November
24, 2013 - Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church - Mechanicsburg, PA
“And the people
stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at Him, saying, ‘He saved others;
let Him save Himself, if He is the Christ of God, His Chosen One!’ The soldiers also
mocked Him, coming up and offering Him sour wine and saying, ‘If You are the
King of the Jews, save Yourself!’”
This Sunday
brings the Church Year to its close. It’s somewhat like New Year’s Eve. But
unlike the end of the calendar year, the focus of this day is not on restarting
on January 1. Instead, the Church is presented with the message of the end of
all earthly things, but the beginning of a new era, the life of the world to
come. As part of that message, those who hear the Scripture Readings are led to
consider the Kingship of Christ, His dominion over all things in heaven and on
earth, a dominion that will be seen fully in the next age.
But prior to
discussing the Kingship of Christ at the last day and in eternity, there needs
to be an examination of what His kingship looked like here on earth. There is a
deep contrast between the two. That contrast is seen in the Scripture Readings
for today. This contrast is necessary. And the reason for its existence must be
considered. It must be, because the contrast between the way Christ’s kingship
looked here on earth and how it will be in eternity has everything to do with
the way that salvation comes to you.
After hearing the Gospel Reading for today, there was little in it that would be labeled majestic. The crucifixion of a man for rebellion is anything but majestic. But that is what you heard was happening to Jesus. Jesus was hanging naked in shame for all to see. He was slowly suffocating in the throes of pain. He was ridiculed and reviled by those who would pass by and watch the gruesome spectacle. Even the government piles on, posting a sign above Jesus’ head: “This is the King of the Jews.” With that sign, Pilate is basically asking the people of Jerusalem: “Do you want to see your king? Well there He is. Behold the Man and see if you still dare to claim Him as your leader.”
That depiction of
a crucified man is nothing that anyone would normally identify as their hope,
as their leader, as their king. And yet, you will confess that you believe in “Jesus
Christ, [God’s] only Son, our Lord.” You claim that this Man who was pinned to
a crossbeam and left to die suspended above a garbage heap is your Lord, your
King. Not only do you say that He is your monarch, but you have ascribed all
things majestic to Him: “Power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and
blessing and glory are His.”
It seems
implausible for you to do so. Throughout Jesus’ earthly life, there was little
that would lead anyone to deem Him as royal. In a matter of weeks as the new
Church Year begins, you will recall His birth in a stable. Later you will hear
how His own villagers rejected Him. Even after miracles would show His power
and ability, Jesus would prohibit the crowds from making Him king. And in the
great crescendo of His earthly life, you will see Jesus enter Jerusalem on a
magnificent steed of a donkey colt. All this leading up to the Friday afternoon
of ignominious death outside the capital of Judea.
“This is the King
of the Jews?” If so, who would want Him? That is
the reaction that the world gives to your claims. It is the reaction that you
actually have in your own sinfulness. Who wants a King like that? Who wants a
Monarch of Modesty, a Prince of Poverty, a Lord of Limitation? And when that
same modesty, poverty, humility is demanded of you, while those who don’t
follow Jesus enjoy greatness, the same complaints are made that the prophet
Malachi spoke of: "It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our
keeping His charge or of walking as in mourning before the Lord of hosts? And
now we call the arrogant blessed. Evildoers not only prosper but they put God
to the test and they escape."
The eyes of the
world see the crucified Jesus. Seeing that pitiful spectacle leads to the
conclusion: “It is vain to serve and follow Him.” Indeed it is vain, worthless,
and pointless to follow a man whose life leads to crucifixion and whose path
leads to powerlessness. And yet, you follow. You follow that Man and claim Him
as King. You do so, not of compulsion, but voluntarily. You freely travel the
path of discipleship, even with all its drawbacks. You look at the Crucified
Christ and do not scoff at Him or mock Him, but unquestionably point to Him as
your Lord.
But how can you
do so? How can you confess the opposite of what your senses behold? You do so
as there is trust what has been revealed, not what you apprehend by sight. As
the apostle puts it: “We walk by faith, not by sight.” By faith, you lay
claim to Jesus as Lord. That is, you lay claim to the whole Jesus as Lord. For
what has been revealed did not end with the events of Good Friday. No, you have
been told much more, much more about that Jesus who was crucified.
You heard that
more about the identity of the crucified Jesus in the Scripture Readings for
this day. It was declared to you in today’s Epistle Reading. The suspended,
hanging Jesus is the Lord of all, because there was purpose in His death,
something great achieved by it. That is what Paul explains to you: “For in
[Jesus] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through Him to
reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by
the blood of His cross.”
The fullness of
God dwelled in a Man? God reconciled heaven and earth to Himself through that
Man’s crucifixion? Peace is given through violent death? The claims seem as
outlandish as claiming a condemned criminal as king. But that reality is not
apprehended by your sense or reason. It must be revealed and then believed by
faith. And that has happened for you. That is why you can hear the Gospel
account this morning and say that the inscription above Jesus’ head was not
satirical, but a statement of truth: “This is the King of the Jews.” And
you turn those insults of the scoffers and mockers into ascriptions of praise.
You don’t ridicule Jesus by calling for Him to save Himself, but stare in awe
and wonder as His giving Himself in sacrifice brings us salvation.
As mentioned
earlier, the theme of this day is the contrast between Christ’s earthly
kingship and His eternal majesty. His kingship here on earth was marked by
humility and service. It claimed no military prowess or international prestige
or financial fortune. As Jesus would reply to Pilate: “My Kingdom is not of
this world.” It can’t be measured in those terms. It isn’t meant for this
age. No, it is eternal and everlasting, a majesty hidden for now, but will be
revealed for all to see.
That is what your
faith lays hold of, what your discipleship points us toward. You are not caught
up in the things of this world, but look forward to the life of the world to
come. You identify yourselves as Jesus’ subjects, confessing what has been
revealed to you: “[The Father] has delivered us from the domain of darkness
and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have
redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” Even in the midst of this humbleness,
this group of eighty or so gathered around the words of Jesus that the world
considers simple and His sacraments that the world mocks as powerless, you make
that claim. For you no longer measure everything by sense, but by faith. You
see the Crucified and Risen Jesus and point to Him as your Lord.
So you make your
confession on this day. With the apostle Paul, you say: “He is the image of
the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were
created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or
dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for
Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. And He
is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from
the dead, that in everything He might be preeminent.”
By the Spirit,
you say: “Jesus Christ is Lord.” And in that confession is your
salvation. So it has been revealed to you, and so you believe. May you remain
firm in that confession, despite whatever the world may say and whatever your
eyes may see. Look always at that Crucified Jesus as the Lord of Lords, always
fearing Him and esteeming His name--the identity revealed in the Scriptures.
Come with the request to be remembered when He comes into His eternal kingdom.
And when the Crucified and Risen Jesus returns in glory, He will say to you: “Truly,
today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
+ In the Name of the Father and of
the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
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