Jesus Christ is returning to Jerusalem, not as a baby in the manger, but as King of Kings.
Rudyard Kipling's "The Man Who Would Be King" is the tale of two 19th century British soldiers who decide to journey into remote mountains of India and set themselves up as kings.
They take over a small tribe, teach them how to use firearms, and precede to conquer all neighboring tribes. Eventually, the mountain people begin to look on the two as gods.
It works until one of them has amorous feelings towards a local girl. This leads their subjects to decide that their rulers really aren't gods. One king is killed, the other tortured. He lives just long enough to escape and tell his story.
This is the story of tribes, countries and empires since the beginning of time. Humanity needs government, laws, and leadership for the common good. Human beings also tend to become corrupted by the power of government. The problem with human government is human nature.
Jesus of Nazareth is the biblically prophesied MessiahA Hebrew word meaning literally "anointed one," synonymous with the Greek word christos, translated Christ. "In ancient Israel both persons and things consecrated to sacred purposes were anointed by having oil poured over them ... The Israelites did not think of crowning a king but of anointing him when he was enthroned ... [The future Messiah] is to destroy the world powers in an act of judgment, deliver Israel from her enemies, and restore her as a nation. The Messiah is the King of this future kingdom to whose political and religious domination the other nations will yield. His mission is the redemption of Israel and His dominion is universal. This is the clear picture of the Messiah in practically all of the OT passages which refer to Him" (The Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary, "Messiah").. He is returning to Jerusalem, not as a baby in the manger, but as King of Kings. Only then will all humanity experience peace and prosperity. Christians live in anticipation of that day.
For GN Magazine, I'm Gary Petty.
