Today is a day we talk about one of John Calvin’s favorite topics. Any guesses what that might be? Yes – the sovereignty of God! Of course, you may know it better as “Christ the King” Sunday or the “Reign of Christ.” The Roman Catholic church actually calls it, “The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe,” which is fine since they came up with the idea back in 1925 to end the church year celebrating the kingdom which has come and is yet to be revealed.
This is also one of those days that Pastors and theologians obsess over because the language is so outdated. Our concept of kings has devolved to despots and figureheads.
Lord is really no better when you get down to it since that was a term that was
actually lesser than a king. It really just indicated that there were people
under you whose lives you controlled. Reign is about the same thing, as it
applies to regional governance.
I would bet that most of you if asked, would say that you really don’t care or that the
traditional language still has meaning because of the way it has always
expressed that God is the one who truly is “in charge.” Many of us also
struggle with the idea that God is in charge when so much seems to go wrong,
yet I am reminded here of a theologian I met at the Massanetta Middle School
Conference in Manassas, VA.
A friend of mine was interviewing middle schoolers to make a video presentation for the
conference, and he stopped a guy driving by in a truck to include him. The
question my friend was asking everyone was, “What does it mean to you to say
that Jesus is the light of the world.”
This man must have been aware of the high Christology in Paul’s letter to the Colossians – or
was at least pretty grounded in Augustinian traditions – because he looked at
the camera, spit in his cup (he had, after all a pinch of tobacco between the cheek
and gum) and said, “I guess it means he controls it.” My friend thanked him and
included it in the presentation because sometimes we forget that God is active
and present and moving us toward wholeness – especially when all that is around
us seems so broken.
Even so, there are, of course, those who question whether or not the language of kingship has become inaccessible to those who are new to the faith. You may recall a few
weeks ago I introduced the idea of saying “kin-dom” instead of “kingdom” as a
way to acknowledge the relationships God draws us into through our faith.
I realize that’s not for everyone, so don’t worry. I’m not going to try to change
the Lord’s prayer or anything radical like that! Still, I struggle with the language
of “kingdom,” and I wonder if it might help to remember how Jesus described the
Kingdom of God. Help me out here. How did Jesus describe the Kingdom of God in
his teachings and parables and stories?
[Answers are given, and I make sure they include the following: a lost sheep returned, a
lost coin found, a mustard seed, a wayward son and his brother, a feast for the
poor and lame.]
These are all beautiful metaphors for what it is like to live in the kingdom of God, but they
do make me wonder. Has our experience of the Kingdom of God and the Reign of
Christ becomes simply metaphorical? Do these stories of what should be, what
could be, and what will actually confront us and become real? Sometimes I
wonder about that.
The same could be said about the story of the crucifixion that confronts us today. It seems
oddly out of place. It’s the Sunday before Thanksgiving. We’re about to start
Advent. People are arguing about Christmas music. This is no time for the
Crucifixion!
Yet, here it is, beckoning us to consider our part in the story. Are we the powerless
onlookers who are unsure of what this means for us and our salvation? Are we
participating in the systems that mock Jesus for being so powerless? Are we
like the criminals at his side, incredulously asking for salvation in this life
and the next?
These questions are what the celebration of the Reign of Christ is intended to
confront us with. You may recall I mentioned that it began in 1925. Pope
Pious XI wanted it to be a way to demonstrate the freedom of the church from
the influence or direction of nations during a time of rampant nationalism that
followed the First World War and was heading toward the Second World War. He
also wanted it to be a way to demonstrate to the leaders of nations that they
should respect the sovereignty of God. Finally, he wanted it to encourage and
strengthen the faith of Christ’s followers to remind them that Christ must rule
in our hearts, minds, wills, and bodies.
Regardless of what the nations and their leaders might do, I believe we all need the courage
and strength that faith in Christ offers us. We need it for our own trials, but
also for those others whom we are called to acknowledge, to lift up, and
welcome into the Kingdom of God.
You may not like to hear it, but the reason the profit Jeremiah spoke of old was that life
under the reign of those that professed faith but acted selfishly was harmful
to God’s people. The same could be said today for many who live in or would
seek asylum in this great republic. Prisons have become a means of profit
rather than a corrective tool for justice. Income disparity increases along
with the cost of living, and yet we expect the poor to knuckle down and deal
with it. In our own city, we have leaders that would rather allocate funds for
an animal shelter than a people shelter, while our emergency shelters go
unfunded.
Yet, the reign of God points us toward a world where we recognize that not only has God
promised to be the one to care for God’s people, but God has given us the
example of Christ to follow. Through him, God has demonstrated that love and
hope are seen most clearly in vulnerability and forgiveness.
Even as Jesus is being crucified, he prays for the forgiveness of those who are gambling for
his clothes. Even as the criminals to his left and to his right argue over
salvation in this life and the next, he welcomes them to paradise.
As citizens in the Kingdom that Christ proclaimed through his life, death, and resurrection,
he welcomes us in the same way. Through him, we have hope that there is more to
life than the corruption of self-interested leaders. There is more to life than
the problems that we feel we cannot solve. There is more to life than our own
selfishness. There is more to life than our fear, and more than that – we have
already been given access to live in the light of the saints. We have already
been welcomed into the Kingdom that Christ proclaimed!
Today, we will celebrate the hope that we have received at this table. We will celebrate
the victory of Christ over sin and death, and we will celebrate having been made
one with Christ and one another.
There is no question about it. The vision of God we lift up around this table is that God
is sovereign, and in God’s sovereignty we have hope. The only question is what
we will do with it. Will we look on in disbelief? Will we join those who act
out of self-interest? Will we humble ourselves and simply asked to be
remembered, or will we realize that the Kingdom of God is in our midst; that
God is active and present; and that we have been called to demonstrate the hope
of love and mercy that we have received?
Regardless of what we will do, we know what God has done for us. We know that glorifying politicians is not the answer, but neither is ignoring those who suffer. We
know that, as citizens of the Kingdom of God, we are to proclaim hope with all
that we have and all that we are, for this table has been set for a feast of
love and mercy and redemption. It has even been set for you and for me, and to
God be the glory, now and always. Amen!
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