Christ the King – the end of the year

 Christ the King Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021(full size gallery)

We had 17 in the service and another 5 online.

This service had a united theme of kingship who is Jesus Christ. The theme was repeated in all the hymns, reading and sermon.

So what is the effect on all of us ? This was answered in the sermon

“To be shaped by Jesus is to live an active cross shaped life, one that reaches up to God, and out to this world. When we reach up and out, we take on the shape of a cross.

“When we Christians reach out because our lives are shaped by the cross, we reach out in peace.

“No matter how tempted we are to use power, violence, coercion, and manipulation in this life, seemingly for our own good, Jesus reminds us that none of these things belong in his kingdom. Jesus tells Pilate that if his kingdom were from this world, his followers would be fighting to keep Jesus from death. But the kingdom of Jesus is not from this world.

“When we live in God’s kingdom of peace, God’s peace shapes us into people of peace. ”

“To live a cross shaped life is to live in expectation that God’s kingdom will come on this earth as it is in heaven.


From Trinity Episcopal, New York

“Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?” Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.” Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”
John 18:33–37

“In the scene of Jesus’s encounter with Pilate, Pilate asks Jesus if he is a king. Jesus responds that the very reason he was born was to “testify to the truth.” The meaning of truth is not clear to everyone and has taken something of a beating in recent times. But at the end of the first century, the community for whom John’s Gospel is written understood Jesus as expressing the truth of God by his life. What makes the scene so powerful is that, while it seems that Jesus is on trial, it is really Pilate who is on trial before Jesus. The Johannine account makes clear who is the real king.

“The season of Pentecost concludes today with the feast of Christ the King. Christ’s Kingdom is no ordinary kingdom: It expresses the fullness of God’s love and justice. It is not established by fear or by force; it challenges oppressive power and wealth; it upends the image of the distant monarch. The gospel writer, by pairing kingship with truth, seeks to call us to the fundamental reality of God and God’s power, as expressed in Jesus’s healing ministry, care of the poor and vulnerable, love for the sinner, solidarity, and inclusion for the outcast. Followers of Jesus are called to give witness to this truth.

“How do you understand truth, considering your Christian witness? What is your experience of God’s reign as expressed in Christ? How do you express the truth of God with your life? —Dr. Kathy Bozzuti-Jones”

This is Christ the King Sunday It is also the 26th Sunday since Pentecost began back on May 23, a half year ago. A half year has been spent reading the key scriptures in Jesus’ ministry according to Mark. In a week we enter Year C and will read from Luke but also John occasionally.