The King

Synopsis     Deuteronomy 17:14-18:2     2/26/2018

Although the idea wasn’t promoted, Moses authorized the people to make a king. There were stipulations. The king could only be from amongst the tribes. He had to be a kinsmen. The king should not have a great number of wives, horses or horde extraordinary wealth.

The king had to be knowledgeable about the law Moses had taught. He was required to write out his own personal copy of the law. This was to be his required daily reading, as long as he was on the throne.

The King

Becoming a kingdom was a tricky business for the ancient Israelites. Though it wasn’t obvious, the desire to be “like the nations around them”, made a distinction between the Authentic Community and the social contract communities.

The nations were social contracts run by rulers. The Israelites were a chosen people, a royal priesthood. They were a covenant community whose existence mediated between God and all humanity. Could the nation-state of Israel be anything like the Authentic Community Israel was intended to be?

The Kingship of Jesus

Curiously, the only possible reconciliation of this challenge is if God becomes the head of the community – the king.

But God’s not trying for an earthly theocracy. It was never the goal. Even if this weren’t evident from scripture, it would be from the tragic fails in the church’s collective political history.

He said, “My kingdom does not belong to this world.” His goal is an Authentic Community. Whatever else it may be, it is transcendent. It is true. And it’s citizen-subjects know who they are and who rules over them.

“So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.” John 18:37