Introduction
The word gospel means good news. Most of us learn that in Sunday School. It’s fairly common knowledge. Fewer know that the same word was used by the Romans to announce the ascension of an emperor or the celebration of his birthday. When the Gospel writers say Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel (Mark 1:14), they were using a political term, not a religious one. They did not mean Jesus went from town to town handing out tracts on the Four Spiritual Laws. Jesus’ preaching was a royal proclamation with political implications. The gospel announces the coming of the King who is to be King over all kings and Lord over all lords.
This year we are spending the four Sundays in Advent reflecting on aspects of Christ’s identity and authority that help clarify the gospel. Too often Christians think of the gospel merely as a program for how they can get saved. They may define the “plan of salvation” and man’s response to it as “the gospel.” But the gospel is not just good information. It is not pious advice. It is not about you or me. The gospel is an announcement about Christ, and the primary content of that announcement, though by no means its exclusive content, is that Christ is Lord and King. This is the central feature of the gospel both in OT prophecy and NT fulfillment. When the apostles preached the gospel, their message was not: Jesus can forgive your sins so that you will go to heaven when you die, as true as that may be. Their message was: Jesus is Lord.
There are many passages we could use to study the Kingship of the Messiah, but we will use Psalm 72 to organize and develop our reflection on this theme today. The text is attributed both to David (v.20) and Solomon (superscript) prompting discussion throughout the history of the Church on its origin and authorship. It is entirely possible that Solomon wrote the psalm and it was included in the collections of David’s prayers which became Book II of the Psalter, but Calvin suggests a possibility that, while unprovable, is compelling. He suggests Psalm 72 was David’s dying prayer for his son and that Solomon then arranged it as a psalm. Ultimately it is a prayer and prophecy of the Messiah’s later, greater reign.
The Gospel of Christ’s Kingship
Before we look at the psalm, let me prove the thesis I mentioned in the introduction. So many Christians think of the gospel only as a message of personal salvation that it may seem radical to describe it as primarily the message that Christ is Lord.
Acts 2:36: Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.
Acts 5:29-31: But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 10:36: The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ—He is Lord of all—
Acts 17:5-7: But the Jews who were not persuaded, becoming envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace, and gathering a mob, set all the city in an uproar and attacked the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, “These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. Jason has harbored them, and these are all acting contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying there is another king—Jesus.”
Rom. 10:9: if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus [that Jesus is Lord, ESV] and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Some preachers have promoted the idea of the “carnal Christian,” that a person can claim Jesus as their Savior but not have him as their Lord. It’s true there are carnal Christians; they are called disobedient Christians and may even prove to be hypocrites. True faith is trust leading to obedience, not merely intellectual assent to historical or theological facts. Some who begin as “carnal Christians” later repent and realize their obligation to obey Christ as Lord, but if they don’t, they will be lost Christians. You cannot have Jesus as your Savior but not as Lord. He is able to save because he is Lord.
The Righteousness Christ’s Reign
Righteousness is a key word in the first three verses of this psalm, and the idea signified by that word serves as an organizing principle for the entire prayer. The King’s reign is characterized by the objective standard of uprightness. It is Yahweh’s righteousness that is given to the Prince (v.1) that he might judge the people with it (v.2) and that the earth itself might bring it forth under his rule. Righteousness is the source, the norm, and the fruit of godly governance, and nowhere is that more evident than in Messiah’s reign, the kingdom of Jesus Christ.
No king can rule uprightly unless God blesses him with his own righteousness. The Lord imputes righteousness to us in our justification and imparts righteousness to us by our union with Christ in regeneration and sanctification. No man can stand before the Lord without this twofold grace of imputed and imparted righteousness. Measured on its own moral merit, without the cleansing and aid of divine grace, our “righteousness” is nothing but a defiled rag (Isa. 64:6). We can only be righteous by God’s grace, and the one who would rule among men must know it.
The gift of divine righteousness not only empowers the magistrate’s rule, it also serves as the standard by which he rules. The kingdoms of men are not to be governed by a natural law determined by human reason that is separate and different from biblical law known by special revelation. It is God’s righteousness that must be the standard of justice and judgment, which is why Israel’s kings were to write their own copy of the OT law and meditate on it all the days of their life (Deut. 17:18-20). After his resurrection Jesus said, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28:18). It is Christ who is the King, David’s Son, who rules the nations with a rod of iron (Psa. 2:8-9). What is the standard for Christ’s rule? His righteousness, Yahweh’s own righteousness. We cannot say, “Christ rules the kingdoms of this earth by one law, a standard known by reason alone, and his Church by another standard found in the Bible.” No, the king rules by God’s righteousness, and anything less than that would be unrighteous.
The Blessing of Christ’s Reign
What is the fruit of Christ’s righteous rule? The mountains will bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness (v.3). Righteous rule brings blessings to the earth. There are many blessings to acknowledging Christ as our King: Blessed is the nation whose God is Yahweh (Psa. 33:12)—Happy are the people who are in such a state; Happy are the people whose God is Yahweh! (Psa. 144:15). Psalm 72 develops this idea primarily in three ways. Christ’s reign brings peace through justice leading to prosperity.
First, Christ’s reign brings peace. The mountains will bring peace to the people, i.e. the mountains are bearing peace like the fresh, cold waters of melted snow running down from the high slopes. In his days the righteous shall flourish, and abundance of peace (v.7). The word here is shalom, a fullness of joy, health, and satisfaction in God. The peace Christ gives is threefold: peace with God, peace in our hearts, and peace among men. The first is an objective peace. In Adam we are enemies of God, but in Christ we are adopted as his children and made his friends. Once our sins are forgiven and we are reconciled to God, we can enjoy peace in our souls. No more must guilt, fear, and shame burden our hearts. If we are at peace with God, how can we not be at peace with ourselves? Is our own judgment of ourselves and our condition greater than God’s judgment of us in his Son? The last level of peace is with our neighbor. How can we be at war with our neighbor if both we and him are at peace with God and with ourselves? Conflict comes from unholy desires (Jas. 4:1-3), but all desires are sanctified and satisfied in Jesus, bringing war and bitterness and estrangement with our fellow man to an end.
Second, Christ’s reign brings peace through justice. He will bring justice to the poor of the people; he will save the children of the needy, and will break in pieces the oppressor (v.4). He will deliver the need when he cries, the poor also, and him who has no helper…. He will redeem their life from oppression and violence; and precious shall be their blood in his sight (vv.12, 14). In a fallen world, there can be no peace without justice. Would amnesty for all criminals and evil doers bring peace to our cities? No, it would bring anger, anarchy, and violence. Injustice cries out to be remedied, not to be ignored. Christ as Savior may soothe our woes, but Christ as King comes to solve them. “Christ executeth the office of a king, in subduing us to himself, in ruling and defending us, and in restraining and conquering all his and our enemies” (WSC 26). He must defend us as well as restrain and conquer both his and our enemies. Why? Because there is no peace without justice. Social justice warriors speak more truth than they know, but their cries for violence and anarchy expose them as oppressors whom Christ will judge, not as the victims whom he will defend and vindicate.
Third, the result of peace through justice will be true prosperity and human flourishing. He shall come down like rain upon the grass before mowing, like showers that water the earth. In his days the righteous shall flourish…. There will be an abundance of grain in the earth, on the top of the mountains; its fruit shall wave like Lebanon; and those of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth (vv.6-7, 16). This is the language of Deuteronomic blessing, the blessings of the covenant, the abundance which flows from the Lord’s love toward his people. There are two errors to be avoided here. The first is to measure these blessings merely in physical terms. This was the theology of Job’s friends: “If you are suffering, you must have done something wrong. Believe more, pray harder, give more money to the televangelist who needs a new private jet.” This may be sincerely believed by some saints, but it is unbiblical nonsense. The second error is to interpret these blessings merely as spiritual and ethereal. “Christ has come that we might have life more abundantly, which is why we should expect to suffer unrelentingly in a world under the Devil’s complete domination until Jesus finally comes to annihilate the globe!” Evangelical gnosticism is just as wrong as the health and wealth heresy, even when it is recast as Reformed pessimillennialism. There are physical and material blessings to the rule and triumph of Christ, but to develop that we need to move to our third main point.
The Jurisdiction and Extent of Christ’s Reign
Some seem to believe that Christ has been given all authority in heaven but that his authority on earth is held only in theory, suspended until he exercises it in judgment on the Last Day. But you would never draw that conclusion from reading the psalms. It may be that Jesus’ own words to Pilate have been misunderstood when he said: My kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36). The Lord was indicating that his kingdom did not originate in this world, it does not have the same character as the kingdoms of this world, but he did not mean that his rule has nothing to do with this world.
Psalm 72 makes it clear that Christ’s reign is earthly. This is not necessarily in the sense some take it of Christ returning to earth and physically ruling from a throne in Jerusalem. No, he is enthroned in heaven right now at the right hand of the Father. But he exercises authority on the earth and over the earth. He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth…. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles will bring presents; the kings of Sheba and Seba will offer gifts. Yes, all kings shall fall down before him; all nations shall serve him (vv.8, 10-11). This language is to make it plain that we ought not to do what some commentators, nevertheless, do in taking these words merely as an indication of Solomon’s rule over the nation of Israel. The ends of the earth is not a reference to the boundaries of Israel’s territory. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles are not residents of Solomon’s domain. All kings, all nations, will bow down and serve him. As great as Solomon’s authority and influence were, they never reached this far, nor did any of his royal descendants. This is the extent of Messiah’s rule.
The language is universal. Men shall be blessed in him; all nations shall call him blessed (v.17b). The doxology closing Book II prays: Let the whole earth be filled with his glory (v.19). This is not the glorious reign of David or Solomon. This is not a future earthly state of Israel over which Jesus personally rules. This is the kingdom of God established in this world. This is the reign of Christ over all men and nations. None are excepted. Not every person may be converted, but every knee will bow, and not merely in condemnation as they stand in the court on Judgment Day. Notice that Christ’s reign is described as earthly, universal, and also religious.
Unfortunately, it seems like Christians either think of Christ’s kingdom as earthly, in a premillennial way, or as spiritual and religious, in a Reformed, amillennial way. But Psalm 72 and many other passages indicate his kingdom is and will be both. They shall fear you as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations…. In his days the righteous shall flourish …. Those who dwell in the wilderness will bow before him, and his enemies will lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles will bring presents; the kings of Sheba and Seba will offer gifts. Yes, all nations shall fall down before him; all nations shall serve him…. Prayer also will be made for him continually, and daily he shall be praised…. And men shall be blessed in him; all nations shall call him blessed (vv.5, 7, 9-11, 15, 17). These verses do not refer to merely a political state over which Christ rules; this is a global empire in which Christ is acknowledged by all nations. Neither is there a way to spiritualize this so that it is merely Christ ruling in the hearts of those who believe, “some from among” all nations, but not all nations. No, not every person will be converted—there are still enemies (v.9)—but all confess, honor, and worship him.
The Duration of Christ’s Reign
When will we see this? After Christ’s return? No, the kingdom of Christ has been established already. He already has all authority in heaven and on earth, believers are already citizens of his kingdom (Col. 1:13). Are we to think of this kingdom merely as the Church, the spiritual kingdom that will exist alongside the common kingdom, always in the minority but persisting until the return of Christ? That is how many of us have been taught to think about the kingdom of God, but is that what Psalm 72 describes? No. When does this prophecy, prayer, and promise begin to be fulfilled? I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Lk 2:10-11).
The King has arrived. That is the good tidings, gospel, of great joy, not terror, which will be to all people, not just the Church. Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15).
Matt. 9:35: Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
In the Book of Acts we find the apostles preaching the gospel of the kingdom everywhere they went. That which had been promised in the Hebrew Bible, the Messiah’s coming for which God’s people had prayed so long had finally arrived in the birth and ministry of Jesus.
Isa. 9:6-7: For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace There will be no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Isa. 37:16: “O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim, You are God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.
Jer. 10:6-7: Inasmuch as there is none like You, O LORD (You are great, and Your name is great in might), Who would not fear You, O King of the nations? For this is Your rightful due. For among all the wise men of the nations, And in all their kingdoms, There is none like You.
When will these promises be fulfilled? They are being fulfilled right now, but we do not yet see their fulness. Should we then spiritualize the promises and assume by all the nations the Lord only means some from among all the nations? By all shall worship him it only means some in the Church shall worship him? By dominion to the ends of the earth God simply intends to have a little Reformed church of 35 people every three hours down the interstate? We can believe God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day. Can we believe that he will bring the earth into submission, prior to the day of judgment and condemnation, or is that impossible to believe?
1Cor. 15:24-26: Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.
The people of the earth shall fear Christ as long as the sun and moon endure (v.5). The saints will flourish on earth until the moon is no more (v.7). His name shall endure forever… as long as the sun (v.17). Many Christians are watching the heavens and expecting to see heaven’s helicopters at any moment. But the earth does not yet fear Christ, they do not yet worship him, but one day they will, and his reign will continue until all his enemies have been put down, every head bowed, and only then will he return in power and glory to conquer the last enemy, when he judges Death itself and unlocks Hades’s doors.
Practical Application: Celebrating the Prince of Peace and Mighty King
Augustine in preaching on this psalm noted that Solomon’s name means peacemaker and that Christ is the true Peacemaker, David’s greater Son. We are accustomed to thinking of peace at Christmastime. But our concept of peace is often limp-wristed and more closely aligned with Paw Patrol than the Lord of the Rings.
In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe the land of Narnia suffered under the tyranny of the White Witch who falsely styled herself the “Queen of Narnia.” Under her brutal regime, joy was banished, all who displeased the queen were turned into stone, and it was always winter but never Christmas. But you know what happened next—I trust you have read and love the story, and if you haven’t read it, you know what you’re supposed to do this afternoon—the true King of Narnia arrived. His coming was good news for all the people. Joy was restored. Father Christmas returned. And how was peace established? Aslan came to the Queen and negotiated peace for their two kingdoms. Aslan’s would be the spiritual kingdom, a private, religious kingdom which would have nothing to say about the politics and culture of Jadis’s hellscape, and the White Witch would govern the common kingdom, the larger world in which all Narnians lived Monday through Saturday, according to her demented perception of the law of reason.
Of course, that is not what happened. Aslan came and defeated his enemies, freed the slaves, resurrected those who had been turned into stone, killed the White Witch, and placed his image-bearers on the throne of Narnia to rule in his stead. The joy of Aslan’s coming was not the establishment of a private Church where the great lion’s promises could be remembered and the Narnians could look forward to the day when they would finally die and leave the world. The joy of Aslan’s coming is that he would be honored and wield authority as the true King of the world.
Conclusion
Aslan is only a fictional character, but his story is to help us recognize the true Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Lamb slain for man’s sin, resurrected in power, who conquers the enemies that torment God’s people, and brings joy, peace, and prosperity to the inhabitants of the world.
American Christianity has grown soft and woke. We want Jesus only to be a spiritual Savior, a personal friend, not the mighty Lord and King Scripture declares him to be. The Bible is clear; Psalm 72 is not hard to understand. The question is whether we believe it. Do not celebrate an effeminate and ineffectual religious figure this Christmas season. Sing with joy as we celebrate the coming of the true King and mighty Savior of the world! Amen.
