i-Llan: 24th November 2024 – Is God in Charge?

Reflections on the Feast of Christ the King.

The readings referred to are:
Daniel 7. 9-10, 13, 14
Revelation 1. 4b-8
John 18. 33-37

You can read them here. 

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Transcript

Welcome to i-Llan, a podcast connecting faith, life and Scripture. On the feast of Christ the king, this episode asks, 'Is God in charge?'

With every day that passes, the world seems a more dangerous place, at increasing risk from the abuse of power, missiles let loose on hapless cities, and the collapse of systems which should protect and care for the vulnerable. 

So, as I ponder this Sunday’s feast of Christ the King, it seems appropriate to ask, 'Is God really in charge?' and to reflect on Christian ideas of authority, judgement, heaven and the afterlife.

The readings contrast two pictures.

The first is another of Daniel’s dramatic visions:
 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 thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood attending him. The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.

I can imagine that scene painted by Michelangelo, a portrayal of heaven as an exaggerated version of an earthly throne-room. It’s not a portrait I take literally, but one which conveys the idea that the transcendent God, who is beyond human imagining, is in charge and everyone will come under judgment. 

By contrast, the gospel story (John 18. 33-37) shows Jesus, the itinerant rabbi, standing before Pilate, the representative of the might of Rome. 

Who appears to have the power there? 

Pilate seems puzzled. ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’ he asks Jesus. ‘Are you a king at all?’

Jesus answers, ‘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 is not one for philosophy and, fearful of a riot, hands Jesus over to be crucified. Earthly powers seem to have won. 

The second reading ties the two pictures together. It’s another apocalyptic vision, this time from the beginning of the Book of Revelation at the end of the Bible. Again, it pictures heaven as a great throne room in which all earthly kings must bow down. It describes Jesus as
 the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. . . . who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father.
 Through the resurrection and ascension, the crucified Jesus crowned with thorns and the cosmic Christ are one and the same. 

On the last three Sundays, the readings have been leading us through questions about God’s role in human affairs—or, as I’ve suggested, the role of us humans in God’s affairs. God is in charge, but in his way not ours. The feast of Christ the King helps us link the cosmic vision of God’s reign with the reality of our earthly experience. 

The world is a dangerous place. Christian doctrine speaks of Jesus’s second coming ‘with the clouds’ when all will be put right, but it’s not for us to know when that will happen. Meanwhile, our job is to do what we can in this life to make the kingdom real on earth. Each of us is invited to accept God's rule and join Christ’s kingdom. We accept the invitation by praying, ‘thy kingdom come, thy will be done – in me’. Or, as the Christmas hymn has it:
O come to my heart, Lord Jesus, 
 there is room in my heart for thee.

The world is a dangerous place, and there is no guarantee of physical safety for anyone. But on the Feast of Christ the King, I trust that, whatever happens, God is working his purpose out and holds each of us safely in his charge in this life and the next. 

My prayer this week:
May Christ the King find room in your heart 
and rule your life with love, justice and mercy. Amen.