Christ the King (c) 2010

The End of an Era

Introduction

What if God was our King? What if Jesus was the Lieutenant Governor? What does that even mean?

Just some questions to get you thinking.... today is New Year’s Eve in the world of liturgy – this is the last Sunday of the church year; and next week we begin Advent, we start over with a new beginning...

So this is our opportunity to reminisce a little, to think about what it all means, and to truly begin the New Year on the right foot.

“For the days are surely coming, says the Lord....” that is where we open our service today – wondering what tomorrow will bring, and what we would need to do to start over on the right foot.

Zechariah and the Promise (with the kids)

What would you like to be when you grow up?

Do any of you think your parents want you to be something special when you grow up?
My father wanted me to be a doctor – do you know why? Because he was a doctor....

What do you think Jesus father wanted him to be when he grew up?

Do you think Mary and Joseph expected Jesus to be a king? Do you think they knew he would be someone special?

I think that is really what all of our parents want for us, for us to grow up to be who we were meant to be, someone special who makes a difference in the world.... doesn’t matter if you are a prophet, or a king, or a doctor, or a painter.... you matter to the people who love you, and that includes God. That is why Jesus came, to remind us of just HOW MUCH we matter.

Waiting... Hoping

You know, there are those out there who think that what really matters is what God wants us to be when we grow up. Not just as individuals, but as a world... what is it that the world is supposed to be like, what is it that we were created for? What exactly will it be like when the day finally gets here that everything is perfect.

Writers have always called it “Utopia” and the images vary – instantly available food, scientific exploration, peace between the races, equality of the sexes, a purpose for everyone... that is the utopian vision of Star Trek, in case you didn’t see it right away.

Star Trek was just one of many visions of a perfect future – but make no mistake, it was a political ‘movement’ in the shape and guise of science fiction writing. The first inter-racial kiss, ever, on television... Star Trek... the first completely racially balanced cast on television... Star Trek Voyageur...

They were selling a vision of the future – and it was immensely popular... so what is your vision? What would you most like the world to be like.... is it in line with what you think the world SHOULD be like?

Enter the King

When Jesus was crucified there was a sign above his head. Rumour has it that it was the abbreviated words, which we see on a lot of stuff in church, Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews. Or, in Latin, where there is no such thing as the letter J, You get Iesus Nazorene, Rex Iudeum. INRI...

Pilate asked Jesus during his trial, Are you the king of the Jews? And you might remember that Jesus was a bit cagey about the answer... you say I am, isn’t that all that matters?

You see, the problem was that the only possible way to get Jesus killed before sundown was to prove he was a traitor to the Roman Emperor. Someone who declared themselves King, was, by definition, a traitor.... it was this that Jesus was finally put to death for, political sedition...

Nothing religious, nothing to do with working miracles or forgiving sins... but inciting a new world order... trying to topple the Roman Government....

Kind of strange eh, if you think about it Jesus tried to change the government in the same way that Rachael and Emily try to change me. They just, be themselves, and as I watch them, I sometimes see a better way to be myself...

Jesus was all about living life differently. Make no mistake... that is dangerous.

What was the first thing that President Bush said Americans should do when the economy tanked a couple of years ago? Go Christmas shopping! Nothing was going to affect change more than the idea that people might want to save their money... it was a dangerous thought, it would change the world, and it just could not happen.

Go and spend what you have. Heck, I will send you an incentive cheque and you promise to use it towards a high def television... Just, whatever you do, don’t stop overspending... don’t stop being individualistic.... don’t stop competing....

2000 some odd years and the world keeps winning over Jesus simple message: Be nice, care for people and things, love everybody, be honest in all your transactions, be honourable, listen more than you speak, share....

That is the stuff that can topple governments... no, seriously.... Ask Karl Marx. Ask Lenin. Ask the guys down in Nicaragua who had the US invade them because they wanted to share....

~

Jesus had one sermon. Over and over again he talked about the Kingdom of God. He said, even now the kingdom is at hand. He said, the Kingdom of God is like. He sent the disciples out to preach the Kingdom. He often said, I want to tell you about the good news of the kingdom. In fact, throughout the four Gospels Jesus uses the term, “The Kingdom of God” a stunning 104 times; more than anything else he ever talks about. Almost everything he said was pointing to this “vision” of the kingdom.

So what is the kingdom?

Well – we actually know full well what Jesus was talking about. Everyone throughout the ages of Biblical History who was anywhere close to a prophet talked about it too.... a land flowing with milk and honey, the lion laying down with the lamb, no more hurting or killing on my holy mountain....

The problem is that far too many of us think that this is so idealistic that it must be talking about life after death... but it never was... it was always about what the world COULD be like.
What the world could be like if God was our King.

Or, to put it a different way – what if we put all of the things that we think of as divine, all of the qualities that we think of as good, all of the lessons that the religious prophets of every place and time have taught us; ahead of personal gain, ahead of fame and fortune, ahead of jealousy and envy....

What if.... what if we could have a revolution.... what if it started simply by making love more important than everything else?

~

Anyone know who Juan Mann is? He started a campaign a couple of years back that got him into a lot of trouble... the free hugs campaign. If you are on the internet go and look it up... but here is his story in his own words:

"I'd been living in London when my world turned upside down and I'd had to come home. By the time my plane landed back in Sydney, all I had left was a carry on bag full of clothes and a world of troubles; No one to welcome me back, no place to call home. I was a tourist in my hometown.

Standing there in the arrivals terminal, watching other passengers meeting their waiting friends and family, with open arms and smiling faces, hugging and laughing together, I wanted someone out there to be waiting for me. To be happy to see me. To smile at me. To hug me.

So I got some cardboard and a marker and made a sign. I found the busiest pedestrian intersection in the city and held that sign aloft, with the words "Free Hugs" on both sides.

And for 15 minutes, people just stared right through me. The first person who stopped, tapped me on the shoulder and told me how her dog had just died that morning. How that morning had been the one year anniversary of her only daughter dying in a car accident. How what she needed now, when she felt most alone in the world, was a hug. I got down on one knee, we put our arms around each other and when we parted, she was smiling."

Everyone has problems and for sure mine haven't compared. But to see someone who was once frowning, smile even for a moment is worth it every time.

Shortly thereafter he was banned from the streets of Sydney. But instead of hugs, he went out and got signatures... and he got 10,000 signatures in a short matter of time. The campaign is still out there, still a powerful expression of what Jesus was all about – and still scaring a lot of people.

This is what Jesus died for..... to change the world... to make us put more value in love, to make God’s way of doing things more important... Jesus died for the Kingdom of God.

Wrapping it Up

So, I don’t know... Go out and hug somebody....

Or really spend this week thinking... think about what it is in this year that you want to change for next.... think about where you find yourself right now on the eve of God’s coming.... Think about what Christmas REALLY means; and what incarnational theology is all about... a hint, God was not just born in Jesus, God is borne in you....

But whatever you do – believe that there is a better way, There is!