Feast of Christ the King. Long live the King!

Nov. 22nd, 2009.

John 18: 33-37

33 Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, ‘Are you the King of the Jews?’ 34Jesus answered, ‘Do you ask this on your own or did others tell you about me?’ 35Pilate replied, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?’ 36Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.’ 37Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.’

Every year around this time, we celebrate Jesus as King, a king who confronted all the principalities and powers of hell and won the victory for all eternity. We are presented with images of him being presented to God, the ‘One Who is Ancient of Days’ and being given glory, kingship, dominion and power over heaven and earth. With the psalmist we sing, “The Lord is King, he is robed in majesty.” He is named Ruler over all rulers, the Alpha and Omega. No, he doesn’t look too majestic in this week’s gospel as he’s being hauled before Pilot but we know the end of the story. He wins and there’s a victory party in heaven. Hallelujah!

Now…where’s that Kingdom he kept talking about? If Jesus is a king, he’s got to have a kingdom, right? Is it heaven, the place we go after we die? If we commit our lives to Christ and follow him in faith, is his Kingdom our reward for being good followers on earth?

That makes sense except for these verses from scripture and phrases from the Mass:

'But seek first the kingdom of God' Matthew 6.28-7.4
‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.' Mark 1.10-20
‘To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God,' Mark 4.6-16
‘With what can we compare the kingdom of God…(scattered seed, mustard seed, yeast, something that can be seen, the pearl of great price etc.…)?'
‘…for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.’ Mark 10.9-20
‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.' Mark 12.29-39
‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God'. Luke 6.15-25
‘The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed; Luke 17.15-25
'For the kingdom of God is not food and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.' Romans 14.17:
'Let us pray for the coming of the kingdom as Jesus taught us.' (Intro to Lord’s prayer)
'Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven;' (Lord’s prayer)
'For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,' (Lord’s prayer)
'…and grant us the peace and unity of your kingdom' (prayer before sign of peace)

'For, in fact, the kingdom of God is within you.’ Luke 17.16-26

In other words, the kingdom is not only something that is to come; it is now, it is real, it is mystery and it is something we are called to search diligently for. It is not of or from this world. It’s not simply an attitude or a set of beliefs. It is a Kingdom: a realm that is under the control of a particular person, in this case, Jesus. And even though we cannot behold this kingdom with our physical eyes, we are told to believe in it, search for it, pray for it to come every day, believe that it has been given to us and act as if we are citizens of this realm apart. We are also told exactly where it is, in case we get befuddled. For, in fact, the kingdom of God is within you.’

We are also given signs that we can look for in order that we might know if we are indeed dwelling in the Kingdom of God. Go to scripture and look up the parables where Jesus begins with, “The Kingdom of God is like…” St. Paul says that the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit and the Mass reminds us that the Kingdom is a kingdom of peace and unity. Right now. Not after we die or after the world ends but now.

Scripture tells us that only those who are like children can enter the Kingdom. Children in Jesus’ time were completely powerless - those who have no interest in power struggles will find it easy to enter and stay in the Kingdom because there’s already a King in the Kingdom. And it isn’t us. When we engage in unkingdom-like behavior, it is much the same as playing ‘King of the Castle’, which is struggling to make ourselves higher by casting others down. We never get booted out of the Kingdom for such behavior. We make a choice to leave the Kingdom when we choose to live by worldly standards.

The moment any of us begins to walk in anger or walk with the intention of setting up and defending our own territories and agendas, we have left the Kingdom. There’s already a King in the Kingdom. He is the King of unity and peace.

The moment we take resentment against people and situations and begin to criticize and complain, we’ve left the Kingdom. There’s already a King in the Kingdom and he has mandated that we should maintain a right spirit and walk in peace and joy.

The second we look for honor, respect, recognition and appreciation from others, we’ve left the Kingdom. There’s already a King in the Kingdom and he is the one who is worthy of honor and glory.

So, what is our role in the Kingdom? Who are we when we’re at home? The second reading this week gives us a straight answer: “To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

We are priests in the Kingdom. Not kings. We serve, not rule.

This kingdom is real, not a myth from a different age. It would be more accurate to say that the material world we live in with all its misguided ways of perceiving reality and truth is the myth or at least a sad and totally inadequate reflection of reality. “We see through a glass darkly,” says Paul. We are priests of the Kingdom and one of our priestly duties is to bring the reality of the Kingdom to a world steeped in illusory desires and needs. It is our role to present hope, joy and peace to a world lost in hopelessness and immersed in power struggles. But we cannot do that if we don’t live in the kingdom with the King as much as possible. You can’t represent what you don’t know. You can’t offer what you don’t have.

“Seek first the Kingdom of God,” says Jesus, “and everything you need will be given to you.” Every moment of every day, we are called to seek the kingdom, place ourselves within in it, don the robes of righteousness and walk as priests who belong to a different world and a different order. What does that look like in reality? Just like Jesus who walked according to a different order than that of the world. Our High Priest and King is the personal mentor and role model to each one of us. Jesus is the only king in all history willing to walk intimately with each of his subjects while saying to them, “This is the way…walk in it.” When we seek the truth and reality of his Kingdom in every moment, we will become increasingly familiar with his voice until:

“Your eyes will see the king in his beauty and you will behold a land that stretches far away.” (Isaiah 33:17)

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PS. If you are like myself and most human beings, when you were reading the part where I was describing actions and attitudes that are not part of the Kingdom, there were people that immediately came to your mind: your spouse, a child, someone you work with in a group in your parish or a community leader. No, no, no. Not allowed! No doubt, there are many people who create wounds and chaos by behavior that doesn’t reflect Kingdom values but we are all called to examine our own behavior, not the behavior of others. In fact, as soon as we begin to identify others who have failed, we have left the Kingdom. The Kingdom already has a King and he is the King of mercy and forgiveness.