Rev 19:16, And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." Amen.
	We come once again to the phraseology that describes Jesus Christ as the ultimate authority of mankind. We considered this in our discussion of Chapter 17. But, if you will bear with me, it is such an important truth that we will spend a bit more time with the reality of the Lordship of Jesus Christ over all the interactions of mankind. He is the sovereign Lord unto Whom all will bow and accede glory and honor and acknowledgement. In this path of contemplation, His Omniscience, His Omnipresence, and His Omnipotence will be eternally recognized and undisputed in any manner whatsoever. This is not just a concept that has evolved in the thought of our latter day theologians. 
	The Psalmist, under the direct influence and inspiration of the Holy Spirit wrote of Christ’s universal authority many, many times over. As but one example, in Ps 72:11-15, we are given a beautiful description of the Kingship and Lordship of Christ. He will be the ultimate source of all power and government in a manner not common to humanity’s goals of authority. And let all kings bow down before him, All nations serve him. For he will deliver the needy when he cries for help, The afflicted also, and him who has no helper. He will have compassion on the poor and needy, And the lives of the needy he will save. He will rescue their life from oppression and violence; And their blood will be precious in his sight; So may he live; and may the gold of Sheba be given to him; And let them pray for him continually; Let them bless him all day long. 
	What a glorious depiction of the Kingship of the Only Begotten Son of God. … he will deliver the needy… The afflicted also, and him who has no helper… He will have compassion on the poor and needy… the lives of the needy he will save… He will rescue their life from oppression and violence… their blood will be precious in his sight… The Lordship of Christ will be for those in need. Over and over again it is emphasized. He does not rule for the rich and the powerful, for those who are not desperate for help. He governs for the needy, for those who fervently require salvation and redemption. These are the ones whom He will uphold with His own right hand. His Kingship is not sought by those who wallow in their self-sufficiency and are seemingly able to meet their own needs. He watches for and supports those for whom there is no other avenue of assistance and encouragement and aid.    
	In Prov 8:13-17 we find even more evidence of the complete rule of Christ over all the earth for the sake of those in distress and who seek for Him with yearning hearts. "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way, And the perverted mouth, I hate. "Counsel is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, power is mine. "By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice. "By me princes rule, and nobles, All who judge rightly. "I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me. 
Does it fill our heart with joy to dwell on the fact that Jesus is our complete source of all that is required to live on this earth? Listen to Him as He declares the truth as the One Who cannot lie. Counsel is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, power is mine. 
Consider it! He is every counsel for every situation and circumstance. He is sound wisdom in the face of all the decisions that we must make in our day-to-day walk. He is understanding of all that would otherwise perplex and derail our minds and thoughts away from the gloriousness of Him. 
And, all power is His! Every king, every prince, every ruler, every government official receives power only because Jesus Christ grants them that power. No one can practice any authority except it be given to that person through the Son of God. In every instance, throughout the reign of mankind, God has ruled and overruled according to His divine plan and purpose, even to the point of the very crucifixion of His Own Son for our sakes and redemption. 
This was recognized by the early church as we discover in Acts 4:24-28. And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to God with one accord and said, "O Lord, it is Thou who didst make the heaven and the earth and the sea, and all that is in them, who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David Thy servant, didst say, 'Why did the Gentiles rage, And the peoples devise futile things? 'The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the Lord, and against His Christ.' "For truly in this city there were gathered together against Thy holy servant Jesus, whom Thou didst anoint, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever Thy hand and Thy purpose predestined to occur. 
No one can do anything outside the control and the divine plan and purpose of God! And God’s purpose is outlined very effectively and efficiently in Phil 2:9-11 with regard to His Son. Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Amen! Every knee of every potentate, ruler, king, government official, and human being throughout the created ages of humanity will bow and pay homage to the Lord Jesus Christ!
There are those, throughout the brief time of their reign on this earth, who did accede to Christ the fact that they governed only because He chose them to rule. Others, who thought that they were carrying out their own plans and devised ideas, will be forced to admit that He, Alone, gave them the power that they tried to use for their own benefit. No one will be able to claim that he or she was able to do anything apart from the provision given them by God’s own edict and command. And they will all be held fully accountable unto Him for the manner in which they used that governmental authority.
That reality will elicit the praise that Christ is due from all. 1 Tim 6:13-16, I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which He will bring about at the proper time — He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords; who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light; whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen. … To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen. Our hearts should accede all glory and all praise and all honor to God Almighty at this very moment. Our lives should reflect the reality of this truth today. We are called to live in complete accordance with every thought, every action, every word, and every motive being under the domain of His Kingship and His Lordship every moment of every day of our walk on this earth! What will be true in our eternal life is to be now in evidence this very day! We are to honor Jesus Christ as King and Lord today and forevermore!
	This is not a new concept for the inhabitants of this realm. As we find in Gen 27:28+29, Now may God give you of the dew of heaven, And of the fatness of the earth, And an abundance of grain and new wine;  May peoples serve you, And nations bow down to you; Be master of your brothers, And may your mother's sons bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you, And blessed be those who bless you." This was the blessing that was given to Jacob by Israel. It is the blessing that has been pronounced upon the Christ as the ultimate and final ruler of the people of God. As surely as Jacob was a type of Christ, Israel’s blessing is the very birthright of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Nations will bow down to Him and will serve Him.
	Balak tried to destroy this blessing and have Balaam curse the Children of Israel. But even in this, God intervened and pronounced through Balaam the blessing that is at this precise moment upon the head of His Only Begotten Son. Num 24:4-9, The oracle of him who hears the words of God, Who sees the vision of the Almighty, Falling down, yet having his eyes uncovered, How fair are your tents, O Jacob, Your dwellings, O Israel! "Like valleys that stretch out, Like gardens beside the river, Like aloes planted by the Lord, Like cedars beside the waters. "Water shall flow from his buckets, And his seed shall be by many waters, And his king shall be higher than Agag, And his kingdom shall be exalted. "God brings him out of Egypt, He is for him like the horns of the wild ox. He shall devour the nations who are his adversaries, And shall crush their bones in pieces, And shatter them with his arrows. "He couches, he lies down as a lion, And as a lion, who dares rouse him? Blessed is everyone who blesses you, And cursed is everyone who curses you." 
	Through Christ, the nations will be shattered and thrown down until He Alone is exalted. This vision is the very core of the promise given to the people of God in a Savior King Who will rule and overrule for His name’s sake. What have we to fear of the mightiest of men, or governments, or corporations? We have the Lord Jesus Christ as our bulwark and our salvation. He works to His end in the very hearts of even those who think they control the ends of the earth. 
As but one example from history, consider King Artaxerxes and the manner in which the Lord worked in his heart to allow the Children of Israel to return to Jerusalem and to rebuild the wall and the temple. Ezra 7:11-13, Now this is the copy of the decree which King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest, the scribe, learned in the words of the commandments of the Lord  and His statutes to Israel: "Artaxerxes, king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the scribe of the law of the God of heaven, perfect peace. And now I have issued a decree that any of the people of Israel and their priests and the Levites in my kingdom who are willing to go to Jerusalem, may go with you. He was so moved by God to allow any of the Children of Israel who wanted to return from their captivity to accompany Ezra in this task. He even gave them supplies and gold and other means to accomplish this task in honoring God. This is another example of the direct intervention of God into the affairs of man in order to show that He is the Sovereign over all.
	Through the Psalmist, God declares the kingdom that He exerts for the sake of His Son. Ps 89:21-29, With whom My hand will be established; My arm also will strengthen him. "The enemy will not deceive him, Nor the son of wickedness afflict him. "But I shall crush his adversaries before him, And strike those who hate him. "And My faithfulness and My lovingkindness will be with him, And in My name his horn will be exalted. "I shall also set his hand on the sea, And his right hand on the rivers. "He will cry to Me, 'Thou art my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation.' "I also shall make him My first-born, The highest of the kings of the earth. "My lovingkindness I will keep for him forever, And My covenant shall be confirmed to him. "So I will establish his descendants forever, And his throne as the days of heaven. 
	This is the affirmation of the kingdom of God that has always been the ruling force of history. There has never been a time in which God was not in charge and wonderfully dealing with those who acknowledge Him as Lord and King. 
This is the very source of our celebration in Him now and always. Ps 98:4-9, Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth; Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises. Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre; With the lyre and the sound of melody. With trumpets and the sound of the horn Shout joyfully before the King, the Lord. Let the sea roar and all it contains, The world and those who dwell in it. Let the rivers clap their hands; Let the mountains sing together for joy Before the Lord; for He is coming to judge the earth; He will judge the world with righteousness, And the peoples with equity. 
	It is the recognition that God is the King of our lives. Yes, He installs those men and women who have governmental authority over us, but they are not the ones in whom we put our trust. We see them as simply the instruments through whom God works to make His kingdom the very basis of our daily walk on this earth. We must never let our hearts wander from the fact that it is the Lord God Whom we faithfully serve and in Whom we place our trust and confidence. This causes the chorus to spring forth from our beings. Ps 99:2-5, The Lord is great in Zion, And He is exalted above all the peoples. Let them praise Thy great and awesome name; Holy is He. And the strength of the King loves justice; Thou hast established equity; Thou hast executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. Exalt the Lord our God, And worship at His footstool; Holy is He. 
	We must have the heart which recognizes God as sovereign, not only in all the affairs of nations and tribes and communities, but also in the personal relationship in our hearts and minds. It is necessary for us to place Him upon the throne of our heart just as He is already on the throne of all creation. Let us individually seek to honor Him as our personal and eternal Lord and King. Ps 145:1-3 I will extol Thee, my God, O King; And I will bless Thy name forever and ever. Every day I will bless Thee, And I will praise Thy name forever and ever. Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable. 
	Next week, Lord willing, we will continue with the truth of Jesus as the Lord of lords and King of kings. So be it!
And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, "KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. Amen.

	This morning’s benediction is Ps 136:1-3. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the God of gods, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Give thanks to the Lord of lords, For His lovingkindness is everlasting. Amen.