What Kind of King is He?


Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

We gather together this weekend to celebrate the Eucharist on the Feast of Christ the King. Jesus is our King. We are his servants.

But what kind of King is he? The answer to that question will determine what kind of servants we are called to be.

As we read the Scriptures, we see that Jesus’ Kingship is not of the kind we see, or have seen, in our world. His is a contradiction to power, status, position, and privilege.

Do we dare be called his servants?

The playwright, Eugene Ionesco, once said,

The human comedy doesn’t attract me enough.
I am not entirely of this world…I am from elsewhere.
And it is worth finding this elsewhere beyond the walls.
But where is it?

How do we go beyond the walls that this world builds? Is the “elsewhere” worth searching for? Jesus says, “Yes, it is.” He helps us in the search, and makes the search worthwhile. He gives meaning to all of life, meaning that the world is not able to give.

Philip Yancey, in his book, The Jesus I Never Knew, describes how Jesus leads us to
the Kingdom in the midst of this world:

I feel convicted by this quality of Jesus every time I get involved in a cause I
strongly believe in. How easy it is to join the politics of polarization, to find
myself shouting across the picket lines at the ‘enemy’ on the other side. How hard
it is to remember that the kingdom of God calls me to love the woman who has
just emerged from the abortion clinic (and, yes, even her doctor), the promiscuous
person who is dying of AIDS, the wealthy landowner who is exploiting God’s
creation. If I cannot show love to such people, then I must question whether I have
truly understood Jesus’ gospel.

A political movement by nature draws lines, makes distinctions, pronounces
judgment; in contrast, Jesus’ love cuts across lines, transcends distinctions, and
dispenses grace. Regardless of the merits of a given issue—whether a pro-life
lobby out of the Right or a peace and justice lobby out of the Left—political
movements risk pulling onto themselves the mantle of power that smothers love.
From Jesus I learn that, whatever activism I get involved in, it must not drive out
love and humility, or otherwise I betray the kingdom of heaven.

As we honor our King, let us not betray him. Let us be a people of love and humility in all situations, not a people of power, a people of domination. Let us never draw lines, make distinctions, or pronounce judgments.

As his servants, we allow him to lead us to the elsewhere, beyond the walls of this world!

— Fr. Mike