This weekend we come to the close of the church year, so to quote the man who wrote Alice in Wonderland, “The time has come to talk of many things: of shoes, and ships, and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings, and why the sea is boiling hot and whether pigs have wings.” Living here on an island, we could talk about shoes and ships any day. As for sealing wax, have you ever sent or received a letter sealed with wax? I suspect that cabbages aren’t your favorite vegetable so we can skip that. I do not know if the sea is boiling hot or not someplace in the world or ever will be. Despite all that science can do, I doubt we will ever see a pig with wings, certainly not at the county fair.
We need not talk about those things, but I would agree with Mr. Carroll that the time has come for us to talk of kings, namely Christ the King. As Christians, we confess that Christ is our king but what comes to mind when you think of kings? Someone who has absolute authority? Someone who walks around wearing a crown of gold or riding around in a coach? Or do you think of kings as rulers of a bygone era?
Oddly enough, we do not encounter Jesus in a very majestic setting in today’s gospel. John presents a very strange image of a king, if you ask me. Standing before Pilate, Jesus explains to him, “My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.” What he says makes sense to me. If Jesus intended to set up an earthly kingdom, his many disciples would have been fighting tooth and nail to protect him with the hope that they would overcome the Romans and restore Judea as the mighty kingdom it once was. But Jesus didn’t come to liberate the Jews from the Romans. Instead, he came to liberate all humanity from the tyranny of sin.
He told Pilate, “My kingdom does not belong to this world.” In other words, his kingdom is not an earthly kingdom with powers that we would associate with an earthly king. Since his kingdom is not a political entity with boundaries or armies to protect his subjects, we could then presume that Jesus is alluding to his kingdom as being out of this world, namely heaven, the place which he offers us, his subjects, as a home for all eternity.
To limit our perception of Jesus’ kingdom to a purely future reality, however, is to miss the point of this gospel. His kingdom is already here and now. Recall the last words Jesus said to Pilate. “Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” This king does not reign in the manner that earthly kings do. His mighty power is not one of force, but of truth and love.
It is easy to say that we believe in God. Most people do, but that is as far as they go when defining the role of God in their lives or their relationship with Christ. Many people profess a belief in God but they choose not to make God the center of their lives. They are not drawn to listen to the voice of Christ the King. Those who are drawn to the truth do listen to Jesus Christ. He reigns in their hearts. He can count on them to build his kingdom here and now because they listen to what he has to say.
Being a subject of Christ the King is purely voluntary. The choice is up to us. Being committed to him prompts us to enter into an intimate friendship with him through prayer and worship. We come to see that Jesus is a very different king than the countless others who have ruled earthly kingdoms in the past and that his kingdom can be described as being “other worldly.”
Unfortunately, a fair number of believers fail to see that side of Jesus. For them, their relationship with this king is nothing more than a bunch of rules to be obeyed if they want to avoid eternity in hell. They spend this lifetime ignoring him instead of honestly listening to his voice. In effect, they rebel against what he has to say. They have what James Fowler, a professor of theology, defines as an adolescent faith. Like the teenager who questions and challenges appropriate authority, so do we while learning about our faith.
Ideally, though, we seek to understand what being a Christian is about. We come to appreciate the many lessons, such as the beatitudes, which this king has provided and apply them to our daily lives. We see the wisdom of following his example and teachings. In turn, we are motivated to deepen our relationship with Christ even more and this is done by prayer, worship, service to others and study. Choosing to become an intimate friend with Christ moves us from adolescent faith to adult faith. We listen to his voice because the truth beckons us to.
Looking back over the past year, how would you rate your allegiance to this king? Did you see yourself growing closer to him, seeing the wisdom of his ways? Or did you remain distant, doing the bare minimum, presuming that your bases are covered so that heaven will be your destiny?
To celebrate Christ as our king is to recognize that the kingdom of God can be ours in this lifetime as well as the next. By putting into practice the lessons he has provided, we can experience a quality of living that is certainly not of this world. Ultimately, Jesus is challenging us, his subjects to live our faith authentically with justice and compassion, understanding and generosity. In doing so, we can make his reign evident to others in our world.
I suggest that we think of Jesus as the king of hearts. Recognize him as the one to whom you ultimately pledge yourself for all eternity. After all, he draws us into himself with nothing less than unconditional love. Can any other king make such a claim?