The Reign of Christ: November 21, 2004.

Jeremiah 23:1-6

Psalm 46

Colossians 1:11-20

Luke 23:33-43

First Reading

What kind of people is this who celebrate their king by reading together the story of his violent and humiliating death at the hands of an enemy state? What kind of people take the mocking words of his executioners "This is the King of the Jews" and turn them into words of celebration and proclamation of Christ the king of all nations? Shouldn't there be some kind of story of coronation, some proclamation read of glory and majesty and just ruling? Instead we read of humiliation and torture.

The coronation proclamations and the explanation of Christ as king come in our readings from Jeremiah and Colossians as well as in our psalm. "He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. 'Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.' The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge" (Ps 46:9-11). These words proclaim what kind of king God in Christ is for us--a king who destroys the implements of war so that we need not fear any earthly king, a king who is exalted finally among all the nations, in the whole earth. The Hebrew word harpu, translated here as "be still," carries the strong connotation of relax or, in the Hiphil as here, "let go" or "abandon." As an imperative, a command from God, we are told to let go of our attempts to order the world or our lives or to abandon our ambitions and pretensions. God in Christ is the kind of king who commands us to let go of ourselves and our own egos and acknowledge Christ alone as king.

Jeremiah provides us with God's promise to raise up a ruler to shepherd the people in safety, wisdom, justice, and righteousness (vv. 4-5). Read in conjunction with the story of Jesus' crucifixion in Luke, this passage would seem to provide us with a glimpse into the hope that some in Jesus' time had had in him to be a Davidic Messiah. Only by feeling that hope can we see the horror and the disappointment of the crucifixion through their eyes. The connection between the horror of the cross and the glory of Christ as King comes to us in our Colossians reading. Paul (or pseudo-Paul) provides us with a proclamation of glory and supremacy suitable for a heavenly king in vv. 15-20. Paul makes the connection that all of this glory is possible and has been made real because of the cross in v. 20: and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

Pastoral Reflection

If your preaching context does not normally include the reading or the singing of the psalmody appointed for the day, do it today. Use Psalm 46, especially vv. 9-11, to issue an Emancipation Proclamation. Tell the people that because Christ is king they are free. In Christ, we are ultimately free from violence and war. Christ as king makes wars to cease and shatters the weapons and implements of violence and war in our world. War, terrorism, abuse, and street violence are destroyed under the lordship of Christ the king. Use v. 10 to proclaim liberation from the need (or ability) to control our own destinies. Be still, and know that I am God! Relax, let go, abandon yourself into the kingdom of Christ. Proclaim a sabbath today.

I preach in the context of an affluent suburban congregation as Associate Pastor for Youth and Family. The young people (and older people) are being taught by their society that their value is measured by how full their calendar is. How many sports do you play, how many bands are you in, how many AP classes are you taking, what did you get on your SAT? These are the questions that determine a person's worth.

Into this world come the words of Col 1:16: "In him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers--all things have been created through him and for him." Christ the king is bigger than your to-do list. Christ the king is bigger than anything that has power or control over you. Jeremiah proclaims the coming of a just and righteous king who will deal with wisdom and will bring safety and peace. We know that ruler to be Christ. Jeremiah 23:6 says that "this is the name by which he will be called: 'The LORD is our righteousness.'" Righteousness is the translation of tzadik, which also carries the concept of legitimacy. So perhaps Jeremiah is telling us to remember that God (Christ the king for us today) is our only legitimate ruler. Just as the crowds at Jesus' trial cried out "We have no king but Caesar!" we cry today "We have no king but Christ!"

Christ has become our king through his crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. The words of mockery become our claim of faith. This crucified one is our king. Colossians tells us that God has made peace "through the blood of his cross." Neither Colossians nor any of our other readings nails that down with much specificity. We don't get any good atonement theories from these readings. We get the simple proclamation of faith. I may not understand how it works, but I can proclaim that God has put everything under Christ's feet through the blood of his cross, and this means that I have no legitimate king but Christ.