The Sunday of Christ the King
Prelude, Welcome, and Information Hymn #408 Come, Thou Almighty King |
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. And also with you. Psalm: Psalm 93 The Lord is king, he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed, he is girded with strength. He has established the world; it shall never be moved; your throne is established from of old; you are from everlasting. The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring. More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters, more majestic than the waves of the sea, majestic on high is the Lord! Your decrees are very sure; holiness befits your house, O Lord, forevermore. |
The Lord be with you. And also with you. Let us pray. Almighty and ever-living God, you anointed our beloved Son to be priest and sovereign forever. Grant that all the people of the earth, now divided by the power of sin, may be united by the glorious and gentle rule of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. |
Reading: Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14
A reading from the book of Daniel
9As 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. 10A 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. 13As 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. 14To 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.
The Word of the Lord
Reading: Revelation 1:4b-8
A reading from the book of Revelation
4John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, 5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, 6and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7Look! He is coming with the clouds; every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail. So it is to be. Amen. 8“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
The Word of the Lord.
Gospel Verse:
Alleluia. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David. Alleluia! (Mark 11:9)
Gospel Reading: John 18:33-37
A reading from the Gospel of John
33Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?” 35Pilate 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?” 36Jesus 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.” 37Pilate 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.”
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise to you, O Christ.
Sermon (added at the end of the document)
Hymn #434 Jesus Shall Reign
Thanks and Offertory
Prayers of the Church:
Trusting Jesus’ promise that we will be heard, we offer our prayers for the world God loves, the church God calls, and for all people according to their needs.
[Short pause]
Loving God, Jesus is a challenge. We confess that we have too often turned our back on the way of Jesus, in order to follow the way of Pilate. Forgive our stubborn fear and self-serving habits. God who is with us, Hear our prayer.
Loving God, Jesus is a challenge. We confess that we have a hard time seeing the way of Jesus. Our world clamours for attention; our insecurity interferes with our listening; our lives reflect different priorities. Open our eyes, our ears, and our hearts, that we may learn the new way that Jesus brings. God who is with us, Hear our prayer.
Loving God, Jesus is a challenge. You call all of creation into a new relationship, one based on loving service and humble gratitude. Give us the willing faith to respond to this call, to value your creation, to live lightly on the earth, to assist those in need, to form new partnerships, and demonstrate compassion with all. God who is with us, Hear our prayer.
Loving God, Jesus is a challenge. Inspire your church to turn our back on Pilate’s power, to change direction, to embrace weakness, to admit our own neediness, and discover your presence in the middle of our fog. God who is with us,
Hear our prayer.
Loving God, Jesus is a challenge. We are called to go where there is sickness, loneliness, hunger and death. We ask for the faith to support those who are hurting, especially the victims of the flooding in BC, the Land Protectors in Huston, BC, those suffering from Covid, and all we name before you.
[Long pause] Bless Redeemer, London – Pastor Katherine Gohm
God who is with us, Hear our prayer.
Loving God, Jesus is a challenge. Open us to being confronted; move us to adapt to new situations; fill us with hope under the gentle rule of Jesus. God who is with us,
Hear our prayer.
P – Into your hands we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in your mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Hymn #490 Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence
The Lord’s Prayer
Finally let us pray for all things as our Lord would have us ask:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power,
and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Closing prayer
Almighty God,
you have made us a royal priesthood
in the kingdom of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Make known his victory through us, we pray,
that all the world may see his light.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ the Lord. Amen.
Hymn #439 Soon and Very Soon
Benediction and Sending
The Lord bless us and keep us.
The Lord make his face shine on us and be gracious to us.
The Lord look upon us with favor and + give us peace.
Amen.
Go in peace. Serve the Lord. Thanks be to God!
We invite you to the in-person services on the following dates:
· November 28
· December 12 & December 24 (7pm – Christmas Eve)
· January 9 & January 23, 2022
My kingdom is not from this world.
· When we think of kings, kingdoms, and royalty, we usually imagine scenes of marching soldiers, cheering crowds, fairy tale carriages, complete with crowns, royal robes, and fancy uniforms. There are places in the Scripture that put forward those images to depict the Kingdom of God. The parable called the “Little Apocalypse” in Matthew, which begins in chapter 25 at verse 31 uses some familiar images: When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him… What happens after that is a complete surprise.
· Here today, John depicts Jesus as a different sort of king. Jesus stands before Pilate as a prisoner who had endured beatings and humiliation. Still he speaks to Pilate as at least an equal, affirming that he is a king, but not a pretender to some earthly throne. (There have been plenty of those throughout history.) He says his kingdom is not from this world.
· Over the years, some have taken this to mean that the Kingdom of God has little or nothing to do with the world we all live in. It is seen as some heavenly reality that is to come in some misty future. Some also see it as something that can be identified with a certain nation or ideology or political system. Some even wish to see it ushered in by force of arms.
· Yes, Jesus did say his kingdom was not from here. We can take from his words that his kingdom is not like the kingdoms of this world, centered on time, place, and personality. He did not seek power or glory but offered himself in humble service for what the world really needed and still needs. Those who seek power or glory or their own version of the truth at the expense of others will reject the Kingdom that Jesus speaks of.
· His is not a kingdom of worldly power or earthly glory or victorious trophies. His kingdom is quite different; it is a kingdom of values, values that are often in total opposition to the values of the societies around his followers. Our values as Christians are formed by the teachings of Jesus Christ and so our own values are not from here.
· We follow a king whose throne is a cross, whose crown is a woven cap of thorns, and whose followers were forgiven although they deserted him. We follow a king who even forgave his executioners. Those values are not from here.
· To tell the truth, the values of Jesus’ kingdom are so different from the values that surround us that we cannot fully understand them. We don’t love as we should. We don’t always serve with humility. We sometimes make accommodations to survive. It is under these circumstances that we face the least understood value of Jesus’ kingdom: forgiveness and reconciliation. Truly not from this world.
· Holding to Jesus’ kingdom’s values may look like losing and failure at times. If it does, cling to that most topsy-turvy symbol of the kingdom of Jesus… the cross, where God showed just how far love, grace, and mercy would go.
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.”
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