Synodical Conference
Advent 3
Psalm 24:7-10
December 14, 2014
Dear Friends in Christ,
In the very beginning when God created all things, we
know that God set aside man to be different from all the rest
of creation. Though God created everything by simply
speaking it into existence man was carefully formed from the
dust of the ground and then God “breathed” in to him the
breath of life. Even woman, the helper made suitable for
man, was not just a product of God’s word, but she was taken
from man to be just like man. Both were different than all
the rest of creation because both a man and the woman
possess something that no other living being had, they had a
soul. And though we cannot see or truly understand what a
soul is, we use that term to describe that unseen blessing of
God that makes us able to know and understand God in a
way that the rest of creation cannot.
For even though the rest of creation knows they are the
creation of God, we can understand God’s saving work.
Through the power of God’s Holy Spirit you and I can know
just what it is God has done for us. We can understand the
suffering and death of Jesus as the payment for our sins. We
can understand his resurrection and Ascension to heaven as
the assurance of our own resurrection and Ascension to
eternal life. All of this is part of what God has given to us as
the crowning glory of creation.
Yet there is even more that God has done for us. Aside
from our superior mental abilities, our ability to think and
reason, our ability to improve our lives through science,
work, industry and many other ways, God has also given to
us the ability to praise Him. Though the rest of creation may
also praise God as the creator, even the rocks crying out on
behalf of what God has done, only mankind can truly sing
praises to God on behalf of his mercy, his grace and his love.
Only we as human beings, that crowning glory of God’s
creation, truly know and understand how to praise God for
what he has done in our lives.
That idea of praising God is what we find in our text for
this morning. For in the words of King David, the author of
this Psalm, he is clearly encouraging the faithful to praise
God for what he has done. In words that insight in animate
doors and gates to shout out with praise and to sing glory to
God the real message is that we should be doing those works.
We who can praise God should be praising God. We who
have been created with the ability to praise our creator and
Redeemer should be the ones who are singing praises to him
as our King of glory.
And just to make sure that we are praising God and the
proper way, this Psalm of David is one that explains to us
just why it is God is worthy of praise. He explains why God
our King deserves all the praise that we could muster, in fact
all the praise that creation could sin is still not enough. For
in this Psalm of David, David tells us of the great and
powerful work of God not just as our creator or our
Redeemer or as our prophet or priest, but as our King.
For this was something that David truly understood. Not
only was he someone well-qualified to speak of God as our
good Shepherd, having been a Shepherd himself, but he
could also speak of God as our King with more than just a
passing understanding. As one of the greatest Kings of Israel
David knew what praise and honor was do a King. He knew
the praise and honor that was due a King who is powerful
and mighty, the King was truly victorious over his enemies.
And though David never lived to see the working of
Christ as our King, this Psalm is one that truly points ahead
to Jesus as a King. By the inspiration of God David
understood that the Savior of the world, even a child born in
Bethlehem, would be a King of Kings. He would be a King
who would rule for all eternity with the Almighty power of
God and the glory which only God deserves.
Such is our focus for this morning as our theme
encourages us to “PRAISE THE KING OF GLORY.” For
as the very best that God has created, the very high point of
all that he has made, only we who have a soul are able to
carry out this command. And so that there is no mistake and
who it is we are to praise and who it is that is worthy of all
of our devotion and honor we are directed by the first part of
our sermon that asks even as David does, I. WHO IS THIS
KING OF GLORY? And secondly, in a way that helps us
in how we praise him and how we glorify this King of Kings,
we ask II. HOW DO WE RECEIVE HIM?
As we look more closely at this Psalm of David and the
encouragement to praise the King of glory, the text that we
have before us is one that is often used on Palm Sunday. It
is a text that speaks to Jesus triumphant entry into Jerusalem
just prior to his suffering and death on the cross. And though
his ride into Jerusalem did not seem all that glorious or
worthy of praise, it was a ride which showed him to be the
King that he truly is. The King who is able to conquer sin,
death and the devil and give to all mankind the joy of life
everlasting.
And such is what we are focusing on this morning as
well. Though we are in the season of advent, a time that
looks forward to the birth of Christ in Bethlehem and the
advent of the word made flesh, we also see that this tiny child
came into the world as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
He came into the world not just as a man, but also as true and
everlasting God. Yes, even as a tiny infant Jesus was and
always will be God Almighty. Even there in the manger he
is the God of creation.
We understand this because of these words of David
which we have before us this morning. For as we look at the
Christ child born in Bethlehem and consider the question of
our text for this morning, “Who is the King of glory?” the
main answer is the “The LORD” is the King of Glory. Well,
if you had your Bible open in front of you, you would notice
that the word Lord is written slightly different than all the
other words, for the word LORD written in all capital letters.
This is not a misprint. It is just the editor’s way of bringing
out a Hebrew tradition of using the word Lord to refer to the
proper name of God, the name spoke to Moses at the burning
bush, the name, I AM. For in great fear of misusing that real
name of God, the name I AM, the Hebrew people always
substituted the more common title of Lord. Wherever the
Bible says I AM, the written word was the LORD.
And this is important because it reminds us that David
did not just consider the King of Glory to be just any lord or
any king or even some lesser god, not that He was just the
God of the Hebrews or a God for the people of the Middle
East, but He understood the King of Glory to be the One,
True God. He was looking to the God who always will be;
the same God that set Israel free from the Egyptians and who
conquered all their foes to give them their own land.
We see this understanding of the LORD in David’s
description of the King of Glory. For as he asks the question,
“Who is the King of glory?” he answers it by first saying,
“The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in
battle,” and then by saying, “The Lord of host, He is the
King of glory.” All these things describe the power of the
LORD, the one true God as the only God that can save.
And though right now our hearts and minds might be
focused on the coming of Christ as a child, awaiting the
glorious message of Christmas, we can never forget that this
little child is the LORD. He is the LORD written with all
capital letters. He is “The Lord strong and mighty, the
Lord mighty in battle.” He is “The Lord of host, He is the
King of glory.” For even though we are filled with joy that
God sent His Son to be the Word made flesh, our true
comfort come from knowing that this child has the power
and the might to protect us. He has the power and the might
as true and eternal God to watch over each and every one of
us as his dear children to protect us from harm and danger,
to keep us from sin and every evil, to make sure that our lives
are truly lives of praise to him as our King and our LORD.
It was such a great King and LORD before us, with such
an Almighty God coming in the flesh to give us everlasting
life, that free gift of his grace and mercy, the second part of
our sermon is one that we should really consider more often
than just during this season of advent. For the question,
HOW DO WE RECEIVE HIM? is one that cannot and
should not be taken lightly. For truly how should we receive
the Almighty Lord into our hearts and lives? How should be
received the King of Kings who was defeated every foe into
our hearts and minds?
Clearly there is nothing wrong with what we do to show
our love for God at Christmas. The decorations, the songs,
the gifts of thanksgiving and the love that we show to one
another are all wonderful outward signs that show we are
eager to receive Christ as the King of Kings. It our reception
of our Lord and Savior should never be limited to outward
signs or thoughtless actions. For the true reception of our
Lord is one that begins in our hearts. To truly receive Christ
as our King means that we truly trust that he, and he alone,
is our Savior and our King.
Though such action is something truly known only to us
and God, it is also an action that becomes evident to those
around us. For if we are putting Christ first in our hearts and
in our minds, if our daily lives are focused on God’s word
and his salvation, such hearts will be seen in actions. The
people around us will see our love for God and our love for
one another. They will see our preparation for the return of
Christ the King being shown in how we read the Bible on a
regular basis, how we make worship an important part of our
lives and even how we are eager and willing to tell others of
the salvation that has been won for us through the victory of
Christ.
For if we truly want to receive Christ, if we truly want
the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, it means we need to
show him the honor and glory that is due the Lord Almighty.
We cannot let family and friends take priority over Christ.
We cannot let work become more important than worship.
We cannot let our desire for comfort and pleasure be more
significant than our desire to praise God. We cannot even
allow our celebration of Christmas to be more important than
our celebration of Christ himself.
What this truly means is that if we wish to welcome
Christ as our King, it begins with understanding that the
baby in Bethlehem truly is the Lord, the Lord Almighty, the
Lord mighty in battle. He always was and always will be
everlasting and eternal God, one with the father and the Holy
Spirit. And our true preparation for welcoming this King is
to have lives which show our love for his word and our
thankfulness for his actions. For that is the answer to the
question “how shall we receive him?” In this way and in this
way only is how we carry out the encouragement of David
to “PRAISE THE KING OF GLORY.” Amen.
Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up you
everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who
is this King of glory? “The Lord strong and mighty, the
Lord mighty in battle.” Lift up your heads, O you gates!
And be lifted up you everlasting doors! And the King of
glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? “The
Lord of host, He is the King of glory.” Selah