Every year on July 4, for that, of
course, is the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence,
but let me ask you – have you ever read the Declaration? I did, well actually I listened to a
recitation of it as I was driving home from work earlier this week, and let me
tell you, it’s a real eye opener. This
George III guy? who was our king at the time of the signing? Obviously bad dude. A very bad king.
For the declaration has about1300
words, but nearly half make up a laundry list of all the ways the King of
England abused his power and made life miserable for our forefathers and
mothers. And so, you and I know the
story, we celebrate the story, we formed these United States and fought
a war to throw off the tyranny of a very bad king across the ocean. And the rest is history.
Problem is, we Americans have no
idea, really, what it means to live in a kingdom. Ever since 1789, we have elected
representatives and senators and even presidents to govern us, and we basically
find the notion of being ruled by a king or queen to be foreign, if not
repulsive, to us. We the people are in
charge here in these United States. We
don’t live in a kingdom any more. We
don’t need no stinkin’ king!
But that also means that when Our
Blessed Lord proclaims in this Gospel that “the kingdom of God is at hand” we
Americans (at least) really have no idea what that means. The kingdom of God? A foreign concept. Something we’ve never experienced, in the
secular, political world at least.
So it’s a fair question to ask –
what does it mean to live in a kingdom? As subjects of a king? And what does it mean to live in the kingdom
of God?
Well the first thing I would say is
that a kingdom implies a relationship.
Relationship between the king and his subjects. The King rules and governs his people with
love, caring, compassion.
On our part, that relationship
requires a certain measure of humility, to subject oneself to the authority of
the king – hence the word “subject.” It implies a recognition that He is king
and we are not. I know, that concept
seems foreign to many of us, especially those of us who grew up in the 60s,
when “question authority” could be seen on bumper stickers and t-shirts. I am my own authority, many of us were
brought up to think. Nobody will tell me
what to do.
And the Church doesn’t teach
something completely opposed to that, as it is recognized that we are to follow
the authority of our own well-formed consciences. But I would say that “reject authority”
really runs counter to the faith journey of a true disciple of Christ. For to believe in Christ, to follow Christ,
means to recognize His kingship, His authority in our lives, His centrality in
our lives. And unlike the despot King we
revolted against in 1776, we have a perfect king, a loving, benevolent
king. A king with unfathomable love and
mercy for us, His holy people.
The Kingdom of God, then, which
Christ proclaims in this first chapter of Mark’s Gospel, is really about
relationship - our relationship with our King, Our Lord Jesus Christ. And we are called today to open our eyes to
the Kingdom among us, the Kingdom of which we are part as His disciples, as His
subjects. And living as subjects of so
great a majesty requires us to live very differently.
It requires us to repent of our sins
and amend our ways, as Jonah preaches to the Ninevites and as our Lord commands
us in today’s Gospel: “repent and
believe.” For Jesus also teaches us as St. John wrote – “if you love me, you will keep my
commandments.”
It also requires us to listen to His
call, as the very first disciples did, dropping all they were doing and giving
their lives completely to Him. What is
His call to me today, to you today?
Perhaps He is calling someone here to give yourself completely to Him in
a religious vocation, as a priest, a vowed religious, or as a deacon. For us married couples, perhaps He is
touching us on the shoulder, calling us to greater love and to cherish and
respect our spouses with a completely self-sacrificing love. He is definitely calling each of us to make
Him the “King of our hearts.”
For to live as disciples, as
subjects in His kingdom above all means to love. To love our King, and to love each other, to
love even those among us most difficult to love. “Love one another as I have loved you,” Our
Lord commands us. Wherever Christ’s
disciples are loving the Lord, loving each other, and loving even our enemies, there
is the Kingdom which Our Lord proclaims.
But it’s interesting – in this
Kingdom, we do have a choice, we do have a vote – we can choose to be part of
it or not, to choose Our Lord Jesus Christ as the king of our lives, or
not. Sisters and brothers, let us choose
Christ, let us each make Christ the king of our hearts and lives, and our eyes
will be opened to the Kingdom of God in our midst.
I would like to close with this prayer
I found in this book Living Like Jesus that I’ve been reading lately, for I
think it fits nicely:
Father,
in the morning of this new day, I joyfully and gratefully submit every fiber of
my being to you and your will. I
surrender every corner of my life, every ounce of personal ambition, striving,
and longing to you and your kingdom. By
your grace, I ask for that purity of heart that wills only one thing – your
will and glory.
Lord
Jesus, in the morning of this new day, I ask for the grace to make every
decision and perform every single act according to the values of your kingdom,
according to the model you lived and taught.
And,
blessed Holy Spirit, in the morning of this new day, I implore you to shower
upon me the fullness of your fruits, gifts and power. Please intercede for me with groans too deep
for human utterance so that all this day I may live and act for the honor and
glory of the God whom I love and adore, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
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