<p>6:15<i> I</i><i>n due time He shall reveal him, He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King</i><i> of kings and Lord of lords- </i>Caesar was seen as king of many subject kings, Lord of many conquered and inferior lords. In this we see the radical challenge of 1 Tim. 6:15,16: that Jesus Christ is the <i>only</i> potentate, the Lord of Lords, the King of all Kings. The RV margin brings out the Greek even more radically: &ldquo;them that rule as lords&rdquo;- those who think they are lords when compared to the Lord Jesus they are nothing. Many of the terms used in relation to Caesar worship are deliberately used in the New Testament and redefined in an exclusive Christian context, setting the Christian view of them up against any other use of them, and insisting upon it as the only valid meaning of the term. Thus &lsquo;<i>evangelion</i>&rsquo; was a well-known concept. It meant the good news of victory, and the corresponding duty to make thank and praise offerings for it. The Imperial Cult used the word for announcing Caesar&rsquo;s victories, his birthdays, his accession to power, his granting of <i>salvation</i> to his people&hellip; Mark&rsquo;s Gospel especially uses the word <i>evangelion</i> in a way which sets it up in contrast to the way it was used in the Imperial Cult. It is the good news of the birth, victory, resurrection and Kingdom of the Lord Jesus, and the <i>evangelion</i> calls men and women to make self-sacrifice in response to it. It has been noted that &quot;King of kings and Lord of lords&quot;, along with the surrounding couplets, are rhythmical. They are likely a quotation from some early Christian liturgy- a hymn or prayer. This means that such radical challenge of the Caesar cult and the Roman empire would have been a regular part of church life; just as we should be constantly aware of our radical collision course with the spirit of this world.</p><p>When Paul exalts that Christ is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, dwelling in light which no man can approach unto, this isn&rsquo;t just some literary flourish. It is embedded within a context of telling the believers to quit materialism, indeed to flee from its snare. 1 Tim. 6:6-14 concern this; and then there is the passage about Christ&rsquo;s exaltation (:15,16), and then a continued plea to share riches rather than build them up (:17-19). Because He is Lord of all, we should quit our materialism and sense of self-ownership. For we are His, and all we have is for His service too. And the principle of His being Lord affects every aspect of our spirituality. Dennis Gillet truly observed in <i>The Genius Of Discipleship</i>: &ldquo;Mastery is gained by crowning the Master as Lord and King&quot;.</p>