I
preached last week and my wife was a little worried that I would go off and say
something about the election in my homily, and was much relieved when I
didn’t. So - how about the
election? Just kidding. Thank God it’s
over, that’s what I’m thinking. We all
got to vote, America got to choose. We
have a winner and we to deal with it, huh?
Well
not exactly. All across America there
have been demonstrations. People, mostly
young people, protesting the result of the election. Chanting things. Carrying signs. The favorite seems to a simple three words
“not my President.” Interviews reveal
that many of the protesters, in fact, didn’t even vote. And I’m not sure what the protesters’ goal is,
since, as I said, we had an election, we all got to vote.
So
what’s this got to do with today’s Feast, the Solemnity of Jesus Christ, King
of the Universe, or more simply, Christ the King? I mean, you don’t vote for king. There’s a little skit in the movie Monty
Python and the Holy Grail that says as much:
“Who are you,” a woman asks King Arthur.
“I am your king.” “King, eh, well
I didn’t vote for you.” “You don’t vote
for king,” replies Arthur.
I
guess the point I’d like to make is this, in the kingdom of Jesus Christ, King
of the Universe, we do, in fact, have a vote.
We vote all the time. Oh, most of
us entered His kingdom at our baptism, but this kingdom requires more than the
vote of a tiny baby. This kingdom requires us to vote with every passing day,
with every decision we make. Am I to be a
part of the kingdom or not?
And
what really stuck in my head, all this week, what with the protesters carrying
signs saying “not my president” was this – how many of us, by our words, by our
actions, by how we live our lives, in effect walk around carrying signs that
say “not my King.”
You
see, whether we like it or not, our lives are walking signs, walking billboards. They either say “Jesus Christ is my King, my
only King.” Or they say “Not my King.”
It
seems to me that we humans have two competing impulses. Like the Israelites in our first reading, we
have a desire, a need in fact, to have a leader. So they acclaim David as their new king. King of the Israelites. And at the same time, we have a desire to
throw off authority, huh? I think of the
slogan from the 60s – distrust authority.
I can think and decide for myself, is sometimes our attitude. I don’t need no leader, I don’t need no king.
And
that’s what you and I must decide – will we submit to Christ as King of our
lives? Or will we live a life of “not my
king?”
I
am confident that we wouldn’t be here this morning if we didn’t believe that He
is our King. Or at least if we didn’t
have the desire that He become more and more the King of our lives. So - what does it look like to show the world
that He is our King?
First
of all it means following His commandments.
It means submitting to His authority over our lives, submitting to His
law. And His law is not burdensome, but a gift to us, for our good, for our
happiness. “If you love me you will keep
my commands,” Our Lord tells His disciples, including you and me.
The
most important of His commands is, of course to love. Love God and love neighbor. We have a stark image of our King in today’s
Gospel – a King not robed in splendor and sitting on a throne. But a King stripped naked, beaten and nailed
to a cross. And why? Out of obedience to
His Father and unfathomable love for each of us, for by His suffering, death
and resurrection, He has purchased for us the promise of eternal life. Imagine - what kind of love is that, that
surrenders His life for you and for me?
And
so you and I, who are called by our baptism to build His Kingdom, who are
anointed at our baptisms as “priest, prophet and king,” must follow in His
footsteps. To serve Jesus Christ as King
of our hearts means to surrender our entire lives to Him and serve Him. So that by our “yes” to Him, you and I,
united in His Holy Spirit, may build His kingdom, here and now. Exhibit His love in our sad, broken and
divided world. Be His healing and peace
in a world of conflict.
Wherever
Christians are living His love in service, there is His Kingdom. All around us, in our own parish and
community, we are living signs of His Kingdom.
Giving food to the hungry in our food drives. Serving unwed moms at Bethany House. Comforting the grieving through our funeral
ministry. Caring for the dying at the
Sunset House hospice. Giving transport to the elderly through Good Samaritan
Transportation, and I could go on. There is the Kingdom, and there are
committed Christians giving witness to Christ as King of their lives.
So
the question to ask ourselves as we go through this week…as we go into the
Advent Season and prepare to celebrate once again the birth of the infant King
in a cold stable…and as we take time to examine our lives, is this: what does the billboard of my life say? By my sin, by my turning away from Him, by my
lifestyle, my priorities, my living only for myself, my conformity to this
world, am I carrying a sign that says “not my King?”
Or by my obedience, my
faithfulness, and by my loving service do I joyfully proclaim to the world
around me – Jesus Christ, my Lord, my King, my God?
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