The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 430

times by ri!lht of conquest, sometimes in virtue of inheritance, sometimes by menn~ nf election. Now, Jesus iR King: 1. By Divine appointment and native ri~ht. "Yet," ran the prophecy, "have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion." He is Christ, i.e. the Anointed, nnd he is anointed Monarch of mankind. Men's recognition or rejection of him m11kes no difference as to the fact. In the very nature of things, because he is Bon of God, he is the rightful Ruler. 2. By mediatorial acquisition. He is Proph~t e.nd Priest, and therefore King. In order that his rightful sovereignty might become e.n actual sovereignty, the Lord Jeeus was obedient nnto death, and purchased his own fnheritance. The cross was the means by which he won the throne. II. 'l'Rll:: REALM OVER WHICH CHBiaT EXERCISES BIS SWAY. 1. Hie kingdom iR differenced from the kingdoms of this world in that it is not over the outward actions, the life merely, of men. He does not reign by the sceptre and the sword. He has no pa.lace, no army, none of the paraphernalia of earthly royalty. 2. Our Lord's kingdom is spiritual; it is first e.nd chiefly a dominion over the hearts, the convictions, and the affections of men. He sets up hie throne in the inner being and nature of his subjects; and if he rules over their speech and actions, it is because he first rules over their thoughts and desires. All his true subjects, therefore, are such willingly, and not by constraint. III. THE CB'ARA0TEB OF CHRIST'S ROYAL DOllfINIOl!l'. Our Lord Jesus combines in himself the two supreme attributes of government. 1. He is the Legislator King. Ho promulgates the laws which his subjects a.re bound to study, to respect, and to obey. The laws of earthly kingdoms are sometimes unjust. But Christ's laws a.re supremely righteous; they are commandments of God himself; only the authority which proper] y belongs to them is penetrated with a spirit of grace and kindness. 2. He is the judicial King. He enforces his own edicts. He is the Judge alike of the Church and of the world. He demands submission and obedience. And from the sanctions of his rule nono can escape. His friends shall be exalted, and foes and rebels sha.U be placed beneath his feet. IV. THE EXTENT AND DURATION OF CHRIST'S KmGSBIP. 1. His kingdom is wriverrnl. When Jesus, in his parables, spoke of the kingdom of God a.s destined to include all nations, nothing could havo seemed to ordinary listeners less likely of fulfilment than such a prediction. And when he himself was crucified, what prospect there was of dominion to be exercised by him must, in the view of most men, have vanished utterly. Yet our Saviour's dominion has been constantly extending, e.nd is still taking in new provinces. And faith realizes the approach of the time when "the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord, e.nd of his Christ." 2. His kingdom is immortal. Of states and empires historians have written the decline and fall; no earthly kingdom can resist the law of decay to which all things human appear subject. Of Christ's kingdom, however, "there is no end;" it is "from everlasting to ever- lasting." PRACTICAL CONCLUSION. 1. Let attention be given to this Divine Monarch. "Behold your King I " Of all beings he first claims the regard of men. 2. Let his dignity and authority be recognized. When Pila.to pointed the gaze of the multitude to Jesus, his was a disguised royalty, for Jesus was "a Man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;" and his was a derided, insulted royalty, for he had been clothed in mockery with e. purple robe, and a crown of thorns had pierced his head. 3. Let homage, reverence, loyalty, devotion, be rendered to him to whom they are justly due. Truly to behold Christ is to discern his just claim to all that our heart, our life, can offer. His sovereignty is absolute, and our obligation to him is unlimited.-T. Ver. 18.-Three crosses, What a picture is this I At a. place near Jerusalem, called Golgotha. the Roman soldiery have reared three crosses. And on these crosses hang three flcru'.res. The sufferers have been doomed to die. With a criminal on either band, the So; of man is enduring, not only anguish of body, but agony of mind unparalleled. 'l'he soldiers with callous indifference, watch the tortured victims. 'l'he multitude gaze with vulgar' curiosity upon the nnwonted sight. The Jewish rul_ers look_ e:'-ultingly upon him whose death their mnlignant hate hC1s compassed. Fr1en~ly dismples an~ tender-hearted wov1en gaze with sympathy and tears upon the dyrng woo of their beloved 0110. No wonder t.hat the scene should have riveted the imagiuation and  THE GOSPEL AOOORDING TO 8T. JORN. [oa. xn. 1-42.