{"id":9616,"date":"2003-11-07T19:49:52","date_gmt":"2003-11-07T18:49:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theologie.whp.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/?p=9616"},"modified":"2025-05-09T10:02:41","modified_gmt":"2025-05-09T08:02:41","slug":"revelations-14-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/revelations-14-5\/","title":{"rendered":"John 18:33\u201337"},"content":{"rendered":"

Who Is Your King? | Christ the King Sunday | 23rd November 2003 |<\/strong> John 18:33\u201337 |\u00a0Walter W. Harms |<\/h3>\n

Her perfume is intoxicating! The spicy pumpkin pie you will eat this
\nThursday is a feast for the taste buds. Christ Jesus is your King! All
\nthree are wonderful statements, unless. … Unless perfume irritates
\nyou and you are allergic to it. Unless your taste buds have been ruined
\nthrough one cause or another and pie tastes like mud. Unless you don’t
\nconsider Jesus your King and then you are on your own.<\/p>\n

Now it is not a matter of heaven or hell whether you know this is Christ
\nthe King Sunday or not. I am old enough to remember when the last Sunday
\nof the Church year was called, the Day of Humiliation and Prayer–a time
\nto reflect on our coming judgment at the hand of God. I shall never forget
\nthe hymn, Dies Irae, Day of wrath, O day of mourning! See fulfilled the
\nProphet’s warning, Heav’n and earth in ashes burning. Almost scary enough
\nto make a person less than forward to the final day of dissolution of
\nthis world. And change your habits? Don’t think I did.<\/p>\n

Now the church wants you to hear this greeting. „Grace to you and
\npeace. . . from Jesus Christ. . .the ruler of kings on earth.“ (Rev.
\n1:4-5). This is its concluding testimony of who Jesus Christ is for us
\nand our world. This, the final Sunday of this Church Year ends with Christ
\nbeing hailed as king.<\/p>\n

Next week we begin the time of Advent, the time we journey to Bethlehem.
\nBy calling this Christ the King Sunday, „the liturgy of the church
\nunderscores the convergence, the intersection, of kingdoms“ (John
\nB. Rogers, Jr.). Today we see Jesus before Pilate in the Gospel, calling
\nhimself a king. Before he was born a decree from Caesar Augustus brought
\na Jewish couple from Nazareth to Bethlehem, a corner of Caesar’s vast
\nRoman empire. After his birth, according to tradition, kings from the
\nEast came to worship. Who? The newborn „king of the Jews.“ The
\nsame epitaph, by the way, our Pilate put above the cross of Jesus. This
\ncalling of Jesus, the king of the Jews caused another king, Herod the
\nGreat to high suspicion and the killing of the Holy Innocents of Bethlehem,
\ntwo years and younger.<\/p>\n

It appears that there is a great suspicion among kings when Jesus is
\ncalled king. Pilate was afraid his king, Caesar in Rome would be displeased
\nif this King of the Jews was not silenced. Although they despised and
\nrejected Caesar as having any real authority over them, when the chips
\nwere down, the leaders of the Jews shouted that they had no king but
\nCaesar and ushered Jesus swiftly as possible to the cross and extinction,
\nand they hoped the end of that king and his kingdom.<\/p>\n

We? What do we know about kings? We see the pageantry of the royalty
\nof England as well as hearing about their immoral habits and behavior.
\nWe know they are only for show and moral leadership, as we laugh and
\nsmile (or is it snicker?), over their shenanigans.
\nWe, with those Jews back in Jesus‘ time, day, say what? „We have
\nno king but . . .! Our country was founded on the principle that we would
\nnot have any autocratic person, as a king to lead us. We reject all imposed
\nauthority on our lives, and live free, democratic lives in this republic
\nof ours. Our reply is often: we have no king over us! Or perhaps more
\nrealistically our shout is: „I am the king, the captain of my fate
\nand destiny.“<\/p>\n

And so we often are. Tragically, of course.<\/p>\n

What does it mean to have a king? There was two kinds of kings. One
\nlike Pilate in the Good News reading for today. And there is Jesus.<\/p>\n

Pilate views Jesus as people of power always view goodness, with contempt,
\nsome fear, a little admiration and some uneasiness as to what this person
\nJesus really is all about. His question: Are you the king of the Jews?
\nWas not a moral or religious question. It was political: How much of
\na threat are you, Jesus, to Rome, to me? Are you a harmless dreamer?
\nA threat to what I want and the social order?<\/p>\n

Pilate’s question is our question, and it is always one that deals with
\ncontrol of my life. It is always the power issue. Are you a friend, Jesus,
\nthe enemy?<\/p>\n

Are you going to cost me, Jesus? In the pocketbook where it will hurt?
\nAm I going to have to view people differently? Are you, Jesus, going
\nto have to be put into the equation when I decide what I want to do?
\nWhat difference does it make whether you are consulted or not? Am I going
\nto have to love my enemies? Will I have to speak of you to others because
\nyou love them as you love me?<\/p>\n

For about thirty years, I instructed young people, 15 and 16 year olds
\nfor the Rite of Confirmation in the Lutheran Church. The Sixth Commandment
\nwas always a big deal. Does it make any difference what kind of person
\nyou marry? After all, many of you found out that your judgment was not
\nso good after all and you ended up in divorce. When I said that I thought
\nthey should see whether the person they were getting involved with was
\na worshiping Christian (not a Christian in name only), most of them thought
\nI was nuts, because beauty and sexual attractions were most important.<\/p>\n

Who is king? King of my life? So, we’ve made mistakes. We bowed before
\nthe kings of pleasure, leisure, opulence, sensuality, money, personal
\npower, control and, who knows how many more? More kings than all of the
\nterritory of Germany had when Luther was alive.<\/p>\n

If Jesus is king, what is he going to do about it? Is it going to be
\nDies Irae all over again for me? Is God’s judgment what I am experiencing
\nnow and in my world in any or all of the problems, ailments, diseases,
\nor tragedies? Why not create a world without moral judgment, without
\nrules, with tolerance for all?<\/p>\n

Can we not overthrow this monarchy of Jesus and live as we want? We
\nhave, brothers and sisters, we have. It is that chaos, that lost-ness,
\nthat senseless, ruthless, faithless, heartless that is our society today.
\nWhen the King is disregarded and seems to be gone, we are given over
\nto the tyranny of a depraved mind, which kills in order to bring peace,
\nwhich if filled with every kind of evil, greed and depravity.<\/p>\n

Am I talking about you and me who are Christians? In so far that Christ
\nJesus is not our King, all of this and more is true of us as well. God’s
\njudgment is to let us go our own way, which is like letting a spaniel
\nout in my back yard. There are so many scents back there. Scents of deer,
\ndogs, fox, possums, coyotes, raccoons, and more that the spaniel would
\nnever return, lost, gone and without hope. Not knowing where food, shelter,
\nand care are.<\/p>\n

So it might be good to have Jesus as King? What kind of a king is he?
\nHere is the shocker: Not like kings of this world, his kingly work for
\nwhich he was sent into this world by God and for which he was born is
\nto testify to the truth!<\/p>\n

„Everyone,“ Jesus says, „who belongs to the truth listens
\nto my voice.“<\/p>\n

What is the truth? The truth I need to hear, the truth that will give
\nme healing, bring me back home, give light to my eyes scarred by the
\nsights and pleasures of this world, satisfies the longings of mind, heart,
\nand spirit?<\/p>\n

The truth is that Jesus came not to condemn the world, but that the
\nworld, that is, the people of the world should live, really live through
\ntrusting in him. The truth is that God so loved the world that when you
\nbelieve in Jesus you will not live a meaningless life but live forever.
\nThe truth is that grace and peace come to us alone through Jesus. The
\ntruth is that the King must die to usher in his kingdom that is not of
\nthis world.<\/p>\n

Through the death of the King, all persons can come to Jesus and find
\nrest for their spirits and a release from burdens. Jesus is the only
\nWay, the only Truth, and thus the only way to be alive now and forever.
\nHe is Truth!<\/p>\n

Jesus is King. Is he your king? I am afraid that all of us, including
\nmyself, try to live in a world, where I can pay him as little attention
\nas possible. Salute him perhaps on Sundays or high holy days. The rest
\nof the time, I want to live as I please. A sorry state of disharmony
\nfor me and my world.<\/p>\n

So, Jesus, be my king. Let your kingdom come into my life, and if that
\nmeans I will be canon fodder or need to be run over to be changed, do
\nit. Do it because you are my king.<\/p>\n

So to him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and
\nmade us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be
\nglory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.<\/p>\n

Look! He is coming with the clouds; every eye will see him even those
\nwho pierced him and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wail.
\nSo it is to be. Amen<\/p>\n

Every knee shall bow before him, every knee, and every tongue will confess
\nhe is King to the glory of God the Father.<\/p>\n

So, who is your King? Amen.<\/p>\n

\n

Walter W. Harms
\nwaltpast @AOL.com<\/a>
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Who Is Your King? | Christ the King Sunday | 23rd November 2003 | John 18:33\u201337 |\u00a0Walter W. Harms | Her perfume is intoxicating! The spicy pumpkin pie you will eat this Thursday is a feast for the taste buds. Christ Jesus is your King! All three are wonderful statements, unless. … Unless perfume irritates […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13242,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[727,157,853,108,110,597,349,3,109,1174],"tags":[],"beitragende":[],"predigtform":[],"predigtreihe":[],"bibelstelle":[],"class_list":["post-9616","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archiv","category-beitragende","category-bibel","category-current","category-engl","category-ewigkeits-totensonntag","category-kasus","category-nt","category-predigten","category-walter-w-harms"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9616","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9616"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9616\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23843,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9616\/revisions\/23843"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9616"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9616"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9616"},{"taxonomy":"beitragende","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/beitragende?post=9616"},{"taxonomy":"predigtform","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/predigtform?post=9616"},{"taxonomy":"predigtreihe","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/predigtreihe?post=9616"},{"taxonomy":"bibelstelle","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theologie.uzh.ch\/apps\/gpi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bibelstelle?post=9616"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}