As your pastor, I have some advice for you when you gather for Thanksgiving this week with family members you haven’t seen in a while. My pastoral advice is for you to interject your political thoughts into as many conversations as possible. Yes, you heard me right. Bring up the topic of politics whenever you get the chance.
Now, before you tune me out for the rest of the sermon, let me explain. By politics, I’m not talking about Republican vs. Democrat. I’m talking about a much larger perspective of politics that often gets ignored in our political conversations and it has nothing to do with blue vs. red.
Today is known on the church calendar as “Christ the King Sunday.” Whenever you throw in the word, “king,” we’re talking politics, aren’t we? A king by definition is a supreme ruler, someone who has been given all authority to rule.
This is the title that the New Testament uses for Jesus. He is the king of kings. The word, “Christ” isn’t Jesus’ last name as many people think. Jesus’ didn’t have a last name. Like many Jewish people in Jesus’ day, he was known in reference to his father, “Jesus, Son of Joseph.” He also was known for where he was from, “Jesus of Nazareth.”
The word, “Christ” however, is referring to his title. Jesus, the Christ. Jesus, the King. The word, “Christ” is the Greek word for king and the Hebrew word for king is “Messiah.”
And I never thought about this, but “Christ the King Sunday” is not the best way to refer to this Sunday on the church calendar. “Christ the King” is redundant, isn’t it?
The title for this Sunday is taking the Greek word for King which is the word, “Christ,” and also using the English word for “King” so essentially this Sunday is mis-titled as “King the King Sunday,” which doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.
As I’m thinking about this, it should be changed to “Jesus the King Sunday.” I’ve been in pastoral ministry for almost 40 years, and I just noticed this as I was working on this sermon. Today should be known as “Jesus the King Sunday.”
One of the reasons this Sunday is on the church calendar is to remind us that our faith is political. There’s no way around it. Who is in charge of the world? Not a political party as we think of today, but “Jesus, the King” rules over the world.
This is such a deeply embedded understanding of who Jesus is that many of our hymns refer to Jesus in some fashion as king or as ruling over creation. Just listen to these hymn titles as a sampling:
“All Praise to Thee, for Thou, O King Divine.” “Crown Him with many Crowns.” “Jesus Shall Reign.” “Majesty, Worship His Majesty.” “Rejoice the Lord is King.” “Praise My Soul, the King of Heaven.”
By the way, during my first dentist appointment with my new dentist last year, we were getting to know each other. I had told him that I was a retired United Methodist pastor. He said that he attends a United Methodist Church.
And then I just couldn’t resist asking him this question. I asked him if he knew what a dentist’s favorite hymn is? And he said, “no.” I said a dentist’s favorite hymn is “Crown Him with Many Crowns.”
Hymn after hymn reminds us that our faith is political. Jesus has been crowned as King. Jesus rules over all creation. And so, it’s impossible to separate our faith from politics since we refer to Jesus as the one and true king. Since Jesus is King, my primary allegiance is to Jesus and not to any political party or candidate.
But what kind of king is Jesus? And this is what makes today’s appointed Gospel reading for this special Sunday on the church calendar quite interesting. It’s the story of Jesus dying on the cross of all things.
The true king over all creation doesn’t sit on a throne of gold. No, this king hangs from a cross offering his self-giving, sacrificial, and redeeming love for the world.
Self-giving, sacrificial, and redeeming are NOT the first words that come to mind when we think of our everyday political vocabulary. But really, that’s the way it’s always been whether in democracies like our own or in empires like the one that put Jesus on the cross. We think in terms of protecting our political ideologies, increasing our voter base, and doing whatever it takes to stay in power.
Jesus operates under an entirely different set of rules that is rooted in God’s love for the world, a love that is willing to risk everything in order that all of creation might be redeemed and claimed by God. It was this love that led Jesus to take his place on a cross hanging between two thieves. And even as Jesus was hanging on a cross, he continued to show mercy.
I was making a visit to see someone who was in the hospital and a hospital volunteer took me to the pre-op area and I noticed that she was wearing a red volunteer coat. A nurse came up to meet us and she was wearing a blue nursing uniform.
So, I said to both of them, “Together, you are very patriotic!” And I said, “God bless America.” And the hospital volunteer obviously, not happy with the the state of politics in our country said, “Our country can use all the help it can get right now.”
Her comment to me has led me to wonder why on one hand we can be so passionate about politics but on the other hand, it often leaves us so unsatisfied. I know of some people who are so set in their politics, that it is almost like a religion to them.
I think this is why it’s very wise to not talk about that understanding of politics around the Thanksgiving table this Thursday, unless you really enjoy eating your turkey and mashed potatoes with lots of tension in the air. So, when I say to talk politics around the table, that’s not the kind of political talk that I’m referring.
The kind of politics I’m talking about is based on this Sunday on the church calendar where we celebrate and honor Jesus as King. This affirmation of faith is what helps you and me to be thankful people.
Jesus, the King is the one who suffered, died, and rose again. Jesus, the true king over all creation offers the good news of self-giving, sacrificial and redeeming love for the world. That’s the political platform of Jesus, the King. That’s the kind of political talk that is at the heart of our faith.
This political news is what leads me to having a grateful heart in this season of Thanksgiving. We offered this gratitude in the singing of our opening hymn referring to our King. “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation! O my soul, praise him, for he is thy health and salvation! All ye who hear, now to his temple draw near; join me in glad adoration.”
If we must talk politics around the Thanksgiving table, let’s use this kind of political talk instead. The King of creation is our health and salvation.
This political news isn’t confined to the boundaries of a country. It’s not tied to a political party. It’s much bigger than that. It is the politics of a God who rules over all and whose reign is from coast to coast. All other authorities and powers are subject to this king of kings and lord of lords.
One of the members of a church I served was a retired US congressman who had a distinguished career from 1967 to 1993. When I would go visit him at his home, I would always walk over to his stairway where he had pictures with him next to a US president. I remember one in particular with him standing next to LBJ.
I had his funeral a couple of years after I got to know him. When I met with the family to prepare for the service, it was obvious that they were very proud of his work as one of the leading politicians in our country.
They specifically told me that he was known to do his best to respond to any mail that was sent to him. And he would often tell his staff that they were not to worry about their politics as much as in meeting their needs. And if they did anything less, they weren’t working for him anymore. It was refreshing to hear that he cared less about the politics of his party and more about meeting the needs of the people.
His funeral reminded me that even in our country’s contentious political climate, there are examples of elected officials who truly do care about making a difference in our world. And I was so proud that he was a member of my church even though I wasn’t a member of his political party.
But it sounds like we shared the same politics of our Creator God who offers self-giving, sacrificial, and redeeming love for a broken and hurting world through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I’m glad that Christ the King Sunday falls on this Sunday before Thanksgiving because it gives us the opportunity to be thankful for the King.
One of my favorite prayers is an old thanksgiving prayer that I like to reflect on during this week of Thanksgiving. I love this prayer because it beautifully sums up the good news of our faith and why we are called to be thankful for our king.
Let’s pray together:
Almighty God, Father of all mercies, we your unworthy servants give you humble thanks for all your goodness and loving-kindness to us and to all whom you have made. We bless you for our creation, preservation, and all the blessings of this life; but above all for your immeasurable love in the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ; for the means of grace, and for the hope of glory. And we pray, give us such an awareness of your mercies, that with truly thankful hearts we may show forth your praise, not only with our lips, but in our lives, by giving up our selves to your service, and by walking before you in holiness and righteousness all our days; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory throughout all ages. Amen.
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