Sunday, November 21, 2021
Sermon
John 18: 33-37
By The Deacon Rev. Virginia Jenkins-Whatley
In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit
Amen
Throughout history empires come and go. The century with Hitler and Stalin and Mussolini saw dictators seeking to build empires with ruthless barbarity, and for all their might, they too have gone the way of Pharoah and his kingdom. The British Empire and the other empires of the nineteenth century have also long since been broken up. There is no earthly kingdom that will endure for ever and no earthly power that will not one day fade away.
In our gospel reading Jesus stands on trial before Pilate. The Jewish leaders know that Pilate isn’t interested in charges of blasphemy, so they present Jesus as a threat to the power of the Roman empire who Pilate represents.
When Pilate asks Jesus about his claims to kingship, Jesus does speak about having a kingdom, but the kingdom of which he speaks is not of this world – it is hugely different from the might of Rome and the power of Caesar. Jesus’ kingdom is of a different order and gets its authority from a higher throne. His Kingdom is no less than God’s Kingdom.
God’s Kingdom is not established through violence and control like the many kingdoms of this world. It does not exploit or suppress those in its power. Jesus will not fight against those who arrest him, because his kingdom is inaugurated through sacrifice and its power is the power of selfless love. Jesus’ Kingdom is truly not of this world.
Jesus is the King who comes not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Jesus is a king who humbles himself and becomes poor, taking the lowest place, such that we might be made rich in him and exalted to the highest place.
This Kingdom, unlike the kingdoms of this world, will endure forever because its foundations are eternal and its authority flows from the very throne of God.
This is our Kingdom and this Jesus is our King.
On this feast of Christ the King, the Church reminds us of these great truths. We are encouraged to reflect on the nature of King Jesus and to consider the values of his Kingdom.
We’re called not to succumb to the lure of power and wealth. We are encouraged to see the promises of this world’s treasures as empty and fleeting, and instead to pin our hopes on Jesus and to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness.
We are reminded not to store up treasure on earth, where moth and rust corrupt and thieves break in and steal, but to store up treasure in heaven.
We’re challenged to stop building our own little kingdoms and to stop seeking power over others, and instead to take the place of servants after the pattern of our crucified king.
Today we are called to set our minds on the things of heaven and to live in this world as those who belong to another. Our ways of thinking and being are to be shaped by Jesus and his ways, and our dealings with others are to be marked by the same kind of humble love with which God comes to us.
Christ is our King and we are his people. He is our truth, let us listen to his voice, and may his Kingdom come and his will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Amen.