Christ the King

Luke 23:35-43

35 The people stayed there before the cross watching Jesus. As for the leaders, they jeered at him. ‘He saved others,’ they said, ‘let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.’ 36 The soldiers mocked him too, and when they approached to offer him vinegar 37 they said, ‘If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.’ 38 Above him there was an inscription: ‘This is the King of the Jews.’
39 One of the criminals hanging there abused him. ‘Are you not the Christ?’ he said. ‘Save yourself and us as well.’ 40 But the other spoke up and rebuked him. ‘Have you no fear of God at all?’ he said. ‘You got the same sentence as he did, 41 but in our case we deserved it: we are paying for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong. 42 Jesus,’ he said, ‘remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ 43 ‘Indeed, I promise you,’ he replied, ‘today you will be with me in paradise.’

St Martin-on-the-hill

The Feast of Christ the King is the climax of the Christian year. Next Sunday will be Advent Sunday when the new liturgical year begins.

Today's feast was instituted at the beginning of the 20th century as a Church reaction to the rise of atheism, communism, and secularism in the world.

The feast proclaims Jesus Christ as the True King of our lives and of our world.

Just a couple of weeks ago an exhibition opened at the 02 Millennium Dome with the title 'Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs'. The Boy King was found in Egypt's Valley of the Kings in 1922. He was buried with a dazzling collecting of magnificent treasures which had not seem the light of day for over 3000 years. One hundred and thirty of these items are on show in London. They range from every day items and personal possessions of the king which he might need in the after life. The fabulous gold and jewelled items range from his dog's collar to this crown. There is a decorate container for his cosmetics.

Tutankhamun was one of the last kings of the 18th dynasty from a period of Egyptian history known as the New Kingdom. He came to the throne about 1332 BC when he was only 9 years of age. He married a daughter of Queen Nefertiti and died whilst still a teenager in mysterious circumstances. He was possibly murdered by his successor.

Christ our King was a very different king. He was born in obscurity. When he was 33 years of age he was crucified, dead and buried. I have crawled inside the modest tomb where his body was placed after his death and it isn't full of precious artifacts and possessions. It is empty and shouts our faith "He is not here. He is risen." Jesus was a servant king. His throne was a wooden cross and his crown made from thorns. His kingdom is not of this world. He reigns over all in heaven as the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The kings of old ruled by force and often wielded their power with great show and pomp. He lived in poverty and simplicity. His death wasn't a state occasion marked by national mourning. It was an occasion of shame and suffering which ended in his burial in a borrowed grave. He had no palaces and at his death there were no riches, treasures, or jewels to be buried with him. We believed he was resurrected on the third day and in heaven given a name above every other name at which every knee should bow and every tongue confess him Lord. He has conquered sin and death and opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. He is our Lord Jesus Christ, the Universal King.

How should we approach such a king? Today's gospel points the way in the humility of the penitent thief: 'Remember me, Lord, when you come into your kingdom'. It is this approach that gains the promise: 'Today you will be with me in paradise'. Excluded from the garden of Eden by sin we are brought into the garden of Paradise by a saviour. Paradise derives from the Persian for a walled garden such as the king possessed and into which he invited only those with whom he wished to walk and talk in intimacy. So Christ our King offers us when we are humble and penitent the promise of friendship and companionship with himself through the gateway of the cross. This is not only at death but here and now in the present.

Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, have mercy on me a sinner.
Let me live and work with you in your kingdom, today and tomorrow and for ever.