Just as surely as I post this writing of THE DEATH OF THE KING there will be some who will immediately think that I am writing of Elvis Presley or Michael Jackson. Not so on my part. As I thought of this title I was not even thinking of those two but of the One who is the genuine King of all kings; including the king of rock, and of pop as the world has called them.
It is sad that far too many people mourn the lives of two men whose lives were controlled by popularity, power, money, and drugs; and eventually taken possibly by the same things and drugs. Their lives are sad examples of wasted living, and wasted lives.
Enough about those lives, and on to the One whose life, though short was lived to glorify the Father, and to give His own life for the salvation of sinful men, and women.
It is sad to see a man live His life for good, God, and His glory; and then to have it taken from Him due to sin. Lust, power, envy, greed, politics, covetousness, popularity, and every sin among men who loved darkness rather than light had this man condemned to die. The ugliest of mankind was seen on the day or our Lord’s death.
Hear the words of Jesus –
“And while they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men: And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry.” Matthew 17:22-23 (KJV)
Jesus had just spent time correcting His disciples concerning the reason why they could not cast a demon from a young man. They had tried and failed. The father of the boy was frustrated with them, and when Jesus came down from the mountain where He was transfigured before their eyes, took this boy and cast the demon out of him without much thought.
Now, while they are in Galilee Jesus tells them, as He has before of His death which is approaching. There is much evidence in the Gospels that Jesus’s heart was set on going to Jerusalem for the distinct purpose to die; and to do so for the sins of the world. And by the hands of sinful men be judged, found guilty (without guilt), beaten and whipped, mocked, be nailed to a cross, and hung on that tree (“Cursed is the man that hangeth on a tree” Galations 3:13; Deuteronomy 21:23), and took the curse that was meant for us all; the curse of sin and death.
It seems that the disciples, as Jesus spoke to them, were not thinking of who He was talking about or something. It had not sunk into their blind minds of whom He referred.
Of course Jesus was speaking of Himself who would die, and on the “third day rise again”. It could be too, that they heard the part about His death, but the part of the resurrection was not assimilated into their thinking. Thus they were sorry for His death.
We have this assurance that Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:1-8), and there was a multitude of witnesses.
Believe on Jesus Christ, trust your life to His care, and you will be saved for all eternity. There is no other way but through Jesus Christ.
-Tim A. Blankenship
The Fire and Hammer 
Hi,
Appreciate your stand for the gospel. I’m seeing that in every age it has meant something different. In Noah’s time the gospel meant being saved from the flood. For Abraham, it meant land, in Moses’ day, it was deliverance from bondage. Christ offered eternal life. The good news is better for us—all of the above!
I just put up a new webpage suggesting that Christ’s words in Mark 1:15, “the time is fulfilled, the kingdom of heaven is at hand, repent and believe the gospel” has an end-time application and means more for us than anytime past. I wonder what you think?
Thank you for considering it,
Richard Ruhling
http://www.Exodus2.info
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Richard, Thanks for dropping in. Appreciate your comments. The gospel of Jesus Christ is precious. There is nothing in the world like it, and so life changing.
T.A.
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john the baptist went up against political royalty and had his head chopped.
jesus too went up against Caesar( he called him satan too), though was cautious when the pharisees on many occasions tried to “trap” him.
i believe he avoided treason or sedition(he tackled tricky questions with wit) long enough to fulfill his short lived ministry.
ultimately, an ambiguous message must at some point be clear to some people and thus…..
Luke 23:
1Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. 2And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man SUBVERTING our nation. He OPPOSES payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ,[a] a KING.”
as you can see, the above were serious charges that could get anyone killed or imprisoned at that time.
jesus paid the price not because he preached christianity “four spiritual laws”. he meddled with politics and paid the ultimate price.
today, there are still countries who would imprison people for offending or showing disrespect to the monarch – e.g thailand.
why oppose these kings? long story.
christianity failed to apprehend a powerful political message hidden in the bible instead, she told a superstitious story full of unsubstantiated claims. it will take too long, a whole book perhaps, to explain.
tim, thank you for a fair exchange in your blog. the honor is yours to have the last word.
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Yes Jesus opposed wicked kings and kingdoms. Yet it was the religious leaders who led Him to His death. His coming in birth was foretold by the prophet Isaiah (7:14ff), and His death in (chapter 53), and the Scriptures bear it out that His death was to atone for the sins of mankind. The Just for the unjust.
The Bible is about God and His glory, and His redemption of the people who believe Him. Jesus is the central character and theme of the Bible. Revelation 19:10 says in part “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy”.
Superstition causes fear; the love of God cast out fear. One day all will bow before the one whom Scripture reveals. Those who bow before Him now will live with Him forever in glory. Those who do it too late will go into everlasting torment.
As I wrote earlier in our discussion, Passerby, you need to be 100 percent sure you are correct if you are to go on in your assumption of the view you have of the Bible.
I am assured of the fact that Jesus lived a life without sin, that He was nailed on a cross, became the sins of mankind (2 Corinthians 5:21), took the wrath and judgment of the Father for sin, died, was buried, and He rose again. My sins and the sins of all mankind were imputed to Him; His righteousness was imputed to me and all who will believe, making us righteous before holy God. God is glorified through it all; Jesus is glorified by being seated by the right hand of the Father. It is about God and His glory.
T.A.
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Tim,
of the few that i have engaged in the internet, your response, as a christian, is most respectful and mature – unlike many other chrsitians who drove me out of their blog or censor/moderate my contrarian views( why fear if you think your view is the truth? why fear contrarian view when god is light and no darkness will prevail against him?)
i understand and respect your views. i have myself immersed in evangelical of various denominations for years. not until when i left institutional churches, because a pastor friend wanted control over my faith, my questioning mind was allowed the freedom to explore outside of the religious traditional box.
and what i am seeing now( the biblical message) makes so much better sense and is totally in touch with the real world i am living in. unlike christianity, with her bloody/violent history and tendency to alienate/divide people etc, the gospel does actually draws ALL MEN to jesus.
how so?
if like daniel, when Nebuchadnezzar told him of his dream of a tree, daniel did not see a literal tree but a political KING( daniel 4: 20 -22), then you will become relevant to the city/nation and the people(ALL MEN) you are in.
you cannot deny the bible deals with social political issues( from the fall and rise of babylon to the romans empire etc). and it has to be seen in that context
christianity has diluted a powerful message into one of…domestic issues and petty personal problems revolving around mostly unsubstantiated supernatural/superstitious claims.
finally, think about why jesus often spoke in parables/cryptic language( not meant to be literal).
clue: he lived under the rule of CAESAR and hypocritical religious authority who were out to…KILL him!
what would you say or do under those circumstances? speak literally?
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Passerby,
First thank you for the compliment. I follow Jesus because I believe Him to be true, and literal, though I know He spoke in parables, and that had a purpose which He explains in Matthew 13. Daniel also knew the beasts to represent kingdoms of men, and that was how he saw them, and what he prophesied came to pass just as he said. History bears it out.
He interpreted the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, of the image with the head of gold and feet mixed of clay and iron, and as being kingdoms of men; then saw the visions as those things.
You notice God sees the kingdoms of men as beasts. Ravenous, destructive, yes I see that too, but the kingdoms of men will end, and the Kingdom of Christ will be established forever.
I think it is a good thing to learn about the other religions of the world; but then I think the obvious conclusion will be that Jesus Christ is the only answer for the world, sin, and our relationship and fellowship with God.
The world and the kingdoms of men are not eternal. God, His Son Jesus and His kingdom is forever.
By the way; Jesus spoke literally enough He still was crucified. That is, afterall why He came. Fulfilling the righteousness of God His Father, and His Word.
T.A.
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stop and think about what happened at the garden of eden.do you think god will condemn humanity over a piece of fruit?
the story of eden is an allegory of political and religious hegemony. go study biblical types and symbolism and maybe you will better appreciate a far deeper and more sensible interpretation of the beginning of man’s tragedy(death) than what was traditionally taught by dead theologians who lived centuries ago.
jesus indeed is the way the truth and the life. sin, not referring to moral failing of our humanity, does lead to death. and the WAGES of sin is … death.
Wage is associated with MAMMON. the root of all EVIL is the rule of MAMMON. again, the WAGES of SIN leads to EVIL which brings death…as the ravages of capitalism has clearly shown.
that is only one aspect of SIN and it has nothing to do with your humanity which you failed to address in my last post.
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You read too much into, and miss the forest for the trees. i have been studying the Scriptures for over thirty years, and the literal interpretation is God’s interpretation.
prophecies given of Christ, his human birth, his death, burial and resurrection happened literally as spoken. He will return as literally spoken. There is a real heaven and a real hell with flames.
God created mankind for Himself, and His glory, and you and I will face Him one day to give an account of our lives. It only depends on which end of the judgment we will stand. I know that I will be standing by the side of my Lord and Savior. Not for any good I do or don’t do, but because of the literal blood of Jesus Christ that was shed for my salvation.
It is not opinion that will count it is His.
You had better be 100 percent sure you are correct in you assumptions, or you will perish, without Him and burn in Hell.
T.A.
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i think you are confusing your humanity with SIN in the bible. the bible concept of SIN is actually, TOP DOWN RULE in the form of religious or non religious hegemony. if you think your god created humanity as sinful, you need help because, NO WHERE in the bible it condemns your humanity!
there is nothing wrong with being an imperfect human. your theologians messed up the word of god….BIG TIME!
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When the apostle Paul wrote, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) he was speaking of each individual.
God did not create us with sin. Sin is the transgression of His law. Adam transgressed His command “Do not eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. In the day you do you will die.” (Genesis 2″17). I am not confused about the word of God, nor its teaching on sin or the teachings of God.
God is quite clear about sin, our guilt, and His payment for our sin in the death, burial and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ.
He is exclusively the only way to God. It is Jesus who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me.” (John 14:6).
I am glad you were “passing by” but I do pray you will hear the truth of God’s Word and trust in Jesus Christ.
T.A.
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you are not even clear about the sin inthe bible, you assume the sin was about your moral failing or somebody transgression that brought divine judgment on you well…no. the bible reference to sin is…imperialism, not about your petty little human imperfections that jesus came to die for.
long story but hey, it’s your funeral. you are free to believe an irrational story.
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My email is not “Yo yo . com”. Your sin and mine is why Jesus died. Your sin now is rejection of that truth.
T.A.
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