minutemen, and told them to disperse and lay down their arms in the name of George the Sovereign King of England. Reverend Jonas Clarke, a Lexington minister, immediately responded.
We recognize no Sovereign but God and no King but Jesus.
A little baby was born in a manger in Bethlehem.
That little baby, for all intents and purposes, looked about as common as could be.
That little baby was the One and Only…the True King…the Son of God.
That baby grew from boyhood to manhood.
He was both human and Divine.
Jesus is our Prophet, Priest, and King.
One King.
That King hung on a cross after being beaten, mocked, and scourged.
A royal robe was placed over His bleeding shoulders, the fabric sticking to the dried blood.
A crown was made out of twisted thorns and firmly pressed into His brow.
A nearby staff was placed in His right hand.
The soldiers knelt in front of Him and mocked Him.
“Hail, king of the Jews!”
Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, My servants would fight to prevent My arrest by the Jews. But now My kingdom is from another place.”
“You are a king then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, ” You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me.”
“What is truth?” Pilate asked. (John 18:36-38)
As believers in the Lord Jesus, we have trusted in His finished work on the cross.
We trust in Jesus alone for our salvation.
We are sons and daughters of the King!
We are no longer common!
We are royalty…through no merit of our own!
Unborn babies…through adulthood…until He calls us Home.
ROYALTY!
What if we treated everyone we met as if they were royalty?
If we are in Christ, we are royalty.
Our King has come.
Our King will come back!
Oh the royal fanfare on the Day He returns!
No King but Jesus!
Amen, Come King Jesus!!