So ... which King do you want to follow?

A KINGDOM NOT OF THIS WORLD

Jn. 18:33-37

Down through the centuries there have been many subjects who have died for their king and country.  Often, they looked upon this not only as their duty, but their privilege when the defence of the realm demanded such a sacrifice.  But we Christians serve a king who died for us.

Today we honour Christ the King who humbled Himself in order to raise us up to the status of sons and daughters of God.  Our King suffered the cruellest of deaths so that we could have an unending reign of happiness in the next world.

The first indication we have in the Gospels that Jesus is to be a king came from the archangel Gabriel when he told Mary, “The Lord God will give Him the throne of his father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

At His birth wise men came from the East and asked, “Where is He who is born King?”  When they came into the house, they saw the young Child with His mother, and fell down and worshipped Him.

After feeding the 5,000 we read that the Jews wanted to take Jesus by force and make Him a king.  They recognised something in Him that fitted Him for kingship.  But Jesus had not the least interest in being a King who just provided them with bread!

Again, we sense that His close friends were aware of His sovereignty, when James and John came with the request, “Grant that when you enter your kingdom that we shall sit on either side of you.”

On the day of His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the anthem that the crowds chanted was, “Blessed be the King who comes in the name of the Lord.”

When Jesus was on trial before Pilate, He came forth wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, because the soldiers had gone through the ceremony of a mock coronation.  Even the repentant thief sensed something of Jesus' majesty, for as they hung on the cross, he called out to Him, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."  What happened that moment was to bring into sharp and clear focus something that had been becoming apparent ever since His birth at Bethlehem.

When we claim Christ as our King we cannot and must not think of Him in terms of an earthly ruler.  Christ Himself made this quite clear to us in His reply to Pilate when asked if He was a king.  “Mine is not a kingdom of this world.”  Had it been He would have surrounded Himself with all the trappings and regalia of an earthly king.

When He died above His head was the inscription, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.”  For a throne, He had the Cross; for a sceptre, He had an iron nail; for a crown, He had a crown of thorns; for royal purple, His own blood; for courtiers, thieves on either side; for His army, those who shouted and jeered at Him.  Truly His kingdom was not of this world.

What Christ expects of His subjects is quite different from the demands of an earthly monarch.  He wants them to love their enemies, do good to those who hate them, be generous to those in need, and to treat everyone as they would wish to be treated themselves.  They are to be recognised as His subjects because their behaviour is different from that of the pagans.  If they loved and did good only to those who loved them, they would be doing nothing exceptional.  Even pagans do that much!

His subjects are to be poor in spirit, for only then the kingdom of Heaven will be theirs.  They should have no reliance on self, but complete dependence on God; no smugness or sense of superiority, but a recognition of their own bankruptcy and poverty.  A strange demand - but a poverty that leads to the possession of God.  A perfect example is Saint Francis, known as the Poverello, the Little Poor Man, who emptied himself completely so that in possessing God he possessed everything.  His motto was "My God and my all."

If you want to know whether her Majesty is in residence at Buckingham Palace, all you have to do is to see if the flag is flying over the building.  Our face is our flag.  People should be able to look at us and see whether His Majesty is present within us.  Are we truly dedicated subjects of Christ Our King, working to spread His kingdom in our world?  Daily we should yearn to have a place in His kingdom.  Like the good thief, we should constantly have on our lips the words, “Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

O come and reign Lord Jesus; rule over everything and keep me always loyal, and true to Thee, my King.

MY WEBSITE IS AT  https://fatherfrancismaple.co.uk