Monday morning I heard part of a news broadcast about the Queen of England. I only heard a short segment, but I heard enough to know she was being honored for her long marriage and her service to her country.

It is interesting to me the way we show honor to people. Kings and queens have been treated with great pomp and circumstance for centuries. Even the kings of the Bible were honored in much the same way nations honor their kings and queens today.

There are specific items that denote honor like a crown, a robe, a scepter, proclamations accompanied by the blowing of a trumpet, and bowing in the presence of these dignitaries.

All of this is done to show honor and respect to one who has been named to a royal office or position. Those being brought into the presence of royalty are instructed in the proper protocol for the meeting. No one would dare to offend by refusing to show the proper respect due.

There once was a king that stood before a crowd and was not so honored. He was given all the necessary items that designated his position, but these things did not honor him. A proclamation was made, but it did not give him the respect that was due him. Even those bowing before him bowed not in humbleness but in mockery.

“And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him. And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, ‘This is Jesus, the King of the Jews’” (Matthew 27:28-29, 37 ESV).

All of the elements of respect and honor for a king or queen were present in these verses of scripture. The robe, the crown, the scepter, the kneeling and the proclamation were all in place. The man deserved the honor, but respect went awry.
The scarlet robe was only placed on this man’s body after his clothes were torn from him. The crown was made, not from gold or silver, but from thorns that pierced his head. The scepter was not of gold or silver with jewels, but rather a simple reed.

As the crowd bowed before him, it was to mock him. As he stood before them, they spit on him and hit him with the reed. They mocked him as though he was common and unclean.

They put off the scarlet robe now covered in blood and spittle, put his own torn clothing on him and lead him away bearing a heavy wooden cross.

They took him to a place where they murdered him; but before they did, they once again humiliated him one more time by removing his clothing as he hung in plain view of the soldiers that gambled for his garments. Then they sat down to watch him die.

Governments have been overthrown. Kings and queens have been killed. Even in our own country, lives have been lost defending our freedom.

Our Lord suffered and died for us, standing firm against our greatest enemy, the devil. The devil is ever present in our nation and in our world today, just as he was when Jesus lived on this earth and just as he was during the days after his resurrection and ascension back to heaven.

The apostle Peter gave Christians a warning. He said, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name” (First Peter 4:12-16).

So when respect goes awry because of Christian beliefs, remember, “Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good” (First Peter 4:19). We’ll be in the company of the Almighty, where we will receive the same crown as the apostle Paul. “Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing” (Second Timothy 4:8).

Sandra Oliver