The Spiritual Peerage
By: Stephen A. Coston, Sr.

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OUR HEAVENLY MAJESTY

The word of God is richly endowed and literally filled with typology and symbols reflective of the only true archetype for which we should pattern ourselves after spiritually. The concept of Monarchy lays at the very foundation of all Christian expression.

The first thing we will want to study in relation to the kingly symbology of Scripture is of course the head of the monarchy, namely the king. The Bible lists many kings and queens both pagan and Israelite. However, for the purposes of this study we will want to concentrate on the only true and rightful King, namely His Heavenly Majesty.

The Lord Jesus Christ bears all kingly titles. He is King Of Israel (John 1:49; Matt. 2:2).

Christ is typified by the well known heraldic symbol of the lion (Rev. 5:5) which to this day is part of the royal arms of Great Britain.

Jesus is further called a Prince (Acts 3:15; 5:31), and in medieval times a king was often styled as a Prince (see references to King James VI & I in Epistle Dedicatory To the Authorized Version "To The Most High & Mighty Prince, James, By The Grace Of God, King Of Great Britain, France And Ireland, Defender Of The Faith, &c.")

Christ is styled as the "Only Potentate, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords" (I Tim. 6:15; Rev. 19:16). A "Potentate" is defined as "a person who possesses great power; a sovereign, monarch, or ruler which is derived from the Latin word "potentat(us)" which means "power" or "dominion."

Christ is head of the church (Eph. 1:22; Col. 1:18). The monarchs of Great Britain continue to this present day to also preside as physical head of the church under the direct authority of Christ.

II Tim. 4: 8 presents Christ as the "righteous judge." When governmental law was in its infancy all laws proceeded from the king, and which to this day in Great Britain the monarch still has supreme judicial authority and prerogative.

Heb. 1:2 makes Christ "heir of all things" A "heir" is defined as "a person who inherits or is entitled to inherit the property, rank, title, position, etc., of another." Christ's Royal blood line as that of monarchs all over the world entitles Him to His exalted position as our Savior and God.

Christ sits upon a throne (Rev. 4:2; 22:1; see also Psa. 45). Jesus wears a crown (Heb. 2:7-9; Psa. 8:5; 19:12). Also, Christ is christened with the title of "Majesty" a title for a king (see Psa. 145:5 for example)

THE REDEMPTIVE NOBILITY

Most if not all of the truly great monarchies, such as Great Britain, patterned themselves after the divine example. In theory the king took his orders from God, and passed them down through a hierarchical army of law enforcers and members of the peerage.

Every person had a function and role to play, even the lowest subject. Mutual respect was at the core of the process. The commons respected the nobility, and the nobility in turn respected their charges. It was only the abuse of power that corrupted the monarchy, and this fault is a possibility of any political system, not unique to a monarchy by any means.

The British model contained three main components: the peerage, knighthood, and decorations.

The peerage contained five primary ranks: Duke, Marquesses, Earl, Viscount and Baron. The rank of Baronet stood between knighthood and the peerage.

Again in the British model knighthood consists chiefly of orders of chivalry, which there are currently six (the Garter, the Thistle, the Bath, St. Michael & St. George, the Royal Victorian, the British Empire, and knights bachelor).

In addition to the orders of chivalry there are two orders which bear no title (Order of Merit and the Companionship of Honor).

Decorations range from the Victoria Cross to the British Empire Medal.

Peers were expected to maintain an exemplary lifestyle (which unfortunately was not always the case) and knights were sworn to defend widows and orphans. Knighthood was so much respected that even kings were knighted!

In the Creation of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath, we find the following facts: "George, by the Grace of God, of Great-Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith &c. To all, to whom these presents shall come, Greeting: Whereas Our Royal Predecessors, upon divers wise, and honorable considerations, have, on occasion of certain august solemnities, conferred, with great State, upon their Royal issue male, the Princes of the Blood" What exactly was a knight of the Bath sworn to do? Did it truly have any Christian application? Simply put, generally speaking, a knight was sworn to uphold the principles of the Christian religion. Part of the oath required to be subscribed and sworn by Knights of the Bath is as follows:

"You shall honor God above all Things; You shall be steadfast in the Faith of Christ; You shall love the King your Soverign Lord, and him and his Right defend to your Power; You shall defend Maidens, Widows, and Orphans, in their rights; and shall suffer no extortion, as far as you may pervent it; and of as great honor be this Order unto you, as ever it was to any of your Progenitors, or others By the Oath you have this Day taken, I exhort and admonish you, to use this Sword to the Glory of God, the Defense of the Gospel, and the Maintenance of your Soverign's Right, and Honor, and of all Equity, and Justice to the utmost of your Power; so help you God."

Christians are given many titles as listed in the word of God to include kings, ambassadors, and soldiers. Our formal investiture; however, by our heavenly majesty, will occur at a future date. This is when the specific rank of our decorations will be determined and given.

In this life then we are to adhere to the high principles of The Spiritual Peerage as royal members of The Redemptive Nobility. We are children of the king and thus heirs. Our rank in our heavenly kingdom is being determined by what we do now. We are to bring order and structure to an otherwise chaotic world. We are to typify the stately office of our royal regal King, the Lord Jesus Christ.

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The Redemptive Nobility

Kings and soldiers knighted from the God Divine,
Destined to be given lands, prizes and awards past the realm of time.
Regal and noble personages at heart,
Must on this earth divide the good and evil apart.

Crowns to be won and souls to be saved,
Glory given to the King is what should be craved.
At the feet of His majesty we will someday be,
And the face of God in the person of our Lord Jesus see.

Laying all our crowns and coronets at the feet of the king,
And all glory, honor and praise to Him forever sing.
Thus this great crowd of royal heavenly host will
Dwell with divine spirituality,
Loyal subjects of the king, we The Redemptive Nobility.

Note: More questions about this great King? Let's get the facts straight! We highly suggest, "King James, Unjustly Accused?" by Stephen A. Coston, Sr. You can get it from A.V. Publications Corp., P.O. Box 280, Ararat, VA 24053, 1-800-435-4535 OR call 1-800-659-1478. You can write Mr. Coston at 7245 34th Ave. N. St. Petersburg, FL 33710.

To learn more about King James VI & I check out:

His Majesty King James VI & I Page

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The Spiritual Peerage