Homily Christ the King B: Jesus Our King, a King not of this world

Homily for Christ the King Sunday Year B 2018 

Daniel 7:13-14; Revelation 1:5-8; John 18:33-37 

Introduction 

When given a choice between monarchy and democracy, even a flawed democracy like we have today, Americans and indeed most of the world will always choose democracy over monarchy; they just don't like kings. 

• Even in the Old Testament when the people asked God for a King, he warned them that the king would take their "sons and assign them to his chariots and horses . . . make them do his plowing and harvesting and produce his weapons of war and chariotry."  He would use their "daughters as perfumers, cooks, and bakers."  He would take their "best fields, vineyards, and olive groves . . . male and female slaves,. . . best oxen and donkeys, and use them to do his work"  (Samuel 8: 10-18).  And indeed when the people of Israel got kings, these bad things came to pass. 
• And since then, especially in the medieval period, kings would continue to represent oppression and brutality, opulence and unfair taxes.  You probably remember King George of England against whom this country fought because of taxation without representation. 

So, given this bad image of kings, why do we celebrate Christ as our King?   

Scripture and Theology 

Fortunately Jesus himself answers this question.  When asked by Pilate if he is the King of the Jews, Jesus does not deny that he is a king.  But he says: "My kingdom does not belong to this world."  In other words, he is a king unlike human kings; he does not oppress but serves, he does not tax but gives, he does not have an army but has truth.  That is why he goes on to say, "If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews." 

Well, if Jesus is not like the Kings of Israel or the Middle Ages, what kind of king is he?  It seems like the only royalty Americans will accept are the mock-up kings and queens: The Prom King and Queen, the Mardi Gras Kings of Rex and Zulu, and the King of Rock and Roll.  But these are kings without any real power, without any real influence; they are simply decorative pieces of our collective imagination and admiration.  Surely this is not the kind of king that Jesus is. 

Returning to the gospel, we hear Jesus explaining that even though his kingship is not of this world, it is a real kingdom and he is a real king.  Of his kingship he says: "For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.  Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."  Jesus is no figurehead king; he is a king whose voice, whose testimony to the truth has influence. 

In fact Daniel's prophecy about the Son of Man, in the first reading, had indicated that he would receive "dominion, glory, and kingship; all peoples, nations, and languages serve him."  Moreover, this Kingdom would be "an everlasting dominion that shall not be taken away, his kingship shall not be destroyed." 

And so, Jesus' kingship is neither tyrannical nor is it comical, but is spiritual in nature, because it is based on fidelity to the truth.  In fact, we could say that we should not measure Jesus' kingship by the kingships of this world, but rather his kingship should set the standard by which all other kings must be measured.  He is a King who brings hope to his people. 

It is this hope and victory that Daniel and the Book of Revelation, from which come our first and second readings today, wrote for a people in crisis.  

• Daniel was written during the reign of King Antiochus who had desecrated the Temple in Jerusalem.  He had forced the Jews to adopt pagan customs and to abandon the Law of Moses. Those who resisted were tortured and killed.  And so Daniel wrote to the Jews to give them hope and assure them that this evil would pass, because a Redeemer would come in the manner of a true King.  This Son of Man is Jesus Christ. 
• The Book of Revelation, for its part was written when Christians were facing fierce persecution from the Roman Emperor. Like the Jews of Daniel's time, many were being arrested and killed, while others were driven underground. This book was therefore written, especially for the underground Church, speaking in symbols or secret codes that would be understood only by the Christians, and pointing these suffering Christians to the Christ, as the King who would save them. 

We who live similarly in a time of spiritual, moral, political crisis, even within the Church, have an even greater need to see Jesus Christ as our King.   

Christian Life 

Some of my American friends will ask me if I am glad to be living in a democracy, as compared to the government of my home country.  If I am feeling a little snarky, I will say, I prefer the monarchy, a benign monarchy, with me as king. 

I suspect that most of us, despite our avowed expressions of love for democracy, when it comes to our personal lives, also prefer to be our own kings and queens.  This feast of Christ the King should remind us that actually we have another king over us; not a tyrant with too much power nor a comic with no power.  Christ King has true power, the Truth and the keys to Heaven.  Our true king exercises his power not for his own benefit, but for the benefit of his subjects.  And so, although no self-respecting American likes to be told what to do, we have an obligation to listen to the king who has our best interests at heart.  But we must not accept Jesus as king of only my spiritual life and nothing else. 

• If Jesus is our true king, he is also the king of our minds, of our thoughts, of our hearts. 
• If Jesus is our true king, he is also the king of how we worship God. 
• If Jesus is our true king, he is also the king of what happens in our bedrooms, of how we do our politics, of how we run our society. 

The key power of Jesus' kingship is his Truth.  That is why in John's gospel, Jesus reminds us: “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn. 8:31-32). 

We must not allow so-called "alternative truths" to replace the Truth of Jesus Christ, as contained in the gospels, as passed on to the apostles and continued to be taught by the successors of the apostles.  How many of us today are beholden, not to the truth of the gospels, but rather to the truth of ideologies or whatever political parties we might like.  When Pope Francis visited this country three years ago, he warned us against giving our allegiance to false kings. 

To imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place. That is something which you, as a people, reject. Our response must instead be one of hope and healing, of peace and justice. 

With Christ as King of my mind, even my actions will then guided by him.  As a loyal subject, I must always ask myself, what does my King command me to do? 

Conclusion 

"My kingdom does not belong to this world" (Jn. 18:36) Jesus said of himself and of us his followers he also said, that we "do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the world" (John 17:16).  And so, while we share the fears and hopes, the sorrows and joys of our fellow citizens of this world, as loyal subjects of Jesus the King, we are in this world, but we are not of this world. 

May we always strive to conform our thoughts and values, our words and actions, to thoughts and values, words and actions, that are consistent with the Truth of Jesus Christ, who alone should give us marching orders.