Our Scripture reading this morning is Ephesians chapter 6. Ephesians chapter 6. In connection with Lord's Day 12 and Christ the King who also makes us kings to fight against Satan and sin, this chapter is appropriate especially for that, as we consider the armor of God. Ephesians chapter six, children, obey your parents and the Lord for this is right. Honor thy father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise, that it may be well with thee and that thou mayest live long on the earth. And ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath, but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling and singleness of your heart, as unto Christ. Not with eye service, as men pleasers, but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. with goodwill doing service as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free. And ye masters do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening, knowing that your master also is in heaven, neither is there respect of persons with him. Finally, my brethren, Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the kingdoms of the, of the rulers, of the darkness of this world against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all to stand. Stand therefore having your loins girt about with truth and having on the breastplate of righteousness and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God, praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit. and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints and for me. That utterance may be given unto me that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel for which I am an ambassador in bonds, that therein I may speak boldly as I ought to speak. that ye may know my affairs and how I do, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, shall make known to you all things, whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose, that ye might know our affairs and that he might comfort your hearts. Peace be to the brethren and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all them. that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen. So far we read God's holy word. Based on that and many other passages of God's word is the instruction of the Heidelberg Catechism in Lord's Day 12. Lord's Day 12. There in question 31, the catechism asks, why is he called Christ, that is, anointed? And the answer, because he is ordained of God the Father and anointed with the Holy Ghost to be our chief prophet and teacher, who has fully revealed to us the secret counsel and will of God concerning our redemption, and to be our only high priest who by the one sacrifice of his body has redeemed us and makes continual intercession with the Father for us. Now, especially the sermon is on what follows here, and also to be our eternal king who governs us by his word and spirit and who defends and preserves us in the enjoyment of that salvation he has purchased for us. And the parentheses could very well be Removed, he preserves us in that salvation he has purchased for us. Then question 32, but why art thou called a Christian? And the answer, because I am a member of Christ by faith and thus am partaker of his anointing. That so I may confess his name and present myself a living sacrifice of thankfulness to him And now this is our duty as king, and also that with a free and good conscience, I may fight against sin and Satan in this life, and afterwards reign with him eternally over all creatures. Beloved in the Lord Jesus Christ, do you feel like a king? When you think of what a king is, what comes to mind, we probably think of kings, they have power, they rule. People honor kings and submit to them. They listen to the king. They're afraid of offending him. Kings pass laws and kings enforce them. Kings raise armies and they go to fight. Do you feel like a king? The Bible says you are. Revelation chapter five, verse 10, When the saints and angels in heaven are praising Jesus, they add this, and has made us unto God, kings and priests. And then it adds, and we shall reign on the earth. Jesus Christ has made us to be king. Later in the book of Revelation chapter 20 verse four, the apostle John sees a vision in heaven. He sees thrones and he sees saints sitting on the thrones reigning with Christ. Christ has given to you the office of a king. You are officially appointed to that position. You are a partaker of the anointing of Christ, who is the King of God, because you are members of Christ by faith. That's why you are called a Christian with the name of Christ embedded in that you have the Holy Spirit to qualify you to be King. Christ, of course, is the King of God. That's one of the three aspects of his office of mediator. We call that Christ, the name means anointed, which indicates that he has been anointed by the Holy Spirit to an office. As in the Old Testament, kings and prophets and priests were anointed with oil, which was a way of God showing the people this man has been appointed by God to this office and the Holy Spirit has been given to him. That's the symbolism of the oil. So also God appointed Christ to the office of mediator and anointed him not with oil, but with the reality to which the oil appointed with the Holy Spirit. He is God's office bearer. The triune God eternally determined that the second person of the Trinity would be the mediator between God and his people. The book of Hebrews, as we've gone through that, we've emphasized the theme of it is Jesus Christ, the better mediator of a better covenant. He's the mediator. And now you recall from Hebrews that most of the book focuses on his high priestly office. So he's the mediator as the high priest. But think about the fact that right away in the first two verses of the book, God said in these last days, God has spoken unto us by his son. He's the prophet. And that later on in chapter 7, Melchizedek is set before us, the king priest, who is a type of Christ. Christ is also king as mediator. We have examined some of what scripture teaches about Christ's office of mediator. He's our chief prophet who speaks the word, revealing God and the counsel of God concerning our salvation. He's the only high priest who offered the one and only sacrifice, redeeming his people, and he makes continual intercession for us. And today we turn to the aspect of his kingship. The catechism draws from scripture when it says that Jesus is our eternal king, our eternal king. This is something the church confessed from the beginning of the new dispensation. In the year 325, they adopted the creed of Nicaea, and they added this little statement about Jesus, whose kingdom has no end. His kingdom has no end. Already in that day, there was somebody denying that Jesus is the eternal king, and the church says, oh, no, he is. There's no end to his kingdom. All the powerful rulers of the world will die and no longer rule, but Jesus Christ is king forever. And that's what we confess. The theme for the sermon then is confessing Christ, our eternal king. We'll notice in the first place, his divine appointment. Secondly, his gracious rule. And thirdly, his appointment of us. God appointed Christ king. It's evident, first of all, from the Old Testament pictures, the types there. God ruled through men like Moses and later through judges who came only for a short time to deliver Israel in their trials. But you remember the refrain that echoes through the book of Judges. And every man did what was right in his own eyes. There was no king in Israel. God was preparing them for the office of king, and he finally established it in the country of Israel. so that they would have a picture of the king that was coming. David, the warring king, delivering Israel from their enemies. Solomon's reign in peace and prosperity and with astounding wisdom. No matter how great they were, however, the type always failed. The people knew the real king is coming. And God told them that already in Psalm 2. God established his own son on the throne, Psalm 2. There we read this. God says in verse six, yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. And then Christ speaks, I will declare the decree. The Lord has said unto me, thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee. Now God continues to speak to his son, ask of me and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. He will be king over all and he will destroy his enemies. Verse nine, thou shall break them with a rod of iron and thou shall dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. God established Jesus as king. The prophets told about it. Zechariah, behold, thy king cometh unto thee. Isaiah telling us about the child that would be born, the son that would be given, and the government that shall rest upon his shoulders forever. All through the Old Testament, God was saying to the people, there's a king coming. The King is coming. The New Testament confirms that. In the book, if you recall the words of Gabriel to Mary, that this child that would be born of her would be sitting upon the throne of David forever. Jesus demonstrated that He was King. With his tremendous authority, he commanded demons to leave those whom they possessed and they obeyed. He commanded the wind and the waves raging to be still and they obeyed. The leaders of the Jews accused Jesus of making himself a King. And so Pilate asked him. Art thou the king of the Jews? Jesus' answer was, I am king, but my kingdom is not of this world. The book of Revelation confirms that Jesus is indeed king. In chapter 19 of Revelation, verse 16 says, And he had on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of kings. and Lord of Lords. That's Jesus. He's king forever, king over everything, but especially God said, I have set my king upon my holy hill of Zion, king over the church. What exactly is then this office of a king? The king is a ruler in what we normally call a kingdom. And the kingdom extends so far as the authority and power of the king is upheld. Wherever his rule is established and he can enforce it, that's his kingdom. The king is the sovereign, that is to say, there is no one higher than him in his kingdom. What does a king do? Especially two things. He rules and he defends. A king rules. He makes laws. They may be fair, they may be unfair, but he makes the laws. He judges. If he's a good king, he rewards those who do good and he punishes those who do evil. He rules in his kingdom. Secondly, a king defends his kingdom. He raises an army to defend his kingdom from attack. He uses the sword against the enemy, both outside and those who are enemies within. Jesus has a kingdom. Where is this kingdom? The rule of Jesus Christ is in the heart of his people. When the Jews said, well, where is your kingdom? And how will we know it? Jesus said, don't look for the kingdom to come by observation. The kingdom is within you. It's inside of you. It is the rule of Christ in the heart of his people. You understand then that he's the king. He's representing God as king, and he is doing the work of God in his office. God has set Christ upon a throne with authority and power over everything. Jesus affirmed that. Before he ascended up into heaven, he said to his disciples, all power is given to me in heaven and in earth. all power. And the book of Ephesians confirms that in chapter 1 when it speaks of the mighty power of God. which he wrought in Christ, verse 20, Ephesians 1, 20, which God wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places far above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this world but also in that which is to come, and hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be the head over all things. to the church. Jesus Christ is sitting at God's right hand. There's a lot of importance there. We'll talk about that when we get to it in the confession. But one of the things that teaches us is God is still the king. Jesus is sitting at his right hand. According to the human nature of Jesus, he is very much subject to God. He is king under God, but he rules with the power and the might of God himself. His authority, his representative, his work. What is that work of Jesus? from the throne now over all things? Well, he's executing the counsel of God. Whatever God wanted to do, that's the work that Jesus has to do, to execute God's plan. His eternal plan that determines all creatures, all events, all the history of this world. Christ is executing that plan. And how can he do that sitting there on a throne in heaven? How can he execute the counsel of God in Byron Center and in Moscow and in Africa? How can he do that? He has the Spirit. God has given him the Spirit and the Spirit can be sent out and is sent out by Jesus with instructions on carrying out the counsel of God. Everything that happens in this world is directed by Jesus Christ, the King. The decisions of president Trump are directed by King Jesus, as well as the decisions of the prime minister of Russia, Vladimir Putin. They're both totally under his control. Christ determines the laws that are enacted by the legislature in Michigan. In the creation, He rules, directing the movements of the mammoth whales in the depths of the ocean. But the flight of every sparrow and robin and the growth of every leaf and every tree, it's all under His sovereign control. Christ the King directs the clouds and not only sends snow, but fashions every snowflake and determines where it lands and the path of every raindrop, but also every earthquake and every raging storm. Clearly, Christ must also be God to be able to rule over all things. And he is. All the history of this world is directed by Him. If there's a war, it's determined by Him. Who will be the victor? He has determined that and will execute that. Countries rise and fall at His command. Everything is directed by the sovereign power of Jesus Christ. is why he's able to defend the church against the attacks of the wicked. If Jesus did not have sovereign control over all the people of this world, The ungodly world, which far outnumbers the church, could definitely extinguish it. They could have done it when Noah was down, the church was down to eight souls. They could have done it when Israel was, they were slaves in Egypt, or at the time of the Reformation when it was struggling and the world powers were uniting against it. But they could not, because Christ rules. And also in our lives, we cannot make the confession that all things work together for our good. If Jesus were not in control, but he is. As King, he is also able to direct all things to bring about the end that God has determined, to bring about the day, the moment, the second when He appears on the clouds of heaven. He's directing all things to that end, as we'll talk about tonight. Jesus has been appointed by God to be King over all. But we focus secondly, in the second point, on His gracious rule over the Church. Especially two activities are outlined in the Catechism, drawing from Scripture, on what the work of Jesus is. First of all, He defends, I'm going to reverse the order that it gives, but He defends and preserves each elect believer in the salvation He has purchased for them. Jesus purchased our salvation. He offered himself that effectual sacrifice by taking the place of his people, by bearing the wrath of God, the punishment we deserved. He redeemed his people. He calls them his own. Effectually, he redeems them. He earned a righteousness for his people, an eternal righteousness which cannot fail. This glory of salvation from sin, from death, from hell is unto eternal life and glory, a marvelous salvation. But how do we know that we will not lose it? We're still here, obviously, on this earth and we're surrounded by evil and people are dying all the time. How do we know that our death will bring us into eternal glory, that we will not somehow lose this wonderful salvation? We have powerful enemies seeking to rob us of that salvation. We have our own flesh to contend with, the flesh that is pushing, always pushing to sin, always trying to push us onto the broad path that leads to destruction. And out there in that broad path, the world is enticing us. Come, come and join us. This is a wonderful place to live on this broad path. Look at everyone that's going on it. And if we do not respond well to that, then the church, then rather the world lifts up the sword. Attacks with cruel hatred and ridiculing and squeezing the church economically and ultimately putting them to death. We have enemies. How do we know that we will not succumb to the attacks of the enemy? And if that's not daunting enough, we have behind that Satan as a roaring lion going all through the earth, seeking saints to devour. How can we stay in? Our only hope is in our king who defends his kingdom. He's a king. The devil cannot so much as move except to be according to the will of our king. He preserves his people so that they cannot be lost. The beautiful verse, Paul, in the grip of the lion, so to speak, Caesar, And he was up for his second trial, and he figured this would be the end. And he said this. In 2 Timothy 4, verse 18, and the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom. There you have it. He will deliver me from every evil work and will preserve me unto his eternal kingdom. Preserved by the power of grace that comes to us by faith in Jesus Christ. You see how important is the word and spirit in this. That's how Jesus preserves us by his grace, by his word, by his spirit. That's why we cannot be lost. That's why there will be believers on this earth. No matter how fierce the persecution, the day Jesus comes, there will be believers here. He preserves his church. So that, first of all, is the activity of the king defending his church, his kingdom. Secondly, he rules. He rules in his kingdom, he rules Us, we are his kingdom. All believers around the world, they are his kingdom. And he rules by his word and spirit. Word, of course, is the Bible, but it's especially the word preached. That's the word of the king that he sends out to his people. That's why in the Bible, the word for preacher is a herald He's a herald of the king. He comes with a message from the king and says to the people of God, this is what the king says to you today. That's what the preaching is. And the spirit then takes that preaching and applies it to the hearts of the believers, applies it. The spirit gives a new life that is from heaven and the spirit makes the people willing to obey the king. Every other king has to rule from the top saying, break this law and this will be the punishment. Keep this law and this will be the reward. All external Jesus works within by his spirit, ruling, applying the word to the hearts of his people. By that Word of God, then, they are strengthened. They fight against sin. They strive to live in obedience to that Word. Now, obviously, there are hearers who ignore it. They don't want to hear it. And, of course, the unbeliever, that's true of him all the time, but that can be true of a believer, too, that he hears the Word, but he doesn't really like to hear that Word. It doesn't sit well with him today. He wants to dismiss it. And the Bible warns us about that. The book of James talks about a man who looks into the law of God like a mirror, and then he walks away and straightway forgets all about it. And James says he's a hearer of the word, but he's not a doer. Not a doer. In Hebrews 3, you remember the dreadful warning there Do not harden your heart when you hear God speaking. Do not harden your heart. Israel did, and they perished in the wilderness. If the hearer does not obey, then the Spirit is simply allowing him to go on in his sin. And that's a dreadful thing. That in itself is a righteous judgment of God on an attitude of disobedience that he will not listen. And he will not until the spirit turns. Christ rules by his word and spirit. He saves from sin. That's what we said. Why is the Son of God called Jesus? Because He saveth us and delivereth us from sin. He delivers us from the power and the corruption of sin. Citizens of the kingdom of Jesus Christ should obviously live as citizens of that kingdom of heaven Their lives should indicate that they are different from the citizens of the kingdom of Satan. They offer themselves a sacrifice of thanksgiving to God every day. And they do that because Christ is in them. They're partakers of His anointing, and He's ruling them graciously by His word. and Spirit. He gives sorrow for sin. He gives hatred of sin. He gives the power to fight sin, and we simply live out of that. He's ruling us by His Word and Spirit. Now, of course, we notice that Christ is in heaven. And we are on this earth. And he rules by his word and spirit. But you understand that God graciously also gives representatives of Christ. To assist us. Namely, the office bearers of the church. Christ, the prophet. Sends ministers to speak. Christ the High Priest sends deacons to show mercy to his people. Christ the King sends elders to rule in his church. Acts 20 verse 28, Paul says to the elders that the Holy Ghost has made you overseers of the Church. Emphasizes that in chapter 13, remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation. Verse 17, obey them that have the rule over you and submit yourselves for they watch for your souls as they that must give an account. Of course, they're sent by Jesus. They're not Lords in His inheritance. They answer to Him. They bring the Word. That's what those verses just said, too. They do not bring their own opinions. That's worth nothing. But the Word they bring, and that's what the Spirit uses. So these men, minister, deacons, elders, bring the Word to us, and the Spirit applies that, and that's how Jesus is ruling over us. But office bearers are not the only ones who have the spirit. We all have the spirit. Because we all have an office. And that's what we want to turn to in the third place that Christ has appointed us to the office of King. Christ appoints every believer. We saw that in Romans Revelation chapter 5 verse 10 that he hath made us kings and priests unto God. We are called to fight against sin, fight against sin. In 1 Timothy, Paul exhorts Timothy to do that, but surely it's intended for the church. In 1 Timothy 6, Verse 12, fight the good fight of faith. Lay hold on eternal life. He goes in verse 14, that thou keep this commandment without spot. Unreprovable, unrebukable until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 11, but thou, O man of God, flee these things and follow after righteousness and godliness and faith, love, patience, meekness, and so on. And that's what Paul said. In 2 Timothy 4, when he knew his time was almost up here in this world, he said, I have fought the good fight. I have fought the good fight. Ephesians 6, which we read, also speaks of the need for us to stand for the cause of God And that will require a fight. He starts out, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. There's our strength. Don't forget that. Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. And then he says, and your king equips you. He doesn't send you out into the battle on your own. Get your own pitchforks and your knives and go out and fight the battle. No. Here's the armor. He supplied it to you. Now put it on. Put it on. Here's the armor. Let's look at this armor of God that is described here. in Philippians, rather in Ephesians 6. First of all, he says, your loins must be girt about with truth. That's verse 14. Stand therefore having your loins girt about with truth. The belt of the Roman soldier, and that's what Paul is clearly referring to here, the army that they wore, and that all these people understood very well. The belt was the thing that held everything together. Parts of the armor were attached to it to hold it in place. The sword was attached to the belt. And so the first thing that a soldier would put on is the belt of the armor. And Paul says, what you must put on is the belt of the truth, the truth. The truth, of course, is the truth of God. It's what's set forth in the Word of God, everything about God, the Trinity, the incarnation, the creation of all things, the salvation that Jesus has accomplished, all the truth. Take that as a belt and put it on. How do you put on the truth? Well, you have to know that truth. It has to be something that's in your bones. It has to be something that you simply know and love and embrace, and you can't live without it. The truth of God, more important to you than anything in the world. Put on that truth. That's how you start. Before you think about fighting, know the truth. Put it on as the very foundation of your armor. put on the breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate of righteousness, rather the breastplate of a soldier would be that which protects his chest. It protects his heart and his lungs and the vital elements and organs of his body. They need to be protected if he's going to fight. So put on the breastplate. But here for the Christian soldier, it's the breastplate of Righteousness. What kind of righteousness are we talking about? Well, it's the righteousness of Jesus Christ, obviously. That's what holds us. It is our justification by faith alone in Jesus Christ. Our works will not defend us against Satan's attacks, but the absolute certainty that I am righteous. I am right with God. I have an eternal righteousness that I cannot lose. That's my protection. That's my breastplate that protects me in the battle. Put that on, embrace that, live out of that. Put on the belt, put on the breastplate. Third, have your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. A soldier will go off to fight. must have good footwear. He's going to be running over rocks and running through all sorts of difficulties. He needs good shoes, and he needs to be able to stand there in those good shoes to fight. Have your feet shod. Now, as Christians, with what? The preparation of the gospel of peace. That's one of the more difficult expressions here. Let's start with gospel of peace. That isn't difficult. The gospel of peace is the gospel that preaches peace. You have peace with God. You have peace with God because Jesus has paid for your sins. That's the gospel. The good news is you're saved, you're redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ alone, and you have peace with God. A soldier needs to know that. He's right with his commander. His commander is not angrily looking at him and sending him off into the worst part of the battle to kill him. He has peace with God. Preparations of the gospel, it doesn't mean preparation for the gospel, that's what it might sound like, but it's the fact that the gospel prepares. It's the preparation that the gospel does. And the gospel is what is going to prepare us even to get started in the battle. It is our preparation. You do not have the gospel ringing in your heart and in your ears. You're not prepared. You're not prepared to fight. This is worth fighting for. The great salvation we have and the peace with God. Have your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace. And then take up the shield of faith. The shield is obviously so important that a soldier could hold something in front of him to protect him from the arrows and the spears and the stones that were being slung at them. Something to protect him from that. For the believer, it's the shield of faith. And that faith is not our subjective faith that I believe that's true, that that must be there. But the shield is what we believe. It's the doctrines of the Word of God. It is the reality that Jesus is God and man, the reality that God has created all things, all of the doctrines which God has so graciously given to us in our confessions. This is what we hold up. This is what defends us against the darts of the devil, because what is the devil doing with his darts? Yea, hath God said? Doubt, doubt, doubt. That's his fiery dart. What will quench that? Your confessions. Yes, God has said that. Yes, this is true. This is our shield. We hold this up in our defense against the attacks. The shield of faith. The helmet of salvation. Take on the helmet of salvation. The helmet protects the head, obviously, that's tremendously vital. for a soldier, our salvation is our helmet. That glorious redemption in Jesus Christ from sin unto eternal life, the salvation that we have, that is what protects us. Take it on. Embrace that. Hold that fast. That's your helmet. And finally, the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. the sword of the Spirit. The sword, obviously, is the only attacking part of the whole armor. And the soldier needs something to attack the enemy. And what the believer has is the sword of the Word of God. The sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. It's the sword of the Spirit because the Spirit has given us the Word of God. The Spirit makes it to be a living Word of God, but that Word is your only instrument against the lies of the devil. How will you cut them off? How will you destroy his lies? It is with the sword of the Spirit. That's our offensive weapon. When Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, what was Jesus' weapon? It is written, it is written, the word of God. That was his sword, destroying the lives of Satan. Thus equipped we will fight against sin. This is a spiritual activity. He starts out that way, stand fast in the might, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. And then when he's finished saying, okay, this is the armor now, you need to put this on consciously, put this on. And then he adds, praying always, With all prayers and supplication, prayers being general supplications are specific cries in times of great adversity. At times when we're fiercely in the battle, we're making specific requests for grace. Prayers will not defend you against physical bullets or knives. Our battle is not physical. Our battle is spiritual. And praying also reminds us we will not stand by our power. We need to be praying for strength. We need to be praying for the ability to stand. Keep praying and then fight and then fight. We start by fighting within ourselves. As the catechism points out, with a good conscience, I fight against sin. If our conscience is not good, that means we are dabbling with sin. We're not turning away from it, but we're enjoying that. And that means we will never be able to stand. only with a good conscience, only when we see these are my sins, I need to turn from them, need to be sorry for them, then I can stand, then I can fight. But we start with ourselves in this battle. But we fight right here. I don't mean we fight against each other. That's too easy. That's pride. But we fight here in this sense. You don't fight on your own. You're not a one-man army. You're fighting next to soldiers who sometimes get weary, who need help. They're fighting a battle. They may be losing ground. We come in to help. And sometimes that help means that we have to bring them the Word encourage and rebuke so that they will turn and begin to fight sin. But we're diligent, fighting sin wherever it is found, in our own families, in our own congregation, fighting sin. And that really is a question that every one of us needs to face. Am I fighting? Am I fighting the world or do I see the world as really just a nice place and my main goal in life is just to be in peace with the world? Is that my goal in life? Do we understand that the world is full of hatred against the truth and godliness? You understand that? Do we get up in the morning and put on the armor Because I'm going out to fight today, at work, at school, in the home. I've got a battle today. Do I understand that? Am I putting on the armor? That's our calling. As kings appointed by Jesus Christ, we're here in this world, fight, fight sin and Satan. As kings, we will one day also reign with Christ. That's the second part of the catechism's description of our activity as king. We will reign over all creatures. And now, don't have this idea in your mind that when you get to heaven, you're going to plunk yourself down on a throne and order people around. And then give your command and see if they're doing it well. That's not what being a king is. But ruling over all creatures means they are subject to you. They are subject to you so that you can use them. Whatever creatures God has in heaven, angels and whatever else is there, I don't know. But they will be subject to you so that you can serve God with them. You can use whatever God puts there under your control. You'll be the king. You'll be the one in control here. Using it to serve God. as Christ rules over everything, but not for His glory, not so that people can just be in awe of what He can do and His commands, but for the glory of God, that's His purpose. So ours all through eternity will be ruling under Jesus, in the name of Jesus, using everything for the glory of God. That's our work. What an amazing thing that will be, though. New heavens and new earth, all the enemies of God cast out, every single last chosen of God with a place and a purpose and a function shining forth with the glory of God. And then Jesus on the throne, God's representative, King ruling and wisdom and love and mercy and all of his people doing his will without any enemies to fight, but now doing what we can to give God the glory. That's why we're recreated. Let's fill that office of King. Amen. Father in heaven, what a glorious plan thou has determined that all things will so perfectly work together this way, the way they have been and the way they will be, and then into eternity. We marvel at thy wisdom, and then we marvel at the place we have in that plan and the work we have to do. So give us a rich measure of the Spirit. Make us to be faithful. Give glory to thy name. In Jesus' name we pray this, amen. We turn now to Psalm 45a. And the first line is certainly appropriate. My heart doth overflow. A goodly theme is mine. My eager tongue with joyful song doth praise the King divine. Let's sing the first five stanzas, one through five of 45a. My heart of overflow, how could he be this kind? ♪ The grace of being divine ♪ ♪ Sublime in heaven above ♪ ♪ The blessed grace of God above ♪ ♪ The God of winning song ♪ ♪ Over me with my song ♪ ♪ A strong and mighty bond ♪ ♪ It's that in majesty ♪ ♪ Our glorious Temple Star ♪ ♪ Triumph with thee, my Lord ♪ ♪ For the deepest truth and pride ♪ ♪ Triumph shall be the victory ♪ ♪ Let us sing from our pride ♪ ♪ Our strength shall overcome ♪ ♪ For the second coming ♪ ♪ Let it come, let it come ♪ ♪ The nations now shall hear ♪ O say can you see, by the dawn's early light, What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming? And blest there be this glorious day, Long as the ages shall echo, For all the earth then send its praise, Amen, amen, forevermore. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.