The king who serves ?

 Sometimes things in life seem backwards or the wrong way around. Last week, I heard the familiar tones of an advert that I love. This advert conspires to make me feel happy as some of my great loves appear together. Yes, Father Christmas, Coca-Cola, and Christmas music all in one advert; it can only mean that the Coca-Cola Christmas advert is out. Therefore, even though we are not in Advent yet, Christmas is coming!

How strange then, in our gospel reading this morning, to hear of the crucifixion. That makes it seem as if Easter is around the corner, and the Church calendar seems to have gone a little bit mad! But I suspect that the Church is not confused, because actually none of the gospel message can make sense without first the crucifixion and then, of course, the resurrection. As we move towards Advent and Christmas, we remember what our Saviour was actually born for.

In the readings this morning, we heard about the image of Jesus, the image of a King, the image of Christ. This morning we celebrate Christ the King, but as we do so, we see all the expectations of kingship squashed.

When we think of a King, we think of someone in a palace, with grand robes who, if we are honest, is separate from us and always goes along with social convention. When we think of Jesus, we think of someone who was with us, born in a stable, who suffered in a way nobody, let alone a King, should. We think of One who turned the world upside down by loving those whom nobody loved, by being different from society as He reached out to those whom society would have seen as untouchables.

The gospel this morning has reminded us that we worship a King who was crucified after suffering probably one of the cruellest forms of punishment and death—a death that was for all of us. What type of image is that? This is not an image we would automatically associate with a King or even a Saviour, but we do. This all seems a bit backwards: the Saviour of the world, a King majestic in power, who is God, dies in this way.

In the reading from the epistle to the Colossians, we are reminded not only of the kingship of Jesus but also the fact that He is the exact image of God the Father. Jesus is not only the image of God but actually is God.

This Sunday we are reminded of who Jesus is and why He came. This is why it is backwards. In fact, when we think of the reason why Jesus came and then start the season of Advent next Sunday, when we prepare for Jesus’ coming, then to think of the crucifixion this morning has helped us to think of why we celebrate.

Christ the King means a different image—not one of kingship in the ways we would assume but rather one of suffering and care. The reading from Paul’s letter to the Colossians reminds us of the majesty and wonder of Christ, meaning the anointed one, and the gospel shows us that this means that Jesus has become one of us and died for us.

There is a hymn that sums up well the kingship of Jesus and also what our response should be to Him. I would like to read some of the words of this:

*From heav’n you came, helpless babe,

entered our world, your glory veiled;

not to be served but to serve,

and give your life that we might live.

This is our God, the Servant King,

he calls us now to follow him,

to bring our lives as a daily offering 

of worship to the Servant King.

The question is: what does this mean to us? As we prepare for Christmas and the beginning of the Advent season, are we ready to remember all that Jesus has done for us?

There are three things that I think we can think of.

Firstly, the fact that Jesus turns everything upside down and is not the King the people were expecting, who would defeat the Romans in a mighty battle, reminds us that Jesus can turn our lives upside down in ways that we might not expect. We worship a King who tore apart social conventions and offered a better world. This means that it is not only our task to be ready for Jesus to turn our lives upside down, though; it means that it is our task to offer a better world by reaching out even to those we wouldn’t normally wish to and to offer them, in our lives and in the way we behave, the love of Christ.

Secondly, because Jesus is the King and we worship Him as such, we need to be thankful for all He offers us. The fact that Jesus died and rose again and is majestic means that we have a King and Saviour we can trust. He has not let us down, and He never will. When Jesus makes promises, they are real and lasting.

Thirdly, we are privileged; we are people who know and worship the ultimate, even if unexpected, King.

Our response to all of this can be in the last verse of the hymn that I read some of earlier, and I pray that this will be our goal today and every day:

So let us learn how to serve,

And in our lives enthrone Him;

Each other’s needs to prefer,

For it is Christ we’re serving.