Kingdom Principles

Kingdom Principles

establishing law and policy. In a kingdom, the king speaks…and that’s it; no debate or question. The authority of the King is like the slogan that began circulating years ago: “God said it, I believe it, and that settles it.” Even better is the variation: “God said it and that set tles it, whether I believe it or not.” Jesus demonstrated this kingly authority when He said numer ous times, “ You have heard…but I tell you… ” (see Matt. 5:21-22,27 28,33-34,38-39,43-44, emphasis added). The biblical account of this occasion records: When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority , and not as their teachers of the law (Matthew 7:28-29, emphasis added). Jesus spoke and taught on His own authority. He did not rely on the thoughts, ideas, interpretations, or traditions of others. Why? Because He was a King whose authority was independent and sovereign. This leads to a third point to understand about a king: The sov ereignty of a king is inherent in his royal authority . The people do not make a king sovereign; he is born sovereign. Jesus told Pilate that He was born a king; He did not receive His kingship—or His sovereign ty—from the hand of men. Sovereignty means freedom from exter nal control. As sovereign, a king is free to do as he pleases with no accountability to anyone else in the kingdom. Otherwise, a king has no true authority. No one has the authority to tell God what to do. God’s sovereignty is absolute. He is completely self-determining. FOURTEEN CHARACTERISTICS OF A KING A king is distinct both from a democratically elected leader, such as a president or prime minister, as well as from a dictator in

86