I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing, which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen. (1 Timothy 6:13-16)

The Only Potentate

A sovereign is someone who exercises absolute authority as supreme ruler. The authority of a king in a monarchy is complete, absolute, and without question. Democracy is not one of the traits of a monarchy. When a sovereign rules over an empire, there is no higher authority. The ruler establishes laws as solely his power to execute and enforce his will upon the people. There have been many benevolent rulers in history and many more tyrants who rule with an oppressive iron will.

The apostle Paul lived in the days of the Roman Empire with supreme rulers like Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus, and Imperator Nero Claudius Caesar. These rulers exercised great authority over their subjects. As great as their power, they were ruled by a higher authority in God’s divine will. History is filled with men who, through power, dominated their world with cruelty and oppression, but only for a short time. After the men died, their influence was lost and forgotten. Many great nations have filled the globe with their conquest, as the Egyptians, Assyrians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans attest. While their reign was fierce and, in some cases, spanning many generations, they have all faded into the dust of history.

Jesus Christ is a King and is Lord. His sovereignty is different from that of men. Paul declares that Jesus is the only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords. As Potentate, Jesus is the only authority. When God raised Jesus from the dead, He gave His Son all authority. The covenant of blood was established through Jesus’s death, making Him the only Potentate. He is the supreme ruler and commander of the army of God. His word must not be ignored. The will of Jesus is in perfect union with the word of the Father. Jesus told His disciples what He taught was not His own word but what His Father commanded Him to preach.

The Christian world does not understand that Jesus is the only Potentate. This becomes evident when the teachings of the religious disciples do not come from the word of God. There are abundant things people believe and hold as truth that cannot be found in the word of God. The Bible is the law book of the King of Kings. As Lord above all lords, Jesus Christ is the final word. Serving as the kingdom’s only Potentate or Sovereign ruler, Jesus is the first and final word. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. Nothing can be taken away from His word, and nothing can be added.

Jesus is Potentate. Salvation depends on whether a man is willing to submit to the complete will of the word of Jesus Christ. Any deviation from the word will bring harsh judgment from the King of kings. No ruler in the world has higher authority than Jesus Christ. No Supreme Court, Parliament, political group, kingship, or dictatorship exercises more authority than Jesus Christ. All men serve the King of kings and Lord of lords. Jesus is the only Potentate. Peter challenged a group of powerful Jewish leaders, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.” The conclusion is that you must obey the will of the only Potentate.