“…Which in His times He shall shew, Who is the Blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and the Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; Whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to Whom be honor and power everlasting. Amen.”
The end of verse 14 speaks of the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. This makes Him the subject of verses 15 and 16. These verses say that in His timing, Jesus will reveal Who is the Blessed and only Potentate, and King of kings and Lord of lords.
Jesus is, and will one day be, King of Kings and Lord of lords. Revelation 19 reports the coming of the Lord Jesus to the earth. In verses 11-16 John says, “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” All earthly kings will bend the knee, as will all inhabitants of the earth.
In his dream of a great statue, which represented the kingdoms of the world, Nebuchadnezzar saw a stone that was cut out without hands which struck and destroyed the statue. In Daniel 2:44, through Daniel the Lord revealed that as “…in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.”
Even before the time of Daniel the Lord had promised that He will reign on the earth. When that happens, His kingdom will last forever. God’s kingdom will destroy all the others, but it shall never be destroyed, and it will stand forever. He only is Blessed, and He only is the great authority over the earth, even now. The day will come when He will rule as King of kings and Lord of lords.
Mankind thinks that their governments will make things right. The truth is that all the kingdoms of the world are established by God. In Daniel 4:25 Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar, “…the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.” Paul told the people of Athens in Acts 17:26, God has “…made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation…” Not only does God dictate the boundaries of the kingdoms, He dictates how long they will last. In His time Jesus shall reign, and human governments will be but a memory. He is King of kings and Lord of lords.
In His time Jesus will reveal Him Who “…only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto…” There is no overstating the greatness and the glory of God, Maker of Heaven and Earth and all that is in them. Almost every contact between men and God recorded in scripture resulted in the men falling on their faces as dead. Scripture says that God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5).
In His time Jesus will reveal Him “…Whom no man hath seen, nor can see…” In Exodus 33:18-20 Moses requested that he may see God’s glory: “And Moses said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory. And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.” His presence and brightness are so great, that no mortal can endure it. Wonderfully, in Revelation 22:3, 4 were told, “And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.”
Concerning Jesus, Philippians 2:9-11 tells us, “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” In His time Jesus will show Him, “…to Whom be honor and power everlasting.” Jesus is that one that will be honored by all.
The day when Jesus will reveal these things is yet to come. World events suggest it will be soon. Since it is impossible for God to lie, no doubt He will surely come again and establish His kingdom on the earth. When He comes, He will be the Blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. And He shall reign for ever and ever.
Lift up your heads, pilgrims aweary,
See day’s approach now crimson the sky;
Night shadows flee, and your Belovèd,
Awaited with longing, at last draweth nigh.
Refrain
He is coming again, He is coming again,
The very same Jesus, rejected of men;
He is coming again, He is coming again,
With power and great glory, He is coming again!
Dark was the night, sin warred against us;
Heavy the load of sorrow we bore;
But now we see signs of His coming;
Our hearts glow within us, joy’s cup runneth o’er!
Refrain
O blessèd hope! O blissful promise!
Filling our hearts with rapture divine;
O day of days! Hail Thy appearing!
Thy transcendent glory forever shall shine.
Refrain
Even so, come, precious Lord Jesus;
Creation waits redemption to see;
Caught up in clouds, soon we shall meet Thee;
O blessèd assurance, forever with Thee!
Refrain (Mabel J. Camp)