Heaven on Earth?

Have your read Psalm 72? If you haven't, please do. If you have, read it again. It's a prayer that God would give the king (the royal son) righteousness and justice so that he might rule righteously and justly. As the prayer unfolds, the existence under his righteous and just reign is longingly expressed: the oppressor is crushed, the poor and needy are defended, and even the land produces in abundance under his stewardship. His rule would be "like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth." All authority would be yielded to him as "all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him." And why? For "he delivers the needy when he calls, / the poor and him who has no helper. / He has pity on the weak and the needy, / and saves the lives of the needy. / From oppression and violence he redeems their life, / and precious is their blood in his sight."

The psalm is attributed to Solomon, David's son. He clearly had a vision for what it would mean to have a righteous ruler on the throne. Unfortunately, it was not realized in is reign. In truth, his idolatry led him far away from this ideal and after his death it was acknowledged that his vanity had put a "heavy yoke" upon those he ruled. Solomon's successor was counseled to "be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever" (1 Kings 12:7). That advice was a fitting summary of the psalm that Solomon had penned. Alas, Solomon did not follow it. Nor did his successor, Rehoboam.

I think it safe to say that no ruler has ever fulfilled this vision. Whether monarch, dictator, president, or prime minister, no one has ever succeeded in engineering heaven on earth, no matter how noble his or her intentions. There is only one king that has ever graced the Earth who is capable of achieving this longed-for existence. He is the one who confronts us on Palm Sunday. He it is who ushers in the Kingdom of Heaven with his humble entrance into Jerusalem. 

But it must be noted that the full realization of a perfect human existence under the rule of our benevolent King awaits the consummation of the age. Only when the new heaven and earth are manifested will we completely experience the promised peaceable kingdom. Till then, we await him and pray with the faithful, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus!" (Revelation 22:20).