On this day in 1953 Queen Elizabeth II of England was crowned in Westminster Abbey.

The coronation of a king or queen is magnificent, with grand and colorful ceremonies and pageantry. Thousands of people line the streets as the procession moves slowly to the site. Then, with costumed men trumpeting their arrival, the new king or queen walks up the carpet to the church. At the appropriate time, the climax of the ceremony, the crown is placed on the royal head and he or she is declared to be the “King” or “Queen.” It’s quite an event.

The Bible calls Jesus, “King of kings and Lord of lords.” In other words, of all the kings, queens, presidents, prime ministers, and other national leaders who have ever lived, Jesus, our Lord, rules. He doesn’t await a coronation—he already is King. He is above all, and, eventually, “at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10–11).

In 1851, Matthew Bridges wrote the hymn, “Crown Him With Many Crowns.” Based on Revelation 19:12, it celebrates the truth that Christ truly is our King and that we should honor him as such. You probably remember the song. It begins, “Crown Him with many crowns, the Lamb upon his throne: Hark! how the heav’nly anthem drowns all music but its own! Awake, my soul, and sing of him who died for thee, and hail him as thy matchless King thru all eternity.”

To have Christ as King, however, means more than saying he is or than singing songs about him. It means honoring him and obeying him. He needs to rule, now, in our hearts. Eventually we will see him in person, in heaven, and we’ll be able to lay all our “crowns” before him.

The twenty-four elders fall down and worship the one who lives forever and ever. And they lay their crowns before the throne and say, “You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power. For you created everything, and it is for your pleasure that they exist and were created.” (Revelation 4:10–11)

To Do

Find “Crown Him With Many Crowns” in a hymnal. Then, play it on the piano, sing it, or just read the words. Thank God for his Son, Jesus, King of kings and Lord of lords.

Also on this day . . .

1883—The first night baseball game was held, under the lights, in Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

1886—President Grover Cleveland was married while serving his term.

1933—President Franklin D. Roosevelt had the first swimming pool built inside the White House.

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.