The Servant King

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Jesus serves by breaking boundaries to be with those on the margins. He serves by teaching what it means to participate in God’s kingdom. He serves, as our text says, by offering his life as a ransom, a deliverance, a redemption of all people. No, you’re reading the book of Isaiah. But now you can see why the book of Isaiah, along with the Psalms, are the most quoted Old Testament books by Jesus, as well as the apostles who wrote the New Testament!

I want you to note here the two things Jesus says. He says, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me,” and, “the one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean.” God-centered, application-oriented, and driven by the text throughout, this resource is a gift to God’s church." A cookie set by YouTube to measure bandwidth that determines whether the user gets the new or old player interface. Mighty To Save Chords by Ben Fielding, Don Moen, Hillsong United, Laura Story, Michael W. Smith, and Reuben MorganOr what about Emperor Nero of Rome? He was a tyrant too. He executed countless people, even his own mother. It was also his mission to ruthlessly torture and execute Christians -- he is considered the first major persecutor. Nero also eliminated those who might rival his throne and was described as being “obsessed with personal popularity” [2] -- which is yet another trait we associate with those in power. Jesus turns the meaning of Kingside upside down. No longer is Kingship to be understood in terms of garnering wealth and power for oneself in other to defend others. Now it is understood to be about service; giving your life that others might live. Jesus, as the servant King, says to us, ‘I, your Lord and Teacher, have just washed your feet. You, then, should wash one another’s feet. I have set an example for you, so that you will do just what I have done for you.’

You would say that is impossible, and you would be right. You were born with a good brain, but it has been deliberately messed up and for a specific purpose. The illusion you have lived your whole life is so normal, no one can see it. Listen, I haven’t learned the lesson; I’m still learning this, figuring this out. But I have found that there are opportunities that people, and I think the Lord through people, present in my path, ways for me to serve, that are outside of my comfort zone, they are outside of my wheelhouse. It’s not preaching a sermon, usually, which is not really that hard to do—I’ve been talking for a living for over 20 years! I can do that. But it’s going to a less comfortable place, it’s maybe reaching out to people that I’m not as comfortable with, or whatever. There have been lots of those over the years, and initially when those come up, there’s something in my flesh that kind of resists it, you know? I’m an introvert, ya'll! I like to be alone and read books. People want me to get out and be with people! So there’s something in me that’s kind of resisting it. After all, a king is someone who wields a lot of power, who can even be a tyrant and lord his authority over his subjects. Think about the kings you’ve heard of. Thank You Jesus For The Blood Chords by Bryan McCleery, Charity Gayle, David Gentiles, Ryan Kennedy, and Steven MussoJesus shows us who a king -- or really any kind of leader -- is truly meant to be: one who serves their people and uses their power to benefit others. So it is not Jesus who has this whole king and leader identity wrong -- it’s us.

Another example are the servants, the house workers, we see on Downton Abbey. If you’re not familiar, this is a show about an English Lord, his family, and his staff at the turn of the 20th century. The servants at the Downton estate are like a well-oiled machine. They’re always a step ahead of their superiors, and keep the house running without much recognition. But Jesus isn’t a timid servant or caught up in local gossip. He isn’t without agency or a full personality. Servanthood doesn’t mean you neglect who you are or hide behind the scenes all the time. It means that you use who you are to benefit others, and that the focus of your life is outward. So, the most prolonged narrative of Jesus’ Kingship takes place in the context of his trial and crucifixion. Christ our King is a crucified King, a victim of state violence, his throne is the cross, his crown is made of thorns: he has been stripped of his robes and hangs before us naked. The crucified, humiliated and forsaken King. It is for this reason that thousands of people who have faced execution in death camps or at the hands of firing squads, along with political prisoners, humiliated people who have lost all their dignity, and people who have experienced forsakenness or abandonment, have been drawn to Christ the King – he is someone like them; their archetype and their companion.Exhibit B” is the exile itself. This tragedy was not the result of God’s neglect! Rather, it came about as a result of the Israelites’ idolatry and unfaithfulness (see Isaiah 43:22-28). Kings have kingdoms. The Kingdom of Christ our King is hotly debated by theologians and there is much disagreement about Jesus’ many teachings about God’s Kingdom. At the time, some of Jesus’ followers thought that the Kingdom was going to be their own country, free from Roman occupation and oppression and that Jesus had come to lead an uprising; these hopes were shattered when Jesus was crucified and the Gospel writers make it clear that this is not what Jesus intended. I think it’s clear that the Kingdom of God was carried in the person of Jesus – in him the age of God’s Kingdom dawned. So, with Advent around the corner we await the season of preparation for Christ’s coming amongst us; an annual remembrance, but more than that: Christmas reminds us that Jesus is born amongst us perpetually. Christians believe that there will be a final judgement, at which time God’s Kingdom will be fully realised – the dawn of a new age of justice, righteousness and peace; and this feast of Christ the King reminds us of Chrst’s second coming and of God’s judgement which precedes it. We will all be held to account; we will all be judged with love and compassion.