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David Balzer MPC, 2^nd January 2000.

What do you have to do if you’re about to meet the Queen? How do you act? Do you act natural, and just be yourself? Or be super polite and formal? How would you feel? Nervous and uptight? Or Cool, calm and confident?

One of the new documentaries on TV this year was set in Buckingham Palace. And it answered this very question; How do you prepare for royalty?

It was about people who were getting awards from the Queen. (Bravery awards and special commendations.) And for the first time ever, cameras were allowed to film the presentation!

The most interesting part showed an official who was gathering people around her. She was telling people how to get ready for the Queen. What to say, where to look, what to touch, and smell, and taste. And everyone was hanging on her every word.

Because it was important to respond in the right way When you’re meeting royalty, it’s good to have someone helping you to get ready.

Well, here in Mark Chapter 1 that’s exactly what’s happening. Israel is getting ready to meet royalty. And they need someone to help them. Because it’s important to prepare properly when royalty comes to visit. And so Mk starts by telling us about getting people ready. Have a look at verses 2 & 3

And those words are about to be fulfilled. God sends John the Baptist to prepare the people for Jesus. His job was to smooth the way for the arrival of the King. But how do you prepare people for the arrival of a King? How do you get ready for Jesus - the King of the universe? Are there certain manners you should teach people? Are there things which are important to do? Are there things which are important NOT to do? Mk tells us briefly what John’s message is all about. Have a look at v4.

The way to get ready for the king of the universe is to repent! To repent is to recognise that you’ve rebelled against Jesus. And we all do that, don’t we? We all hate people telling us what to do, and when to do it. We’d rather be our own boss, than recognise Jesus’ right to rule. But John’s message is "That’s got to stop!" "You need to recognise Jesus’ right to rule over you as king". That’s what it means to get ready for royalty!

As we come to meet Jesus in the weeks ahead, as we read the chapters that follow - John’s message of repentance gets us ready to meet Jesus too! We’ll meet a king who teaches with authority, and we’ll meet a king who has authority over sickness, We’ll meet a king who controls spiritual forces, And the forces of nature, too. He tells all of them what to do! He is a king with authority!

So John’s message is that for such a king, we should get ready and repent. And if you aren’t recognising that authority, then John’s message is to you! You need to get ready for Jesus - you need to repent!

So what about John’s hearers? How ready were they? As you’d expect, people in John’s time, are keen to make sure they’re ready. He’s running his "royalty-preparation courses". And people are flocking to hear him. His services are in hot demand. His speaking calender is booked solid. See what it says in v5

Now it would be easy for John to get carried away by all the excitement. To let all the attention go to his head. But it’s important for a signpost to remember its place. And it’s important for the support act to remember that the crowd haven’t come to see him. They’ve come to see the main attraction. The headline act.

I’ve been to a few concerts in the Sydney Entertainment Centre. And every time I go I can’t help feeling sorry for the poor support bands. They come out to a half full arena. Noone knows who they are, and what’s more noone cares! They finish a song on a high, and it’s followed by a deathly silence. Or even worse - by noisy conversation. The only time they get any cheers is when they’re going off because then everyone knows that the real band is about to come on.

It’s not hard for a support band to remember it’s place. There’s plenty of people to remind them. Harder for John because he’s so popular. But remembering his place is just what he does. His job is only to prepare people for the real thing. Someone is coming who is way more important . That’s what he says if you look at v7-8

John was only the forerunner. He was the entree, the main course was still to come. And John says, "I’m not worthy to lick his boots"

And so here we are, the stage is set, the houselights are dimmed, the curtain is drawn back, the audience is hushed. Who is this one who is greater than John?

It’s now that Mk introduces the star of the show. The one John had been preparing for. The one the people had been waiting for. I wonder if people were expecting someone special? A royal figure on a chariot? A mighty leader like Moses?

I reckon that you’d be looking around you, checking out likely people. Perhaps it’s him... or him! But my guess is that Jesus was among them without them even knowing. We read that just like lots of others he was baptised by John in the river. Check out v9

Imagine, a king, doing something that humble, just like you or me! I was waiting at the airport once. (Waiting’s something you seem to do a lot of at the airport.) And a huge black limousine pulled up. A guy in a snappy suit got out and walked quickly into the terminal. As people came out of customs, he held up a sign "Bill Thomson - IBM". I just couldn’t help checking out the people coming through the door. What must Bill Thomson from IBM look like? What sort of person has such a limousine at his disposal? Was he that tall distinguished man in the black suit? That older man with the grey hair carrying the expensive briefcase? Or perhaps he was the young executive in the dark blue pinstripe?

I could hardly believe my eyes when a short, unassuming, older looking man walked up to the guy with the sign. He was wearing a lairy Hawaiian shirt, baggy shorts, and casual shoes. He looked about as much like a high powered business executive as I do! And it’s this type of reaction that the people at the river experience. What sort of a king waits his turn in line to be baptised in the muddy water of the river just like all the rest of us! But this is what Jesus does.

It’s as he comes up from the water that we see his true credentials. His secret identity is revealed. His true occupation. Read v 10 and 11. See what happens

Heaven is split apart. Something special is coming from God. He declares Jesus as his son. A son who he loves, and who he’s pleased with! This is the king we’ve been waiting for! This is the one John’s been getting people ready for!

And yet there are questions about his kingship, aren’t there? What sort of a king cues up to be baptised like all the rest? And the mystery continues. Because rather than the king putting together a procession to escort him up to Jerusalem. Rather than finding a golden chariot, horses, and soldiers. Rather than establishing a palace, and a royal treasury. He heads off into the desert. By himself - Just like Israel who’d been tested in the desert, this king did just what they did. Look at v 12

It’s a strange sort of kingship. It’s a kingship of contradictions. Jesus: God was pleased with him, but wild animals still threaten him and he needs the comfort of angels. He’s God’s special son, yet he stands in line to be baptised with sinful people, and goes out of his way to be tested just like us. In some strange way, that’ll be expanded on later in Mark’s gospel,

the King of the Universe has come to stand in the place of sinners. We don’t have all the pieces yet, but it’s enough to get us to ask the question. What sort of king is Jesus? And that’s what Mark’s gospel is all about. This is the question we ask ourselves over and over as we read through the book. What sort of king is Jesus?

And so we move onto Jesus himself. We’ve heard from John about Jesus. And we’ve heard from God about Jesus. And now we hear from Jesus himself. He comes proclaiming good news from God. And His message is that something exciting is about to happen. The good news was that the time was nearly there. The coronation was just around the corner! The time that Israel had been waiting for. The time when God would show his rule over the world in a mighty way. But Jesus does more than just declare it. He’s about making sure that people are ready for it! And he gets people ready with the same message as John’s. Remember? You get ready for the king by repenting. Read what Jesus says - his first recorded words - in v 14 & 15.

To believe the good news was to recognise what time it was. That the wait is over. That the king had come. The message of Jesus, and the message of John was "Repent and believe the good news". Big things were just around the corner! Because a kingdom only begins when the king is crowned. And that time hasn’t come yet. And so as we read through Mk we’ll be looking for this coronation. What we’ll find is that the peculiar kingship of Jesus takes another twist. Because his coronation takes place not on a throne, but on a cross. And his crowning moment doesn’t take place before adoring subjects, but in front of jeering and hissing crowds. It’s here that the true identity of Jesus is revealed. It’s at the cross that the peculiar kingship of Jesus becomes clear. It’s here that we understand why getting ready for royalty is repentance

But what about Jesus’ hearers? How did they respond? Were they ready for kingdom time. Mark tells us how some people responded to Jesus’ message. There were some at least who were ready to meet royalty. Pick it up in v16.

The starting pistol of Jesus’ message had fired. And these guys leap of the blocks. They’re ready for the kingdom! They’re ready to follow the king! Jesus’ call has come to them. A call to repent and believe. A call to follow him. It’s a call which still rings loudly to us. A call to be ready for royalty.

1. A call to repent - to repent from ignoring the kingship of Jesus.

2. A call to believe - to recognise his right to rule over us.

3. A call to follow - to go where Jesus wants, and to do what Jesus wants.

If you aren’t sure who Jesus is, and exactly what He’s asking of you, then keep checking him out! The book of Mk is a great place to start Because as we read more, the strange kingship of Jesus becomes clearer. And what it means to get ready for him also becomes clearer. So keep checking him out! Keep getting ready for Jesus!

But this isn’t just a call to new people. It’s a call to those of you who’ve know Jesus for years, or even decades. Being ready for Jesus is a decision we need to make over and over. To recognise Jesus’ kingship is a conscious act in every part of every day. In each choice we make, we decide to follow King Jesus or not. To repent ... or continue doing our own thing. To believe ... or to trust that we know best instead. To follow ... or to turn our backs and ignore him. A clear decision to repent, believe and follow. Are you ready for royalty? The starting pistol has sounded. How are you running?