Fr. Chad E. JarnaginThe Reign of Christ / Christ the KingJohn 18:33-37 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)33 Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?” 35 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?” 36 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.” 37 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.”Jesus is handed over to the government / empire, and while standing on trial with Pilate, he is questioned: “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus knows he is addressing the question that everyone is implying...With Christ saying, “my kingdom is not from this world. If it were, my followers would be fighting for me... but as it is, my kingdom is not from here”. Meaning, they don’t have jurisdiction or rights to pass this judgment to condemn, but he knows it is coming. His expectations were eternal-minded.“Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice”. This seems to imply that for those who believe, resonate with his way... and it serves us well to calibrate our expectations accordingly.If his kingdom is not of this world, what does it look like to embody another world? It may look like the best possible version of the current one. One where mercy, grace, and acceptance is given when its seemingly undeserved.Legacy is a transcendent encounter through time. Embodying the best possible version of this world beyond our time in it. A kingdom much greater than any empire or system. Regardless of our past prejudices, hurts, or traumas, we have a way forward in the light of the Kingdom not of this world... and it isn’t to wait for the extraction of eternity, but to embody the Way of Jesus here and now.Brennan Manning said “Suffering, failure, loneliness, sorrow, discouragement, and death will be part of our journey, but the Kingdom of God will conquer all these horrors. No evil can resist grace forever.”
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