When our dear Saviour stood before Pilate,he was asked,'Are you the king of the Jews?' (John 18 v33),this was a very important question,for Pilate the Roman governor would have been keen of any one who was a threat to the rule of Rome.In fact the Jewish leaders leaders played into that, when they cried out,'We have no king but Caesar,(Jn 19 v 15) ,of course that was far from the truth,as they and the Jewish people hated the rule of Rome,but it suited them,as a means of persuading Pilate to put Jesus to death. So what did Jesus say to the question from Pilate?,here is His answer,'My kingdom is not of this world'.Jn 19 v 36 .Jesus never once spoke out against the rule of Rome,why because as He said His kingdom was not of this world.In Romans 13 we are told to be subject to the governing authorities v 1,but we must balance that out with what Jesus said in Mark 12 v17,' Give back to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's'. Of course Jesus is a King Rev 17 v14, but He does not rule in an earthly place of power, in Psalm 96 v 10 we read,'The Lord reigns', the old Latin Version puts it like this,''The Lord hath reigned from a tree''.the tree is symbolic of the cross ,1 Peter 2 v24.A hymn by Mrs C Charles says the following,'Tell all the earth the Lord is King! Lo , from the Cross,a King He reigns'.The sinner comes to God at the foot of the cross to receive forgiveness,and as a saint lives a life in light of the cross.'His kingship breaks out of the narrow confines of nationalism, that kingdom embraces all humanity'.(Derek Tidball)
'Near the cross! O Lamb of God
Bring its scenes before me;
Help me walk from day to day
With its shadow o'er me.' ( Words Fanny Crosby)
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