Waiting For The Kingdom
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Our world has been shaken once again by unspeakable violence. While news of terrorist attacks around the world has become something of a steady drumbeat, last Friday’s coordinated assault in Paris was still a stunning event that has galvanized attention across the globe. Though the carnage could have been even worse, it was still the deadliest attack on French soil since World War II. Moreover, it seems to be a watershed moment for the French psyche (similar to 9/11 here in America).
With all of this coming on top of a turbulent week which saw student unrest at the University of Missouri (and a nascent strike by the school’s football team) force the resignations of campus leadership, and one could be forgiven for wondering about the stability of our earthly kingdoms amidst so much tension and upheaval. But as team member Chris Keating points out in this installment of The Immediate Word, Jesus tells Pilate (and us) that his kingdom is of a vastly different nature than worldly realms. While the entire notion of kingdoms and royalty may seem foreign in an age of democratic governments, our empires are not so different from those of ancient times. Like those kings, our leaders are often more interested in seeking power, glory, and riches than in ruling with justice and mercy. But as Jesus spells out for us, the essence of his kingdom is not about the exercise of earthly dominion, because he “came into the world to testify to the truth.” And thus we can be certain that he is a ruler who will never destroy or disappoint us.
Team member Mary Austin shares some additional thoughts on the dynastic nature of many of our worldly dominions. Whether in politics, business, entertainment, or even sports, scions of well-established families have more than just a leg up -- in many cases it seems as if they’re destined to pick up the mantle of their forebears in the same way that a son or daughter of a monarch inherits the throne. But as Mary notes, these earthly dynasties are very different from the kingdom of Jesus Christ, which all of us can share in whatever our station in life.
Waiting for the Kingdom
by Chris Keating
John 18:33-37; Revelation 1:4b-8
Soon, and very soon, we are going to see the king.
But not quite yet.
That is the theological tension we experience each year on Christ the King Sunday. Liturgically speaking, it is the end of the year -- a feast day which culminates all those ordinary times following Pentecost. Practically speaking, though, it is also somewhat of an Advent prelude -- a post-Thanksgiving opportunity to remember that the promise of Christmas is much more than the birth of a baby. Our king is coming -- and we had better get ready.
Still, tensions remain. If Jesus is king, then what sort of king is he? Moreover, given the painful brutalities spread across the world in recent weeks -- the racial tensions on college campuses, suicide bombings, and the merciless attacks in Paris last Friday -- exactly what can we expect from this king? Perhaps, like Pilate, we’re not quite sure what to make when Jesus says, “I’m just not that type of king.”
As Jesus tells Pilate during their tete-a-tete, “My kingdom is not of this world.” Pilate is confused, and so are we -- especially as we try to make sense of the terror we have witnessed, and the attempts others make at creating kingdoms. Jesus comes testifying to the truth, declaring, as John says in Revelation, that he is “the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.”
He comes speaking the truth: soon, and very soon, we are going to see the king. The shape and contour of that kingdom, however, may catch us off-guard.
In the News
These days, hopes of God’s kingdom seem as slippery as sidewalks coated in fall leaves. Unending peace? Not likely. Eradication of systemic injustice? Take a look at widespread unrest on college campuses. How hard it is to encourage hope when hatred seems to be prevailing against the powers of life.
Proclaiming the kingdom in a time of violence can induce a good case of homiletical heartburn.
Indeed, the violence of last week may make proclaiming the reign of Christ as palatable as plowing through all six stanzas of a ghastly and unsingable hymn. At the very least, the state of the kingdoms of the world seem to cohere with Jesus’ words to Pilate that his kingdom is not “of this world.” The grief that exploded across Paris and Beirut continues to cross continents. It’s a reminder of our shared vulnerability, but also is imparting unsettling fear and not triumphant faith.
Unsurprisingly, fear remains the stock-in-trade of worldly kingdoms.
That’s clear in the varied responses to the Paris attacks. On Monday, French President Francois Hollande declared that “France is at war,” and he asked the French parliament to give the government powers aimed at eradicating ISIS. Syrian towns already beset by Russian and U.S. bombing received heavy attacks from French aircraft.
“The skies of Raqqa were crowded with warplanes yesterday,” a member of the group “Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently” told Reuters. “Several sides targeted the city, creating a state of terror among the citizens, who expect to be the ones who will pay the price for what Daesh (ISIS) did,” said the activist.
Meanwhile, security forces throughout France conducted hundreds of raids and continued searching for Abdelhamid Abaaoud, believed to be the leader of the cell carrying out the well-coordinated series of attacks in Paris.
In the United States, revelations that the attackers may have entered France as Syrian refugees generated calls to halt Syrian immigration. In general, attitudes toward an enhanced U.S. role in the fight against ISIS may be shifting.
The attack on a Russian airliner last month and the Paris massacre seem to indicate a change in direction for the Islamic state, though the motive for that change seems less clear. Will McCants, director of the Brookings Institution’s Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World, believes that last week’s attacks signal ISIS’ determination to lash out against its opponents. By taking the battle far from Syria, ISIS is putting its opponents on notice, McCants said.
“Given the target of a major enemy in Europe,” McCants noted in an interview with Vox, “in light of attacks on Russian civilians and an Iranian ally in Lebanon, it seems to me that this has to do with the war to expand its territory in Syria and Iraq. It is putting its major adversaries on notice that if they continue to impede its state building, they will pay a price.”
The change in strategy may reflect internal division among ISIS leaders or a concern that it is losing ground. McCants also believes that the attacks could galvanize the West’s determination for directly engaging ISIS. Either way, McCants maintains confidence that ISIS’ days are numbered, particularly because of its antagonism of powerful nations such as France and Russia. As he told the Washington Post:
I’m confident because every other example we’ve had of a jihadist statelet being set up, it’s always crumbled because it inevitably antagonizes a powerful foreign nation. Global jihadist groups, whether they are serious about their rhetoric or not, threaten powerful foreign nations. And eventually powerful nations decide they are better without this statelet, and get rid of it. The Taliban, for example. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb in northern Mali. The Shabab in Somalia. All of those governed badly and they were brutal, but that’s not why they failed. They failed because they antagonized some powerful foreign nation that decided to come in and clean their clock. The Islamic State is provoking two very powerful nations by attacking Russian civilians and French civilians, and this could be the beginning of the end for them.
News of the attacks in Paris shifted attention away from mounting discontent and increased racial tensions on college campuses in the United States. While militant jihadists terrorize civilians, in many ways the nonviolent protests by students and others embody the hope of a kingdom not of this world.
That was certainly true when black football players at the University of Missouri joined campus protests by boycotting practices and football activities. Head coach Gary Pinkel demonstrated fearless affinity for his students, encouraging their participation and even tweeting a photo that showed him standing with his players as one family.
But Pinkel may have been acting as a different sort of “king” or ruler in other ways. After the protests had been resolved, the coach announced he was suffering from non-Hodgkin lymphoma and that he would resign at the end of the year. It was a decision made long before the campus-wide protests and was motivated by a desire to spend time with family. A king and a coach “not of this world.”
Heated protests about race have prompted college officials to begin examining inequities at campuses across the country, including UCLA, Yale University, Amherst College, Claremont McKenna College, and Georgetown University, among others.
The University of Missouri protests originated from several racially charged incidents in recent months. These incidents led not only to student protests against the administration, but also to a hunger strike by a graduate student, and ultimately to the resignations of both the university system president and chancellor. There were similar protests at other colleges across the country, offering reminders of how racial tensions are part of everyday life for black students.
One Mizzou student said the ongoing struggles are exhausting. “It can be exhausting when people are making assumptions about you based on your skin color,” said Symone Lenoir, a 23-year-old black senior in interdisciplinary studies. “It can be exhausting feeling like you’re speaking for your entire race.” She told a reporter for the New York Times that some mornings she asks herself, “Do I even want to go to class and sit with people?”
Tensions on the Missouri campus are not unique. Nor are they products of “spontaneous combustion.” One student said that the movement is only beginning. Others see the protests as a tipping point for students across the country who are weary of everyday racism, harassment, and violence. Campus diversity officers believe the discontent is the result of years of inaction and lackluster response by college administrators.
And so goes the narrative of the kingdoms of the world -- the very kingdoms Jesus’ life and resurrection unmasked and defeated. In the face of terror it can be easy to lose hope. Yet, as Daniel Migliore reminds us, “the reign of God for which Christians hope is already inaugurated in Jesus Christ but is not yet complete.”
Soon, and very soon, we are going to see the king. In the meantime, we would do well to listen carefully to the narratives of Jesus’ reign as offered in this week’s gospel reading.
In the Scriptures
Pilate’s inquisition of Jesus in John 18:33-37 forms the basis for understanding Jesus’ reign as king. Jesus, while appearing powerless in this trial, actually holds the trump card which will result in his ultimate victory. Pilate and the authorities believe they are in control, yet Jesus openly defies them. His kingdom is not of this world.
In the face of Jesus’ defiance, Pilate is confused. Despite Jesus and Pilate’s extended conversation, Jesus never answers his interrogator’s question directly. Pilate asks “Are you the king of the Jews?” to which Jesus replies “That’s what you say.” Instead of bowing to the pressure of a worldly kingdom, Jesus -- the true light which enlightens everyone (cf. John 1:9) --challenges Pilate. His testimony remains faithful as he accuses Pilate of complicity with the status quo. He challenges Pilate’s motivation. When asked “What have you done?” Jesus responds “My kingdom is not from this world.”
It’s a key indicator of how Jesus understands the reign of God. The Romans are predisposed to rid Judea of troublemakers who are bent on insurrection. Jesus affirms his identity as a king, but then takes the argument a step further. If he were a king by worldly standards, his disciples would be storming the fortress. He is indeed a ruler, but hardly the sort of monarch Pilate may have been expecting.
That was surely true for the “Jews” in John’s gospel, a term which should not be interpreted as anti-Semitic. They reject Pilate’s description of Jesus as a king, affirming their sole allegiance to the emperor. Yet, like Pilate, the religious leaders miss the nuanced significance of Jesus’ true kingship. Jesus’ coronation is a crucifixion. Instead of offering a defense to the charges, Jesus embraces his role as king.
Truly, it is a kingdom not of this world. It is a kingdom built on execution, not revolution. It is a kingdom established in justice and grace, not corruption and injustice. Most importantly for John, it is a kingdom established in truth which holds no allegiance to earthly powers.
John reminds us that Jesus remains that light shining the world. That is the light of the kingdom, and it is the light which says to us: “Soon. So very soon, you are going to see the king.”
In the Sermon
When Jesus’ kingdom seems so far away, how do Christians maintain hope?
Perhaps Gary Pinkel -- who in many ways is hardly a model of faithfulness -- could coach us in this regard. When star defensive end Michael Sam revealed he was gay, Pinkel stood by Sam’s privacy and led the team in embracing him as a key component to their success. During recent controversies with troubled quarterback Maty Mauk, Pinkel refused to discuss why Mauk had been suspended. In the face of a kingdom built on celebrity and ego, Pinkel seemed determined to stand with his student-athletes.
God’s kingdom challenges us to act differently. Threats of terror may prompt fear and create xenophobic suspicion of others. Yet Jesus Christ brings a kingdom of peace. Systems of oppression may seem insurmountable. Yet Jesus Christ challenges those who follow him to resist evil and act in love. Those are the differences between Jesus’ kingdom and the powers of the world. And it is those differences which prompt us to remain open and expectant for the king who has come, and who has promised to come again.
The sermon could name the ways the reign of Christ is appearing, in spite of the terror which seizes us and the oppression and hatred we experience daily. Christians hope for the coming kingdom which will complete the work God has begun. Yet that alone is not enough. If, as Revelation indicates, we have been made kings (and queens) with Christ, then we ought to begin living into that identity faithfully. The sermon must hold the tension between the “now” and “not yet” even as it proposes ways of standing with those caught in the tensions of life.
“In the world as we know it,” writes Daniel Migliore, “death seems to have the last word.... It is the power of negativity and destruction that threatens the fulfillment of life created and redeemed by God” (Faith Seeking Understanding, p. 338). Yet, Migliore contends (and I would agree), it is when we take those realities seriously that we grasp the joyous hope promised in the kingdom.
What sort of king is Jesus? The king who comes, who brings light, who stands with the broken-hearted, and who says to us “I am the Alpha and the Omega... who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Soon. Very soon. We will see this king. May it be so.
SECOND THOUGHTS
by Mary Austin
Revelation 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37
Christ the King Sunday comes with some unease for many of us. Kings and queens are far distant from our lives, just another faraway category of celebrity. Here in America we have the notion that people rise and fall because of their own talents, not because they were born into a certain family. We cherish the idea that anyone can become anything.
Yet current research suggests otherwise. The children of wealthy people earn more, as adults, than the children of poorer people. That means that “the amount of money one makes can be roughly predicted by how much money one’s parents made, and that only gets truer as one moves along the earnings spectrum. When dollar amounts are used... the numbers are jarring: Children born to 90th-percentile earners are typically on track to make three times more than the children of 10th-percentile earners.” The Brookings Institution says: “When the rungs of the income ladder get too far apart, it is harder to climb.... In the U.S. the ladder is still scalable, but we are arguably beyond the point where the incentive the rungs provide to get ahead outweighs the difficulty of the climb. The rungs are not only widening in terms of income inequality. There are growing class-related gaps in family structure, parenting styles, school test scores, college attendance and graduation, and neighborhood conditions.... One thing is quite clear: whatever the gaps in an earlier generation between kids from more and less advantaged families, they are much wider now.”
Location also matters. Researchers say that some cities and counties do better at allowing kids to make their way out of poverty. If it’s too late to be born into a wealthy family, you can live in a place where the tools are in place to give you the best start possible: “Across the country, the researchers found five factors associated with strong upward mobility: less segregation by income and race, lower levels of income inequality, better schools, lower rates of violent crime, and a larger share of two-parent households. In general, the effects of place are sharper for boys than for girls, and for lower-income children than for rich.” In some places, kids end up worse off financially than their parents, in a spiral of downward mobility.
It is much easier to be born wealthy than to work your way up.
America doesn’t have royalty, but we do have dynasties. In my hometown of Detroit, the Ford family is still deeply involved in the car company that carries its name. Seven descendants of Henry Ford work at the company, including William Ford Jr., who has been chairman since 1999. Ford startled the auto world when he brought in Alan Mulally, an airline executive, to run the company in 2006. Ford says that the company benefits from the family’s involvement, and “he sees it as part of his job to try to get family members to participate in the company's operations.” Ford avoided the bankruptcies that befell its U.S. rivals during the 2009 financial crisis, and the firm’s shares have gained 47% in the past year. “They know there is going to be someone there through thick and thin who isn’t going to take a golden parachute and run somewhere,” Ford said. But the Ford name comes with no guarantee: “Mr. Ford also says family members no longer have an inside track to leadership roles. He and his cousin, board member Edsel Ford II, are members of the fourth generation. Ford family members who join the company start in relatively low-level salaried jobs. A Ford spokeswoman said family members aren’t exempt from the standard hiring process.”
In politics, the Kennedys have given way to the Bushes. Part of the electorate’s ambivalence about Jeb Bush and his presidential hopes comes from the way people feel about his father and brother, both former presidents. The Trump name may be just as famous as the Ford one, especially now that Donald Trump is running for president. His daughter Ivanka Trump may be part of a new real estate dynasty: “She acquired The Doral Resort and its Blue Monster golf course in Miami for $150 million, according to Forbes, and is planning to spend $200 million renovating it. She also has a successful jewelry, fragrance, and shoe line. Ivanka’s husband, businessman Jared Kushner, runs his family’s real estate development firm, Kushner Properties; is the founder of investment fund Thrive Capital; and owns the New York Observer.”
The retail field is another place where family connections endure. Forbes reports that “The Waltons, America’s richest family who controls the country’s largest retailer Wal-Mart Stores, have a fortune of $152 billion and represent more than half of combined wealth of all the retailing dynasties.”
Acting has the Barrymore family; football is dominated by the Mannings; the Murdochs are synonymous with publishing; the Lauders can make or break you in the world of cosmetics; and jazz is enriched by the Marsalis family. Being born into one of those families gives you an incredible boost into your chosen field.
But there is another kind of royalty -- one open to all of us.
In my former church, when communion was served the children would come back from Sunday school into the sanctuary (midway through the service) to share in communion. One year on Christ the King Sunday, I looked up from the pulpit to see them coming down the side aisles to sit with their families. A creative teacher had helped them all to make and decorate crowns, and each child proudly wore their crown. Toddlers and grade-school kids, children with special needs, the occasional teenager -- for that day, each one of them was royalty, a child of the king.
Jesus says, “My kingdom is not from this world.” Christ the King Sunday points us toward that kingdom, one so different from our world than we can scarcely imagine it. It moves us toward the eschatological end of this world, to the end of all human kingdoms and dynasties -- but it also points us to a reality that exists, hidden, in our own world. In a world divided by income, education, race, and class, Christ the King Sunday reveals a different kind of kingdom, and another kind of royalty. Here is the kingdom we are all born into -- the place where we all belong.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Ron Love:
John 18:33-37
An old Babylon tradition dictated that a commoner would be chosen as “king for the day” to mark the new year. At the end of the day, the mock king was sacrificed to the gods. But one king, after choosing his gardener for the role, died during the new year celebrations -- and the gardener stayed on the throne, and ruled wisely, for 24 years.
Application: There are many false kings, but we know from the life and testimony of Jesus that he is truly our only legitimate king.
*****
John 18:33-37
Golfer Jordan Spieth has a very large trophy collection, many of them coming from the most prestigious golf competitions. But if you are a guest in his home you will not see any of them, as none are on display. The trophies themselves are not important to Spieth, but winning them was. Spieth said, “People already know that I won. So what does it do for me to have my friends over and just flaunt it in their face?”
Application: When Jesus was confronted by Pilate, asking if he was a king, Jesus knew that his victory over sin was testimony enough. If Pilate could not understand that, then Jesus knew that all the trophies -- that is, all the signs and wonder of his work -- would not make Pilate a believer.
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
A Pablo Picasso painting titled “The Nightclub Singer” recently sold at auction for more than $67 million. The painting depicts a naked nightclub singer.
Application: If an impressionist painting of a distorted woman by Picasso can be evaluated for that amount of money, how could we ever determine the price of Jesus, the king of our Kingdom, in our lives?
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
Everyone likes a good, faithful pet. (That’s why some people hate cats.) So maybe it’s understandable that Emperor Caligula of Rome (12-41) would want to pamper his horse, Incintatus, as much as possible. It was kind of sweet in its own kind of way. This was until he started treating the horse like an actual human being. Incintatus was promoted to a consul of Rome, effectively making the horse one of the highest authorities of the time. Caligula arranged for the horse to meet the mare of his dreams (Incintatus’ dreams, not Caligula’s), invited him to dinner constantly, and fed him gold-flecked oats. After making his horse's digestive track his nation’s treasury, Caligula casually decided that he himself was a god, and wanted to convince everyone else of the same thing. He spent a good portion of his time dressed up as various Roman gods, including Venus. When conducting political affairs, he was known to only respond to the name of Jupiter while in court, and spoke only in a manly, booming echo. All of this, of course, went unchecked. Caligula was the emperor of the part of the world that was civilized at the time, making him the most important person on earth for a few short years. Short of being stabbed 30 or so times, there wasn’t much in the way of a check-and-balance system.
Application: There are many people who looked to a king other than Jesus, only to see with their own eyes in the last days that Jesus is truly the king of all.
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
George Barris recently died. Best known for his colorful design of automobiles, buses, and motorcycles for celebrations and television shows, he was the creator of the Batmobile, the car used on the The Munsters, and the “Black Beauty” seen on The Green Hornet. Barris called his custom shop the Kustom Car Club, without ever explaining why he chose the strange spelling for “custom.”
Application: Many when they see Jesus, especially those who pierced him, will recognize him by his work and stature.
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
A 9-year-old boy was recently lured into a back alley and shot in the head -- the ultimate act of revenge by two gangs in rival warfare on Chicago’s South Side. Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy called the crime the most “unfathomable” in his 35 years of police work.
Application: One day those who have pierced Jesus will look into the sky and realize how hedonistically they lived their lives.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
The approximately 2,000 high schools in the United States that still use a Native American name and logo for their sports teams now have an enticing opportunity to make a change. Adidas is offering any school that wishes to make a change the use of their resources to establish a new identity. Adidas’ design team will help with creating a new name and logo, and the company will provide financial assistance for the expensive makeover. Adidas’ head of global brands said: “This is a great way for us to offer up our resources to schools that want to do what’s right... who want to make a difference in their lives and in their worlds.”
Application: The issue over the use of Native American names and symbolism is a thorn too sharp for many schools to be “picked up with the hand.” Adidas is providing the “iron bar and shaft of a spear” to those schools who choose to make a difference.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
Queen Victoria forbade her sons from smoking -- but they all did, a great deal. At Windsor Castle they found a room they could smoke in. To stop their mother from including the room on her regular inspections of the castle, they had a “Gentlemen’s Water Closet” sign affixed to the door.
Application: There are many ways that we can be deceived from using “an iron bar and shaft of a spear” to eliminate sin.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1866) absorbed himself completely in fantasy, probably because he realized that being a real king was an unpleasant calling. So he decided to be an imaginary king, starting with the construction of a new castle, Neuschwanstein. He loved the castle to death, and even today it’s his most famous castle, serving as the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty’s Castle in Disneyland. However, the guy was insane, and everyone knew it. He was obsessive-compulsive. Building castles turned into his overshadowing task, and he was not willing to share this venture with others. He built two more castles over the course of his lifetime, and attended to each one with an intensity that only an obsessive manager could imagine. The king would send out servants to uninhabited castles every day just to make sure that they were still there. And he had no intention of ever living in them -- he just liked to build them. Given that poor people make excellent laborers, building the castles wasn’t so much the problem as the cost. (Sitting on one’s throne all day doesn’t really increase one’s cash reserves.) Instead, he fed off of taxpayer’s money, and eventually this ended up with the entire country being placed into debt. Ludwig’s solution to this debt was to sell the castles to buy more land to build more castles. Eventually the nobles declared Ludwig legally insane and threw him off the throne. Ludwig tried to come up with a final remark that would put him back into good graces, but in the end just used profanity and died a mysterious death three days later, leaving behind a crazy legacy and a tremendous dent to his country.
Application: It takes courage to pick up “an iron bar or the shaft of a spear” to eliminate sin. But eventually, after enough abuse (as we have seen in civil rights movements), the courage finally comes to people.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
In the early 1900s, England’s Queen Alexandra contracted rheumatic fever during pregnancy and developed a permanent limp. Ladies of Alexandra's court immediately adopted limps to keep up with the “fashion.”
Queen Alexandra’s husband, Edward VII, may have started a trend of his own. After too many royal banquets, the portly king couldn’t fasten the lowest button of his waistcoat. Before long, leaving the lowest button undone became the mark of a true gentleman.
Charles VIII of France had six toes on one foot. When he assumed the throne in 1484, square-toed shoes mysteriously came into fashion. (Pointed-toed shoes had been all the rage for decades.)
Royal brides wore silver until Queen Victoria married Prince Albert on February 10, 1840. Her bold decision to wear white was immediately embraced by an adoring public, and brides have followed in her footsteps ever since.
Application: David realized the importance of having people follow the instructions and traditions that he implemented.
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From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
When the gospel writers referred to Jesus as “King,” they were speaking metaphorically to show how his “kingdom” was superior to that of earthly rulers. This was, of course, a scandalous and even treasonous assertion, but given the human record (with a few notable exceptions), the bar isn’t all that high when it comes to the kingdoms of this world.
*****
A Good Royal
Maria Fedorovna, empress of Russia and wife of tsar Alexander III, was known for her charitable works. Though there is no way of knowing how true the story is, it is nonetheless said that she once saved a condemned man from exile in Siberia by changing a single comma in the warrant signed by her husband. Instead of reading “Pardon impossible, to be sent to Siberia,” she changed the document to read “Pardon, impossible to be sent to Siberia.” The man was thus saved and released.
*****
A Safe Royal
One time on his morning walk, King Charles of England proceeded to stroll through Hyde Park accompanied by just two lords. As he was walking, his brother James, Duke of York, drove up in his carriage under heavy guard. The duke was surprised to see his brother virtually alone and expressed to him that it might be dangerous and unwise.
King Charles confidently replied, “No danger, for no man in England would take away my life to make you king.”
*****
A Wise Royal
In 1649, Rene Descartes, the famous French philosopher and author of the cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am) principle, accepted an invitation from Queen Christina of Sweden, who was deeply interested in philosophy. Descartes traveled from Paris to Stockholm for a dinner with the queen at which he explained to her majesty the basics of his mechanistic philosophy, comparing all living beings to mechanisms. The queen responded to his philosophy by pointing out that she had never heard of a watch giving birth to little baby watches.
*****
A Pampered Royal
Prince Charles employs 133 staff to look after him and Camilla, more than 60 of them domestics: chefs, cooks, footmen, housemaids, gardeners, chauffeurs, cleaners, and his three personal valets -- “gentleman’s gentlemen” whose sole responsibility is the care of their royal master’s extensive wardrobe and choosing what he is to wear on any particular day.
A serving soldier polishes the prince’s boots and shoes every day (he has 50 handmade pairs, each costing over $1,200, by Lobb of St. James) and a housemaid washes his underwear as soon as it is discarded. Nothing Charles or Camilla wears is ever allowed near a washing machine. Particular attention is paid to handkerchiefs, which are monogrammed and all hand-washed, as it was found that when they were sent to a laundry, some would go missing as “souvenirs.” Charles’ suits, of which he has 60, cost more than $4,500 each, and his shirts, all handmade, cost about $500 each (he has more than 200), while his collar stiffeners are solid gold or silver. His valets also iron the laces of his shoes whenever they are taken off.
*****
A Diminutive Royal
Charlemagne’s father was only 4'6" tall, and so was (not surprisingly) known as Pepin the Short. But he carried a 6-foot longsword and earned a reputation as a mighty warrior.
*****
A Paranoid Royal
Even by first-century BC standards, King Herod the Great of Judea was an extremist when it came to defending his throne and protecting his power. He married the beautiful Mariamne, a Jewish princess of the royal Maccabee family, and fell in love with her even though she conspired to overthrow him. When he had her publicly garrotted he went mad, staggering through his palaces calling for her as if she were alive, and had her embalmed in honey so he could visit her. Yet his madness never -- even on his deathbed -- interfered with his brilliant ability to rally support and crush dissent: he killed his wife, his mother-in-law, several brothers-in-law, and three of his own sons as well as best friends out of fear that they were betraying him and trying to unseat him; yet no one made a serious attempt against him in 40 years.
*****
A Reclusive and Just Plain Old Crazy Royal
Being in a position of power in the Ottoman Empire during the High Middle Ages was a lot like playing “king of the hill” -- everyone wanted you off the throne. So when Ahmed I took the throne, it was a tradition to kill off all members of the family who might want a piece of the power. Ahmed decided to spare his brother Mustafa, however, locking him in his room for the rest of his life instead.
Fourteen years later, Ahmed was stricken with typhoid fever and died. The people of the Ottoman Empire decided it would be best to put Mustafa on the throne.
Mustafa (1591-1639) ruled for three months, in which time he managed to reward a random farmer who offered him a drink when he was out one day with a position as First Officer. It was at that point when he was deposed -- before he could bring the whole nation crashing down -- and back in his room he went.
Mustafa’s political career wasn’t over, however. His replacement, Osman II (who was 13 years old at the time) -- who liked to practice archery with prisoners as targets -- was caught trying to leave the country with the contents of its treasury and was executed.
Again the people decided that Mustafa was the least worst choice for emperor. Except this time, he realized just how awful a job being a sultan was, and absolutely refused to leave his room. It took a group of men with a long piece of rope several hours to drag him out. This led to the first official decree of Mustafa’s second reign: everyone involved in his expulsion from his cage was to be executed.
The message sent was clear, and Mustafa was allowed to return to his room -- where he stayed for the rest of his life.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: For our God has chosen Zion;
People: God has desired it for a habitation:
Leader: This is my resting place forever;
People: Here I will reside, for I have desired it.
Leader: I will abundantly bless its provisions;
People: I will satisfy its poor with bread.
OR
Leader: Come, O God, and reign over us.
People: Accept us into your glorious realm.
Leader: Teach us the honor that comes from service.
People: Help us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.
Leader: Your realm is governed by the rule of love.
People: Give us your Spirit of love and compassion.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
“Come, Thou Almighty King”
found in:
UMH: 61
H82: 365
PH: 139
AAHH: 327
NNBH: 38
NCH: 275
CH: 27
LBW: 522
ELA: 408
“O Worship the King”
found in:
UMH: 73
H82: 388
PH: 476
NNBH: 6
NCH: 26
CH: 17
LBW: 548
ELA: 842
“Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano” (“O Jesus, My King and My Sovereign”)
found in:
UMH: 180
PH: 157
CH: 109
“Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies”
found in:
UMH: 173
H82: 6, 7
PH: 462, 463
LBW: 265
ELA: 553
“O God of Every Nation”
found in:
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELA: 713
“Soon and Very Soon”
found in:
UMH: 706
AAHH: 193
NNBH: 476
ELA: 439
“Rejoice, the Lord Is King”
found in:
UMH: 715, 716
H82: 481
PH: 155
NCH: 303
CH: 699
LBW: 171
ELA: 430
“For the Healing of the Nations”
found in:
UMH: 428
NCH: 576
CH: 668
“Shine, Jesus, Shine”
found in:
CCB: 81
Renew: 247
“He Is Lord”
found in:
CCB: 82
Renew: 29
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African-American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELA: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who reigns in justice and mercy: Grant us the wisdom to understand the power of love, that we might reflect the compassion of Jesus; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, for you reign over all creation in justice and mercy. Receive our praises and grant us your Spirit, that we might live in your compassion and love as we follow Jesus. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins, and especially our being enamored with power and fame.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have too often been seduced by the world into thinking that true power comes through force and violence. We forget that the One who created us came among us as a servant. Too often we think of revenge, when the one we are supposed to follow offered his cheek to the smiters. Forgive us and call us back once more to the true power of your reign, which is found in justice, mercy, and compassion. Amen.
Leader: God loves us and knows how weak we are. In compassion, God forgives us and empowers us to live as true children of the holy. Live into God’s realm of peace.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord’s Prayer)
We praise you, O God, for you reign over all creation. You created and you are bringing all to fruition.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have too often been seduced by the world into thinking that true power comes through force and violence. We forget that the One who created us came among us as a servant. Too often we think of revenge, when the one we are supposed to follow offered his cheek to the smiters. Forgive us and call us back once more to the true power of your reign, which is found in justice, mercy, and compassion.
We give you thanks for all that you have done to bless us and all creation. We thank you for the clear call Jesus gives us to enter your realm and work for its fulfillment.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We raise up to you the hurts and cares of the world. We are aware of personal hurts and the hurts that cross all boundaries. The violence and hatred in the world is so far from your will, and we offer ourselves as peacemakers in your realm.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father . . . Amen.
(or if the Lord’s Prayer is not used at this point in the service)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Make crowns out of construction paper for the children. Pass them out and let the kids put them on. Ask them what kinds of things they think a king or queen would do. Talk to them about how Jesus, the King of Kings, washed his disciples’ feet. He cared for sick people and fed the hungry. That is what a true king or queen does -- they serve others.
CHILDREN’S SERMON
What Kind of King?
by Chris Keating
John 18:33-37
Objects needed: a deck of playing cards
As the children gather, greet them and show them the deck of cards you have brought along. Tell them that you thought it might be fun to play a game with the cards. (Arrange the cards ahead of time so that only one of the children will get a king in any suit.)
Pass out the cards, making sure that only one child gets the king. Tell them it is very important not to show their cards to anyone until you tell them. Count to three and have them reveal their cards at one time. Line the kids up from lowest value card to the highest. Whoever has the king is the “king” for the day. (Make a joke and say, “And when I say ‘day’ I really mean until the end of the children’s time!”)
Help them imagine what a king gets to do -- a king has lots of stuff; a king is very rich; a king gets to make all the rules, etc. Let them be imaginative. What would be good about being a king? Can you think of ways that being a king might not be so good?
After exploring the idea of kingship, read John 18:33-37. Provide a bit of context so that the children can understand the scripture. Some of them may be confused why we are reading something about Jesus’ crucifixion when we have not celebrated Thanksgiving yet! Help them understand a bit about the church’s year, and tell them that on this Sunday we recall that Jesus is a king.
But he may be a very different king than we usually imagine. Jesus is the sort of king who loves all people. He does not act in mean ways. He is not selfish, but instead wants us to be part of his kingdom. That is our very good news! In fact, he wants us to be kings and queens with him, helping make the world a place where everyone can know God’s love.
Invite the children to pray with you as you conclude.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, November 22, 2015, issue.
Copyright 2015 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
With all of this coming on top of a turbulent week which saw student unrest at the University of Missouri (and a nascent strike by the school’s football team) force the resignations of campus leadership, and one could be forgiven for wondering about the stability of our earthly kingdoms amidst so much tension and upheaval. But as team member Chris Keating points out in this installment of The Immediate Word, Jesus tells Pilate (and us) that his kingdom is of a vastly different nature than worldly realms. While the entire notion of kingdoms and royalty may seem foreign in an age of democratic governments, our empires are not so different from those of ancient times. Like those kings, our leaders are often more interested in seeking power, glory, and riches than in ruling with justice and mercy. But as Jesus spells out for us, the essence of his kingdom is not about the exercise of earthly dominion, because he “came into the world to testify to the truth.” And thus we can be certain that he is a ruler who will never destroy or disappoint us.
Team member Mary Austin shares some additional thoughts on the dynastic nature of many of our worldly dominions. Whether in politics, business, entertainment, or even sports, scions of well-established families have more than just a leg up -- in many cases it seems as if they’re destined to pick up the mantle of their forebears in the same way that a son or daughter of a monarch inherits the throne. But as Mary notes, these earthly dynasties are very different from the kingdom of Jesus Christ, which all of us can share in whatever our station in life.
Waiting for the Kingdom
by Chris Keating
John 18:33-37; Revelation 1:4b-8
Soon, and very soon, we are going to see the king.
But not quite yet.
That is the theological tension we experience each year on Christ the King Sunday. Liturgically speaking, it is the end of the year -- a feast day which culminates all those ordinary times following Pentecost. Practically speaking, though, it is also somewhat of an Advent prelude -- a post-Thanksgiving opportunity to remember that the promise of Christmas is much more than the birth of a baby. Our king is coming -- and we had better get ready.
Still, tensions remain. If Jesus is king, then what sort of king is he? Moreover, given the painful brutalities spread across the world in recent weeks -- the racial tensions on college campuses, suicide bombings, and the merciless attacks in Paris last Friday -- exactly what can we expect from this king? Perhaps, like Pilate, we’re not quite sure what to make when Jesus says, “I’m just not that type of king.”
As Jesus tells Pilate during their tete-a-tete, “My kingdom is not of this world.” Pilate is confused, and so are we -- especially as we try to make sense of the terror we have witnessed, and the attempts others make at creating kingdoms. Jesus comes testifying to the truth, declaring, as John says in Revelation, that he is “the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.”
He comes speaking the truth: soon, and very soon, we are going to see the king. The shape and contour of that kingdom, however, may catch us off-guard.
In the News
These days, hopes of God’s kingdom seem as slippery as sidewalks coated in fall leaves. Unending peace? Not likely. Eradication of systemic injustice? Take a look at widespread unrest on college campuses. How hard it is to encourage hope when hatred seems to be prevailing against the powers of life.
Proclaiming the kingdom in a time of violence can induce a good case of homiletical heartburn.
Indeed, the violence of last week may make proclaiming the reign of Christ as palatable as plowing through all six stanzas of a ghastly and unsingable hymn. At the very least, the state of the kingdoms of the world seem to cohere with Jesus’ words to Pilate that his kingdom is not “of this world.” The grief that exploded across Paris and Beirut continues to cross continents. It’s a reminder of our shared vulnerability, but also is imparting unsettling fear and not triumphant faith.
Unsurprisingly, fear remains the stock-in-trade of worldly kingdoms.
That’s clear in the varied responses to the Paris attacks. On Monday, French President Francois Hollande declared that “France is at war,” and he asked the French parliament to give the government powers aimed at eradicating ISIS. Syrian towns already beset by Russian and U.S. bombing received heavy attacks from French aircraft.
“The skies of Raqqa were crowded with warplanes yesterday,” a member of the group “Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently” told Reuters. “Several sides targeted the city, creating a state of terror among the citizens, who expect to be the ones who will pay the price for what Daesh (ISIS) did,” said the activist.
Meanwhile, security forces throughout France conducted hundreds of raids and continued searching for Abdelhamid Abaaoud, believed to be the leader of the cell carrying out the well-coordinated series of attacks in Paris.
In the United States, revelations that the attackers may have entered France as Syrian refugees generated calls to halt Syrian immigration. In general, attitudes toward an enhanced U.S. role in the fight against ISIS may be shifting.
The attack on a Russian airliner last month and the Paris massacre seem to indicate a change in direction for the Islamic state, though the motive for that change seems less clear. Will McCants, director of the Brookings Institution’s Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World, believes that last week’s attacks signal ISIS’ determination to lash out against its opponents. By taking the battle far from Syria, ISIS is putting its opponents on notice, McCants said.
“Given the target of a major enemy in Europe,” McCants noted in an interview with Vox, “in light of attacks on Russian civilians and an Iranian ally in Lebanon, it seems to me that this has to do with the war to expand its territory in Syria and Iraq. It is putting its major adversaries on notice that if they continue to impede its state building, they will pay a price.”
The change in strategy may reflect internal division among ISIS leaders or a concern that it is losing ground. McCants also believes that the attacks could galvanize the West’s determination for directly engaging ISIS. Either way, McCants maintains confidence that ISIS’ days are numbered, particularly because of its antagonism of powerful nations such as France and Russia. As he told the Washington Post:
I’m confident because every other example we’ve had of a jihadist statelet being set up, it’s always crumbled because it inevitably antagonizes a powerful foreign nation. Global jihadist groups, whether they are serious about their rhetoric or not, threaten powerful foreign nations. And eventually powerful nations decide they are better without this statelet, and get rid of it. The Taliban, for example. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb in northern Mali. The Shabab in Somalia. All of those governed badly and they were brutal, but that’s not why they failed. They failed because they antagonized some powerful foreign nation that decided to come in and clean their clock. The Islamic State is provoking two very powerful nations by attacking Russian civilians and French civilians, and this could be the beginning of the end for them.
News of the attacks in Paris shifted attention away from mounting discontent and increased racial tensions on college campuses in the United States. While militant jihadists terrorize civilians, in many ways the nonviolent protests by students and others embody the hope of a kingdom not of this world.
That was certainly true when black football players at the University of Missouri joined campus protests by boycotting practices and football activities. Head coach Gary Pinkel demonstrated fearless affinity for his students, encouraging their participation and even tweeting a photo that showed him standing with his players as one family.
But Pinkel may have been acting as a different sort of “king” or ruler in other ways. After the protests had been resolved, the coach announced he was suffering from non-Hodgkin lymphoma and that he would resign at the end of the year. It was a decision made long before the campus-wide protests and was motivated by a desire to spend time with family. A king and a coach “not of this world.”
Heated protests about race have prompted college officials to begin examining inequities at campuses across the country, including UCLA, Yale University, Amherst College, Claremont McKenna College, and Georgetown University, among others.
The University of Missouri protests originated from several racially charged incidents in recent months. These incidents led not only to student protests against the administration, but also to a hunger strike by a graduate student, and ultimately to the resignations of both the university system president and chancellor. There were similar protests at other colleges across the country, offering reminders of how racial tensions are part of everyday life for black students.
One Mizzou student said the ongoing struggles are exhausting. “It can be exhausting when people are making assumptions about you based on your skin color,” said Symone Lenoir, a 23-year-old black senior in interdisciplinary studies. “It can be exhausting feeling like you’re speaking for your entire race.” She told a reporter for the New York Times that some mornings she asks herself, “Do I even want to go to class and sit with people?”
Tensions on the Missouri campus are not unique. Nor are they products of “spontaneous combustion.” One student said that the movement is only beginning. Others see the protests as a tipping point for students across the country who are weary of everyday racism, harassment, and violence. Campus diversity officers believe the discontent is the result of years of inaction and lackluster response by college administrators.
And so goes the narrative of the kingdoms of the world -- the very kingdoms Jesus’ life and resurrection unmasked and defeated. In the face of terror it can be easy to lose hope. Yet, as Daniel Migliore reminds us, “the reign of God for which Christians hope is already inaugurated in Jesus Christ but is not yet complete.”
Soon, and very soon, we are going to see the king. In the meantime, we would do well to listen carefully to the narratives of Jesus’ reign as offered in this week’s gospel reading.
In the Scriptures
Pilate’s inquisition of Jesus in John 18:33-37 forms the basis for understanding Jesus’ reign as king. Jesus, while appearing powerless in this trial, actually holds the trump card which will result in his ultimate victory. Pilate and the authorities believe they are in control, yet Jesus openly defies them. His kingdom is not of this world.
In the face of Jesus’ defiance, Pilate is confused. Despite Jesus and Pilate’s extended conversation, Jesus never answers his interrogator’s question directly. Pilate asks “Are you the king of the Jews?” to which Jesus replies “That’s what you say.” Instead of bowing to the pressure of a worldly kingdom, Jesus -- the true light which enlightens everyone (cf. John 1:9) --challenges Pilate. His testimony remains faithful as he accuses Pilate of complicity with the status quo. He challenges Pilate’s motivation. When asked “What have you done?” Jesus responds “My kingdom is not from this world.”
It’s a key indicator of how Jesus understands the reign of God. The Romans are predisposed to rid Judea of troublemakers who are bent on insurrection. Jesus affirms his identity as a king, but then takes the argument a step further. If he were a king by worldly standards, his disciples would be storming the fortress. He is indeed a ruler, but hardly the sort of monarch Pilate may have been expecting.
That was surely true for the “Jews” in John’s gospel, a term which should not be interpreted as anti-Semitic. They reject Pilate’s description of Jesus as a king, affirming their sole allegiance to the emperor. Yet, like Pilate, the religious leaders miss the nuanced significance of Jesus’ true kingship. Jesus’ coronation is a crucifixion. Instead of offering a defense to the charges, Jesus embraces his role as king.
Truly, it is a kingdom not of this world. It is a kingdom built on execution, not revolution. It is a kingdom established in justice and grace, not corruption and injustice. Most importantly for John, it is a kingdom established in truth which holds no allegiance to earthly powers.
John reminds us that Jesus remains that light shining the world. That is the light of the kingdom, and it is the light which says to us: “Soon. So very soon, you are going to see the king.”
In the Sermon
When Jesus’ kingdom seems so far away, how do Christians maintain hope?
Perhaps Gary Pinkel -- who in many ways is hardly a model of faithfulness -- could coach us in this regard. When star defensive end Michael Sam revealed he was gay, Pinkel stood by Sam’s privacy and led the team in embracing him as a key component to their success. During recent controversies with troubled quarterback Maty Mauk, Pinkel refused to discuss why Mauk had been suspended. In the face of a kingdom built on celebrity and ego, Pinkel seemed determined to stand with his student-athletes.
God’s kingdom challenges us to act differently. Threats of terror may prompt fear and create xenophobic suspicion of others. Yet Jesus Christ brings a kingdom of peace. Systems of oppression may seem insurmountable. Yet Jesus Christ challenges those who follow him to resist evil and act in love. Those are the differences between Jesus’ kingdom and the powers of the world. And it is those differences which prompt us to remain open and expectant for the king who has come, and who has promised to come again.
The sermon could name the ways the reign of Christ is appearing, in spite of the terror which seizes us and the oppression and hatred we experience daily. Christians hope for the coming kingdom which will complete the work God has begun. Yet that alone is not enough. If, as Revelation indicates, we have been made kings (and queens) with Christ, then we ought to begin living into that identity faithfully. The sermon must hold the tension between the “now” and “not yet” even as it proposes ways of standing with those caught in the tensions of life.
“In the world as we know it,” writes Daniel Migliore, “death seems to have the last word.... It is the power of negativity and destruction that threatens the fulfillment of life created and redeemed by God” (Faith Seeking Understanding, p. 338). Yet, Migliore contends (and I would agree), it is when we take those realities seriously that we grasp the joyous hope promised in the kingdom.
What sort of king is Jesus? The king who comes, who brings light, who stands with the broken-hearted, and who says to us “I am the Alpha and the Omega... who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Soon. Very soon. We will see this king. May it be so.
SECOND THOUGHTS
by Mary Austin
Revelation 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37
Christ the King Sunday comes with some unease for many of us. Kings and queens are far distant from our lives, just another faraway category of celebrity. Here in America we have the notion that people rise and fall because of their own talents, not because they were born into a certain family. We cherish the idea that anyone can become anything.
Yet current research suggests otherwise. The children of wealthy people earn more, as adults, than the children of poorer people. That means that “the amount of money one makes can be roughly predicted by how much money one’s parents made, and that only gets truer as one moves along the earnings spectrum. When dollar amounts are used... the numbers are jarring: Children born to 90th-percentile earners are typically on track to make three times more than the children of 10th-percentile earners.” The Brookings Institution says: “When the rungs of the income ladder get too far apart, it is harder to climb.... In the U.S. the ladder is still scalable, but we are arguably beyond the point where the incentive the rungs provide to get ahead outweighs the difficulty of the climb. The rungs are not only widening in terms of income inequality. There are growing class-related gaps in family structure, parenting styles, school test scores, college attendance and graduation, and neighborhood conditions.... One thing is quite clear: whatever the gaps in an earlier generation between kids from more and less advantaged families, they are much wider now.”
Location also matters. Researchers say that some cities and counties do better at allowing kids to make their way out of poverty. If it’s too late to be born into a wealthy family, you can live in a place where the tools are in place to give you the best start possible: “Across the country, the researchers found five factors associated with strong upward mobility: less segregation by income and race, lower levels of income inequality, better schools, lower rates of violent crime, and a larger share of two-parent households. In general, the effects of place are sharper for boys than for girls, and for lower-income children than for rich.” In some places, kids end up worse off financially than their parents, in a spiral of downward mobility.
It is much easier to be born wealthy than to work your way up.
America doesn’t have royalty, but we do have dynasties. In my hometown of Detroit, the Ford family is still deeply involved in the car company that carries its name. Seven descendants of Henry Ford work at the company, including William Ford Jr., who has been chairman since 1999. Ford startled the auto world when he brought in Alan Mulally, an airline executive, to run the company in 2006. Ford says that the company benefits from the family’s involvement, and “he sees it as part of his job to try to get family members to participate in the company's operations.” Ford avoided the bankruptcies that befell its U.S. rivals during the 2009 financial crisis, and the firm’s shares have gained 47% in the past year. “They know there is going to be someone there through thick and thin who isn’t going to take a golden parachute and run somewhere,” Ford said. But the Ford name comes with no guarantee: “Mr. Ford also says family members no longer have an inside track to leadership roles. He and his cousin, board member Edsel Ford II, are members of the fourth generation. Ford family members who join the company start in relatively low-level salaried jobs. A Ford spokeswoman said family members aren’t exempt from the standard hiring process.”
In politics, the Kennedys have given way to the Bushes. Part of the electorate’s ambivalence about Jeb Bush and his presidential hopes comes from the way people feel about his father and brother, both former presidents. The Trump name may be just as famous as the Ford one, especially now that Donald Trump is running for president. His daughter Ivanka Trump may be part of a new real estate dynasty: “She acquired The Doral Resort and its Blue Monster golf course in Miami for $150 million, according to Forbes, and is planning to spend $200 million renovating it. She also has a successful jewelry, fragrance, and shoe line. Ivanka’s husband, businessman Jared Kushner, runs his family’s real estate development firm, Kushner Properties; is the founder of investment fund Thrive Capital; and owns the New York Observer.”
The retail field is another place where family connections endure. Forbes reports that “The Waltons, America’s richest family who controls the country’s largest retailer Wal-Mart Stores, have a fortune of $152 billion and represent more than half of combined wealth of all the retailing dynasties.”
Acting has the Barrymore family; football is dominated by the Mannings; the Murdochs are synonymous with publishing; the Lauders can make or break you in the world of cosmetics; and jazz is enriched by the Marsalis family. Being born into one of those families gives you an incredible boost into your chosen field.
But there is another kind of royalty -- one open to all of us.
In my former church, when communion was served the children would come back from Sunday school into the sanctuary (midway through the service) to share in communion. One year on Christ the King Sunday, I looked up from the pulpit to see them coming down the side aisles to sit with their families. A creative teacher had helped them all to make and decorate crowns, and each child proudly wore their crown. Toddlers and grade-school kids, children with special needs, the occasional teenager -- for that day, each one of them was royalty, a child of the king.
Jesus says, “My kingdom is not from this world.” Christ the King Sunday points us toward that kingdom, one so different from our world than we can scarcely imagine it. It moves us toward the eschatological end of this world, to the end of all human kingdoms and dynasties -- but it also points us to a reality that exists, hidden, in our own world. In a world divided by income, education, race, and class, Christ the King Sunday reveals a different kind of kingdom, and another kind of royalty. Here is the kingdom we are all born into -- the place where we all belong.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Ron Love:
John 18:33-37
An old Babylon tradition dictated that a commoner would be chosen as “king for the day” to mark the new year. At the end of the day, the mock king was sacrificed to the gods. But one king, after choosing his gardener for the role, died during the new year celebrations -- and the gardener stayed on the throne, and ruled wisely, for 24 years.
Application: There are many false kings, but we know from the life and testimony of Jesus that he is truly our only legitimate king.
*****
John 18:33-37
Golfer Jordan Spieth has a very large trophy collection, many of them coming from the most prestigious golf competitions. But if you are a guest in his home you will not see any of them, as none are on display. The trophies themselves are not important to Spieth, but winning them was. Spieth said, “People already know that I won. So what does it do for me to have my friends over and just flaunt it in their face?”
Application: When Jesus was confronted by Pilate, asking if he was a king, Jesus knew that his victory over sin was testimony enough. If Pilate could not understand that, then Jesus knew that all the trophies -- that is, all the signs and wonder of his work -- would not make Pilate a believer.
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
A Pablo Picasso painting titled “The Nightclub Singer” recently sold at auction for more than $67 million. The painting depicts a naked nightclub singer.
Application: If an impressionist painting of a distorted woman by Picasso can be evaluated for that amount of money, how could we ever determine the price of Jesus, the king of our Kingdom, in our lives?
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
Everyone likes a good, faithful pet. (That’s why some people hate cats.) So maybe it’s understandable that Emperor Caligula of Rome (12-41) would want to pamper his horse, Incintatus, as much as possible. It was kind of sweet in its own kind of way. This was until he started treating the horse like an actual human being. Incintatus was promoted to a consul of Rome, effectively making the horse one of the highest authorities of the time. Caligula arranged for the horse to meet the mare of his dreams (Incintatus’ dreams, not Caligula’s), invited him to dinner constantly, and fed him gold-flecked oats. After making his horse's digestive track his nation’s treasury, Caligula casually decided that he himself was a god, and wanted to convince everyone else of the same thing. He spent a good portion of his time dressed up as various Roman gods, including Venus. When conducting political affairs, he was known to only respond to the name of Jupiter while in court, and spoke only in a manly, booming echo. All of this, of course, went unchecked. Caligula was the emperor of the part of the world that was civilized at the time, making him the most important person on earth for a few short years. Short of being stabbed 30 or so times, there wasn’t much in the way of a check-and-balance system.
Application: There are many people who looked to a king other than Jesus, only to see with their own eyes in the last days that Jesus is truly the king of all.
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
George Barris recently died. Best known for his colorful design of automobiles, buses, and motorcycles for celebrations and television shows, he was the creator of the Batmobile, the car used on the The Munsters, and the “Black Beauty” seen on The Green Hornet. Barris called his custom shop the Kustom Car Club, without ever explaining why he chose the strange spelling for “custom.”
Application: Many when they see Jesus, especially those who pierced him, will recognize him by his work and stature.
*****
Revelation 1:4b-8
A 9-year-old boy was recently lured into a back alley and shot in the head -- the ultimate act of revenge by two gangs in rival warfare on Chicago’s South Side. Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy called the crime the most “unfathomable” in his 35 years of police work.
Application: One day those who have pierced Jesus will look into the sky and realize how hedonistically they lived their lives.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
The approximately 2,000 high schools in the United States that still use a Native American name and logo for their sports teams now have an enticing opportunity to make a change. Adidas is offering any school that wishes to make a change the use of their resources to establish a new identity. Adidas’ design team will help with creating a new name and logo, and the company will provide financial assistance for the expensive makeover. Adidas’ head of global brands said: “This is a great way for us to offer up our resources to schools that want to do what’s right... who want to make a difference in their lives and in their worlds.”
Application: The issue over the use of Native American names and symbolism is a thorn too sharp for many schools to be “picked up with the hand.” Adidas is providing the “iron bar and shaft of a spear” to those schools who choose to make a difference.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
Queen Victoria forbade her sons from smoking -- but they all did, a great deal. At Windsor Castle they found a room they could smoke in. To stop their mother from including the room on her regular inspections of the castle, they had a “Gentlemen’s Water Closet” sign affixed to the door.
Application: There are many ways that we can be deceived from using “an iron bar and shaft of a spear” to eliminate sin.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1866) absorbed himself completely in fantasy, probably because he realized that being a real king was an unpleasant calling. So he decided to be an imaginary king, starting with the construction of a new castle, Neuschwanstein. He loved the castle to death, and even today it’s his most famous castle, serving as the inspiration for Sleeping Beauty’s Castle in Disneyland. However, the guy was insane, and everyone knew it. He was obsessive-compulsive. Building castles turned into his overshadowing task, and he was not willing to share this venture with others. He built two more castles over the course of his lifetime, and attended to each one with an intensity that only an obsessive manager could imagine. The king would send out servants to uninhabited castles every day just to make sure that they were still there. And he had no intention of ever living in them -- he just liked to build them. Given that poor people make excellent laborers, building the castles wasn’t so much the problem as the cost. (Sitting on one’s throne all day doesn’t really increase one’s cash reserves.) Instead, he fed off of taxpayer’s money, and eventually this ended up with the entire country being placed into debt. Ludwig’s solution to this debt was to sell the castles to buy more land to build more castles. Eventually the nobles declared Ludwig legally insane and threw him off the throne. Ludwig tried to come up with a final remark that would put him back into good graces, but in the end just used profanity and died a mysterious death three days later, leaving behind a crazy legacy and a tremendous dent to his country.
Application: It takes courage to pick up “an iron bar or the shaft of a spear” to eliminate sin. But eventually, after enough abuse (as we have seen in civil rights movements), the courage finally comes to people.
*****
2 Samuel 23:1-7
In the early 1900s, England’s Queen Alexandra contracted rheumatic fever during pregnancy and developed a permanent limp. Ladies of Alexandra's court immediately adopted limps to keep up with the “fashion.”
Queen Alexandra’s husband, Edward VII, may have started a trend of his own. After too many royal banquets, the portly king couldn’t fasten the lowest button of his waistcoat. Before long, leaving the lowest button undone became the mark of a true gentleman.
Charles VIII of France had six toes on one foot. When he assumed the throne in 1484, square-toed shoes mysteriously came into fashion. (Pointed-toed shoes had been all the rage for decades.)
Royal brides wore silver until Queen Victoria married Prince Albert on February 10, 1840. Her bold decision to wear white was immediately embraced by an adoring public, and brides have followed in her footsteps ever since.
Application: David realized the importance of having people follow the instructions and traditions that he implemented.
***************
From team member Dean Feldmeyer:
When the gospel writers referred to Jesus as “King,” they were speaking metaphorically to show how his “kingdom” was superior to that of earthly rulers. This was, of course, a scandalous and even treasonous assertion, but given the human record (with a few notable exceptions), the bar isn’t all that high when it comes to the kingdoms of this world.
*****
A Good Royal
Maria Fedorovna, empress of Russia and wife of tsar Alexander III, was known for her charitable works. Though there is no way of knowing how true the story is, it is nonetheless said that she once saved a condemned man from exile in Siberia by changing a single comma in the warrant signed by her husband. Instead of reading “Pardon impossible, to be sent to Siberia,” she changed the document to read “Pardon, impossible to be sent to Siberia.” The man was thus saved and released.
*****
A Safe Royal
One time on his morning walk, King Charles of England proceeded to stroll through Hyde Park accompanied by just two lords. As he was walking, his brother James, Duke of York, drove up in his carriage under heavy guard. The duke was surprised to see his brother virtually alone and expressed to him that it might be dangerous and unwise.
King Charles confidently replied, “No danger, for no man in England would take away my life to make you king.”
*****
A Wise Royal
In 1649, Rene Descartes, the famous French philosopher and author of the cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am) principle, accepted an invitation from Queen Christina of Sweden, who was deeply interested in philosophy. Descartes traveled from Paris to Stockholm for a dinner with the queen at which he explained to her majesty the basics of his mechanistic philosophy, comparing all living beings to mechanisms. The queen responded to his philosophy by pointing out that she had never heard of a watch giving birth to little baby watches.
*****
A Pampered Royal
Prince Charles employs 133 staff to look after him and Camilla, more than 60 of them domestics: chefs, cooks, footmen, housemaids, gardeners, chauffeurs, cleaners, and his three personal valets -- “gentleman’s gentlemen” whose sole responsibility is the care of their royal master’s extensive wardrobe and choosing what he is to wear on any particular day.
A serving soldier polishes the prince’s boots and shoes every day (he has 50 handmade pairs, each costing over $1,200, by Lobb of St. James) and a housemaid washes his underwear as soon as it is discarded. Nothing Charles or Camilla wears is ever allowed near a washing machine. Particular attention is paid to handkerchiefs, which are monogrammed and all hand-washed, as it was found that when they were sent to a laundry, some would go missing as “souvenirs.” Charles’ suits, of which he has 60, cost more than $4,500 each, and his shirts, all handmade, cost about $500 each (he has more than 200), while his collar stiffeners are solid gold or silver. His valets also iron the laces of his shoes whenever they are taken off.
*****
A Diminutive Royal
Charlemagne’s father was only 4'6" tall, and so was (not surprisingly) known as Pepin the Short. But he carried a 6-foot longsword and earned a reputation as a mighty warrior.
*****
A Paranoid Royal
Even by first-century BC standards, King Herod the Great of Judea was an extremist when it came to defending his throne and protecting his power. He married the beautiful Mariamne, a Jewish princess of the royal Maccabee family, and fell in love with her even though she conspired to overthrow him. When he had her publicly garrotted he went mad, staggering through his palaces calling for her as if she were alive, and had her embalmed in honey so he could visit her. Yet his madness never -- even on his deathbed -- interfered with his brilliant ability to rally support and crush dissent: he killed his wife, his mother-in-law, several brothers-in-law, and three of his own sons as well as best friends out of fear that they were betraying him and trying to unseat him; yet no one made a serious attempt against him in 40 years.
*****
A Reclusive and Just Plain Old Crazy Royal
Being in a position of power in the Ottoman Empire during the High Middle Ages was a lot like playing “king of the hill” -- everyone wanted you off the throne. So when Ahmed I took the throne, it was a tradition to kill off all members of the family who might want a piece of the power. Ahmed decided to spare his brother Mustafa, however, locking him in his room for the rest of his life instead.
Fourteen years later, Ahmed was stricken with typhoid fever and died. The people of the Ottoman Empire decided it would be best to put Mustafa on the throne.
Mustafa (1591-1639) ruled for three months, in which time he managed to reward a random farmer who offered him a drink when he was out one day with a position as First Officer. It was at that point when he was deposed -- before he could bring the whole nation crashing down -- and back in his room he went.
Mustafa’s political career wasn’t over, however. His replacement, Osman II (who was 13 years old at the time) -- who liked to practice archery with prisoners as targets -- was caught trying to leave the country with the contents of its treasury and was executed.
Again the people decided that Mustafa was the least worst choice for emperor. Except this time, he realized just how awful a job being a sultan was, and absolutely refused to leave his room. It took a group of men with a long piece of rope several hours to drag him out. This led to the first official decree of Mustafa’s second reign: everyone involved in his expulsion from his cage was to be executed.
The message sent was clear, and Mustafa was allowed to return to his room -- where he stayed for the rest of his life.
WORSHIP RESOURCES
by George Reed
Call to Worship
Leader: For our God has chosen Zion;
People: God has desired it for a habitation:
Leader: This is my resting place forever;
People: Here I will reside, for I have desired it.
Leader: I will abundantly bless its provisions;
People: I will satisfy its poor with bread.
OR
Leader: Come, O God, and reign over us.
People: Accept us into your glorious realm.
Leader: Teach us the honor that comes from service.
People: Help us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.
Leader: Your realm is governed by the rule of love.
People: Give us your Spirit of love and compassion.
Hymns and Sacred Songs
“Come, Thou Almighty King”
found in:
UMH: 61
H82: 365
PH: 139
AAHH: 327
NNBH: 38
NCH: 275
CH: 27
LBW: 522
ELA: 408
“O Worship the King”
found in:
UMH: 73
H82: 388
PH: 476
NNBH: 6
NCH: 26
CH: 17
LBW: 548
ELA: 842
“Jesús Es Mi Rey Soberano” (“O Jesus, My King and My Sovereign”)
found in:
UMH: 180
PH: 157
CH: 109
“Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies”
found in:
UMH: 173
H82: 6, 7
PH: 462, 463
LBW: 265
ELA: 553
“O God of Every Nation”
found in:
UMH: 435
H82: 607
PH: 289
CH: 680
LBW: 416
ELA: 713
“Soon and Very Soon”
found in:
UMH: 706
AAHH: 193
NNBH: 476
ELA: 439
“Rejoice, the Lord Is King”
found in:
UMH: 715, 716
H82: 481
PH: 155
NCH: 303
CH: 699
LBW: 171
ELA: 430
“For the Healing of the Nations”
found in:
UMH: 428
NCH: 576
CH: 668
“Shine, Jesus, Shine”
found in:
CCB: 81
Renew: 247
“He Is Lord”
found in:
CCB: 82
Renew: 29
Music Resources Key:
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982 (The Episcopal Church)
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African-American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELA: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day / Collect
O God who reigns in justice and mercy: Grant us the wisdom to understand the power of love, that we might reflect the compassion of Jesus; through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, for you reign over all creation in justice and mercy. Receive our praises and grant us your Spirit, that we might live in your compassion and love as we follow Jesus. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
Leader: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins, and especially our being enamored with power and fame.
People: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have too often been seduced by the world into thinking that true power comes through force and violence. We forget that the One who created us came among us as a servant. Too often we think of revenge, when the one we are supposed to follow offered his cheek to the smiters. Forgive us and call us back once more to the true power of your reign, which is found in justice, mercy, and compassion. Amen.
Leader: God loves us and knows how weak we are. In compassion, God forgives us and empowers us to live as true children of the holy. Live into God’s realm of peace.
Prayers of the People (and the Lord’s Prayer)
We praise you, O God, for you reign over all creation. You created and you are bringing all to fruition.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have too often been seduced by the world into thinking that true power comes through force and violence. We forget that the One who created us came among us as a servant. Too often we think of revenge, when the one we are supposed to follow offered his cheek to the smiters. Forgive us and call us back once more to the true power of your reign, which is found in justice, mercy, and compassion.
We give you thanks for all that you have done to bless us and all creation. We thank you for the clear call Jesus gives us to enter your realm and work for its fulfillment.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We raise up to you the hurts and cares of the world. We are aware of personal hurts and the hurts that cross all boundaries. The violence and hatred in the world is so far from your will, and we offer ourselves as peacemakers in your realm.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray together, saying:
Our Father . . . Amen.
(or if the Lord’s Prayer is not used at this point in the service)
All this we ask in the Name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
Children’s Sermon Starter
Make crowns out of construction paper for the children. Pass them out and let the kids put them on. Ask them what kinds of things they think a king or queen would do. Talk to them about how Jesus, the King of Kings, washed his disciples’ feet. He cared for sick people and fed the hungry. That is what a true king or queen does -- they serve others.
CHILDREN’S SERMON
What Kind of King?
by Chris Keating
John 18:33-37
Objects needed: a deck of playing cards
As the children gather, greet them and show them the deck of cards you have brought along. Tell them that you thought it might be fun to play a game with the cards. (Arrange the cards ahead of time so that only one of the children will get a king in any suit.)
Pass out the cards, making sure that only one child gets the king. Tell them it is very important not to show their cards to anyone until you tell them. Count to three and have them reveal their cards at one time. Line the kids up from lowest value card to the highest. Whoever has the king is the “king” for the day. (Make a joke and say, “And when I say ‘day’ I really mean until the end of the children’s time!”)
Help them imagine what a king gets to do -- a king has lots of stuff; a king is very rich; a king gets to make all the rules, etc. Let them be imaginative. What would be good about being a king? Can you think of ways that being a king might not be so good?
After exploring the idea of kingship, read John 18:33-37. Provide a bit of context so that the children can understand the scripture. Some of them may be confused why we are reading something about Jesus’ crucifixion when we have not celebrated Thanksgiving yet! Help them understand a bit about the church’s year, and tell them that on this Sunday we recall that Jesus is a king.
But he may be a very different king than we usually imagine. Jesus is the sort of king who loves all people. He does not act in mean ways. He is not selfish, but instead wants us to be part of his kingdom. That is our very good news! In fact, he wants us to be kings and queens with him, helping make the world a place where everyone can know God’s love.
Invite the children to pray with you as you conclude.
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The Immediate Word, November 22, 2015, issue.
Copyright 2015 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
