HYMN Rejoice the Lord is King
1 REJOICE, the Lord is King,
Your Lord and King adore;
Mortals, give thanks and sing,
And triumph evermore:
Refrain:
Lift up your heart, lift up your voice;
Rejoice, again I say, rejoice.
2 Jesus, the Saviour, reigns,
The God of truth and love;
When he had purged our stains,
He took his seat above: [Refrain]
3 His kingdom cannot fail;
He rules o’er earth and heaven;
The keys of death and hell
Are to our Jesus given: [Refrain]
4 He sits at God’s right hand
Till all his foes submit,
And bow to his command,
And fall beneath his feet: [Refrain]
PRAYER OF PREPARATION
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open,
all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden:
cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you,
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord. Amen
PRAYERS OF PENITENCE
We recall our Lord’s command to love and in a moment of silence we confess
the many ways we fail to keep his command:
Most merciful God,
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
we confess that we have sinned
in thought, word and deed.
We have not loved you with our whole heart.
We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves.
In your mercy forgive what we have been,
help us to amend what we are,
and direct what we shall be;
that we may do justly, love mercy,
and walk humbly with you, our God. Amen
May the God of love and power
forgive us and free us from our sins,
heal and strengthen us by his Spirit,
and raise us to new life in Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE COLLECT
Eternal Father,
whose Son Jesus Christ ascended to the throne of heaven
that he might rule over all things as Lord and King:
keep the Church in the unity of the Spirit
and in the bond of peace,
and bring the whole created order to worship at his feet;
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
FIRST READING – Daniel 7.9-10,13,14
As I watched, thrones were set in place, and an Ancient One took his throne, his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames, and its wheels were burning fire. A stream of fire issued and flowed out from his presence. A thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him. The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.
As I watched in the night visions, I saw one like a human being coming with the clouds of heaven. And he came to the Ancient One and was presented before him. To him was given dominion and glory and kingship, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away, and his kingship is one that shall never be destroyed.
HYMN The king of love my shepherd is
1 THE King of love my Shepherd is,
Whose goodness faileth never;
I nothing lack if I am his
And he is mine for ever.
2 Where streams of living water flow
My ransomed soul he leadeth,
And where the verdant pastures grow
With food celestial feedeth.
3 Perverse and foolish oft I strayed,
But yet in love he sought me,
And on his shoulder gently laid,
And home, rejoicing, brought me.
4 In death’s dark vale I fear no ill
With thee, dear Lord, beside me;
Thy rod and staff my comfort still,
Thy cross before to guide me.
5 Thou spread’st a table in my sight;
Thy unction, grace bestoweth:
And O what transport of delight
From thy pure chalice floweth!
6 And so through all the length of days
Thy goodness faileth never;
Good Shepherd, may I sing thy praise
Within thy house for ever.
GOSPEL – John 18.33-37
Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?” Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.” Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate asked him, “What is truth?”
SERMON
So today we celebrate the feast of Christ the King. Between the Sunday’s after Trinity and the season of Advent we are reminded that Jesus is known as the Christ, the anointed one, anointed like a king, and has long been proclaimed as King by his followers. The window behind me depicts Christ as a King as of the days of yore, strong mighty, awesome. This is the Messiah of expectation, the avenger coming upon the clouds with all power to even the score, defend the righteous, make all things right. And this is indeed a context of the Old Testament reading, but the words of Jesus before Pilate in Gospel According to St John somehow go further, go beyond poetic imagery and exciting fantasy to something altogether more real and more disturbing.
St John understands that the trial of Jesus hangs not so much upon a simple charge of fact, not so much upon the words that Jesus used to threaten the established powers in Jerusalem but upon the question of his identity – who he said he was. The paradox is that what they accused Jesus of wanting to be was’ king of the Jews’. A title used by Herod the Great himself, the Herod on the throne when Jesus was born. To be such a king would be to be caught up in all the structures of power, all the machinations and corruption of the world. What Jesus had espoused was something quite different he had preached the Kingdom of God, a sovereignty, a primacy given to God, his will, his direction.
To call Jesus king in such a theocracy would be right, as a part of the triune God, as intimately connected to the Father then such a title would be right. But it would be a nonsense if we didn’t realise that such terms are ours and as such are liable to be misinterpreted. Jesus attempts to counter Pilate’s misunderstanding of his kingship by simply saying that he came to testify to the truth – the truth of God’s authority and, according to John, his own identity within that authority. Living within the truth of that statement brings people within the fellowship of Jesus and acceptance of the truth he speaks. Pilate cannot recognise that – his next words are “what is truth” – so speaks the career politician and servant of imperial power – his years of compromise and cynical use of power have rendered him deaf and blind to the truth of what might be before him – he was too clearly committed to his citizenship of this world to think outside its limited options.
But this is all very well and possibly interesting, but what does it matter. It matters because how we understand power, even the power of God, how we understand whose sovereignty we acknowledge and how will determine our priorities – how we spend our time and money, what we value and what we don’t. The idea of the rule of God, a primacy given to God by us in this world will cause us to act and to speak in radically different ways from other ideas of power and primacy. For example, it is tempting, and usual, to give our primary allegiance to race, or nation, or family, or even religion – and if we do that then that will encourage us to behave in given ways – ways perfectly moral and sensible to us as they accord with what is most important to us. You only have to watch the news to see how people act in accordance with what they deem is the centre of authority most important to them. Jesus proclaims the Good news that all these divisive and destructive authorities are powerless before the authority of God – the God he demonstrated and exemplified – powerless to the point that they may take away even life itself but God can heal even that outrage.
The challenge is that to live with the primacy of God is to risk having to act and speak in radically different ways to the worlds we live in. The result is a kind of persecution – a martyrdom if you like – a witness to the truth that is costly. If you think all that is far away and hypothetical, I once asked a surveyor why he didn’t expose the corruption he knew existed in a certain planning authority and he said that if he did that he wouldn’t work again.
So we celebrate the Sunday of Christ the King with a reading of his trial – it perfectly summarises the costly nature of his kingship – a kingship that subverts human centres of power, a kingship not of this world but a kingship that challenges us here and now to declare our allegiance.
AFFIRMATION OF FAITH
Let us declare our faith in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ:
Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures;
he was buried; he was raised to life on the third day
in accordance with the scriptures;
afterwards he appeared to his followers,
and to all the apostles: this we have received,
and this we believe. Amen. 1 Corinthians 15.3-7
HYMN Let all mortal flesh keep silence
1 Let all mortal flesh keep silence
And with fear and trembling stand;
Ponder nothing earthly-minded,
For with blessing in his hand
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
Our full homage to demand.
2 King of kings, yet born of Mary,
As of old on earth he stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
In the body and the blood:
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heavenly food.
3 Rank on rank the host of heaven
Spreads its vanguard on the way,
As the Light of light descendeth
From the realms of endless day,
That the powers of hell may vanish
As the darkness clears away.
4 At his feet the six-winged seraph;
Cherubim with sleepless eye,
Veil their faces to the Presence,
As with ceaseless voice they cry,
Alleluya, Alleluya,
Alleluya, Lord most high!
PRAYERS OF INTERCESSION – Sheila Forbes
Gracious father we give you thanks for the very tangible sense of community in this benefice which was so much in evidence in the form of hospitality and generous donations for the Memorial Walk. As Advent beckons and as a benefice we draw up lists, rotas and plan services, we pray that all our bustle and business works towards creating a reflection of your kingdom – a reflection that lights a path for all who enter this space – guiding them to see themselves as a beloved child of God.
Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
Eternal Ruler, we have horrific pictures of people trapped at borders streamed into our homes. We pray for all caught in a web not of their own making – victims of rulers whose actions are corrupted by the power they hold. We pray for all in authority that they are mindful of how they rule on earth – only for a time; we pray that they turn their sights to the everlasting laws of your kingdom: the law of justice, the law of peace and the law demanding that governments work for the common good.
Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
God our father and mother, we bring before you all who are frightened, lonely, in pain or trapped in the darkness of depression.
We ask that your love beams into their lives and we in this church family are sensitive to all members of this parish, aware that the outfall of the pandemic has left many anxious about heating and food . Help us to find the right words and actions needed so that we leave no one feeling isolated or abandoned.
Lord in your mercy Hear our prayer
God of all understanding, surround those travelling through death to meet with you, and those left alone, feeling the cold empty space beside them – remembering the family of…(Stephen McDonnell)
Merciful Father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son, our Saviour, Jesus Christ, Amen
As our Saviour taught us, so we pray:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done,
on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours
now and for ever. Amen.
BLESSING
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make his face to shine upon and be gracious unto you.
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
The Lord God almighty, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
the holy and undivided Trinity, guard you, save you,
and bring you to that heavenly city,
where he lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen
HYMN Crown him with many crowns
1 Crown him with many crowns,
The Lamb upon his throne;
Hark! how the heavenly anthem drowns
All music but its own:
Awake, my soul, and sing
Of him who died for thee,
And hail him as thy matchless King
Through all eternity.
2 Crown him the Virgin’s Son,
The God incarnate born,
Whose arm those crimson trophies won
Which now his brow adorn:
Fruit of the mystic Rose,
As of that Rose the Stem;
The Root whence mercy ever flows,
The Babe of Bethlehem.
3 Crown him the Lord of love!
Behold his hands and side,
Rich wounds yet visible above
In beauty glorified:
No angel in the sky
Can fully bear that sight,
But downward bends his burning eye
At mysteries so bright.
4 Crown Him the Lord of peace,
Whose power a sceptre sways
From pole to pole, that wars may cease,
Absorbed in prayer and praise:
His reign shall know no end,
And round his pierced feet
Fair flowers of Paradise extend
Their fragrance ever sweet.
5 Crown him the Lord of years,
The Potentate of time,
Creator of the rolling spheres,
Ineffably sublime.
Glassed in a sea of light,
Where everlasting waves
Reflect his throne–the Infinite!
Who lives–and loves–and saves.