Preach and Normalize King Jesus

Dear Discipleship-first Friends,

As I wrote in a previous article, Christ is one of those words in the New Testament that I believe it is unfortunate that we transliterated instead of translated. Jesus Christ would have been understood in the early church to mean “Jesus the Anointed King.” Re-read Paul’s letters and notice how often he refers to Jesus as Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus, or just Christ. Each time Paul wrote this, he was emphasizing Jesus’ kingship. Therefore, it is perfectly normal for us to refer to Jesus as King Jesus or Jesus the King.

You might be wondering… preach “King Jesus,” as opposed to what? What we are trying to avoid is the false dichotomy of “King Jesus” vs. “Savior Jesus.” This is where you will need to put in the hard work as a pastor, minister, preacher, and teacher. You will need to integrate these positions rather than pit them against one another.

Here’s the big point–Jesus is only savior because He is first, King. Think about it, in an alternate reality where Jesus decided not to save us, He would still be King Jesus. Jesus’ position as King has primacy over His position as savior. He is only able to save us because He is our King.

However, we do not want to downplay His position as savior, we want to synthesize the two. Let me explain. In the church culture I grew up in, Savior Jesus was front and center. The focus was on the cross on which Jesus paid for our sins. This was obvious by the giant cross on the wall behind the pulpit. But, if you know Scripture, think about the events which led up to the cross. John wrote:

The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!”

Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt” (John 12:12-15).

Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem as the King is included in all four Gospels. Mark also wrote about what happened after He was arrested:

The high priest asked [Jesus], “Are you the Messiah [the Anointed King], the Son of the Blessed One?”

“I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Mark 14:61-62)

This exchange is recorded in all three of the synoptic gospels. Luke also recorded the specific charges the Jews brought against Jesus to Pilate:

“We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.”

So, Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?” (Luke 23:2-3)

John gives the fullest description of the conversation between Pilate and Jesus. It would be extraneous to quote the entire exchange here, but the crux of the questioning is if Jesus is a king.

Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” (John 18:36-37)

All four of the Gospels recorded that Jesus was dressed in a royal robe, mocked, and beaten by soldiers. Matthew, Mark, and John specifically wrote that Jesus was also given a crown of thorns along with the royal robe and mocked as a king. Matthew wrote:

[The soldiers] stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. (Matthew 27:28-30)

John likewise recorded that Pilate presented Jesus to the Jews dressed in the royal robe and crown:

“Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.

But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”

“Shall I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.

“We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered.

Finally, Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified. (John 19:14-16)

All four of the Gospels then record that Pilate had a placard posted on Jesus’ cross:

“Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” (John 19:19)

John wrote that the sign was written in Aramaic, Greek, and Latin so everyone could read it.

Finally, what was it specifically that the repentant thief on the cross recognized about Jesus that led to his salvation?

“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom (or, come with your kingly power).” (Luke 23:42)

The repentant thief confessed Jesus as King.

So then, what led to Jesus being crucified according to Scripture?

Jesus was crucified because He claimed to be the Anointed King, and everyone rejected Him as that King.

Jesus was not crucified simply as a perfect man but as the Anointed King of men. He was enthroned on the cross as the King of fallen humanity. The cross was a fallen, broken, bloody throne that represented the fallenness and sinfulness of humanity. By taking His place on that throne, Jesus joined us as our King and took our sin upon Himself. Not only was the cross where fallen humanity rejected and tortured their King, but it is also where God poured out His rejection of mankind on their Anointed King.

When we look at the crosses displayed in our churches, we shouldn’t just see a torture device that brought salvation, we should see the temporary, broken throne of our King. But it was a throne on which King Jesus only sat for a few hours; He will spend eternity on a different throne.

Even when seen in Revelation as the Lamb who was slain, Jesus is presented as the King worthy of worship. Ultimately, the Lamb who was slain is described as sitting on the throne of God toward which “every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:10-11)

There is no separation between “King Jesus” and “Savior Jesus.” He is one and the same and must be accepted as both. He cannot be torn apart. We are saved by the death, resurrection, and cosmic enthronement of King Jesus.

I recognize there is a theological community that holds that accepting Jesus as savior is the only requirement for salvation (the only “repentance” being repentance from a belief in one’s own goodness). To be honest, I don’t have any great advice on how to make disciples for those with this particular soteriology. Because, technically, according to this belief, Christians (a first-century Greek abbreviation for “disciples of Jesus Christ”) are not required to recognize Him as King or to commit to being disciples who imitate and obey Him (which would be my definition of “repentance”). I do however wish them the best of luck.

So, for the rest of us, how do you normalize “King Jesus?”

First, feel free to use the example presented in this article about the crucifixion being a response to Jesus claiming to be King, and His enthronement as the King of fallen mankind. Spread it out over several sermons leading up to Easter in order to drive it home.

If you are a pastor who preaches topically, I would also encourage you to preach an entire series about King Jesus and His Kingdom. If you preach exegetically, verse by verse through books of the Bible, I would encourage you to preach a series through the Gospel of Mark about how Jesus is announcing and implementing His Kingdom. Mark is a short book that is fairly quick to work through and I promise you the Kingdom is in there.

Even when Jesus is not specifically preaching about His Kingdom or being the Messiah (for example, when He is healing people) He is demonstrating that the Kingdom of God is about restoring creation and human beings to their original purpose under His rule. Such a series will help your church become accustomed to King Jesus and Kingdom language. It is also a great way to proclaim the good news of the Christ and the Kingdom of God.

The books I referenced in the previous article, Why the Gospel by Matthew Bates and King Jesus and the Beauty of Obedience-Based Discipleship by David Young are good books to help you understand and explain King Jesus and His Kingdom to your people. As I wrote in a previous article, slow down, step back, and educate yourself before you attempt to shift an entire church to King Jesus-style disciple making.

For King Jesus,

Curt Erskine for

Discipleship.org