Reign of Christ - the LORD our righteousness for November 20th 2022

REIGN OF CHRIST - PROPER 29 (34)  Year C  November 20, 2022

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

I’ve noticed an add that keeps popping up on my computer lately.  It’s an add for wooden Christmas ornaments.  They are round to resemble a bauble and have the titles or names attributed to Jesus on them.

Today we celebrate one of the titles of Jesus, “Christ the King” for the feast of the reign of Christ.  These various titles, that are ascribed to Jesus, appear throughout the Old Testament and New, and we are introduced to a pertinent one in the reading from Jeremiah 23:5-6.

“The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.  In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. And this is the name by which he will be called: "The LORD is our righteousness."

 

We know that the righteous branch refers to Jesus, as a descendant of King David, but here is the name by which he will be called, “The LORD is our righteousness”. 

 

Because we are reading this in English, we might miss a couple of things.  The passage, while describing the branch as being of King David, clearly affirms that this is a human of the royal line, but when the passage adds that he will be called, “The Lord our Righteousness”, it clearly uses the sacred word for God Yahweh.  Jesus Christ is fully human and fully God – This name for Jesus, here in the Old Testament clearly names him as God. 

 

In the New Testament reading for today, this “God-ness” of Jesus is clearly stated in a couple of places.  The reading tells us that Christ is the visible image of the invisible God, and also, that in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.  In fact, our New Testament reading sounds a little like a creed explaining the nature of Christ.  Through Christ all things were created and in him all things hold together. 

In both the New Testament and in the Old, it is clear that the nature of Christ, the Messiah, was more than merely human.

 

That phrase from Jeremiah, “The LORD (Yaweh) is our righteousness”.  Clearly tells us that this branch who was to come was also God himself.  But what does this name for Christ mean for us?  We often hear terms like this, but do we understand what this term, “the LORD is our righteousness”, means? 

According to the dictionary righteousness means, “the quality of being morally right or justifiable”.   According to the Bible righteousness means acting in accord with divine or moral law: free from guilt or sin.   The Bible also, clearly tells us that no one is righteous before God.  Every single person, no matter how good and how well intentioned, has fallen short of the glory of God.  We have no righteousness before God.  That is the reality.  We needed a saviour and we have one.  His name is Jesus.  He is Yahweh and HE is our righteousness. 

This is the Good News and the message of our faith.  Jesus, through his own righteousness, and then through his sacrifice on the cross for us – and through our baptism, which is our conscious decision to belong to him, imputes to us his own righteousness.  This is how we can claim to be saved.  This is how we can claim our life is safe and secure as one of the saints in heaven.  Not because of any of our own actions, but because God loved us so much that he sent his son, known as “Yaweh our righteousness”.   What a blessed assurance we have!

 

When we are baptised, we are described as having died with Christ… we are united to him.  We also talk about being clothed in Christ.  In, and of ourselves, we still have no righteousness, but God imputes to us, the righteousness of Christ.  We are said to be made righteous by faith, because of our belief.    When we decide we want to belong to God and we are baptised into Jesus we are agreeing with God that we need a saviour.  God, whose plan was always to save us, is eager to lavish this grace on us and call us righteous because of our union with him.

 

It is because of Jesus’ actions and not our own, and for that reason Jesus could answer to the thief on the cross who asked, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."   Jesus replied, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

 

We are connected to Christ through our baptism.  Our baptism is our conscious decision to submit our lives to Christ.  The symbols of water couldn’t be used by the thief on the cross.  Other rituals could not take place for the thief on the cross.  But all our rituals are meant to be a way of making it clear to us, that we are connected to Jesus and belong most assuredly to him.  Baptism is the outward sign of an inner reality.  The thief could do none of these outward things, but he asked Jesus to remember him.  It was from the heart.  It was a genuine cry for eternal salvation and it was enough.  The thief acknowledged the reality of his condition and his need for a saviour.

 

We do not know what goes on in the heart of another before Christ.  Some, like the other thief, might scoff, but I think the more likely response for all who are presented with the reality of Jesus and stand in the presence of God, will be like the repentant thief, and will figuratively or literally fall on their knees with a desire to serve Christ the King.

 

There is more that we can explore from this passage.  We note that the royal reign of Christ is one of wisdom, justice and righteousness.  As we enter the Christmas season, we are looking to the second coming of Christ, when this rule of wisdom and justice and righteousness will be clearly seen.  But what about right now?  What does it mean for us now?

 

We belong to Christ and we are his hands and his feet.  The rule of wisdom, Justice and righteousness at this time needs to be shown to the world through the church.  More than this, each of us, through our baptism belongs to God – we are the church.  Each of us needs to allow the wisdom, justice and righteousness of God show through in our own lives.  But how? 

 

The answer lies in the theme of today.  Today is the celebration of the Reign of Christ, or Christ the King. 

In December of 1925 Pope Pius the XI instituted this feast.  This happened nearly 100 years ago.  The explanation from the Pope was to remind people of the supremacy of Christ in the wake of World War One.  In his writings about this feast the Pope points out that the chief causes of the “manifold evils in the world” were that the majority of people had “thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives,” both in private and political affairs. While Christ is to rule over the hearts, minds and wills of individuals, Pope Pius reminds us that as long as states refuse to submit to the sovereignty of Christ, “there would be no really hopeful prospect of a lasting peace among nations.”  (https://www.thecatholictelegraph.com/a-closer-look-christ-the-king-of-individuals-nations-of-time-eternity/60199) 

 

I find this statement quite amazing considering the trajectory of modern life and where life is at right now with the absolute abandonment of what has been traditionally considered God’s moral law for so many centuries.  Many more people have thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives, both in private and in political affairs.  What hope is there for lasting peace among the nations?

 

There is always hope.  But that hope is only found in Christ.  The world, like each of us, needs to realize a need for Christ and also acknowledge Christ as King.  This is not something that is necessarily going to happen nationally.  In fact, it can’t and shouldn’t happen that way, as it is something that has to happen one heart at a time and it must start right now with you and me.

 

Our lives are vital.  It is vital for the good of each other, the community, the nation and beyond.  It is vital that we understand that Christ is our King.  Wisdom, justice and righteousness comes through Christ via you and I.  We bring this to the world by our submission and dedication to Christ and by continuing to remain connected to the branch – to Christ, allowing his life to flow through us by his Holy Spirit.  It is simply something that we, like the thief, must consciously acknowledge - our need of a saviour and acknowledge the Kingship of Christ.  “Jesus remember me, when you come into your kingdom.”    We are already assured to be with him in his kingdom, but his kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven through his Holy Spirit working through us, in our lives.

 

The word “Hosanna”, means, “God save us”.  It is a cry for help that became a term of praise.  Why?  Because God DOES save us.  “Jesus remember me, when you come into your Kingdom”, should also be for us, a phrase of praise.  God is our righteousness – He imputes to us all his goodness before the father.

 

We live in the reality, that in and of ourselves, we may tend to give in to temptations… we do fall, often.  But we walk in a spiritual reality where we are unconditionally accepted by God because Jesus is The LORD (Yaweh) our righteousness.  This is the Good News we need to offer the world.  Then, one heart at a time, the reign of Christ is manifest.  It begins with you and I consciously, each day saying, “Jesus Christ, you are the Lord and King of my life.  I live this day for you.”