Welcome, friends, to another
broadcast of Morsels for Zion's Poor. The Lord has ordained that
His people praise Him. In fact, when the Pharisees told
Him to rebuke those who praised Him, He said, I tell you that
if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately
cry out. The message that He delivered was that it was impossible
that the sons of God should not praise Him. Praise and worship
is the natural result of the work of the Spirit of God in
His children, as He reveals to them the glory, person, and work
of Jesus Christ. Religion can teach men to go
through the motions of praise, singing of songs, lifting of
the hands, etc., but only the Spirit can burn the necessity
of praise into a man's heart. This is what the Lord meant when
He told the woman at the well, But the hour cometh, and now
is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father, in
spirit and in truth. For the Father seeketh such to
worship Him. David desired to build an earthly
temple for the Lord, but he was not allowed to do so. But the
Lord, speaking through the prophet Nathan, told David, I will set
up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels,
and I will establish his kingdom. And thine house and thy kingdom
shall be established forever before thee, thy throne shall
be established forever. David at the time, and the Jews
afterward, considered that the Lord meant that one of David's
descendants would sit on a literal throne in Jerusalem forever.
In fact, Solomon even entertained that notion that he would do
so. Yet how art the mighty fallen? The wisest man on earth became
an idol worshiper along with his heathen wives, and ultimately
succumbed to the same death as all sinful flesh. Then, after
a few years, the grand temple that Solomon built was destroyed
and its riches carried away to Babylon. Some of the glory was
restored in the days of Nehemiah, but the nation of Israel was
once again conquered and was living in servitude under the
Roman Empire when the Lord Jesus Christ made his triumphal entry
into Jerusalem upon a colt, the foal of an ass. The Jews believed
a Messiah or Savior would come and recapture that throne and
unite and restore the kingdom of Israel to its former glory.
No earthly power could have taught these people that this carpenter
from Nazareth was indeed the true son of David, which would
sit upon the throne of his kingdom forever. Yet here the multitude
were casting palm fronds and flowers in his path and shouting
and singing his praise. The Lord chose to have them bear
witness to his kingship on this day. These Jews, along with the
Lord's own disciples, were convinced that the one who was the son
of David would surely rise up against their Roman oppressors
and set them free, as he once again occupied an earthly throne.
None of them had any understanding of the true nature of the freedom
and deliverance that he came to establish, nor did they understand
that his kingdom is not of this earth and has no literal throne
in the city of Jerusalem. If the kingdom which Christ came
to establish is one of flesh and blood, then the promise which
He gave to David many years before would have been broken, because
the Lord said the kingdom would be established forever. But for
over 400 years no one sat on that throne. The reality is that
when the promise was given to David, it was a promise that
the eternal king would occupy the throne of a kingdom which
would never pass away. There are still multitudes even
in the present day who are convinced mistakenly that there is going
to be a reestablishing of the kingdom of Israel in a literal
fleshly sense. The kingdom of the Lord Jesus
Christ has never changed from its inception throughout its
continual reign and will not change in the future. Jesus Christ
is the fulfillment of all prophecies and the revelation of all mysteries
which the Lord of Glory intends for men to know. As the son of
David, the Lord Jesus has established his kingdom totally without any
aid from men. As the son of David, he has become
both the apple of his father's eye as well as the hope and desire
of the true Israel of God. As the son of David, he meekly
entered Jerusalem seated upon an ass, befitting a king of Israel. But when he returns, it will
be upon a white horse, befitting the king of glory, in flaming
fire taking vengeance on them that know not God. For unto us
a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government
shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful
Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince
of Peace. Of the increase of his government
and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David and
upon his kingdom, to order it and to establish it with judgment
and with justice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the
Lord of hosts will perform this. Do you worship at his throne?
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