CHRIST OUR KING

CHRIST OUR KING – Feast of Christ the King, Year C

            Everyone serves some kind of king or ruler. Some establish themselves as their king and become their own servants meeting their own needs. Some make their nation, their president, their company, their work their king. Some allow some addiction, some sin to be their ruler. Money is the king many serve. In the service of their king there is nothing some won’t do. Some make their possessions their king/ruler, and all their energy and loyalty is given to king possessions. Some even make evil and Satan their king, and loyally serve him and his kingdom of sin and evil.

            So there are kings to be served. We can, unless we have become enslaved, choose which king we are going to serve and to what extent. We tend to take on the characteristics, ways, attitudes, and qualities of those people or things we in some way serve or make our king/ruler.

            The Feast of Christ the King reminds us we are to be His subjects loyally serving Him. We are called to be part of His great spiritual and eternal kingdom, and reign. Any other person or thing is to be served to the extent that it helps us live as subjects of Christ the King. All our possessions need to, in some way, be used to make us servants of Christ our King. The self makes a good servant, but a poor king. Money and drugs are good servants, but poor rulers. A nation, a president or a cause can be served to the extent that they make us better servants of Christ.

            Any person, thing or cause ought to lose our loyalty and servanthood if they ask us, or lead us, to go against our service to Christ our eternal King. All the persons and things capable of becoming our kings need to be regulated by our servanthood and loyalty to Christ our King. They are all to be affected by our being subjects of Christ our King. Discerning and knowing how to be faithful to Christ demands prayer, attention to His teachings and commands in His Word, and fidelity in our mind, heart, attitudes and life. Knowing Christ leads to loving Him, and loving Him leads to serving Him.

            Those subjects who truly know Christ are less likely to substitute another king. Colossians gives some exalted descriptions of Christ as “…the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in Him were created all things…” The kingdom of Jesus is a spiritual one of justice, truth, love, peace, and life. No earthly king can even be compared to Him or His kingdom. Serving Christ will make us more like the qualities and marks of His kingdom. For we do become like the kings we serve.

            Many are like the good thief on the cross. They want to serve all the other kings first, before giving their service and loyalty to Christ the King. Better to say earlier in one’s life, rather than at the end: “Jesus, remember me when your come into your kingdom”. Those who repent at the end of course can get into the kingdom. But at the same time, they have missed the joy, peace and greatness of being Christ’s servant on earth in the service of His Eternal Kingdom. The Feast of Christ our King is a time to renew our allegiance to serving Christ in our life, and doing with the help of His Spirit the works of justice, peace, love and truth.

            There are consequences for ourselves and for others depending on which king or kings we choose to serve in our life. Our prisons are filled with people who chose to follow the kings of drugs, sex, power, money, and sin of all kinds, which demanded they serve in a certain way. Some give away their dignity, their honor, and even their soul in the service of their king. They will even say about some evil they were called upon to do: “This is what I had to do to be successful in business…entertainment…law”. How sad when someone chooses to make something less than themselves their god! Their choice in the end, no matter how many good things come to them, has to end in some form of destruction.

            Our churches, seminaries, convents, hospitals, institutions, governments, schools, homes, and market places fortunately have many people who serve Christ the King. Their works lead to greater life for them and others. Their works go into eternity. “Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.”

            Let us serve Christ!

Reflection from Divine Mercy # 1475

“I strive for the greatest perfection possible in order to be useful to the Church. The sanctity or the fall of each individual soul has an effect upon the whole Church.”