Christ the King 30.10.16
Politics is always in the news - current issues, opinion polls, preferred leaders; and just now the American Presidential election is causing a lot of interest. A lot of speculation takes place about who is going to run a country.
If people are upset with the candidates for the top positions it could be said to be their own fault. The candidates in many ways reflect the values of the people.
Imagine a country which was almost entirely Catholic in identity and practice. We would then expect a higher standard of political leaders. We would not have the corruption, internal fighting, and lying we have now.
People lie in politics because they lie everywhere else; if people who seek to rule are greedy and grasping it is for the same reason people in general are greedy and grasping.
It does not have to be so, and is definitely not so in one government at least. This is the government that comes from Heaven itself – the rule of Christ the King.
To get to this position He did not need to win an election. His power comes from His being God, and therefore creating the world and keeping it in being. This would be enough to establish absolute authority, but there is more still.
His power comes also from His human nature, triumphing over sin and death, and earning the right to rule all other humans from this pivotal role that He holds.
He has the keys of life and death in His hands; no other human ruler could stand before Him, much less overrule Him.
Whether we live or die eternally, depends upon the relationship we have with this one Person.
He is Somebody, if anyone ever was!
In this case it is not the ruler being like the people he governs, coming up from the ranks. This ruler sets His own standards, and then offers to lift the people to His level.
We derive our values from Him; not He from us. His rule is one of complete integrity, every virtue overflowing.
If we would heed His authority we would share in those virtues, we would be more like He is: honest, kind, forgiving, loving, generous, etc.
Our whole society would be transformed to look like Heaven. The Kingdom of heaven will have come among us.
It is there for us to discover, to unearth, as we bring our lives into subjection to the true King.
He wants us to discover Him through obedience.
He could show Himself to the world and force obedience, but He wants us to discover it for ourselves.
A light has dawned. As the sun rises to the middle of the sky and increases in heat and light, so Christ becomes more and more prominent as more people give Him allegiance.
We must do our bit to make Him known. Politicians have their volunteers who help with the advertising. We must do some advertising for Jesus Christ, most of all by the way we live.
If we cannot convince others we can at least guarantee our own salvation, and make a little bit of heaven in our own sphere.
The surrounding world may be crazy, but not my house! We can go against the tide.
It is our privilege to know Him; now we must make Him known, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, who restores all things in Himself, and brings His kingdom among us.
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