For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. Romans 14:11
Bowing the knee used to mean something important. Today it is just a courteous formality indicating nothing more than that the person doing it knows their manners. But a few hundred years ago, and for a few thousands years before that, bowing the knee meant the difference between life and death. And even then, some who bowed the knee still died. War captives bowed the knee to their captives and hoped that it was enough, surrendering everything they had. Vassals bowed the knee to their lords, acknowledging that everything they owned, including themselves, belonged to him. Refusing to bow was not an option. Even at the time when our King James Bible was translated, the distinction between the peerage and the ordinary people was so strong that bowing the knee was still a common sight in many circumstances of life. It meant acknowledging the position of the one to whom they were bowing. As Christians, we have bowed, acknowledging the lordship of Jesus Christ. Everybody else will too, eventually.
Our text is quoting Isaiah 45:22, and this is not the only New Testament place where that Old Testament reference is cited. Paul expands this to give full acknowledgment to the Lord Jesus in Philippians 2:10-11: ‘That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father’. You and I have no problem with this. It is our delight now, and it will thrill us for eternity to see our Lord given His rightful title and station. That will be the pinnacle of Glory. But those who have not bowed the knee in time must also confess His lordship, and it will not be any delight for them. At the Great White Throne will be the mockers, the scoffers, and the deniers. Here on earth, they were so sure that Jesus was not Lord, or they were so opposed to acknowledging Him. That defiance will come crashing down, and so will their knees. The most difficult words to say are ‘I was wrong’. But these opponents of Christ must acknowledge they were wrong, to their eternal shame.
But there are many today, just as there always have been, who would not consider themselves opponents of Christ. For them, their excuse now is that He is just not relevant to them. He doesn’t fit into their lives. They don’t have the time to listen to the Gospel or to read the Scriptures. Today, they will tell you ‘I don’t know about Him and I don’t care about Him’. At the same Great White Throne as the atheists and opponents, the vast throng of the apathetic will change their tune and admit they should have, and could have, known and cared. Tragically, there is only one exit door from that throne room.
As we bow and confess our Saviour’s lordship today, let us give thanks for His grace that has brought us to this great acknowledgment. And let us also plead with those who have not yet bowed and confessed to do so before they face Him as their Judge. -Jim MacIntosh