And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand. And they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” (Matthew 27:28,29).

The reed signifies the denial of Christ’s rightful present tense reign in this life. The scepter of a king was not just a weak plant with meaningless significance. In modern day America, this is the most common tradition of Easter – a consistent denial of Christ’s rulership in day-to-day affairs. Every time a baby is aborted and clergy insist there are “other issues,” a reed is placed in Christ’s hand and His Kingly rule is effectively denied. Every time so-called Christians vote against freedom and for tyranny, they deny Christ’s reign and place a reed in His hand! Each time a Christian refuses leadership or hides in the anonymity of false humility, a reed is again placed in the hand of Christ. Each time a seminary professor says “God doesn’t do that anymore,” they place a reed in Christ’s hand. Moderns love the reed and hate the scepter — the message of the supreme and contemporaneous Lordship of Christ.

LORDSHIP equates to dominion in every sphere of life. Many Christians find solace in admitting that God once ruled and will rule again. They even design whole theological systems to support such constructs. But as long as Christ’s reign is always for yesterday or tomorrow, it never has binding significance on your life today! So no matter how many eschatology maps one may possess, a denial of Christ’s rule and reign today amounts to a daily mocking of Christ!

Recently, President Obama boasted that neither asteroids nor the ground opening beneath him were in the offering for his anti-Christian antics. Obama placed a reed in Christ’s hands! Yet, Obama could never get away with such mocking, if it weren’t for the fact that clergy do it every Sunday!

They put a reed in His hand!

What about you dear reader? Is it a Scepter or a Reed?

Jeff Ziegler is President of Statesmen Global Initiatives.