Christ The King Is... And Is Coming.

On this day in the liturgical calendar, we celebrate Christ the King Sunday. It is the last Sunday of the church year. (Next Sunday, the first Sunday of Advent, begins the 2012-13 church year.)

Christ the King Sunday is particularly meaningful for me this year. Perhaps this is because of the recency of the Kingdom Focus project (with Metro West Church of the Nazarene), which focused on Scripture passages that discuss the kingdom of God, Jesus as King, His power, His reign, and His rule.

Since October I have been mindful of a particular passage from the Old Testament, First Samuel 5, where the Philistines capture the ark of God and place it next to a statue of Dagon. Dagon was the Philistines' god, commonly represented by the image of a man from the torso up and the image of a fish from the torso down. It was their god of grain and fish-- a representation of sustenance, multiplication, and abundance in land and sea.

In the First Samuel 5 passage the presence and power of God destroys the statue of Dagon, decapitating it and severing its hands. It is a message from the Sovereign God to the Philistines then, and to us now: we dare not give any person or thing "equal footing" with God. He says to the Philistines and to us, I alone sit as King over all. Though you created this statue of Dagon and ascribed it worth, its head cannot think and its hands cannot act. It is I who am Lord of grain and fish and all else.

As a parallel, the book of Isaiah well captures the theme of God as our exclusive source of all things good. In chapter 42, the first several verses speak of the characteristics of the coming Messiah. But then, in verse 8, God says: "I am Yahweh! That is My name. And My glory I will not give to another, nor my praise to idols." In the New Testament, we see in Jesus's high priestly prayer (John 17:1-5) that He is one who shares in the glory of the Father-- an evidence that Jesus is Yahweh, Reigning King of Glory. Indeed He and the Father are one.

I hope this permits us to see, in a whole new light, the significance of Jesus's multiplication of loaves and fishes recorded on two separate occasions in the New Testament (see Mark 6:30-44 and 8:1-8). It was more than just two free meals. It was a reminder from the King: I am still Lord of grain and fish and all else. I am the One who sustains you. Don't set your devotion on anyone or anything else but Me.

On this Christ the King Sunday, let us be extremely careful to devote our corporate worship to Jesus and to Him alone. The ark of God cannot and will not tolerate being combined with other "sources" of sustenance. We are called to exclusivity. Let us avoid the spirit of Dagon. We carry God's Presence, bearing the burden and weight of His glory, so that we might be changed from glory to glory.

But whenever a person turns [in repentance] to the Lord, the veil is stripped off and taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (emancipation from bondage, freedom). And all of us, as with unveiled face, [because we] continued to behold [in the Word of God] as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are constantly being transfigured into His very own image in ever increasing splendor and from one degree of glory to another; [for this comes] from the Lord [Who is] the Spirit. (Second Corinthians 3:16-18, the Amplified Bible)

What's In Your Back Pocket?

Pastor Shane, in discussing his previous life as a gang member, said (and I paraphrase) "I was volunteering as a church usher, but I still had my gang's red flag in my back pocket."

Is that our predicament? Do we stand to serve the Lord, but at the same time we harbor an allegiance to some person, group, or system that stands in opposition to God's word?

I have been reflecting on Shane's statement, and have been considering it in light of the Philistines' capture of the ark of God and their subsequent placement of the ark in the house of their god Dagon. Here are a few warnings for us to consider today-- especially those of us who have ministry assignments as volunteers or staff members.

You don't have to be a Christian to appropriate the ark of God. There are many who are unapologetically unsaved-- but they can write excellent Bible commentaries, sing Christian songs in a way that makes you want to worship God, et cetera. Just because someone appears spiritually gifted does not mean their hearts are submitted to the Spirit of God.

You don't always die immediately for doing the wrong thing. In First Samuel 5 we see that the Philistines were able to transport the ark of God into their own community, carry it into the temple of their idol, set it next to their idol... and not one of those persons was struck dead. Just because someone is "unpunished" does not mean they are doing the right thing.

You are given warnings before God acts. For the Philistines, their warning was expressed through the statue of Dagon over a period of two days: through the statue bowing before the ark of God on the first day, then through the statue being decapitated and losing its hands on the second day. Had they returned the ark immediately, they would not have had to suffer through months of torment.

How are we to respond?

Re-assessment: Do we belong to God, or are we merely appropriating his Presence while continuing to serve our own idols? Let us pray and ask Jesus to show us where we stand.

Repentance and Renunciation: We are called to live in complete obedience to the Spirit of Christ. Have we given ourselves completely to Him, or are there areas of our lives where we still refuse to give Him free rein? He calls us to let go of all idols and cling to Him.

Returning: We "return and keep returning" to worship the Living God. Not just carrying His name, but taking on the chabod-- being living expressions of His character, His love, and His grace.

Lord, help us to heed Your voice.