Christ the King
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Well, we have come to the end of another year! We did it! No, I don’t have my dates wrong…I’m not referring to our Calendar year. I referring to the Christian Calendar which has run it’s full course. The Christian calendar, also known as the liturgical calendar, it is a yearly cycle that commemorates the life of Jesus Christ. It begins with Advent - which prepares us for the coming of Jesus Messiah. Then we celebrate his birth - Christmas - followed by the season of Epiphany - the revelation of who Jesus is to the world, which is followed by Lent - a season of repentance leading up to Easter - when we remember his death and celebrate His resurrection. Next up, Pentecost and the impartation of the Holy Spirit on the Church. From Pentecost to today - we move through what is called “Ordinary Time” - a time when we primarily focus on the teachings and ministry of Christ.
The last Sunday of the Christian calendar - today - is celebrated as Christ the King Sunday. This is when we celebrate that Jesus is King and He has sovereign rule over all creation.
In our scripture reading this morning out of Daniel, the prophet describes a vision whereby he is shown in a vision God’s heavenly court. The One on the throne is the Ancient of Days - the One who has always been - and a multitude of heavenly beings served him and stood before him.
He then describes the one “like the son of man” coming before the Ancient of Days - a human figure who is given ever lasting authority and glory and a kingdom that shall never be destroyed made up of all people, nations and languages.
This term, “son of man”, is what Jesus used to describe himself in the gospels.
Jesus said in...
No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.
Before he healed a paralyzed man, he told the gathered crowd…
But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.”
When he was arrested, and stood before the Jewish leaders, they asked who he was…
But he remained silent and made no answer. Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And Jesus said, “I am, and you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”
And then consider John’s vision as recorded in the book of Revelation, which aligns with Daniel’s vision:
Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand.
This is King Jesus. The one who now sits at the right hand of God, in the position of power and authority. This is the one whom the psalmist is speaking of when he wrote:
The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”
My questions for to consider today is what kind of king is King Jesus? How does He rule? If He reigns, why does it so often appear that the world is not under his authority?
To help us understand Jesus’ kingship - I turned to N.T. Wright’s book “Simply Jesus” and the final chapter in this book is titled Jesus: Ruler of the World. Wright argues that to understand Jesus’ kingdom project, we must first recognize a major factor in God’s creation project. “God intended to rule the world through human beings.”
We find this to be true at the very beginning of the Creation story in Genesis. God created humankind in His image - meaning we are to reflect the Creator in our oversight of His Creation.
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
It is like if you were hired to be the caretaker of a large estate - hundreds of acres. The owner of the estate handpicked you, trained you, showed you how to care for the land like it is your own, how to plant and cultivate crops without harming the soil or the animals, how to care for the livestock in a humane way, and set up a profit sharing arrangement that as the land prospered, you would greatly prosper. The owner gives you great freedom, but you must operate with the same life principles and level of integrity that the owner himself possesses.
That was God’s intention for humanity. But we allowed sin to enter the picture and it messed up the world. As Wright describes, “[humans have done] amazingly horrible things as well as amazingly wonderful ones. Humans make bombs as well as music. The build torture chambers as well as hospitals and schools. They created deserts as well as gardens. And yet the vocation sketched out in Genesis 1 remains: humans are to be God’s image-bearers, that is, they are to reflect his sovereign rule into the world. Humans are the vital ingredient in God’s kingdom project.”
So how does God rescue his kingdom project? He sends us Jesus.
Again, Wright states “Jesus rescues human beings in order that through them he may rule his world in a new way he always intended.”
You were rescued for a purpose. It was not just to give you a ticket to heaven. Jesus rescued you so that through you he may rule his world as originally intended.
Returning to John’s vision in the book of Revelation, he witnesses this scene where the Ancient of Days is surrounded by the multitude and in his right hand is a scroll containing God’s judgments and decrees and it is sealed with seven seals. And a mighty angel ask the question “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?”
There is only one. Only one who is perfect, only one who is unblemished, only one who has the authority to enact God’s Word.
John writes that he saw “a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain…and he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne.”
This is King Jesus. And when he took the scroll. all those present fell down before him:
And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”
They shall reign on the earth. Jesus rescued you so that you shall reign on the earth. How does the Master’s estate begin to operate as He originally intended - through your obedient service.
Think about how Jesus operated in the gospels. Did he show up, declare himself king, and then begin to right all wrongs by establishing himself in a political position? Did he dictate to others what they had to do?
No, he selected 12 ordinary men, and attracted hundreds of other followers, and began to teach and show them how to live a kingdom oriented life.
Jesus tells them that the Kingdom of God is now at hand. By his signs and miracles, He demonstrates that He is indeed the Lord of the world. But this kingdom that he is implementing is going to be accomplished through the agency of human beings. It will be the people who will declare to others that Jesus is Lord and they will demonstrate that truth by following Him and His ways. After He died and was resurrected, and right before He ascended to sit at the right hand of the Father, He sends out his apostles with this command:
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
The Kingdom project is entrusted to human beings - His Church!
N. T. Wright states “Through Jesus’s followers God is establishing his kingdom and the rule of Jesus himself on earth as it is in heaven.”
If this is God’s modus operandi - how are we to accomplish this work?
The center of this Kingdom work is worship. When you and I declare that Jesus is Lord, we are by implication, stating that nobody else is. Nobody or nothing else commands greater allegiance in our lives. When Jesus is Lord of your life, you are fully committing yourself to Him, you shape your life around his teachings, you allow Him to re-orient you life to fulfill His purposes. You are submitting your mind, your body, your soul to His rule. You worship Him and give Him the glory that He alone deserves. You feast at his table when we partake of Holy Communion and you celebrate his victory over death through resurrection. And you are sent forth to do His good work.
Worship is at the center of our Kingdom work.
We also follow His way. We take on the agenda of King Jesus. He has taught us what kind of person we are to be in order to enact His Kingdom.
Consider the opening to the Sermon on the Mount, where we find the Beatitudes. Here he shows us what it looks like to be image-bearers of God.
And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
He tells us we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world.
When we worship Him and we follow His Way - heaven’s rule expands on earth.
Often times, we may get frustrated because we see and hear all that is wrong in the world. We are unable to see how He is using all things for His purposes. And yet, we continue moving closer to that day when all His enemies will bow before Him and all things will be made new.
That is why it is so important for those of us who call Him Lord to live into our part in this Kingdom project. As Christians, we have a long history of everyday people willing to do the work that no one is willing to do - because they see how things are supposed to be and they are obedient to Christ the King.
People like William Wilberforce who spent much of his life campaigning against slavery - going up against powerful interests, building up support, until he finally had the evil practice abolished throughout the British Empire.
People like Desmond Tutu, who worked tirelessly to not only bring about an end to apartheid in South Africa, but to also do it in a way to bring about forgiveness and reconciliation among whites and blacks.
People like Cicely Saunders, a nurse and social worker who, after the loss of two husbands and her father, spent 11 years contemplating how to care for terminally ill patients ignored by the medical profession. After reading Psalm 37:5
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
She developed a comprehensive plan that birthed the Hospice care movement which has now spread across the world.
On a smaller scale, closer to home, Jesus rules through followers willing to serve at a place where the poor in our community can get food, helpful resources, encouragement and prayer. Jesus rules through those willing to go behind bars to share the gospel. Jesus rules through His followers organizing a coat drive so His children will be warm this winter.
Again, N.T. write points out:
“Jesus rules the world through those who launch new initiatives that radically challenge the accepted ways of doing things.”
One this Christ the King Sunday, let us recognize Jesus sovereign rule over all Creation - and our important role, as His ambassadors, to enact His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
Amen.
