Christ the King

The last Sunday of Pentecost Season is Christ the King Sunday (Nov. 26 this year). Pentecost Season, which begins with the gift of the Spirit for the sake of witnessing to Jesus the Messiah (Acts 1:8), ends with a Sunday dedicated to declaring that Jesus the Messiah is the King of the cosmos. He is King of all spiritual beings, all earthly and heavenly powers, and all of humanity. This is our witness: Jesus the Messiah is King.
 
Christ the King Sunday thus looks backwards. It reminds us of the point of the Pentecost—the Spirit was given that we would tell the world about Jesus, and he is King. But it also looks forward! As the last Sunday before Advent, it prepares us for Advent. It reminds us that a little baby, born in poverty and humility in a small stable to an undoubtedly terrified young woman, is our King. Advent teaches us to long for the coming of Jesus, and Christ the King Sunday makes certain that we remember who it is we are waiting for. In other words, looking backwards, it reminds us of our call to witness, and looking forward, it reminds us of our hope.
 
The Gospel readings in the weeks leading up to and including Christ the King Sunday shift our perspective from the here-and-now to this One who is to come. This year, the readings in the final weeks of Pentecost Season are from Matthew 25, where the One who is to come is described as bridegroom, master, and judge. Each section of this chapter cries out, “Be ready! He is coming!”
 
Being ready is different in each section of Matthew 25. Waiting for the bridegroom (25:1-13) means being watchful and having our lamps full of oil. Oil—the symbol of the anointing of the Spirit—indicates that we aren’t ready for the coming Messiah if we aren’t praying for and attentive to the gift of the Spirit. Waiting for the master (25:14-30) means using our resources and talents with the awareness that they are actually the master’s. They are given to us while he is away, but we will answer to him for what we do with them, and he expects us to use them the way he would. And waiting for the judge (25:31-46) means taking care of the poorest peoples of the world—as if each one is Jesus himself—while we wait. This King cares that the hungry, the immigrant, the naked, the sick, and the prisoner are visited, cared for, and invited into his kingdom by his subjects.
 
Each of us probably needs to be jolted out of the here-and-now in different ways. Life is busy and overwhelming. It can be easy to live with our sights set no further than the next Saturday. But as we approach Christ the King Sunday, let the Gospel readings wake you up to remember what it means to wait for our coming King.
 
In the name of Jesus the Messiah, the coming King,
Steven+