XVI. Of Christ as King.

The Lord Jesus Christ as the one promised and heavenly King of the new covenant (Psalms 2:6; Jeremiah 23:5; Luke 1:32, 33), having by His glorious resurrection proved Himself victor over the devil, over death and the grave, (Colossians 2:15; 2 Timothy 1:10; Hebrews 2:14, 15) at once began to set up and order His spiritual kingdom when He gave His apostles command and instruction as to how the same should be established (Matthew 28:19, 20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47); yet more especially when He ascended on high (Ephesians 4:8), entered into His glory (Luke 24:26), and sat down on the right hand of His Father in heaven (Hebrews 1:3) of which He gave the strongest proof when on the day of Pentecost He poured forth abundantly the Holy Spirit upon His apostles. Acts 2:33-36.

Thenceforth the kingdom of God came with power, so that from that day on, through the instrumentality of the apostles, great numbers of believing and spiritually minded people were gathered (Acts 2:41, 47; 4:32, 33) who confessed Jesus Christ as their Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:9-11.

The spiritual kingdom, generally called the kingdom of heaven, the Lord Jesus has committed in part to His servants here on earth to administer according to the spiritual laws of His kingdom. Ephesians 4:11, 12; 1 Peter 5:1-4. Yet above all and in particular He Himself administers the same direct from heaven. He rules the hearts of His people through the Holy Spirit (John 16:13; 14: 26), in accordance with His Word, with passionate love; He protects and shelters them as under His wings, equips them with spiritual weapons against His and their enemies (Ephesians 6:11-18), and is to them a very present help in trouble so that in Him they are more than conquerors (Romans 8:37); He prepares for them a place in heaven (John 14:2) and will by grace give victory and a crown of righteousness in the life eternal (2 Timothy 4:7, 8) to all who continue faithful to Him in the spiritual conflict with sin and Satan (Revelation 2:10; Matthew 24:13); but His enemies He will put under His feet. Matthew 22:24.

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