Advent: King Messiah

In the progressive revelation of God’s promised redemption, the figure of the redeemer becomes clearer. The Messiah, or Anointed One, will be one who will reign as king. It was prophesied by Jacob and realized in David, Israel’s archetypal king. But the task of restoring humanity to a state of peace and abundance in fellowship with God is more than any earthly king could accomplish. This deficiency was something that David appears to have grasped, for in Psalm 110 he pays homage to one he calls “my Lord,” whom Yahweh exalts to his right hand: “The Lord says to my Lord/“Sit at my right hand,/until I make your enemies your footstool.” Remarkably, this figure was one to whom even the God-appointed king of Israel must pay obeisance.

The identity of this figure was claimed by Jesus himself (Matthew 22:41-45), and proclaimed with apostolic authority (e.g., Acts 2:34-36). He was the promised Son of David who fulfilled the covenant given to the shepherd turned king. He ushered in the kingdom that has as its hallmarks, equity, justice, righteousness, and peace. The works that he did testified to his true identity; and though he was “killed by the hands of lawless men,” God demonstrated through his resurrection, ascension, and subsequent outpouring of the Holy Spirit, that he was, that he is, “both Lord and Christ.”

Advent is a time of waiting in anticipation. For those alive at the time of Jesus’ birth, it had been a millennium since David wrote his prophetic lyrics. But those who waited in faith saw their faith rewarded. Our advent season is even longer than theirs. Yet our reason to hope is greater than theirs. Not only do we have the record of Jesus’ ministry on earth that testifies to his Messianic anointing, we have the vision of the one who possesses “the keys of Death and Hades,” the “Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, [who] has conquered,” of whom voices in Heaven proclaim, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever,” and who himself testifies that, “I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay everyone for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” (Revelation 1:18; 5:5; 11:15; 22:12). Armed with this vision may we be reminded, in the words of the hymn, that,
“This is my Father’s world. O let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world; the battle is not done;
Jesus who died shall be satisfied
And earth and heav’n be one.”

Love for the Lord's Anointed

Much has been made in recent scholarship of the relationship between David and Jonathan. Revisionists, looking for a way to baptize their own desires, label it homosexual. The absurdity of this notion becomes readily apparent when we remember that David is described as one of God’s choosing, a man after his own heart, a king who would rule as God would have a king to rule. Even a cursory glance at the expectations that God had for a king would note that he expected the would-be king to know and be submitted to the Law of Moses (see Deuteronomy 17). Current apologists for homosexuality themselves recognize that the Law of Moses is not kind toward homosexual activity. To suggest then that David and Jonathan enjoyed a sexualized male-to-male relationship is to suggest nonsense.

The stumbling block for these folks is the strong language that characterizes Jonathan’s love for David (see 1 Samuel 18). But the real reason for Jonathan’s love for David was Jonathan’s love for God. He saw in David a kindred spirit, a man who loved God and possessed great faith that God would defend his name.

Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, echoed this exemplary response to the presence of the Lord’s anointed (see John 12). Like Jonathan to David, her soul was knit to the Lord’s anointed and she responded with devotion and love. To the contrary are the responses of Saul and the Pharisees. They saw in the exploits of the Lord's anointed reasons to hate and fear, and they plotted to destroy the object of their wrath. But it was not to be. God was with David, and God was with Jesus. The plans of the jealous come to naught as God's plans overrule.

These disparate responses are worthy of contemplation. And rather than finding ways to minimize their impact by suggesting, for instance, that Jonathan's love for David was coupled with lust, we should ask for the grace to see the Lord's anointed as Jonathan and Mary saw him, worthy of total devotion.