Thy Kingdom Come

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Marshall, Texas on Sunday November 21, 2010; Christ the King Sunday, the thirty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Jeremiah 23:1-6
Luke 1:68-79
Colossians 1:11-20
Luke 23:33-43

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen

“Thy Kingdom Come,” are there any more wonderful, glorious words in the English language than “Thy Kingdom Come?” I don’t think so. If there is any thing wrong with these three marvelous words it is the way we have been conditioned to say them.

You know what I mean, don’t you? We have been conditioned all our lives that while in church we are to speak in hushed tones and in a lower voice. There is a dour, almost sour way of speaking that we have used all our lives when joining in with the congregational responses from the bulletin. You know what I mean [in a deep voice] “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” It’s all right to laugh; I hope you laugh. It’s not our fault; it’s the way we’ve been conditioned. It’s the church tone that is left over from the Puritans who came over on the Mayflower and has continued ever since.

Shoot, I wonder if that tone was taught in catechism classes in Rome with Peter telling the kids to bow their heads and hush their voices. At any rate, back to those glorious words, “Thy Kingdom Come.”

The phrase “Kingdom of God” is used 32 times in Luke’s gospel. It is used more than any other phrase in this gospel. The first mention of the Kingdom of God is in the fourth chapter where Jesus says, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.”

In the list of blessings and woes, Luke’s version of The Sermon on the Mount he says, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.” When the children are being shooed away from the Lord he tells the world not to because the kingdom of God belongs to those such as these. He even says that it will be more difficult for the rich to enter the kingdom of God. He doesn’t say the rich are forsaken, but he surely implies that those who depend on their own ample resources will never have enough.

Jesus sent the twelve apostles into the world giving “them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” When they returned they reported all they had done. Scripture doesn’t tell us what they did or said, but since it doesn’t tell us they returned after a long unfruitful journey we can assume they returned with stories to tell.

In the same way, later he sends out the seventy-two to heal the sick and proclaim the kingdom of God is near. He gave them the word that whether his peace is accepted in these towns or not, the kingdom is still near.

When Jesus is asked what the kingdom of God is like, he tells them that it “is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough.” While Jesus warns all with ears to hear about the yeast of the Pharisees, there is one yeast that when mixed in the flour makes the dough rise in the most wonderful way.

We are told that “People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God” and those who do will be blessed.

Jesus was sent to proclaim the kingdom of God. He declared that the kingdom is for the poor and the young; those who are powerless in this world.

He sent the twelve into the world to preach the kingdom of God with power and authority, and then he gave the same charge to the seventy-two. He says that the kingdom will come like a pinch of yeast which works itself throughout the dough and people will come from all directions to take their place at the feast in the kingdom and they will be blessed.

Strangely, wondrously, gloriously; Luke’s gospel also shares this examination of Jesus by the Synagogue’s power elite: “Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, ‘The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, “Here it is,” or “There it is,” because the kingdom of God is within you.’”

We can go to the corners of the earth, leaving no stone unturned; we can consult all of the holiest people of every time and place; but ultimately the place where we will find the kingdom of God is within us. Jesus told this to the Pharisees, those who would have him killed; he told them, the kingdom of God is within you.”

Without a doubt, the one single thing Jesus says about the kingdom of God more than any other is that it is near. Jesus made sure that the people knew that the kingdom of God is near.

Now, this is important for us here and now. The kingdom of God is near. It’s not that the kingdom was near. Or that the kingdom will be near. Jesus didn’t even say that the kingdom was present with him and will return when he returns. Surely the kingdom is more obvious when he is the one talking about it, but that doesn’t replace the truth of the words of the Lord; the kingdom of God is near.

It will be coming next week when we begin to celebrate Advent, after all the word advent means coming. And it was near at the time in our reading, even as those who would have Jesus killed have seemingly succeeded. Jesus hangs on the cross, his body approaches death (not something resembling death but honest to goodness death), and the kingdom of God is near.

Above his head is a sign, a written notice reading “This is the King of the Jews.” It doesn’t say this in the New International Version, but other biblical manuscripts say that this sign was written in Greek, Latin, and Aramaic. It was written above him so that anyone who walked by, whether Greek, Roman, or Palestinian, whether a citizen or resident or traveler, anybody who happened upon this scene would know what Pilate thought of the Lord. This survives today too. If you have ever seen a crucifix with the letters “INRI” written on a sign above the head of the crucified Jesus you have seen how it survives. INRI are the initials for “Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews” in Latin.

Pilate wrote it and had it affixed without believing it was true. We believe. Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews, Christ the King, we believe.

Then as if passing him on the street, passing the Lord like a starlet on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one of the criminals looks over and says, “Say, aren’t you the Christ?” Then he asks for the crucifixion equivalent of the picture on Hollywood Boulevard, he demands (not begs, but demands) “Save yourself and save us!” Well at least he suggests Jesus save himself before taking care of them. That’s more generous than the many others would have been.

But then the other man, the second criminal reminds his comrade that they are all under he same sentence. They will meet the same fate; they’re going to die together. He also makes sure to remind his cohort that they deserve their sentence, Jesus does not.

Then he asks one thing. Remember me when you come into your kingdom. Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.

Then he is assured, today he will be in paradise with Jesus. This plea, Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom, has become a wonderful chorus, a chant created by the Taize community. Then again, if there is one thing wrong with this wonderful chant it is the way we have been conditioned to sing it. Yes, it is the way a chant is intended to be sung, but this somber request will never be confused with a praise chorus. Anyway…

We pray “Thy Kingdom Come.” We know the kingdom is near. We know the kingdom is within us. Yet, I dare say, if we dug into the deepest, darkest recesses of life on earth, it sure wouldn’t seem like the kingdom of God is anywhere near.

The newspaper reported that two men were arrested in connection to an October 4 home invasion in Karnack and were indicted by a grand jury Thursday for burglary of a habitation, two counts of aggravated kidnapping and unlawfully carrying a weapon by a felon. Where was the kingdom of God?

On Friday night at the high school field house, five players were ejected with 3:27 left in the first quarter following a brawl that broke out when two players, one from Marshall and the other from Longview, jumped on the floor for a loose ball. They were each ejected from the game along with four others who were ejected for following the altercation, which included players leaving each bench. Where was the kingdom of God?

On Tuesday a 16-year-old juvenile, who fired a gun into a home in September, pled “true” to deadly conduct charges Monday before County-Court-at-Law Judge Jim Ammerman. He got the maximum sentence of ten years for his crime. District Attorney Andrew Froelich recommended the maximum sentence, something he has never done before in a juvenile case, because of the number and escalating violence of the minor’s crimes. Where was the kingdom of God?

An innocent man is nailed to a cross, a victim of history certainly, but in truth he was a victim of no one and nothing. As the King, as the sovereign, he was in control of everything. He was in charge, even as he was being mocked by a simple thief. Where was the kingdom of God?

In each of these cases, and in every case in our lives, the kingdom of God is near. The kingdom of God is within us. As sure as it is here in this sanctuary this morning, the kingdom of God was present in the in the house that was being riddled with gunfire. The kingdom of God was on the basketball court and even with those two repeat offenders who broke into that home.
Perhaps even more so, the kingdom of God was with the victims of these heinous actions.

As much as it doesn’t seem to be true, this makes the truth even more compelling, the kingdom of God is near.

Theologians have a phrase for just this; it is “now and not yet.” Yes, the kingdom of God is here, it is near just as Jesus promised. At the same time, it sure seems to be beyond our reach as we read in the newspaper everyday. So this gives us an awesome choice.

Our choice is simple; we can choose to live as now or not yet. Friends, rejoice! The kingdom of God is near. This is what we are called to do. The kingdom of God is within us. The kingdom of God is for the poor and the children and the powerless. The kingdom of God is for the widows and the orphans. Blessed are even the rich when they depend on God and not their own devices.

The kingdom of God is for the sick and the infirm. The kingdom of God slowly and gently works its way through the world as yeast does the dough. People will come to hear the word of the kingdom of God and many will travel to spread the word; first Jesus, then the twelve, then the seventy-two and now us. Through all of this, let us rejoice that we will not say “‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.” It is within us.

So let us now, in our best outdoor voices, the one we use to call across the street to our friends and neighbors, the one we should use when praising God, let us shout out, “Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Kingdom Come.” The kingdom of God is near. Amen.