Jesus the Anointed King: Recovering God's Kingdom Story

Last week we began “Starting Well” by naming the four questions every life answers: What is real? Who is blessed? Who is good? How do we become good? Today I pressed into the authority behind Jesus’s answers. Most of us were handed a childhood framework that centered almost everything on sin management and the afterlife—Jesus as the One who forgives and gets us to heaven. That contains truth, but it’s not the center of the New Testament’s story. When the angel announced Jesus to Mary, he didn’t lead with “Savior.” He spoke of throne, reign, and a kingdom that would never end. This is royal language. The arrival of Jesus is the arrival of God’s final King.

Once you see that, the Gospels open up. They are not mainly about who’s in or out after death; they are the public announcement that God’s kingdom has broken in and that anyone can enter it now. And the word we say all the time has been telling us this all along. “Christ” is not Jesus’s last name; it’s a title—Christos—meaning “Anointed One,” the royal King. We lost the plot when translators transliterated rather than translated, turning a claim of kingship into a church word that felt like a label. The early church was not persecuted for advertising forgiveness techniques; they were accused of treason because they confessed a crucified Jew as King above Caesar. Pilate understood the issue: rule, not ritual.

This reframes our four questions. What is real? God and His Kingdom—more solid than nations, parties, or achievements. Who is blessed? Those who live under the King’s care and authority, even if they mourn, hunger, or feel small. Who is good? Those pervaded by the King’s self-giving love. How do we become good? By apprenticing ourselves to the King—surrendering to His reign, learning His way, and practicing His life.

So here is the invitation: recenter faith around a King and a Kingdom. Let “Jesus Christ” in your mouth this week mean “Jesus, God’s Anointed King.” Seek to participate in His Kingdom at home, work, and school. Starting well means recognizing who He truly is—and living as citizens of His never-ending reign.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus is God’s final King Jesus did not merely offer advice; He claimed the right to rule. The angel’s words to Mary announce throne, reign, and an everlasting kingdom. When I relate to Him as King, my posture shifts from using Him to surrendering to Him. Authority becomes personal, good, and near.
• 2. Recover the plot lost in translation “Christ” means “Anointed King,” not a religious surname. Transliteration dulled a political, public claim into a churchy label. Re-translating awakens the scope of His mission: not just saving souls, but establishing God’s reign. This clarifies why the early church was bold and costly.
• 3. Apprenticeship under the King transforms character Goodness is not achieved by willpower but by training with Jesus in His way. Apprenticeship means obeying real commands, in real life, with real grace. Over time, His cruciform love reforms our instincts. We become the kind of people who can bear His authority without abusing it.
• 4. Live today as Kingdom citizens The Kingdom is not deferred to heaven; it is present and available. Participation happens in ordinary places—meetings, meals, conflicts—where His rule directs our choices. Allegiance to King Jesus relativizes every other loyalty. Our lives become signposts of a different world already breaking in.

1. In Luke 1:30–33 what names and royal terms does the angel use to describe the child Mary will bear? Point to the exact words in the passage.
2. Who speaks in these verses, and to whom is the message given? Where does the promise say the throne comes from?
3. What specific promises are made about the extent and duration of this child's rule? Which phrases make the promise sound permanent and political rather than only spiritual?
4. Who are the people named as those over whom he will reign? Why might that detail matter to first‑century listeners?

1. If a person treats Jesus primarily as “Savior” (a ticket to heaven) instead of as “the Anointed King,” how would that change what they look for in the Bible and in Christian life? Give a concrete example.
2. How does translating Christos as a meaningless name (“Christ”) rather than as “Anointed One” or “King” change how people hear the gospel and the church’s mission?
3. The sermon argued the early church was persecuted because they proclaimed a crucified Jew as King. What political or social consequences would that claim have had in the Roman world, and how does that help explain the boldness of the first Christians?
4. The preacher described becoming “good” as apprenticeship under the King rather than sin‑management. How would daily life and relationships look different under an apprenticeship model compared with a “fix-my-sin” model?

1. Identify one concrete area this week (home, work, school, online) where your loyalties are tested—where nation, career, reputation, or convenience often compete with allegiance to King Jesus. What specific choice will you make in that situation this week that shows you choose Jesus’ reign?
2. Choose one simple, specific practice this week to help you live as an apprentice of the King (examples: read Luke 1:30–33 each morning and ask “What would the King want me to do?”; after a meeting, ask “How would King Jesus have acted here?”; intentionally serve someone without being asked). When will you do it, and what exactly will you do?
3. When you hear the name “Jesus Christ” used casually or as an expletive this week, how will you respond in a way that honors the claim “Jesus is King”? Pick one response you will try (quiet correction, a short prayer in your head, a brief word about what “Christ” means) and commit to doing it at least once.
4. Look at your picture of salvation: is it mostly about getting into heaven, or about participating now in the King’s reign? Name one small, concrete step you will take this week to broaden that picture (examples: tell a friend why you think Jesus is King, practice forgiveness in a relationship, serve at a table or meeting as a sign of the King’s way).
5. Pick one recurring relationship or routine (a family meal, staff meeting, parent pickup line, neighborhood interaction). Describe one specific action you will take there this week that demonstrates kingdom life (e.g., listen more than speak, refuse to gossip, give your place to another, pray briefly before the meeting). Who will notice?
6. Is there a low‑risk way this week to name Jesus as King publicly or to teach someone what “Christ” means? (Examples: post a short line about “Jesus the King” on social media, pray aloud with your household calling him “King Jesus,” or share Luke 1:30–33 with someone curious about faith.) Pick one and do it; plan when and how.