Christ Our King
Text of Reflection given by Guest Worship Leader, Pat Edmonds, on November 25, 2018 based on Jeremiah 23:5-8 and John 18:33-37.
Whether or not you are a fan of classical music, there are a few pieces which cannot help but stir the soul in a profound way. One such piece is Handel’s Messiah, the Hallelujah Chorus in particular. The chorus opens with the magnificent lines “Hallelujah, Hallelujah, the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth” and then quiets down “The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign forever and ever.” Not only is the music overpowering but so are the words.
Today is Christ, the King Sunday or the Sunday of the Reign of Christ. This is a day to reflect on our claim that Jesus, the humble carpenter from Nazareth, is the true king, the promised One, whose life and teachings announce the coming of the kingdom of God. It is a day to celebrate the sovereignty of God’s love in our lives and world.
The image of Christ the King, or of any king for that matter, is not an easy image to appreciate in this 21st century. The role of king has certainly been downplayed in our Canadian society. Most of us probably view a king as a slightly archaic carryover from the pre-democratic era. Most modern kings or queens live far above the common existence of their subjects and are little more than political and media celebrities with very little actual power.
How then do we relate to this claim of Christ as our King?
Each of the lectionary readings for today touches on a different dimension of messianic kingship or divine leadership. What type of king DO we follow?
In our Old Testament lesson Jeremiah addresses a people who had suffered under the rule of unethical leaders. We can certainly imagine the people’s frustration. Even today the daily news reminds us of situations in which those charged with the responsibility for the political and social well-being of our society use their positions for personal gain and unethical profit. Yet Jeremiah envisions a time when the corrupt and unethical leaders of ancient Israel would be replaced by a good and true king. “The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.” What a concept! – a king who would serve not for personal gain but for the common good – a leader who would lead the people by EXAMPLE and not by harsh rule. To imagine a leader whose actions could be characterized by wisdom, justice and good relations sometimes seems like an unattainable fantasy – and yet this was the vision of the prophet Jeremiah.
Today’s gospel reading is central to our recognition of how different God’s realm is from what the world views as important. The passage from John appears at first glance to be more suitable reading for Holy Week or Easter. In the gospel lesson, we encounter Pilate, Rome’s governor in Judea who ruled on the emperor’s behalf and commanded Rome’s troops in Judea. Hence Pilate sits in judgment as the agent of the Roman power. This interrogation of Jesus by Pilate follows the questioning of Jesus by the high priest so Pilate has already been told Jesus is a criminal. But an even more serious allegation, or rumor, is that Jesus is “the King of the Jews”. The trial and outcome hinge on this charge against Jesus as King.
In this encounter, Jesus uses the same words as Pilate – king, realm, truth – but they are not speaking of the same things. They are like people from two different worlds, using words common to both but having very different meanings based on their own life experiences and missions.
So Pilate begins by asking Jesus directly, “Are you the King of the Jews?”
If Pilate was hoping for a simple “yes” or “no” answer he was disappointed. Jesus responds in a way consistent with his answers throughout the Gospel of John: Jesus answers a question with a question. Then Jesus reminds Pilate that his kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. Jesus says to Pilate, “My kingdom is not from this world.” Jesus’ kingdom is not political or geographical, but spiritual. The kingdom of God proclaimed and ushered in by Jesus is the reign of God’s love, justice and peace. We are part of this kingdom when we follow the way of a Savior who lives and dies for us. The Reign of Christ unfolds wherever people choose to live under God’s authority.
But Pilate won’t let go of his original question and asks again, “So you are a king?” Jesus then baits Pilate by answering , “I came into the world, to testify to the truth.” Pilate takes the bait and asks his famous question, “What is truth?” Again Jesus doesn’t give Pilate a clear answer. This time his response is silence. We, the readers, are expected to know the answer for Jesus said earlier in the Gospel of John, “I am the way, the truth and the life.”
What is the truth about Jesus, the King of the Jews? Jesus never was a king in any recognizable sense. He had no kingly trappings. Jesus’ crown was a crown of thorns. He didn’t ride triumphantly into battle on a great steed. He walked about in a simple cloak or rode on a donkey. His throne was a cross.
Yet the Gospels present Jesus as a king. How is this possible? Jesus is a king when we are his loyal subjects. It is only when we obey Jesus and worship him that we truly understand the nature of his sovereignty.
In Jesus’ time, many Jews were hoping for a messiah or king who would lead their nation in defeating the Romans, who were an occupying force in Palestine. They were looking for a strong warrior who would establish a theocracy and usher in a new age of peace. However Jesus didn’t fulfill these messianic expectations. Instead, Jesus fulfilled the messianic role of “suffering servant” who willingly and obediently did God’s will.
In Jesus the Christ we see a God who isn’t a remote, distant sovereign but a God-with-us. Jesus suffered physical and emotional agonies during his passion. By so doing, he reveals a God who knows our suffering, and shares it. What we are offered is the “true” king who eases our suffering by sharing it.
As Advent and Christmas near, the time is right for each one of us to truly reflect on and meditate on the idea of Christ as the image of the invisible God. Jesus reveals to us what God is like. The infant of the manger, the young boy in the Temple, the humble carpenter of Nazareth, the wise teacher and healer of Galilee, the rebel against religious authority, the breaker of bread, the feeder of multitudes, the friend of the outcast, the servant washing his disciples feet, the broken criminal on the cross – each of these images teaches us, helps us see, something of the very nature of God. They also epitomize a King who leads by EXAMPLE.
The Gospel reading reveals the true nature of Christ’s kingship – and also the true challenge of following Him. This is the paradox that exists at the very heart of our faith – that Christ the King is Christ the common criminal; that Christ the victor is Christ the crucified; that Christ the image of God is
Christ the broken image of humanity; that Christ the Risen Lord is Christ the dying servant. The cross is the true revelation of God in this world – the coronation of our King – for it was on the cross that the nature of his kingdom was revealed. The king of wisdom and justice, who had encouraged his followers to walk in the ways of peace, mercy, forgiveness and love, had been denied and abandoned by those followers at the moment of his greatest need.
The “true” king is Christ; the head of the body, the Church; He is the One in whom and through whom reconciliation with God is made possible. His ways are just and wise; his tender mercy and forgiveness invite us to follow him through the shadow of death into a new dawn of hope and peace. To follow him allows us to pass from darkness to light as we catch glimpses of God’s glory in him.
On Christ the King Sunday we are invited to take our part in God’s kingdom by living out the truth. Our Lord promised that He would be found amongst the poor and the naked, the sick and the imprisoned, the stranger and the hungry. Such a promise leaves each one of us with a challenge. The faithful Christian life is one that becomes familiar with human despair and tragedy, one that stands in solidarity with and in service to those who suffer and thus becomes familiar with the reality of God’s power at work in this world. To follow Christ the King is to embrace a life of discipleship, a life of giving our lives to others.
Only then will “The kingdom of this world become the kingdom of our Lord and He shall reign forever and ever.” Amen