I’ve gotten teased that we had to move the installation date to Christ the King sunday for the installation service as pastor here. The underlying theme is that I am confusing myself with a royal installation, or as ruth calls it, a coronation. Nothing can be further from my mind, as I see the power in the pastorate as extremely limited.At ti s best and deepst, it is a wya of ocming to grips with or lives from different angles to help us glimpse hte hand of god in its often opaque ways.
We come to the close of the church year and mark Christ the king. for reformed Christians this marks one of the marks of being a messiah/anointed one as priests, prophets, and kings were anointed.Our more radical evangelical family members speak of many people and messages as being anointed.
Our readings go all over the map here, but I am going to foucs on how they deal with power.To speak of kingship in a country that broke away from royalty is problematic to begin with, but we all understand the use and abuse of power, certainly.When we feel dependent or weak, we look toward power to help us out. when we are feeling powerful, we resent power over us. A good way to look at a christian aspect of power is not power over against, but empowering, power with others, one that is more democratic and shared, one that vitiates hierarchy.
At the cosmic level we have the treat of reading the opening part of Colossians.the same Jesus who grew up and taught and healed and died a tragic young death has anotehr side. the very life of god dwells with him, as John said the very plan, the very wisdom, of God in a human being is alos the very lynchpin of the universe. Put differently, with one set of eyes, Jeuss died a terrible, lonely, useless death for no good reason. With another set of eyes, the eys of a biblically tutored imagination, a faith drenched in Scripture, we see something much more than meets the eye.
A the level of brute power we once again hear of the end of the life of Jesus in the trial that would seal his fate.It is a culmination of the turning his back on power that we first realize at the tempation scene on the firs tsunday of Lent. If jesus will use power over others, he will not be able to face the sacrifice of his life for others. Jesus cedes power to the authorities. In so doing, jesus sets the stage for relinquishing power as an act that permits the gift of empowering others.
Jeremiah looks at the sorry history of the anointed kings of israel and Judah. Out of apparent desperation God will take the reins of power for a while and then appoint a zedekiah, a righteous king who will look toward the public interest of justice.Zechariah picks up on a theme toward the end of the great prayer.In the birth of a child, he sees a movmeent toward rescue, and salvation of rthe prupose of serving God and hearing of forgiveness. I don;t hear a political vision here, but a religious one. Read the very end again.It is a vision of what some call soft power, and we have seen the brittle nature of the hard steel of weaponry and coercion year after year.
In endings we may find new beginnings. Next week we begin the cycle of readings again with the first and second advents of Jesus Christ.As the church years closes, we do well to ask ourselves where does Christ wish us to ocntinue to follow as citizens of his commonwealth here
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