It's not an accident that my devotions today was from 1 Samuel 16 when Samuel anoints David as the king of Israel. God sent Samuel to the house of Jesse who had 8 sons. Samuel was hesitant because if the current king, Saul had gotten wind of this he would have been killed. But God told him to go because the next king was one of those 8 young men.
As anyone who was in Samuel's place, would choose the obvious to be king, Eliab, who was the eldest. As we know the tradition of monarchy is the eldest is always first in line. But not this time. God had something else in mind. As verse 7 says, "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Don't judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn't see things the way you see them. People judge by the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7, NLT)
Instead, God chose the youngest, who wasn't even in the line up. Jesse had to send for David, who was out working in the field caring for the sheep. When David arrived, the Lord said, "This is the one; anoint him. (1 Samuel 16:12) Then in verse 13 it says, "So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought and anointed David with he oil. And the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David from that day on..." (1 Samuel 16:13)
As I read this, I flashed to just a few hours before reading this passage what I had just witnessed of King Charles anointing ceremony. With millions of viewers from all over the world peering in to watch, this portion of the ceremony was private. It is such a sacred part that no one except those who are anointed are allowed to participate.
This made me think of the moment that Jesus was standing in the Temple reading from the book of Isaiah. He says to the public, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord ’s favor has come.” (Luke 4:18-19, NLT) Jesus didn't have a ceremony like this when he claimed these words. He IS THE ANOINTING. The only one who can bring freedom, healing, and hope to the world, to this day.
Once King Charles was crowned, I realized that the day Jesus takes His throne here on earth, like the millions watching this ceremony, the Bible says every eye will see Him (Revelation 1:7). But not only that in Philippians 2:10-11 it says, "that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." And just as King Charles included people of other faiths to participate, one thing is for sure, when Jesus returns ALL faiths will be watching and ALL Believers and nonbelievers, will know who the one true King of all kings is--Jesus Christ! I can't wait to be a part of that history! Hallelujah, and AMEN!
