“And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Go therefore…’” (Matthew 28:18-19).
Year after year, Christ the King Sunday concludes the ecclesiastical calendar. It is the last Sunday of the Church year – falling, this year, on November 23. One week later the calendar cycle begins again, with the First Sunday of Advent.
Christ the King Sunday is, I think, my favorite Sunday of the year. We have through the year marked the birth of our Savior, his parables and miracles, his atoning death and astounding resurrection, his ascension into heaven, his Great Commission, and the provision of his Holy Spirit. Christ the King Sunday is the cosmic exclamation point at the conclusion of the narrative. The Baby was born to be King. This Child, this Shepherd, this Teacher and Savior and Friend is the Ultimate Authority and Absolute Center of my life, and this world, and all things, at all times, everywhere.
I need to be reminded. Maybe you do, too. All too often, you see, the evidence would seem to the contrary. In a recent week, I read report of violence in the streets of Bolivia, insurgency in the mountains of Nepal, mayhem in the Middle East, and more. At a personal level, I noted that a dear friend was dying of cancer, another reported a tattered marriage, while still another solicited urgent prayer for an alienated daughter. And one-third of the world’s people remained ignorant of the saving gospel. And hundreds of thousands died that week, without an opportunity to hear the Good News and respond in faith. I was not impressed immediately that Christ is King. I need to be reminded.
On Christ the King Sunday we are reminded that there is One who has invaded the chaos and the sin of the world, and conquered. We are reminded that Jesus is the first and last word – the Alpha and Omega – whatever the blaring headlines, day-by-day. And we are reminded that the One who enlists us to make a difference in such a world – the One who call us, against all odds and evidence, to be gospel-salt and gospel-light in such a world – that One is King. This is the One who “accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will” (Ephesians 1:11). This is the One who has conquered, the One who provides, the One who lives, the One who may be trusted.
That is why I like Christ the King Sunday, of all the Sundays of the year. I am reminded of the One who calls me into mission. He is the King.