Christ’s Reign Foretold by The Prophets
The writings of the Old Testament seers are thickly sprinkled with sparkling prophecies relative to the blessings and privileges of the Christian dispensation. In many of the Psalms, David foretold how the Messiah would reign over Mount Zion forever. The term Zion generally signified the New Testament church. The evangelistic prophet Isaiah thus expressed it: “Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment.” (Isa. 32:1). In the old dispensation, Jehovah was recognized by the children of Israel, and also by the nations about them, as the national God of the Jewish people, the ruler of the Israelitish nation alone. But it was foreseen that with the ushering in of the new dispensation, “He shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth” (Zech. 9:10). “And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: and in that day there shall be one Lord, and his name one” (Zech. 14:9).
Christ’s Reign Fulfilled under The Gospel
“Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel” (Mark 1:14, 15). The time foretold by the prophets when the God of heaven would set up his everlasting kingdom and when the Messiah would begin his reign, Christ declared to be “fulfilled.” The kingdom of God was then “at hand.”
That the gospel dispensation is the age in which Christ’s kingdom and reign would be fully established, is proved beyond question by Jesus’ own words, as recorded in Luke 17:20, 21: “And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” Other translations render this last clause, “the reign of God is within you.” Paul makes this clear in Rom. 14:17: “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy, in the Holy Ghost.” That all this is a present reality, is made clear by reference to Col. 1:13: “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son.” And again: “I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:9).
These texts are decisive. Christ now has a kingdom, and a kingdom supposes a king.
Christ is Now King
Millennial teachers assert that Christ is not now a king but that He will be in an age following the present dispensation. To admit that Christ is now king would be utterly fatal to their position. Mark well this fact.
Reader, be assured that Christ is king throughout the present dispensation. He was not made king by some legislative act, but was born a king. When the wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, they inquired, “Where is he that is born king of the Jews?” When Jesus stood before Pilate he said: “My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world” (John 18:36, 37). Here Christ acknowledged that he had a kingdom. He terms it “my kingdom.” Pilate at once asked, “Art thou a king then?” Jesus answered, “Thou sayest that I am a king.” This is equivalent to: “It is true that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world.”
He came to set up and maintain a spiritual government, and this government was established in and by the truth. All who love the truth will hear his voice and attend to the spiritual doctrine he preaches. Nathaniel, who was an Israelite indeed, and free from guile, addressed Jesus thus: “Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel” (John 1:49); and Christ did not reprove him for thus addressing Him.
At the time of Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem, “the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen; saying, Blessed be the king that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest” (Luke 19:37, 38). And “much people that were come to the feast … went forth to meet him, and cried; Hosanna: Blessed is the king of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written; Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold thy King cometh sitting on an ass’s colt” (John 12:12–15).
From these texts we learn two things: First, that Christ, even during His personal ministry, had a kingdom; second, that He was then reigning as king and was acknowledged as such by the multitude of His disciples. They were not mistaken in this, for the inspired writer informs us that “all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass” (Matt. 21:4, 5). Thus it is an established fact that Christ is king. And if He is king He must have a kingdom, for a king presupposes a kingdom.
The evangelistic prophet Isaiah foretold the coming of the Messiah and His office and work as follows: “For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us” (Isa. 33:22). From this it is seen that Jesus was to be king at the very time that He came to save His people. In that day the apostle said: “Behold now is the day of salvation.” Therefore Christ was, and is now, king.
In Rev. 171:14, it is written: “He is Lord of lords, and King of kings.” Again, in 1 Tim. 6:14, 15: “Our Lord Jesus Christ: … who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords.” From the foregoing Scriptures it will be seen that even during the days of His incarnation, Christ was king and had a kingdom. But at the time of His ascension into heaven, when He took His seat upon the throne at the right hand of His Father, this was true in a greater and more comprehensive sense.
First, by means of His own death, which made an atonement for sin, Christ procured the almighty energy of the Holy Spirit in our favor, thus rendering useless and ineffectual all the operations of him who had the power or influence to bring death and sin into the world; that is, the devil. By Christ’s triumphant resurrection from the grave, He broke the bars of death asunder; He destroyed the victory of the grave, and extracted the sting of death itself: He purchased for us full salvation from all sin.
Just forty days after the resurrection, Christ ascended into heaven and took His seat at the right hand of the Father. Thus He was “by the right hand of God exalted” (Acts 2:33). “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus … . Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour” (Acts 5:30, 31). He is now “Prince of life,” the “Prince of peace.”
A “prince is a sovereign; the chief and independent ruler of a nation or state. Thus, when we speak of the princes of Europe, we include emperors and kings.”—Webster. In Rev. 1:5, Christ is said to be “the prince of the kings of the earth.” But why multiply texts of Scripture? All these Scriptures positively teach that Jesus Christ, in this dispensation, is King and Sovereign of His church, yea, King over all heaven and earth. It is now that “we see Jesus … crowned with glory and honor” (Hebrews 2:9).
“Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name.” “Which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come; and hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be the head over all things to the church” (Eph. 1:20–22). This is decisive. Christ is now king, the ruling head, supreme over all, the sovereign of both heaven and earth. “Our Lord … is the King of kings, and Lord of lords” (1 Tim. 6:15). Not merely is he king in name, but in fact, also. In the Revelation Christ’s kingdom is brought to view under the symbol of a white horse and its rider: “I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him and he went forth conquering, and to conquer” (Rev. 6:2).
The uniform testimony of all the foregoing texts proves conclusively that not in a future age, but when God raised Christ from the dead, he set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named; and hath put all things under his feet and given him to be head over all things to the church. What could be clearer? We have the first thing essential to the establishment and existence of a kingdom—Christ, as a sovereign and king, the ruling head of the church, his kingdom. “But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom” (Heb. 1:8).
Christ on David’s Throne
In order to sustain their position, those who hold to the millennial theory, claim that Christ is not now sitting on the throne of David in this dispensation, and that therefore there must be another age, a period of a thousand years, in which Christ will sit upon the throne of David. Some of them go so far as to say that the throne of David will be reestablished in Jerusalem, and that Christ will there reign over literal Israel, when as a nation they will again be restored to their former glory.
To the natural mind this is a very beautiful theory, and appeals to the uninformed; but those who make a careful investigation of the truth of the Bible will clearly see that such theories are but the mere speculations of human minds, and in reality are not founded on Holy Writ.
In the first place, the literal throne of David can never be reestablished. “Throne” can mean only sovereign power and dignity. Therefore, as David was exalted to this place of power and government in Israel, so the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the seed of David, would be raised up and exalted to a state and place of sovereign power, a king to rule in righteousness. This is all that can be meant by Christ’s sitting upon the throne of David. If it can be shown that Christ now, during the present dispensation, fills this place; that Christ now occupies the very place and position that the prophets foretold, then the millennial contention will be refuted.
Open your Bible to 2 Sam. 7:12–16: “And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever … . And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established forever before thee: thy throne shall be established forever.” As before observed, if we find clear evidence that in this dispensation Christ sits upon David’s throne, then why look for another age in which will be accomplished what is now being fulfilled in this present age? Note the above prophecy. It was God’s promise to David. Primarily, it reached its fulfillment in Solomon, who sat upon David’s throne; but in it is contained a clear reference to the government of the spiritual kingdom—the kingdom of the Messiah. “I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” “Thy house and thy kingdom shall be established forever.” This refers to Christ and the spiritual kingdom he came to establish. The “house” in this prophecy refers to both the temple Solomon built in Jerusalem and to the church which Christ established; for this is declared to be “the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.” Solomon’s temple was a type of the New Testament church. The real burden of the entire prophecy reaches its glorious fulfillment in Christ.
Now, let the reader observe that at the very time this kingdom and throne of David was to be established forever, it was said of David himself, “Thou shalt sleep with thy fathers.” So instead of Christ’s sitting on David’s throne after the resurrection, as millennial teachers declare, this text proves that it would take place while David was still sleeping with his fathers. How beautifully this harmonizes with the New Testament declaration of Peter as recorded in Acts 2:29, 30: “Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulcher is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne.” Here we have the application of God’s promise to David. It referred to Christ and reached its fulfillment at the time of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. David himself refers to this promise in Psa. 132:11: “The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David; he will not turn from it; of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.” It is clear that the prophet was here speaking directly of Christ, when he said, “Of the fruit of thy body will I set upon thy throne.” For this purpose Christ came into the world. Paul speaks: “Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; and declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:3, 4).
Christ Now Reigns
Instead of pointing to a future age for the fulfillment of these prophecies, the apostles clearly understood that they were to be fulfilled in this dispensation; and certainly we are safe in accepting the apostles’ interpretation rather than the fancied theories of men at this present time.
The fulfillment of this scripture as mentioned in the second chapter of Acts, clearly evinces the fact that in this dispensation Christ would sit upon David’s throne. We turn to Isa. 9:6, 7: “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.” This is an illustrative prophecy of the incarnation of Christ, with an enumeration of those characteristics in which he stands most nearly related to mankind as their Savior, and by which his infinite majesty and godhead are shown. He is called Wonderful; wonderful in his conception, birth, preaching, miracles, suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension; wonderful in his person, and wonderful in his working. He is the Counselor that expounds the law, shows its origin, nature, and claims. He ever appears in the presence of God for men. He is the mighty God—”God manifest in the flesh”; the everlasting Father—the origin of all things, the cause of existence, the Father of the spirits of all flesh; the Prince of Peace. The government rests on his shoulder, and upon his throne in his kingdom, he executes judgment and justice; and the increase of his government and peace shall continue forever. To it there will be no end.
But when should all this be fulfilled? At the beginning of the Christian dispensation or at the beginning of a supposed millennial age? The answer is positive and clear. It was when a “child” was “born” unto us, when a “son” was “given.” From this it is obvious that the reign of Jesus Christ on the throne of David, began in the days of his incarnation. And this is settled beyond question by the angel’s announcement to Mary, as recorded in Luke 1:31–33: “Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with God, and behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.” Now do we have presented in this prophecy, two dispensations? Not by any means. The birth of Christ, his name, his throne, and reign, are all connected and must be in the same dispensation; that is, in the present one. This text refers to him as the everlasting head and sovereign of his church. His government and kingdom shall be eternal. Revolutions may destroy kingdoms of the earth, but the powers of hell and death shall never be able to destroy or to injure the kingdom of Christ. His is the only dominion that shall never have an end. Here we have the glory, extent, and perpetuity of the evangelical kingdom.
All these scriptures clearly locate Christ’s kingdom and reign as beginning at his first advent. It was when he was born into the world as a son that he became a king and established his kingdom. And this is identical with his sitting on the throne of David. The Jews well understood that Christ claimed to be the king of Israel, for while hanging on the cross in the throes of death, the scribes and elders said, “He saved others, himself he can not save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him” (Matt. 27:32). All these texts confirm the fact that Christ began his reign on the throne of David, even during the days of his incarnation. Being born a king, and clothed with all the authority of heaven, he began to deliver and to execute the laws of his spiritual kingdom. His authority was supreme. The people were compelled to say, “Never man spake like this man,” and that “he spake as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” But in a much greater and more comprehensive sense are these prophecies fulfilled since Christ has risen from the dead, ascended into heaven, and sent forth the Holy Spirit as his personal representative on earth, to execute his law and to point out the way of salvation.
This is clearly brought out by reference to Acts 2:29–36: “Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulcher is with us unto this day. Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne; he, seeing this before, spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore, being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this which ye now see and hear. For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, until I make thy foes thy footstool. Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
It would seem that this language is so clear that none could misunderstand it. Peter was preaching to the Jews, and assured them that the promise of God to David, sworn to, and confirmed by an oath, declared “that of the fruit of his loins according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne,” that this Jesus “hath God raised up,” yea, “let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God hath made this Jesus whom ye crucified, both Lord and Christ.” He is the supreme governor of all things, and all persons, Jews and Gentiles, angels and men.
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