There is a story said of Queen Elizabeth II (the Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms). She was only a teenager at the break of the Second World War (WWII). But as soon as she got a little older, she went to her father (King George VI), and pleaded with him for several months – asking for his permission to join the army so she could serve her people during that time of great crisis. Her father was of course very reluctant to start with (considering the fact that she was the heir to the throne). But later on, he allowed her (at the age of 18) to join the Auxiliary Territorial Services (ATS) so she could help with the war effort in 1945. During her time with the ATS, she trained as a driver and mechanic, and took great pride in her work, and loved every moment of it. One of her major joys was to get dirt under her nails and grease stains in her hands, and display these signs of labour to her friends [Collier’s Magazine, 1947].

The future Queen was literally made lower than a non-commissioned officer for the sake of her people. But all that changed on the 6th of February 1952 when her father died. Elizabeth frequently stood in for her father at public events when his health started to decline in 1951. And when he sadly passed away, she occupied the place for which she was born; that very moment was her accession to the throne. At the age of 25, Elizabeth became head of the Commonwealth and queen regnant (a female monarch, equivalent in rank to a king) of seven independent Commonwealth countries. She was never again to be of the lowest military rank; she was never again to be bossed around by a non-commissioned officer, and since then became ‘Her Royal Majesty The Queen Elizabeth II.’

In a similar and far greater matchless way, this is why Paul (an apostle of Jesus Christ) tells us through the Bible that “We know Him (Jesus) by the flesh no more.” – 2 Corinthians 5:16. While all royals are born from birth as princes or princesses, Jesus right from birth was born the King of the universe. But yet, He humbled himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross! For this reason, God highly exalted Him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2).

The Bible says (in Hebrews 2) that God came down to earth in the person of Jesus Christ our Saviour. God made Himself lower than the angels. Jesus left the glories and the splendour of heaven to identify with us so that He may lift us up and to redeem us. The very heart of Christ is Compassion. The Bible portrays God as a God full of compassion (Psalm 116:5). The word ‘Compassion’ literally means ‘to suffer with.’ And so, when we suffer, God suffers with us. Instead of explaining our suffering and misery which all came about as a result of sin entering into the world, God shares in it, and that is what the Cross is. Jesus came to suffer with us by willing choosing the way of the Cross. Our Lord Jesus Christ fought Satan on the cross and crushed his head, and He defeated death right before His ascension to the right hand of His Father in Heaven. And now and forevermore, Jesus is forever reigning and ruling in even far greater glory and splendour in heaven… A day is coming when He (Jesus) will welcome all of His elect to that glory to reign and rule with Him for all of eternity.