Luke 1.32‐33 — The Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.
The One who came into our world was then, and is now, The King. Luke uses three words that tell us that Our Messiah would be a king: throne; reign; and kingdom. And that makes it challenging for us in America today because we believe in democracy, not kingdoms.
Democracy is what the world is moving toward. It’s what we are fighting for in our wars. Rulership by a king is seen by us as a primitive, invasive form of government. Democracies are more advanced, more educated, more suitable for the modern world.
Many philosophers believed in democracy because they thought mankind so wise and good that everyone deserved a share in the government. The danger of defending democracy on those grounds is that it’s not true. The real reason for democracy is that Mankind is so broken that no man can be trusted with unchecked power over his fellows.
Thus, the only legitimate reason that kingship is not attractive to us is because in our world the only kings available are finite and sinful. If there could be a king who was not limited in his wisdom and power and goodness and love for his subjects, then monarchy would be the best of all governments. If such a ruler could ever rise in the world — with no weakness; no folly; no sin — then no wise and sensible person would ever want democracy again.
Christmas is the amazing story that the earthly Throne of David was given by God our Lord, to His Son the King. That is the “Good News, of Great Joy”; to all people of every age. It is about something God did in history. Christmas has no true meaning independent of God. It starts with God. It comes from God. An angel was sent from God. It has an American meaning without God. It has a European meaning without God. But it can’t have a historically true meaning.
This King will never be replaced: “...of His Kingdom, there will be no end.” (Luke 1.33) There will never be elections held for a new President of the universe. There will never be a successor sitting upon the throne of Jesus. His kingdom is forever. His salvation and his protection are forever.
Merry Christmas!
Pastor Steve