CHRIST THE KING 2019
As another epic movie opens, we watch as two kingdoms wage war against one another. In one kingdom, there is an evil prince whose goal is world domination to satisfy his desires for ultimate power. The prince is ruthless in his actions, destroying anyone interferes with his need for superiority. He conquers by brutal force, painfully subjugating the people of the lands he invades. The prince lies, cheats, bribes, and uses every other vile deed to set his subjects against each other much to his glee. In every scene, we can observe the darkness and despair that surrounds the evil prince as he skulks through those he has enslaved. If the prince wins the war, there is the assurance of destruction and death to the world.
In the other Kingdom, the leader is a mighty King who rules his people through acts of love. The King also wants world domination but not to subjugate but to rid the people of every encumbrance, to create a paradise where there are no needs or wants. In his kingdom, there is the purity of light where people live, savoring the King’s mercy and grace. We often see the King walking amidst his subjects who give him praise and thanksgiving for all that he as done for them.
The King’s love for his people is so enormous that he takes on their debts and dies for them at the hands of the disciplines of the evil prince. However, the King does not remain dead but is resurrected. He rides into the kingdom of the evil prince, waving the torch of truth, to drive the evil prince into hiding and freeing all those who have suffered at the hands of the evil one.
By now, you recognize that these events are not the scenes of a movie, but our reality. In our world, since the day when Adam and Eve fell victim to sin, a battle has waged between two kingdoms, one of light and one of darkness. From that time to this very instant and into the future, our souls are the prize in the fight between good and evil.
Satan, the Prince of Darkness, is always attempting to claim us as his subjects by leading us into sin. He tries to recruit us by various enticements that are only empty gestures. He demands our souls in trade for evil earthly delights we think we desire. His promising offers, however, are only trickery, smoke, and mirrors, to delude us into chasing quick gains and empty titles. In his realm, self-centeredness, earthly cravings, and sin prevail. If we follow the dark prince, we will discover his false assurances lure us into the abyss of hell, where there is no hope.
Christ the King reigns in the Kingdom of the Light, where faith, hope, and love triumph. We describe him as the King of Truth, the highest accolade that we can give. He is the one who has come to save us from the depths of hell. Those who enter his Kingdom know that the King welcomes them with open arms of love. There are no acts of deception. No enticements are necessary, for those who follow Christ need only faith that he will provide. In his Kingdom, the words of Christ are true and are our hope for salvation.
Christ, who is our King, does not sit on a majestic golden throne bedecked with jewels but hangs from a wooden cross bejeweled with nails. A glittering crown does not rest lightly on perfectly a combed head, but instead, there are thorns embedded in his scalp, causing rivulets of blood to flow down his face. His costly robe is nothing more than rag around his waist. Instead of the finest wine at his table, he is offered vinegar. The Romans mocked Jesus by place a sign on the cross over his head stating, he is “King of the Jews,” and yet that is what he is, the Messiah, our Savior. This king is different from any that we know for every act he did on earth was for our behalf.
Therefore, in Luke’s Gospel today, we read of Jesus, our King, an innocent man hanging on the cross with two criminals because of our sin. He took responsibility for our sins, all of them, even though he was without sin. We nailed our King on the Cross because of our sin. Jesus, as King, did not come in the world to save himself from death; he came to save us from death. Jesus became our sacrifice so that we would not have to die. Even in his death, Jesus’ arms remain extended on the cross, wanting to embrace us in his forgiveness of our sin.
If faithfully following Christ, the King, is the solution for our immortal happiness, why then do we resist that embrace? Jesus asks very little of us; to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves. The issue is our humanness. We are too interested in satisfying our current desires and not realigned our sights to the glory of heaven. We are too easily distracted by the tricks and the smoke and mirrors of Satan to think that we have priority over everything and everyone, including God.
Prayer and learning to centering our lives around Jesus are necessary to protect us from falling victim to the Evil One. As humans, we will continue to fail to resist the attractions of Satan. However, our King never stops loving us. He still carried the cross to Calvary even though we continue to sin. Therefore, let us stay the course, to seek out the Kingdom to experience paradise, where Christ, the King, awaits us with open arms.