SERMON SNAPSHOT
Dear Friends in Christ –
Since the establishment of the church, people have sought to co-opt its power or ignore it. From Constantine to our modern era, tyrants have attempted to seduce its leaders. So in 1925 in response to secularization and the rise of nationalism, Pope Pius XI established a new feast day for the Roman Church – The Feast of Christ the King – a day to bring the focus back to Jesus.
The day is a "hinge” day between the season of ‘ordinary time’ and our preparation for the coming, when we “walk into expectant darkness, waiting for the light to dawn, and straining to hear the first cries of life” (Debi Thomas – Journey with Jesus), the incarnation, the enfleshment of God.
In the time of Samuel, the people greatly offended Yahweh, the God who had liberated them from Egypt by insisting on, pleading for, whining until God relented and allowed them their wish for a king, a flesh and blood ruler. This ushered in one of the darkest eras of the people of Israel. So what do we make of a king now? Is the term even relevant? Our narratives are drenched, are saturated in images of the royal… and the rest. And yet it’s "the rest" that Jesus preferred and doted on.
So as a fellowship of "the rest", let’s gather this Sunday and sing and pray and pledge our fealty to the only one who is worthy. Come, let’s gather and worship the Christ.
As members of "the royal priesthood", of all believers, let’s worship our king.
See you in worship!
