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Jesus was an unusual king, with none of the pomp and ceremony generally associated with kingship.

This is a story about a royal prince, who was sent by his father the king to travel through time and space to discover how to be a king. He found many of the usual qualities associated with kingship, but it wasn't until he encountered Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, and experienced the subsequent events, that he finally discovered kingship.

"It is time," said the king. "Now you are 18 years old, you need to discover what it means to be a king. I am growing old. Soon you will be crowned king of our land. But first, you must understand for yourself how to rule."

Prince Agadir groaned inwardly. "But Father," he began, "I was born to be king! All my life people have been showing me what I must do. I've worked hard at my lessons and passed all my exams in the history of our land and of the world. I've studied politics and economics. I've sat in the Forum and listened to the cut and thrust of modern debate. I know how to behave in polite society. And I've watched you. What more do I need?"

The old king laughed. "My son, you must travel through time and space to find out about kingship for yourself. Look at kings in history and kings in the future. Sit in their courts, see how they rule. And most importantly, listen to their people."

"And how shall I know when I've found the best model of kingship?" demanded the prince. "I suppose some kings are better than others, but basically, a king's a king!"

"You'll know when you discover the right king," replied his father, "because you'll find yourself immediately transported back here to Eatonia. Until then, I'm afraid you just have to wander."

Prince Agadir packed reluctantly for the journey and climbed into the time machine. He thought an advanced civilisation might be the best place to start, so he set the parameters for the year 3052. Then he closed his eyes and waited. The time machine moved swiftly and silently through the centuries, and woke the prince with a buzzer when the right time zone had been reached.

Prince Agadir stepped into a strange, silent world. The streets were empty, there were no large buildings, no people, and no means of transport, just small box-like structures which he took to be houses. The prince entered the largest box.

He found a being which looked only faintly human. It had a large head, with huge eyes and huge ears, but a very small nose and mouth. The being had two pairs of arms and hands sprouting from its head, but no body and no legs. The eyes were watching the four walls of the box, which were all computer-like screens, and the hands were all busy clicking various buttons on the screens. As Agadir watched, he saw robots moving from different stations in the box, bringing tiny amounts of food and drink to the creature, and entertaining the creature through the screens.

Then one of the screens changed, and Agadir saw many more of the creatures. The creature in the house began to issue commands via the screen, and all the other creatures responded to the commands, until the screen was a mass of thoughts. Prince Agadir thought how boring life would be if you didn't need to move or do anything for yourself. If you didn't even need much food because you had no body, and you communicated with others not in person, but only by thought. He was glad he wasn't transported back to Eatonia, for he didn't think he could stand being a king of the future.

Back in the time machine, he decided to try the other extreme and visit King Arthur. After all, King Arthur lived in the Age of Chivalry, so perhaps he was the model king that Agadir was seeking.

Prince Agadir stepped from the time machine into the royal castle on the Enchanted Isle of Avalon. Through the slits of windows in the great hall, he could see knights in shining armour, riding chargers and jousting. He could see knights on foot, practising archery and fencing. It was very exciting. Inside the great hall was a round table, where more knights were in conference. Prince Agadir quickly spotted Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere, and King Arthur who was wearing chain mail and a crown. This was more like it!

King Arthur was talking about a forthcoming battle, and the knights were discussing strategy. Each knight was allowed his say, but the final decision was King Arthur's. It was clear all the knights had great respect and love for their king, and would die for him if necessary.

Prince Agadir thought King Arthur was the perfect model for kingship. He was brave and true. He cared about his people. He had a lavish court, where his knights were expected to be gallant and chivalrous. And he ruled firmly but with compassion. What more could a king do? Agadir felt sure he'd found the king he was looking for. He waited to be transported back to Eatonia. But nothing happened!

Reluctantly, Prince Agadir climbed back into the time machine. As he turned for a last look at the court of King Arthur, wishing he could have stayed there longer, Agadir caught his foot. He tripped and sprawled onto the console of the machine. Immediately the time machine silently took off. Agadir had no idea where they were going, and anyway, he'd hurt his foot, so he just sat back and closed his eyes.

When they stopped, Prince Agadir found himself in a hot country with dusty roads and palm trees. There were a few buildings, but nothing that looked remotely like a palace. It was a pretty poor place. As Agadir limped along the road, he noticed a small procession approaching. A man who looked like a peasant was riding on a donkey, and quite a lot of people were dancing all round him, waving branches from the trees. Some of them were shouting: "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord."

Agadir laughed. A king? What did they know about kings? Where was the horse, or the shining armour, or the crown? Agadir decided to join the procession and find out what was going on. Just then, the man on the donkey looked at him, and the man's eyes were so full of love, Agadir felt as though he was melting. Then he noticed the pain from his injured foot had disappeared, and before he knew what he was doing, he began to sing and dance with the rest of the crowd.

Prince Agadir discovered the man's name was Jesus. And Agadir found he wanted to stay with Jesus more than anything in the world. He wanted to stay so much that he forgot about the time machine. He forgot about becoming a king and he forgot about his home at Eatonia. He stayed with Jesus. He followed Jesus everywhere, listening to his words, watching him heal ill people, and noticing how everybody felt special whenever they were with Jesus.

Agadir discovered he was happier than he'd ever been in his whole life. He wanted to go on forever, just being with Jesus. But then, something terrible happened. Jesus was arrested and there was some sort of trial, and that same day, Jesus was executed. Agadir felt as though his world had come to an end. He'd never known such sadness. His life felt terribly empty, and he wondered what to do. Then he remembered Eatonia, and his quest for the perfect king, and he groaned, for he thought he might never find the king for whom he was searching.

But to his surprise, he suddenly found himself back in his father's palace in Eatonia. "You've done well," said his father. "I didn't expect you to find the King so quickly." Agadir frowned. "But I haven't found a king! I went to the future, and that was hopeless. I went to the past, but somehow it wasn't quite right. Then I ended up by accident with someone called Jesus, but he wasn't a king."

"Wasn't he?" said Agadir's father.

Agadir frowned. "He can't have been. He didn't look like a king, he looked like an ordinary person. He didn't seem like a king. He didn't give any orders. He was gentle and kind and loving. He didn't even have a proper court. And it was clear he had no wealth. And now he's dead. So he can't have been a king."

Agadir's father smiled. "Look behind you, Agadir."

The prince turned, and gasped. There stood Jesus in shimmering light, so glorious that Agadir had to shield his eyes. "Jesus?" he stammered.

"Welcome, prince Agadir," said Jesus, softly. "I died, but God raised me from death and I can never die again. I will be with you for as long as you live."

Agadir knelt before Jesus. At last he understood. The trappings of kingship weren't important at all. What mattered was what was inside a person. Anybody could be a king, if they were like Jesus. And Agadir knew he was now ready to be king, for all he had to do was follow Jesus.