The Sovereignty of God Revealed in Jesus Christ

A précis of a sermon preached by the Rev Dr Barry Brown at

 Saint Margaret’s Uniting Church, Mooroolbark on Sunday 23 November 2025.

Introduction

Our Reading from the Letters today (1 Tim 6:12-16) was listed in our UCA Lectionary for 28 September (1 & 2 Timothy – 7 Sundays from 14 Sep to 26 Oct).  We followed the Frontier Services topic that Sunday, so this reading was not used. As this passage connects with today’s topic I have decided to preach from it. I chose the Gospel reading (Luke 22:66 – 23:7) as it links with the Epistle – Jesus before Pilate re his Kingship!

First and Second Timothy and Titus form a special sub-group of Pauline Letters, and are especially important for church leaders, yet speak also to all in the church. They are from a pastoral letter from a senior minister with authority (the Apostle) to a leader (apostolic envoy) of a local congregation or group of congregations. The closing ‘you’ in the final Benediction is in the plural form, suggesting that the letter was also intended to be read in the gathered community.

Much debate has taken place over the past century and a half as to whether Paul was the author of these letters, or another (Pauline). It is neither helpful nor necessary to consider this here as these Pastoral Letters have from earliest times carried the authority of Saint Paul and have provided sound guidance to the church, particularly concerning leadership.

[A} Fight the Good Fight, maintain the Faith

I should have included verse 11 in the selected reading:–

“But as for you, man of God shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love and endurance, gentleness… Fight the good fight … ”

Paul is reminding Timothy, as a Christian leader, not to be distracted or bogged down by fights and skirmishes over peripheral matters that arise; but to concentrate on what really matters – the good fight, the core things of the Christian faith.

Some years ago I attended a memorable ministers’ retreat at Pallotti College when our guest was the well-known hymn writer, the Rev John Bell from the Iona Community in Scotland. He spoke to us about ‘traditions’ in the local church, reminding us that there are core Traditions (Capital T) and peripheral (local) small ‘t’ traditions that, if allowed, distract us from core ministry, take too much of our time, and as often as not create casualties in the local church. The Christian leader needs to prioritise the core attention on the Traditions of the Faith and the Message of the Gospel.

[B] Manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Here Paul addresses the belief that a core part of our Faith is that Christ will one day Return – be manifest. Over time it had become less of an immediate expectation; but remained part of the core message. Even today, when we celebrate The Lord’s Supper, we use the words – Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again!

Beginning next week we will focus on ‘Advent’ for four Sundays. It is important to remember that Advent is not simply a preparation for Christmas. It is a season that commences the Christian year and has as its focus the central theme of Hope and Expectation and an openness to the ‘surprise of God.’  Christian Hope is not just wishful thinking. At its heart Hope means not just expectation, but Anticipation. The difference being that Anticipation means living and acting now, and participating now in what is yet to be (Remember the parable of the bridesmaids who were caught wanting)!

[C] The Sovereignty of God revealed in Jesus Christ.

I have had a fascination with the meaning of ‘sovereign – sovereignty’ since the age of five. In 1950 two schoolboys who were the same ages as my brother and me (7 and 5) and lived in the same street in Kilmore found 83 gold sovereigns in an old tin. I soon found out these were valuable coins worth a lot of money. Just over a year later King George VI died and he was referred to as Sovereign. I was confused and not old enough to understand the connection. The notion of ‘sovereignty’ keeps coming up. During the Covid-19 epidemic there was a rise in the number of people claiming to be  ‘sovereign citizens.’ A month or so ago there were celebrations on the 50^th anniversary od PNG becoming an independent – sovereign country. Around the same time Australia voted in the United Nations General Assembly to recognize Palestine as a ‘sovereign’ country. There was also an ugly and violent protest at ‘Camp Sovereignty’ near King’s Domain in Melbourne by white supremacists against the rights of First Nations People – who have never ceded ‘sovereignty’ of the land. They have occupied from time immemorial.

In each of two of our readings this morning (from Psalm 8 and 1 Timothy 6) there is reference to God as ‘Sovereign’. This is a complicated topic and one that is relevant to consider of ‘Christ the King Sunday.’    So I will spend a little more time on this, including noting the difference between ‘Sovereign’ and ‘sovereignty’. I will repeat a few thing I spoke about earlier.

Sovereign is generally a noun and refers to a person, position or rank.  King Charles III is the Sovereign of the UK and is the Head of state (also of Australia and several commonwealth countries). However, in constitutional democracies (including monarchical constitutions like Australia’s) the Sovereign as head of state has very little power to rule/reign and such powers are generally ‘reserved powers’.

Sovereignty is an adjective and describes the ultimate authority vested in a governing body. In countries such as Australia the Parliament, and therefore the Commonwealth Government, is elected by the Australian People. This means that sovereignty belongs to the Australian People.

Parliamentary sovereignty is the most important section of the UK constitution. Parliamentary sovereignty makes the Parliament the supreme authority in the UK which can create or end any law. Our Australian Constitution is similarly modelled in that it is premised upon the ‘sovereignty of the Australian people’.

To refer to ‘The Sovereignty of God Revealed in Jesus Christ’ has a double meaning – in God alone is ultimate authority and power; yet this is not expressed in the form of ‘reigning’ or ‘ruling’ as exercising power but, rather, in the way sovereignty is revealed in the nature of Jesus Christ.

The Basis of Union of the Uniting Church in Australia (our foundational theological document) is worth referencing in this context:

“Jesus of Nazareth announced the sovereign grace of God whereby the poor in spirit could receive God’s love.  Jesus himself, in his life and death, made the response of humility, obedience and trust which God had long sought in vain.  In raising him to live and reign, God confirmed and completed the witness which Jesus bore to God on earth, reasserted claim over the whole of creation, pardoned sinners, and made in Jesus a representative beginning of a new order of righteousness and love.  To God in Christ all people are called to respond in faith.  To this end God has sent forth the Spirit that people may trust God as their Father, and acknowledge Jesus as Lord.  The whole work of salvation is effected by the sovereign grace of God alone” [BU para 3].

Charles Wesley, the great Anglican-Methodist hymnwriter and poet, had this same notion in mind when he wrote:

What shall I do my God to love,

my loving God to praise?

The length, and breadth, and height to prove,

and depth of sovereign grace?

 

Your sovereign grace to all extends,

immense and unconfined;

from age to age it never ends,

to reach all humankind.                   Charles Wesley 1707 – 88 alt.

To affirm the Sovereignty of God Revealed in Jesus Christ is to affirm this claim above all other claims, loyalties and commitments. That is, God’s ultimate sovereignty over and above all other claims: national, political, cultural, social, professional, relational, personal.

Close

In the First Letter to Timothy, Paul mentions the ‘Good Confession made in the presence of witnesses.’  This may be reference to Timothy’s baptism; or his commissioning (being set aside – ordained) as an Apostolic Envoy.

It is a good thing to recall and own the confessions made at our Baptism and/or Confirmation. For those who have been ordained, it is also important to remember and re-visit our ordination vows from time to time – as a discipline.

I consider it is helpful for those who are members of the Uniting Church to be reminded from time to time of the words of confession and commitment that were spoken by all representatives present at the moment of our Church’s inauguration.

THE COVENANT (UCA’s Inauguration on 22 June 1977)

Christ has many services to be done:

some are easy, others are difficult;

some bring honour, others bring reproach;

some are suitable to our natural inclinations

and material interests,

others are contrary to both.

In some we may please Christ and please ourselves;

in others we cannot please Christ

except by denying ourselves.

Yet the power to do all these things

is given us in Christ, who strengthens us.

Therefore let us give ourselves anew to God

trust in God’s promises and relying on God’s grace,

 

I am no longer my own, but yours.

Put me to what you will,

rank me with whom you will;

put me to doing, put me to suffering;

let me be employed for you or laid aside for you;

exalted for you or brought low for you;

let me be full, let me be empty;

let me have all things, let me have nothing;

I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things

to your pleasure and disposal.

 

And now, glorious and blessed God,

Father, Son and Holy Spirit,

you are mine and I am yours. So be it.

And the covenant now made on earth,

let it be ratified in heaven.                    Amen.