The Commands of the King - Part 1

The dictionary defines a king as "a male monarch of a major territorial unit, especially one whose position is hereditary and who rules for life" (Merriam Webster).

A king is sovereign. He possesses all authority and power. 

That sounds a lot like Jesus doesn't it?!

Jesus is the Christ - the anointed King, and the Son of God  - the Heir, who rules over the eternal kingdom forever. 

If we believe that Jesus is the King, and have made the decision to follow Him, then we will submit to Him and do what He commands. 

In order to do that, we need to know what what He expects of us, and what He commands us to do. 

How can we effectively follow Him if we do not know what His expectations or commands are?

How are we going to teach others all He commanded if we do not know what He commanded?

Many people do not know these things, but attempt to follow Him based on their world view, personal opinions, and presuppositions. This is not submission to Jesus, but rather molding Jesus into their own image. 

Others attempt to follow Him based on what others tell them, such as their pastors, and Christian friends, rather than reading the Bible and talking to God themselves. 

Even though obedience to Jesus's commands are extremely important for Christians, and that teaching others to obey His commands is a command that He has given, churches seldom teach them nor teach obedience to them. 

I believe that knowing Jesus's commands is a priority in order to effectively follow Him and teach others how to obey Him. 

This is what it means to follow Him and to be a Christian. 

We can simplify Jesus's commands by loving God and loving others, but that's pretty broad and general. We can live more effectively and precisely for Jesus if we know what each of His individual commands are. After all, He did command His followers to teach their disciples "ALL THINGS that I have commanded you."

Therefore we are going to be looking at the commands of the King. The list is not my own, but was created by someone else. 

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“If you love Me, keep My commandments."

John 14:15

By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.

I John 5:2‭-‬3

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Matthew 28:18‭-‬20