Reading:
John 18:36
Write:
“My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.”
Reflect:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be they name, thy kingdom come…
Thy kingdom come… I could almost stop there… I said almost. ????
There is no time when God did not reign as king – in fact there is no beginning to his reign which is eternal!
Thy kingdom come… When we pray that the simple line, what are we praying for? For one thing, we are asking that his kingdom be found in the center of our own hearts. For another thing, we are looking for the coming again of Christ our Lord – not as he came in his first coming, in humility, but in his true glory as God.
This is what we declare in our second reading from the Book of Revelation: “Behold, he is coming amid the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. All the peoples of the earth will lament him.”
All the peoples of the earth will lament him. Even his own people? Yes. There will be a time of crying out over our sinfulness as we see the total righteousness of God. But for those of us who understand and accept the kingship of Jesus, that crying out over our sins will be very brief as we see his glorious invitation to join him in the clouds. Others who lament him will do so with an anguish of heart that will describe the beginnings of hell.
Apply:
Bob Dylan was a popular songwriter when I was just beginning to understand and appreciate music. But he started writing Christian songs a few decades later. One of them he wrote said “you are going to have to serve somebody. It may be the devil or it may be the Lord, but you are going to have to serve somebody.” No truer words have ever been written and sung.
But there are even more important questions that must be asked. What kind of King is this that we are called to serve? In the gospel, he admits to Pilate that he is a type of a king. But what kind of King? What kind of kingdom? And, who are we in this kingdom that is not quite visible?
If we have renounced the world and all its wealth and honors to dedicate ourselves to Christ, then our lives must also be dedicated to his kingdom, now and forever. But how do we see him as king? Our culture does not have a king. Certainly his kingship is much more than a… president!
What does it mean to declare our fealty to a king? Honestly, this was one of the issues in decades past regarding Catholics in government here in the United States. There was a concern that we owed our fealty to some thing or someone beyond this country.
(This, as an aside, is a big part of the reason why the great American experiment has been doomed to failure. Too much individualism, and not enough of an emphasis on who we are as members of the kingdom of God.)
We are called to make our declaration of fealty to the King of kings and Lord of lords. We are called to make our declaration of fealty to the Captain of the hosts of heaven. No one has seen the power of this King. He has held the revelation of his power from this earth, except for his power of creation.
But when it is revealed in glory and power, in majesty and might, then Pilate’s questions will be answered. And when they are answered, the whole world will know who Jesus really is. We see and understand images of Christ the King in varied ways.
For example, almost all of the images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus show his crown of thorns surrounding his heart. The image of the Divine Mercy shows the conquering of the wounds of his heart. The crown of thorns was an image of mockery on the day of his death. But Jesus did with that something only he could do!
There is no material on earth out of which a crown worthy of that Holy Head could be made. So Jesus accepted the lowly crown of thorns – the mockery of soldiers filled with hatred – and he turned it, by the Precious Blood left upon it, into a crown worthy of the King of kings.
So how are we to respond to this King of kings who calls us into his service? This is no small thing. Nor is it to be taken lightly. We have been called into the presence of the King by our Baptism. We have been strengthened to act in his name by the Eucharist. By Confirmation we have been conformed to his Holy Spirit to accomplish the good works that will magnify his name.
We have been chosen to transform the world in the name of Christ our King. What have any of us done for the sake of the King? What have you done? What have I done? More importantly: what will we do?
We have been called to serve the King of heaven and earth.
Pray/Praise:
Lord Jesus, Mighty King, we await your return in glory. But you have called us, as we wait, to serve you. What would you have us do in this day to help the world to see the splendor of your glory? Help us to make others long for that same glory that there may be more servants, more children of your kingdom. Amen.
John 18:36
Write:
“My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.”
Reflect:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be they name, thy kingdom come…
Thy kingdom come… I could almost stop there… I said almost. ????
There is no time when God did not reign as king – in fact there is no beginning to his reign which is eternal!
Thy kingdom come… When we pray that the simple line, what are we praying for? For one thing, we are asking that his kingdom be found in the center of our own hearts. For another thing, we are looking for the coming again of Christ our Lord – not as he came in his first coming, in humility, but in his true glory as God.
This is what we declare in our second reading from the Book of Revelation: “Behold, he is coming amid the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. All the peoples of the earth will lament him.”
All the peoples of the earth will lament him. Even his own people? Yes. There will be a time of crying out over our sinfulness as we see the total righteousness of God. But for those of us who understand and accept the kingship of Jesus, that crying out over our sins will be very brief as we see his glorious invitation to join him in the clouds. Others who lament him will do so with an anguish of heart that will describe the beginnings of hell.
Apply:
Bob Dylan was a popular songwriter when I was just beginning to understand and appreciate music. But he started writing Christian songs a few decades later. One of them he wrote said “you are going to have to serve somebody. It may be the devil or it may be the Lord, but you are going to have to serve somebody.” No truer words have ever been written and sung.
But there are even more important questions that must be asked. What kind of King is this that we are called to serve? In the gospel, he admits to Pilate that he is a type of a king. But what kind of King? What kind of kingdom? And, who are we in this kingdom that is not quite visible?
If we have renounced the world and all its wealth and honors to dedicate ourselves to Christ, then our lives must also be dedicated to his kingdom, now and forever. But how do we see him as king? Our culture does not have a king. Certainly his kingship is much more than a… president!
What does it mean to declare our fealty to a king? Honestly, this was one of the issues in decades past regarding Catholics in government here in the United States. There was a concern that we owed our fealty to some thing or someone beyond this country.
(This, as an aside, is a big part of the reason why the great American experiment has been doomed to failure. Too much individualism, and not enough of an emphasis on who we are as members of the kingdom of God.)
We are called to make our declaration of fealty to the King of kings and Lord of lords. We are called to make our declaration of fealty to the Captain of the hosts of heaven. No one has seen the power of this King. He has held the revelation of his power from this earth, except for his power of creation.
But when it is revealed in glory and power, in majesty and might, then Pilate’s questions will be answered. And when they are answered, the whole world will know who Jesus really is. We see and understand images of Christ the King in varied ways.
For example, almost all of the images of the Sacred Heart of Jesus show his crown of thorns surrounding his heart. The image of the Divine Mercy shows the conquering of the wounds of his heart. The crown of thorns was an image of mockery on the day of his death. But Jesus did with that something only he could do!
There is no material on earth out of which a crown worthy of that Holy Head could be made. So Jesus accepted the lowly crown of thorns – the mockery of soldiers filled with hatred – and he turned it, by the Precious Blood left upon it, into a crown worthy of the King of kings.
So how are we to respond to this King of kings who calls us into his service? This is no small thing. Nor is it to be taken lightly. We have been called into the presence of the King by our Baptism. We have been strengthened to act in his name by the Eucharist. By Confirmation we have been conformed to his Holy Spirit to accomplish the good works that will magnify his name.
We have been chosen to transform the world in the name of Christ our King. What have any of us done for the sake of the King? What have you done? What have I done? More importantly: what will we do?
We have been called to serve the King of heaven and earth.
Pray/Praise:
Lord Jesus, Mighty King, we await your return in glory. But you have called us, as we wait, to serve you. What would you have us do in this day to help the world to see the splendor of your glory? Help us to make others long for that same glory that there may be more servants, more children of your kingdom. Amen.
