SERMON, PROPER 29B, CHRIST THE KING

Today we celebrate Christ the King Sunday. This day follows up from last week’s visions of the apocalypse. Those readings, remember, spoke of desolating sacrilege, false prophets and messiahs (antichrist) and the last days. The visions given can be terrifying. The writer of Hebrews says, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

But if that is where we stop, where we quit reading, then we miss something vitally important. That something is that our king rescues us. Daniel writes about a person coming on the clouds and being granted everlasting dominion and kingship. John, in Revelation, writes about Jesus coming on the clouds and being the ruler of all things. And in the Gospel of John, Pilate and Jesus have an exchange about kingdoms and kingships.

So let’s talk about kings for a minute. Kings, in the best possible sense, are there to guide his people, protect and serve his people, fight for his people, and, maybe, die for his people. In some cultures, kings are elected by the people based on his leadership qualities. The Vikings and some Scottish clans did this. In other cultures, we hear stories of kings being divinely chosen based on their moral character, or their “heart;” think of King David who was chosen by God because he had a good heart, or King Arthur who was able to pull the sword from the stone.

These kings led their people, they guided them, they protected them and they would fight for them. It was the good king who led from the front lines; Henry V was willing to be amongst his army and engage in battle alongside the common soldier.

As good as all this sounds, there are a few problems. The first is that a king is usually loathe to relinquish his power. There are many biblical examples of this, but probably the best known of them was the power plays between King Saul and King David. Other historical examples include basically every king who ever lived who tried to consolidate royal power into the family; the desire for a male heir.

If the king is trying to keep from relinquishing power, then there are a myriad of other people who are trying to get that power. Political factions that drag the nation or empire into civil war because someone wants to be king. Brothers killing brothers in order to be the next in line. Kings who ascended the throne at a young age and were manipulated by their advisors.

Political intrigue usually runs rampant in royal courts. Marriages for political alliances, corrupt advisors pushing their own agendas; all of this to say that people will do and say what they don’t mean in order to move up the political ladder. There’s a word for doing and saying things that are contrary to what you intend. It’s called lying. It’s called untruth.

No matter how well-intentioned our kings start out, eventually they devolve into focusing on wars, territorial skirmishes and holding onto power.

But Jesus is saying that he is a king of a different sort. His kingdom is not from here, so the rules are different. He is a king who will lead us, protect and serve us, and die for us. He left his high and lofty place of glory to walk side-by-side with us. He leads by example. If we want to know how to act on a daily basis, then follow Jesus’ example as a common, caring, loving, honest and focused human being.

He also protects and serves us. Like the good shepherd protects his sheep, he calls to us when we are lost. He shelters us when needed. He leads us to greener pastures to feed us when we are hungry. He also serves us by washing our feet; by meeting us where we are and gently directing us to where we need to be.

And, also like the good shepherd, he is willing to lay down his life for us. Our king came to lead us out of sin into life. Part of doing that was to shine the light of truth on the darkness of untruth. That can sometimes upset people. He doesn’t do the political intrigue, he doesn’t form alliances, he doesn’t make deals with the devil. But what he does do is speak truth, and all those who belong to the truth will listen to his voice.

As Pilate asked, “What is truth?”

Truth is a kingdom that is so totally different from what we know that it is scary dangerous. Truth is confronting issues of inequality so that everyone is welcome. Truth can be dangerous; and, as Jesus found out, truth can get you killed.

But truth is also this: that all peoples, nations and languages belong to the king; that he loves us, freed us from sin, and made us a to be a kingdom of priests; that everyone who belongs to the truth will listen to him. There is a lot of imagery in scripture that shows our king drawing everyone to him, drawing everyone back into the kingdom.

When we pray “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done . . .” are we really taking into account what that kingdom looks like? A kingdom where the meek are lifted up, the homeless sheltered, the hungry fed and the outcast welcome? The truth of that prayer, and of our readings today, is that God is calling everyone to be part of his kingdom.

If you think about it, that is a radical prayer. Jesus had some radical ideas. They were radical because they were and are true. We can speak that same truth, but we need to remember to speak it in such a way that people actually listen. Our goal is to get everybody – all nations, races, genders and all of those “others” – back into the kingdom. That means speaking truth.

Our king has shown us the way and has rescued us from untruth. Are we willing to follow and speak truth as well?