Meeting Christ the King

A sermon preached with the people of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Oakland, California.

This morning we find Jesus still in Jerusalem, and still trying to explain this coming Kingdom of Heaven to us. It seems like Jesus knows that our human languages are inadequate when it comes to talking about God.

And so he gets creative. He uses parables; he uses, similes and metaphors. He fills his stories with male characters and female characters; poor and rich characters.

Two weeks ago, he told us a strange story about bridesmaids forgetting oil for their lamps, and then last week we heard one about a master with some unusual money lending practices.

And today, Jesus brings us: sheep. And goats. And he tells us it will be like this:

There will be a monarch – sitting on a throne. And all the nations of the world will gather like subjects before him. And then the monarch will be like a shepherd, and the nations like sheep and goats – and he’ll make sure the blessed sheep are on the right and the cursed goats are on the left.

But remember – the sheep and goats are nations. This is not about individuals. This is about herds. It’s about the collective. It’s about us as nations, as cultures, as peoples and about our values, attitudes and our practices. About the things we allow to happen in this world. And things we don’t.

The values of what we might call “sheepness” anticipate the Kingdom of Heaven. Love, care, collaboration, peace.

And the values of what we might call “goatness” deny the coming Kingdom of Heaven.

You can probably think of many examples of goatness. Ones that come to my mind are white supremacy, misogyny, greed and hyper-individualism. Xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, classism, racism.

These are the things that will be thrown to the fire. Human systems of power, control, violence and oppression. [whispers] We might also call these things “sin.”

And so, Jesus tells us, in so many ways,, that we should get ready. And the work starts with being aware of these forces at work in our lives. Aware of the way we partake in and benefit from them.

And taking small steps to free ourselves and others from those systems where and when we can. So, maybe we march, we advocate, we organize, we learn, we listen, we conserve, and confess.

And we feed, we welcome, we clothe, we care and we visit.

Not because this is some kind of cartoon nightmare heaven and hell reality show competition, and we are each individually storing up points for heaven or demerits for hellfire.

But because it’s practice. These things we do for ourselves, one another, and our whole world are practice for living in this age to come. Put another way, this is living in hope. Doing our best to make this world – even our tiny little corner of the world – look a little more like that world Jesus is teaching us about. A little more “sheepy.”

As I say these words, I think about the meals prepared by our VISION project volunteers. I think about the coats, blankets, socks and shoes being collected for unhoused neighbors. I think about St. John’s long history advocating for justice in the wider community with Genesis. And I think of the many, many stories I have been hearing in conversations with you these last two weeks; stories of the signature fierce St. John’s brand of love and care for those who are sick, grieving, hurt, or in any kind of trouble.

This morning Jesus tells us that we are not standing in for him when we care for one another; for our neighbors. We are meeting him. We are serving him. As a grieving friend, a prisoner, a patient, an unhoused person, an overwhelmed parent, a convicted prisoner. Funny — none of those sound much like a monarch to me.

Which brings me back to that thing Jesus knows about us. And our inadequate language.

It is that inadequacy, I think, that bring us together this morning to celebrate the feast of “Christ the King.” And I do know the history — this feast day was established with more than compelling reasoning as the world fought against spreading fascism, and the church wished to remind us that there is only one true power; God. And still – the moniker gives me pause when it rolls around each year. It even makes me chuckle. It just sounds a bit triumphalist, a bit royalist, a bit gendered.

As Biblical Scholar the Rev. Dr. Wil Gafney put it: “The Church traditionally calls this Sunday Christ the King. Some call it the Reign of Christ. And a whole bunch of us don’t know what to call it. The word king just sticks in the craw. It comes with so much baggage.”

It is the case that our Gospel accounts use this king and kingdom language all the time.  

But, Gafney adds, “at every turn Jesus says something to the effect of that’s not what I mean by kingdom. He and his biographers used the old language, the language with which folk were most familiar to usher in a world view that transcends both this world and its deeply impoverished language.”

Mary Mother of God sings to us that in this time to come – this kingdom, or commonwealth, or nation, or world, or plane, or field, or territory, or principality, or cosmos of God — the rich will be sent away empty, the hungry will be full.

And, a God who looks like the “least of these” will be something like a king.

In the name of Christ

The King

The Saviour

The Redeemer

The Incarnate Word

The Shepherd;

Teacher

Noticer

Healer

Calmer of Waves

Caretaker

Reconciler

Interpreter of Scripture

Conversationalist

Storyteller

Food Preparer

Fish Catching Strategist

Preacher

Welcome Guest

Guest welcomer

Turner of Tables

Mourner of Friends

Crosser of Boundaries

Rejector of Earthly Crowns

Amen.