God’s
kingdom is the purple thread, the theme dominating the tapestry of Christ the
King Sunday and the lectionary readings.
From the oracle of David—exalted King of Israel in its Biblical heyday—to
the “Are you the king of the Jews?” interchange between Pilate and Jesus on the
eve of his crucifixion to the revelatory pronouncement of Christ’s ultimate
reign, today’s scriptures invoke metaphors of sovereignty, images of royal
majesty, and memories of coronations.
I
have some first-hand experiences with coronations. No, I wasn’t crowned
Homecoming or Prom or county fair queen. But I have participated in more than one coronation—wearing
a crown and receiving a royal sash and scepter. The Southern Baptist church of my upbringing sponsored a
girls’ organization called Acteens.
Led by devoted women of our church, we studied the Bible; memorized
scripture; learned about our denomination’s history and core beliefs; and
supported local, national, and foreign missions. Just as Boy and Girl Scouts earn merit badges and advance to
different ranks within their troops, we girls could reach varying “royal” ranks
based on our participation in Acteens.
As a little girl, I enjoyed attending the annual Sunday evening
coronation ceremonies for Acteens.
I watched as some were named lady-in-waiting, others queen and one
queen-with-a-scepter.
I
can still recall the picture my mom has in an old photo album of one of those
coronation ceremonies. Myra
Newberry is standing in the center of the chancel dais. Dressed in a fancy, floor-length white
dress, wearing a crown and sash, and holding a scepter, she had reached the
highest level—Queen with a scepter.
Flanking her on the next step down were Kay Newberry and Judy Warren,
also wearing in floor-length white dresses and sporting crowns but with no
scepters. They had attained the
level of queen. Flanking them and
wearing pastel-colored dresses were the girls who had achieved “lady-in-waiting.”
Those
of you who have me pegged for the over-achiever that I am will not be surprised
to hear that when I entered junior high—that’s when you could join Acteens, I
began earnestly memorizing scripture and studying our denomination’s history
and missions. In other words, I began my quest to achieve the royal rank of
Queen-with-a-scepter. Like earning
Eagle Scout, this took a few years.
And somewhere along the way what I was learning became more important than what I was earning. Grounded in the scripture I was memorizing and nourished by
my conversations and fellowship with the women leaders, my faith grew. Redirecting me from the normal
adolescent focus—it’s all about me—the mission component helped me recognize
the needs of others and to empathize with them. So my Acteens work became the breeding ground for testifying—testifying to promises in the scripture, testifying to the hopeful work of
the church in the world, testifying
to God’s reign in my life. So,
when finally I received the crown, sash, and scepter, I had a different
perspective on coronation. It was
less about achieving goals, less about receiving accolades and more about being
a faithful witness.
Now
in Acteens we earned the royal
ranks. We had to prove ourselves
worthy of the titles queen and queen-with-a-scepter. But David was chosen and anointed by God without first
having proven himself worthy of the crown of Israel. In the story of David’s anointing, we have a glimpse of God’s
grace. God bestowed unmerited
gifts on David, just as he bestows unmerited gifts on us. Although David did not earn the crown
of Israel, he was expected to rise to the responsibility of his anointing. Like us, David was faithful to God at
times. He provided political stability
for the people of Israel; he modeled faithful observance of God’s commandments;
he reinforced a culture of justice—at times. And like us, at times David made poor personal choices—disappointing
his family, his people, and his God.
Throughout David’s story, we continue to see God’s grace—for God
forgives and draws David back into close, loving relationship each time David
fails God. Through the Psalms,
David reflects on all the times of his life. Through the Psalms, David reflects
times of despair as well as times of hope, times of sadness as well as times of
joy, times of anxiety as well as times of reassurance. Through the Psalms, David testifies to God’s providence; David
testifies to God’s
forgiveness; David testifies
to God’s grace amidst human successes and failures. Through the Psalms, David testifies to God’s reign in his life.
God
anoints whom God chooses—not based on the individual’s merit but based on God’s
love and grace. Jesus is God’s
son, God’s chosen one, the one anointed to rule God’s realized kingdom. As Jesus told Pilate, this kingdom is
different from political kingdom like the empire ruled by Caesar. This kingdom is different from the
empire that placed chains of ignorance, hunger, and economic instability on its
people. Jesus rose to the
responsibility of his anointing by testifying
to God’s kingdom in his ministry—his ministry of healing, teaching, feeding,
and befriending. During his life,
Jesus liberated people from the chains of sickness, hunger, and isolation. In his death and resurrection, he
liberated people from the chains of destruction, death, and separation from
God. In his life and in his
ministry, Jesus testified to
God’s kingdom—God’s kingdom breaking into the here and now, and God’s kingdom
fully realized in the future.
Jesus
testified to a different kind of kingdom, a kingdom that does not originate in
this world, a kingdom not limited by time or space. Jesus testified to a different kind of kingdom, a kingdom
limited only by God’s boundless love and awesome power, a kingdom that
originated in the creative love of the Timeless One—the One who is, who was and
who is to come. In God’s kingdom,
people are released from that which enslaves them—addictions. In God’s kingdom people are released from
that which sets person against person and people against people—fear,
suspicion, and hatred. In God’s
kingdom people are released from that which destroys—hunger, illness, and
death. People are released—present
tense, the here and now. We see
glimpses of God’s kingdom here and now—lights shining in the darkness.
Yesterday
evening I was walking home from the church down Peoria Street. Now unless you’ve walked Peoria in the
dark, you may not realize that it is not consistently well-lit. In places it was so dark that I would
have stumbled had there not been outside lights on the houses. But underneath the streetlights, the
sidewalks were well lit. Christ
reigns now—it’s just that we see it dimly, as if lit by the outside lights of
the houses last night. When God’s kingdom breaks into our world and into our
lives completely and ultimately, Christ will reign—and we’ll see it more
clearly as if we’re standing underneath one of the street lights.
In
the last couple of weeks, I’ve seen glimpses of God’s kingdom in this very
community of faith. When Helen
broke her arm, Larry Mooney drove her to the hospital and waited with her until
her son, Chad could get there. Larry
was a light of accompaniment shining in the darkness of Helen’s fall. Visiting with Becky B, I heard how much
Shari L’s longtime compassion has meant to her. Shari has been a light of friendship
shining in the darkness of Becky’s aloneness. Right after Lyla got settled in
Hoeger House, Vida Lea visited her.
Vida Lea was a light of encouragement and healing in the darkness of
Lyla’s pain and slower-than-she-had-planned recovery. Just as Jesus testified to God’s kingdom through his
relational ministry, Larry, Shari, and Vida Lea testify to God’s kingdom in
these relationships.
These
lights reveal God’s kingdom breaking into the here and now. These lights,
shining in the darkness, bring hope to the present. God’s kingdom—the kingdom planted by Christ, the kingdom
nourished by the Holy Spirit, the kingdom tended by Christ’s followers—God’s
kingdom is breaking into the here and now. This is the message of hope for us on Christ the King
Sunday.
Christ
is the king. He is
sovereign. Note the verb tense—present. We don’t have to wait for it to
happen. It’s already happening. God’s kingdom is breaking into the here
and now. There is a response in
the Great Prayer of Thanksgiving—the prayer suggested for all Communion
celebrations. “Christ has
died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.” Note the verb
tenses. “Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.”
This short, 3-sentence response can be a regular reminder of what we
celebrate today. “As the
Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, Christ is the center of the
universe, the ruler of all history, the judge of all people. In Christ all things began, and in
Christ all things will be fulfilled.
In the end, Christ will triumph over all the forces of evil”[1]
and destruction. Grace to you and peace from him
who is and who was and who is to come.[2]
Moving through the
seasons of our lives, may we confidently testify to the kingdom of love, grace,
and justice ruled by Christ our King.
Amen.
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