The Chapter of the Five Kings.
Where do we find these five kings? There is King Sin, for Sin reigned. There is King Death, for I read "Death reigned." There is King Grace, for Grace reigned. There is King Jesus, for we reign by One, Jesus Christ; and then, as a consequence, you have kingly saints, for "they which receive abundance of grace shall reign."
I. King Sin. His laws are the lusts of man's own heart. One of the saddest things about him is that we can say all his subjects are voluntarily so. They are willingly captives. He does not hold them with a grip against their wish. His reign is a cruel one, for he reigns "unto death."
II. King Death. Death reigns by sin. Satan reigns by both. It is a triple empire. They stand or fall together. Who can compete with Death? He can say what no monarch on earth can utter. I have never suffered a defeat. I have entered into the lists with the wisest and the strongest and have overcome them. The wealthy have not been able to bribe me, and the longest life has had to succumb at last.
III. King Grace King Jesus. By His teaching and by His life, by His death and by His resurrection, Jesus opposed Sin.
IV. Kingly saints. How little the world understands the Church! The world cannot see our royal robes, for they are made of such peculiar texture that you must have a sanctified eye to behold them. The world cannot see the crown that is on every believer's brow. Only the saint can perceive it on the brow of his brother. In a little while King Jesus shall come again, and then shall be caught up to Him all His saints, and the text shall be literally and perfectly fulfilled, and we shall reign with Him. There are thrones waiting for the redeemed. There are unfading crowns awaiting the Divine bestowal. "They shall reign by One, Jesus Christ."
A. G. Brown, Penny Pulpit,No. 1108, new series.
References: Romans 5:18. W. J. Woods, Christian World Pulpit,vol. xviii., p. 198; Homilist,new series, vol. iii., p. 90. Romans 5:19. E. Cooper, Practical Sermons,vol. iii., p. 144.Romans 5:20. Spurgeon, Sermons,vol. i., No. 37; Homilist,new series, vol. ii., p. 260; vol. iii., p. 90; Preacher's Monthly,vol. vii., p. 373.