Christmas is the most wonderful time of year because it points us to the first and second advents of the King. It reminds us that peace on earth is not an empty slogan, but a purchased reality brought by the Shepherd King. We sing and rejoice because Christ came, he died, he rose again, he ascended to the Father, he reigns on high, and he is coming back. 

We all desire to live in a righteous kingdom. Humanity may not always agree on how to define what makes a kingdom righteous, but the longing is universal. Every kingdom needs a king. So much of history and politics is driven by this desire for a perfect kingdom. Thus, powerful figures arise promising a chance at that kingdom—whether it be the Pax Romana or Marx’s promises of the worker’s utopia. Of course, all worldly attempts at such a kingdom have led more often to hell on Earth than any restoration of paradise.

At the heart of the gospel message, and the message of Christmas, is the kingdom of God and the kingship of Christ. Again, every kingdom needs a king. Christ is the anointed king of God’s kingdom. Sections 18-21 of Handel’s Messiah capture the glory of Christ’s coming and show the character of his kingdom. Christmas is a time when we mark his first advent and long for his return. A weary world aches for its king, and Christmas reminds us that as surely as he came the first time, he will return to fully establish his kingdom.

The King Comes

Section 18 of Handel’s Messiah opens with a command to “rejoice!” This joy springs forth from the coming of the King, a savior. The term messiah means “anointed one” and is tied to promises of David’s offspring who will sit on his father’s kingly throne forever (2 Sam. 7:1–17). The title of Christ is royal. Every time we say, “Jesus Christ,” we are declaring that Jesus is king.

Recently, I preached through the Gospel of John. The more I teach Scripture the more convinced I am of the centrality of Christ’s kingship to the gospel message. In John, Jesus is crowned and coronated through his death on the cross (John 19). His humiliation and the cross are the very door to his throne. After the resurrection, Christ ascends to his Father to rule until his enemies are made his footstool. In short, any declaration of the gospel that ignores or contradicts his title as king is incomplete, at best. Jesus is the King of kings, and he demands that all bend the knee to him. There is no future hope without Christ’s kingship; without his universal reign. It is profoundly good news that Jesus is the King. All other political leaders will let us down, but Christ’s perfect kingdom will never end.

Handel recognizes this glorious truth by citing Zechariah 9:9–10. This is a royal pronouncement of the long-awaited king. At last, the prophesied one has come. He provides salvation for his people and he “speak[s] peace unto the heathen.” That central longing for a kingdom of peace, for deliverance from the wickedness of this age, comes to us through Christ. Therefore, we are to shout out praises, to rejoice greatly!

The King’s Kingdom

In section 19, Handel gives us a glimpse of the nature of Christ’s kingdom by pointing to Isaiah 35:5–6. What makes Christ’s kingdom so great? The curse and all its entailments are being undone. Wrong is being set to right. We hear how the blind will see, the deaf will hear, the mute will speak, and the lame will jump like an adult deer. To live in this fallen world is to be familiar with its brokenness. It is to be familiar with the hurt of life under the curse of sin. While some figures promise to overcome the evils of this world through might, wealth redistribution, or personal liberation, all such attempts fall woefully short. They are mere Band-Aids placed on gaping wounds. The heart of the problem is sin, and thus our king must also be a savior.

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