Christ's Kingship is Perfect; Others Are Not

Let Jesus Be King of Your Lives!

Sermon by Rev. John Paul Shea

Solemnity of Christ the King, 34th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Nov. 20, 2016

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Tucson, AZ

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be world without end. Amen!

Today our Church celebrates the solemnity of Christ the King. Today’s celebration marks the end of the liturgical year, and is therefore a very good way to end the liturgical cycle because the very fact that Jesus is king of the world is the culmination of Biblical revelation.

Today, we are reminded that Jesus is the one and only king that we should honour with deep devotion. It is only through the kingship of Christ that we will arrive at the eternal kingdom that is to come.

We hear of many kings throughout the Bible. Ever since the beginning of salvation history God has sought out leaders and kings to rule the world according to His purpose. Yet, none of these kings were able to fulfil role of king as He desired for humanity. None could establish the perfect kingship God has planned for His creation. 

In today’s first reading (2Samuel 5:1-3), King David is anointed king of Israel. The Lord says of David, "You shall shepherd my people Israel and shall be commander of Israel." Although King David accomplished many things for God, he too was unable to fulfill God’s plan of eternal Kingship.

Therefore, God would send His Son into our world. Our Lord Jesus is not simply king of this earth, but He is king of the entire universe, and He is coming again to establish His Kingdom in its fullness. 

Fr John Paul Shea

My brothers and sisters, today’s celebration calls us to acknowledge the kingship of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

In today’s second reading (Colossians 1:12-20), Saint Paul teaches us that Jesus Christ is “the image of the invisible God” and that through Him, God “[delivers] us from the power of darkness and [leads] us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” 

Let us therefore keep our hearts focused on the power of Our Lord and His eternal kingship that is offered to each one of us who repents and lives our lives according to His plan of life! 

For “in [our Lord Jesus] was created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together!”

My brothers and sisters, Our Lord Jesus is

king of the universe. He is the most perfect King. 

He has entered into our world to prepare us to live under a completely different rule than the kingdoms of this world today. Our Lord knows that the kingdoms of this current age are going to fail. He knows that this world as we know it is going to pass away. 

You may recall in the Gospel last Sunday that Our Lord spoke about the signs that would point to the end of the times in which we live today and when our Lord would come to establish His Kingdom on earth. Our Lord spoke about wars and insurrections. He said that “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom." (Luke 21:10) Therefore our Lord reminds us that the kingdoms of this world today will never be in peace until His kingdom comes, and the closer we come to the end, the worse things will become.

We have had many kingdoms that have arisen and fallen since Our Lord Jesus Christ walked the earth. Yet, unlike any time, we now have a globalized world. We not only have nations that rise against nations, but we now have the technology to literally destroy nations. 

Our Blessed Mother warned us at Fatima 100 years ago that our societies are entering into difficult times. She told us that we need to pray and make sacrifices for the salvation of souls! She told us to pray the Holy Rosary! 

My brothers and sisters, we are living in a pivotal moment in human history. We do not know the immediate future, but what we do know for sure is that our Lord is coming again soon to establish His Kingship on earth, and the kingdoms of this world today will be broken down and humbled. Everything that is not of Our Lord’s kingdom will be done away with! 

Today our Church marks the end of the Year of Mercy. God is very merciful. Yet, we must keep to heart that our Lord is coming again to judge heaven and earth. Every thought and action of our lives will be brought into the eternal light and we will have to make recompense before our Lord! 

Therefore, what is most important for each one of us today is to keep our hearts focused on the kingdom that is to come. We need not to get too caught up in our world that we lose sight of the hope Our Lord has in store for us.

For this world is passing away!
Seek conversion. Repent of your sins and strive to sin no more because sin cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. If we want to live with and in Our Lord for all eternity then we must first be purified of all that is not of Our Lord’s Kingdom!

For if we think we can live a life that contradicts Our Lord and His Church then we are fooling ourselves and the devil will have the last laugh. 

As we come to receive our Lord Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, let us acknowledge Who it is we are receiving. We are receiving the King of the Universe into our bodies and our souls!

As we acknowledge Who it is we are receiving, let us allow Him alone to be King of our lives. For, He is the only King who will save us from the wrath that is to come upon this earth. He is the only one who will save us from eternal damnation. For His Kingdom will come, His will will be done on earth as it is in heaven! Lord Jesus help us to be faithful to You!

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be world without end. Amen!