I seem to get a lot of pop song snippets when I'm working on Water Daily. Today it’s Sara Bareilles’ King of Anything, which I’ve heard a few times on the radio. “Who died and made you king of anything?” goes the chorus.
This coming Sunday ends the church year before we rev back up with Advent. On the last Sunday in “ordinary time” we honor Christ as King. King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And in the years when we focus on the Gospel according to Luke, the passage appointed for highlighting Jesus’ kingship is the crucifixion. Yep, right before Christmas.
Looking through this story offers us lots of opportunity to talk about what kind of king would be put to death on a cross with common criminals on either side. “Who died and made you king of anything?” is the attitude of the leaders standing, watching Jesus die. An inscription hangs over him, “This is the King of the Jews.” The soldiers supervising the execution mocked him, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!" Pilate had interrogated him about his kingship, and Jesus only gave him cryptic answers like, “My kingdom is not of this world.” No one knew what kind of king this could be.
Today, let’s just stay on the threshold of this story and think about Jesus as king. Is he king (boss, chief, higher power…) in your life? Let’s put ourselves into a feudal, monarchical system for just a moment – how do you feel about Jesus being the highest authority in your life? Are there any places, or topics, or people over which you’re unwilling to cede power to God? Why?
If you’re willing, have a conversation with Jesus about that. I do believe he will listen and not make a grab for what you have not offered. He’s an amazingly patient king that way…
And if you are willing to acknowledge Jesus as King in your life, where do you find the blessing in that?
I guess in our story the answer to Ms. Bareilles’ question, “Who died and made you king of anything?” is “Jesus did.”
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