Christ the King
**Please note this service is based on the format of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada. Unless otherwise indicated, all prayers come from Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW). Hymns and other prayers have been sourced to give appropriate credit.
**NRSV translation used for the readings, unless otherwise stated.
Introduction to the Day
Even after Israel had experienced the vagaries of kings, the people
still longed for a true king to set things right. He would have the king’s
title of Anointed One (Messiah); he would be the “one like a human being” (Son
of Man) given dominion in Daniel’s vision. Jesus is given these titles, even
though he is nothing like an earthly king. His authority comes from the truth
to which he bears witness, and those who recognize the truth voluntarily listen
to him. We look forward to the day he is given dominion, knowing his victory
will be the nonviolent victory of love.
Confession and Forgiveness
Blessed be the holy Trinity, ☩ one God,
who forgives all our sin,
whose mercy endures forever.
Amen.
God of all mercy and consolation, come to the help of your people,
turning us from our sin to live for you alone. Give us the power of your Holy
Spirit that we may confess our sin, receive your forgiveness, and grow into the
fullness of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another.
Most merciful God,
have mercy on us. We
confess that we have turned from you and given ourselves into the power of sin.
We are truly sorry and humbly repent. In your compassion forgive us our sins,
known and unknown, things we have done and things we have failed to do. Turn us
again to you, and uphold us by your Spirit, so that we may live and serve you
in newness of life through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
In the mercy of almighty God, Jesus Christ was given to die for us, and
for his sake God forgives us all our sins. As a called and ordained minister of
the church of Christ, and by his authority, I therefore declare to you the
entire forgiveness of all your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the ☩
Son, and of the Holy
Spirit.
Amen.
Gathering Song – Crown Him with
Many Crowns (ELW #855)
Greeting
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion
of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
And also with you.
Canticle of Praise – Glory to God
Prayer of the Day
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Let us pray.
Almighty and ever-living God, you anointed your beloved Son to be priest
and sovereign forever. Grant that all the people of the earth, now divided by
the power of sin, may be united by the glorious and gentle rule of Jesus
Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen.
Readings
A reading from the Second Book of Samuel 23:1-7
Now these are the last words of David:
The oracle of David, son of Jesse,
the oracle of the man whom God exalted,
the anointed of the God of Jacob,
the favorite of the Strong One of Israel:
The spirit of the Lord speaks through
me,
his word is upon my tongue.
The God of Israel has spoken,
the Rock of Israel has said to me:
One who rules over people justly,
ruling in the fear of God,
is like the light of morning,
like the sun rising on a cloudless morning,
gleaming from the rain on the grassy land.
Is not my house like this with God?
For he has made with me an everlasting covenant,
ordered in all things and secure.
Will he not cause to prosper
all my help and my desire?
But the godless are all like thorns
that are thrown away;
for they cannot be picked up with the hand;
to touch them one uses an iron bar
or the shaft of a spear.
And they are entirely consumed in fire on the spot.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Psalm 132:1-18
O Lord, remember in David’s favor
all
the hardships he endured;
how he swore to the
Lord
and vowed to the Mighty One of Jacob,
“I will not enter my house
or
get into my bed;
I will not give sleep
to my eyes
or slumber to my eyelids,
until I find a place for the Lord,
a
dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”
We heard of it in
Ephrathah;
we found it in the fields of Jaar.
“Let us go to his dwelling place;
let
us worship at his footstool.”
Rise up, O Lord, and
go to your resting place,
you and the ark of your might.
Let your priests be clothed with
righteousness,
and
let your faithful shout for joy.
For your servant
David’s sake
do not turn away the face of your anointed
one.
The Lord swore to David a sure oath
from
which he will not turn back:
“One of the sons of
your body
I will set on your throne.
If your sons keep my covenant
and
my decrees that I shall teach them,
their sons also,
forevermore,
shall sit on your throne.”
For the Lord has chosen Zion;
he
has desired it for his habitation:
“This is my resting
place forever;
here I will reside, for I have desired it.
I will abundantly bless its provisions;
I
will satisfy its poor with bread.
Its priests I will
clothe with salvation,
and its faithful will shout for joy.
There I will cause a horn to sprout up for
David;
I
have prepared a lamp for my anointed one.
His enemies I will
clothe with disgrace,
but on him, his crown will gleam.”
A reading from the Book of Revelation 1:4b-8
John to the seven churches that are in
Asia:
Grace to you and peace from him who is
and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his
throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead,
and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and freed us from
our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and
Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Look! He is coming with the clouds;
every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him;
and on his account all the tribes
of the earth will wail.
So it is to be. Amen.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says
the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
The word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Gospel Acclamation – Alleluia
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John 18:33-37
Glory to you, O Lord.
Then Pilate entered the headquarters
again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus
answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?”
Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests
have handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is
not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be
fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my
kingdom is not from here.” Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus
answered, “You say that I am a king. 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.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O
Christ.
Sermon
May only truth be spoken and truth heard. Amen.
Today
is Christ the King Sunday. It is one of the many Catholic feast days that has
been adopted by a lot of the mainline protestant churches – Lutherans, Anglicans,
etc.
It’s
celebrated in Protestant churches the Sunday before Advent starts, marking the
end of the liturgical year.
It’s
a celebration of the kingship of Christ.
Some
churches, as a way to remove the gender, call it Reign of Christ Sunday.
In
either case, it is a day where we acknowledge the authority that Christ has
over the whole universe.
There
are two trains of thought I would like to follow from the readings today –
kingship and truth.
KINGSHIP
The
gospel this week is part of one of the most dramatic political confrontations
in all of Scripture – Pontius Pilate's interrogation of Jesus in the
praetorium, his three-fold declaration that he found him innocent, then his
death sentence verdict to pacify the mob and protect his job.
John's
gospel makes it crystal clear that the passion narrative in general and the
trial before Pilate in particular were specifically political rather than
religious crises. Jesus's trial and Roman execution epitomized a clash between
two kings and two kingdoms.
Jesus
was dragged to the Roman governor's palace for three reasons, all political:
"We found this fellow subverting the nation, opposing payment of taxes to
Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King".
Pilate met the angry mob outside the
praetorium, then grilled Jesus alone back inside. "Are you the king of the
Jews?"
"My kingdom is not of this
world," Jesus replied. "My kingdom is from another place."
"You are a king, then!"
mocked Pilate.
"Yes, you are right in saying
that I am a king."
Pilate went back outside, declared
that Jesus was innocent, then had his soldiers beat, flog, and humiliate him
with purple robes and a crown of thorns befitting a man whom he miscalculated
was a political poser: "Hail, O king of the Jews!"
Back
outside, the mob hounded Pilate: "If you let this man go, you are no
friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar." Pilate
thus found himself sandwiched between angering the mob and betraying his
emperor.
He caved in: "Here is your
king. Shall I crucify your king?"
"We have no king but
Caesar!"
When
Pilate crucified Jesus, he insulted the Jews one last time by fastening a
notice to the cross, written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek, that he knew they
would find repugnant: "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews." They
objected, of course: "Don't write 'The king of the Jews,' but that this
man claimed to be king of the Jews."
In
short, Jesus died as a political criminal.
Charges
of political sedition have dogged Christians for centuries.
Christians
earned a reputation as an alternate and anti-social community that existed on
the margins of the state.
Christians
were thought to be fanatical, seditious, obstinate, and defiant. They scorned
long-held Roman religious traditions.
Many
of their followers came from the lower classes.They refused military service,
and met for clandestine rites rumored to include cannibalism, ritual murder, and
incest.
All
of which is to say, in the words of one early critic, the Christians "do
not understand their civic duty." In his view they actively undermined
society with their indifference to civic affairs.
Some
critics even blamed Christians for the fall of Rome.
When
Jesus insisted that his kingdom was "not of this world" he did not
mean that it was merely spiritual, or relegated to a future age beyond history
or in heaven.
In
John's dialogue above, Jesus's enemies rightly concluded that if Jesus was a
king, a Lord, and a ruler, he clearly usurped and upstaged Caesar as Lord.
Their two kingdoms clashed.
In
its simplest terms, the kingdom of God that Jesus announced and embodied is
what life would be like on earth, here and now, if God were king and the rulers
of this world were not.
The
kingdoms of our world could hardly be more opposite than the kingdom Jesus has
in mind. And God’s kingdom is more than just opposite of our kingdoms, it is to
be more than.
Jesus’
kingdom is not about amassing additional amounts of control.
Jesus’
kingdom is not about his ultimate rule over and above others.
Jesus’
kingdom is about relationship. “My kingdom is not from this world” because it
is from God.
Imagine
if God ruled the nations, and not Trudeau, Putin, or Biden. Every aspect of
personal and communal life would experience a radical reversal.
The
political, economic, and social subversions would be almost endless – peace-making
instead of war mongering, liberation not exploitation, sacrifice rather than
subjugation, mercy not vengeance, care for the vulnerable instead of privileges
for the powerful, generosity instead of greed, humility rather than hubris,
embrace rather than exclusion, etc.
The
ancient Hebrews had a marvelous word for this, shalom, meaning human
well-being.
The
Lord's Prayer, then, just might be the most subversive of all political acts:
"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
People who live and pray this way have a very different agenda than Caesar's, for
they have entered a kingdom, pledged their allegiance to a ruler, and submitted
to the reign of Christ the King.
While
God’s kingdom will come regardless because it is God’s after all, Revelation
reminds us that Jesus “made us to be kings”.
And
since we have been made to be kings (and queens) of God’s kingdom, it is our
calling to work for that kingdom and not for those kingdoms of this world.
It
is our calling to strive for a different world than we live in now.
It
is our calling to bring about this kingdom now even with the promise of God’s
kingdom coming later.
TRUTH
To
shift gears a little bit, take a look at the line immediately following our Gospel
reading today, where Pilate asks, “What is truth?”
In
an age where many people get their information from social media, it is an
excellent question.
“What
is truth?”, the question Pilate asked, is the question we all ask.
When
there are conflicting opinions. When the truth matters. Even when it
doesn’t. Maybe most of all when it
doesn’t.
When
we are between a rock and a hard place, and the chips are going to fall where
they may.
What
is truth?
In
the Gospel of John, the word “true” or “truth” is used some forty-one times.
It’s root meaning is “hiding nothing” as in pulling back a curtain to reveal
what is true reality. It’s the word that Jesus uses here as he is trying to
tell Pilate that he came to bear witness to the truth. Do you want to see God?
Then look at Jesus.
But
Jesus’ kingdom is from God, just as Jesus is from God, and Jesus is God’s
kingdom.
The
concept of kingdom is radically recalculated in the Gospel of John, from
kingdoms that strain and sever relationships to a kingdom that puts
relationship at its core.
When
kingdom is construed from the truth of relationship, from the truth of
incarnation, from the truth of love, then Jesus as truth will ring true.
This
is the truth that the kingdoms of this world cannot see. God’s truth. Jesus as
truth.
Jesus,
who walked into Jerusalem freely, endured Pilate’s brutality in service to the
truth he knows and Pilate doesn’t know.
The
truth that life cannot be stopped by brutality and cruelty.
Pilate,
who looks at the world to see where power lies and where power rises, can only
see the absence of power in Jesus, who carries no instrument of death in his
hand or in his belt.
“What
is truth?” Pilate asks Jesus.
Truth,
like God, escapes definition. And, as like God, truth also escapes our control.
Job
learns that truth is beyond human understanding.
Jacob
learns truth is a blessing that hurts.
Mary
learns truth emerges from the grave when her broken heart weeps.
The
disciples in Emmaus learn the power of truth when they have walked to the end
of their despair.
"What
is truth?" Pilate asked, and the question is left hanging in the air. Was
he being sarcastic or was he searching for answers nobody else had given him?
The
answer was that truth was the person standing in silence before Pilate.
The
truth is that Jesus is a king who never rose so high that he couldn't see those
who were down low.
And
we saw this king in strange places.
We
saw Jesus engaging in deep theological conversation with a Samaritan woman who
had had five husbands and was living with a man who wasn't her husband!
We
saw Jesus bending down on the ground to be with a woman accused of adultery. He
leaned in close to hear her voice when nobody else bothered to listen.
We
saw Jesus putting a towel around his waist and then kneeling on the floor to
wash his disciples' dirty feet.
Even
today, we see Jesus in tent cities where people live together after losing
their homes to natural disasters.
We
see Jesus in places where people are still waiting for the power to come on
after the storm.
We
see Jesus in shelters where women have sought refuge from abusers.
The
truth is that if we want to see Jesus, we need to be looking in places kings
seldom go and for a kingship not marked by the usual trappings of power.
Pilate
saw absence of power in Jesus, but, in truth, Jesus did have power.
Only
his power was always on the side of justice for the poor, the downtrodden, the
outcast.
His
power was never self-serving, rather it was always exercised on behalf of
others.
Indeed,
the power that Jesus had led him right into being on trial for blasphemy
himself. One where he wound up being
judged by both the authorities of the temple and of the state.
Jesus'
power led him to a shameful death on a cross. But then, Jesus even had power over
death.
So
as we begin our journey into Advent, let us embrace our truth and claim Christ
as King, not as groveling peasants but as a declaration that we belong to
Christ.
By
doing so, we claim that Christ’s truth – to forgive, to love, to share – is our
truth.
Amen.
Hymn of the Day – Jesus Shall Reign
(ELW #434)
Creed
Let us confess the faith of our baptism, as we
say the Apostles’ Creed:
I
believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator
of heaven and earth.
I
believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord,
who
was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born
of the virgin Mary,
suffered
under Pontius Pilate,
was
crucified, died, and was buried;
he
descended to the dead.
On
the third day he rose again;
he
ascended into heaven,
he
is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and
he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I
believe in the Holy Spirit,
the
holy catholic church,
the
communion of saints,
the
forgiveness of sins,
the
resurrection of the body,
and
the life everlasting. Amen.
Prayers of Intercession
Eternal God, you hold firm amid the changes of this world. Hear us now
as we pray for the church, the world, and everyone in need.
Silence
God, you sent your Son Jesus to testify to the truth. We pray for
preachers, missionaries, evangelists, and teachers who carry your forgiveness
and love to the world. Fill their words and actions with compassion and
kindness so that your truth will shine.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God, you sent your Son Jesus to liberate all of creation. We pray for
all living things longing for the freedom to flourish, from ancient trees and
wild grasses to endangered animals and rare insects. Give human beings
compassionate hearts to care for them.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God, you sent your Son Jesus to lead us into the way of peace. Direct
the members of international alliances in choosing a nonviolent path toward the
future. Give them the humility and wisdom to make just decisions to benefit
all.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God, you sent your Son Jesus to make us into your own people, set free
to serve you. We pray for people who serve the well-being of others, especially
ministries in our community. Renew them in their work.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God, you sent your Son Jesus to rule in all times and places. We pray
for the friends of our congregation who are unable to join our worship in
person and for all who are sick and suffering. Join their prayers with ours and
unite them with us in the body of Christ.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Please take time to offer your own intercessions or pray in silence.
God, you sent your Son Jesus to be our beginning and our ending. We give
thanks for those whose lives have given us a glimpse of Jesus’ reign of justice
and peace. Empower us to join their witness.
God, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
God our hope and strength, we entrust to you all for whom we pray.
Remain with us always, through Jesus Christ, our Savior.
Amen.
Peace
The peace of Christ be with you always.
And also with you.
Offering
Hymn – Lord, Whose Love in Humble Service (ELW #712)
**Although
not physically at our church buildings to share our offering together I would
encourage you to set your offering of money aside so that it can be dropped off
or placed in the church once services resume, to mail your offering to the
church, or to make donations online. Please remember ministry is still taking
place.
This service was created for in-person worship. For those worshiping on your own, you may either read the Eucharistic prayer, or skip ahead to the Lord's Prayer and continue to the end.
Offering Prayer
Let us pray.
Holy God, gracious and merciful, you bring
forth food from the earth and nourish your whole creation. Turn our hearts
toward those who hunger in any way, that all may know your care; and prepare us
now to feast on the bread of life, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Amen.
Dialogue
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the
Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give
our thanks and praise.
Preface
It is indeed right, our duty and our joy,
that we should at all times and in all places
give thanks and praise to you, almighty and
merciful God,
through our Savior Jesus Christ;
who on this day overcame death and the grave,
and by his glorious resurrection opened to us
the way of everlasting life.
And so, with all the choirs of angels,
with the church on earth and the hosts of
heaven,
we praise your name and join their unending
hymn:
Holy, holy, holy Lord
God,
God of might and
power; holy is the Lord.
Hosanna in the
highest, hosanna here on earth.
Blest is he who comes
in the name of the Lord.
You are indeed holy, almighty and merciful
God.
You are most holy, and great is the majesty of
your glory.
You so loved the world that you gave your only
Son,
so that everyone who believes in him may not
perish
but have eternal life.
We give you thanks for his coming into the
world
to fulfill for us your holy will and to
accomplish all things for our salvation.
In the night in which he was betrayed,
our Lord Jesus took bread, and gave thanks;
broke it, and gave it to his disciples,
saying:
Take and eat; this is my body, given for you.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
Again, after supper, he took the cup, gave
thanks,
and gave it for all to drink, saying:
This cup is the new covenant in my blood,
shed for you and for all people for the
forgiveness of sin.
Do this for the remembrance of me.
For as often as we eat of this bread and drink
from this cup,
we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Christ has died.
Christ is risen. Christ will come again.
Remembering, therefore, his salutary command,
his life-giving passion and death, his
glorious resurrection and ascension,
and the promise of his coming again,
we give thanks to you, O Lord God Almighty,
not as we ought but as we are able;
we ask you mercifully to accept our praise and
thanksgiving
and with your Word and Holy Spirit to bless
us, your servants,
and these your own gifts of bread and wine,
so that we and all who share in the body and
blood of Christ
may be filled with heavenly blessing and
grace,
and, receiving the forgiveness of sin,
may be formed to live as your holy people
and be given our inheritance with all your
saints.
To you, O God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be all honor and glory in your holy church,
now and forever.
Amen.
Lord’s Prayer
Gathered into one by the Holy Spirit, let us
pray as Jesus taught us.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your
name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our
daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Save us from the time
of trial
and deliver us from
evil.
For the kingdom, the
power,
and the glory are
yours,
now and forever.
Amen.
Invitation to Communion
Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Share
in the Eucharist
Prayer After Communion
Gracious God, in this meal you have drawn us
to your heart, and nourished us at your table with food and drink, the body and
blood of Christ. Now send us forth to be your people in the world, and to
proclaim your truth this day and evermore, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and
Lord. Amen.
Blessing
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord’s face shine on you with grace and
mercy.
The Lord look upon you with favor and ☩ give you peace.
Amen.
Sending Hymn – Soon and Very Soon (ELW #439)
Dismissal
Go in peace. Share the good news.
Thanks be to God.
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