Christ the Kin

John 18:33-37

November 23, 2003

 

IT’S NOT A TYPO

You may have thought, upon first glance at the sermon title, that somebody made a mistake

First time I encountered Christ the Kin I certainly thought it was a mistake

      Actually, the first time I didn’t see it in print > I heard it spoken in a workshop

      We attended this workshop last year > members of Church of the Savior in Washington DC led it

            One of these leaders kept referring to the “Kindom of God”

            First two or three times I thought “I’m bad about dropping g’s at end of words.

                        This poor lady drops them in the middle.”

            As I listened I realized she could indeed say her g’s

                        It was just that every time she said “kingdom” it came out “kindom”

                        She finally set me {and the others} straight

                        In their ministry Christ is not “king” > Christ is “kin”

                        And since Christ is “kin” then God’s realm is a “kindom” not a “kingdom”

                                    She had to explain it > It took us a while to understand what she meant

Pilate didn’t understand it either > “Are you King of the Jews?” he asked

      Jesus didn’t hesitate.  “My kingdom does not consist of what you see.”

                        [if Jesus had been member of Church of the Savior would have said “my kindom”

                        but he wasn’t, so he said .  “My kingdom does not consist of what you see.”]

            “If it did, my followers would be fighting to keep this from happening.

            But I’m not that kind of king, not the world’s kind of king.”

This is the Sunday we call “Christ the King Sunday” > the Sunday before Advent begins

      Today we begin to look forward to celebrating the birth of this newborn king

And it’s a good day to ask “What kind of a “king” is Jesus?”

      What makes him different from “the world’s kind of king”?

And what does he mean “My kingdom does not consist of what you see.”

      What does make up his kingcom?     

Good questions.  Where can we find the answers? 

      In the Bible, and “the world” and this Church of the Savior

KINGS AND KINGDOMS IN THE BIBLE

Kings in the Bible fought fiercely to preserve what they had amassed

Often what they had built up came at the expense of others

      King David used his position to get what he wanted

      King Solomon used slave labor to build his splendor

      The kings of Israel and Judah became like all the other kings > greedy and abusive

            Jesus was not like that

                        he share what he had, and gave more

                        he included those whom the world shut out

                        he brought health and healing > in a word, ‘salvation’

            Jesus said to Pilate, “But I’m not that kind of king, not the world’s kind of king.”

And his “kingdom” was not made up of the richest and most powerful people

      Jesus’ kingdom was filled with the poorest and least powerful

      His tales of kingdom life often caused people to turn away > they didn’t like what he said

            Sometimes his parables brought anger and resentment > and ultimately his death

      Jesus sought relationship with those who understood who he was and what he was

            They were more his “kin” than his blood relations

            And those who understood made up his “kindom”

                        Jesus said to Pilate, “My kingdom does not consist of what you see.”

KINGDOM IN THE WORLD

Kingdoms in the Bible are not that different from kingdoms in the world, are they?

      I never did very well in the history classes I took > you know more than I about this subject

      But what little I remember about kings and queens through time doesn’t speak very well for God

      Power tends to corrupt

            Jesus did not let his power corrupt him > far from it! 

            He used his power to serve rather than be served

Even if Jesus had lived this life much later, I believe he would have said the same words:

      “But I’m not that kind of king, not the world’s kind of king.”

      “My kingdom does not consist of what you see.”

KINDOM IN THE CHURCH OF THE SAVIOR

Church of the Savior is a modern-day “kindom” patterned after Jesus’ own kindom

Rev. Gordon Cosby founded this unusual congregation

            Year was 1946, not long after he returned from duty as Chaplain during World War II

            One of his experiences in England made such an impact that he had to do something

                        He had run into a friend and knew they had a common acquaintance

                        “How’s Jim getting along in his Christian life?” Cosby asked

                        The man asked what he meant.  “I meant just what I said.”

                        “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

                        Cosby replied, “Just a week or so ago, after several conferences about the meaning

                        of the Christian life, Jim asked to be baptized.  I want to know what progress he

                                    is making, what sort of witness he is making in his company.”

                        With that the young man began to laugh.  “If Jim is a Christian, no one knows it!”

            Cosby says that something within his soul snapped that night

                        He decided then and there his ministry was going to change

                        No longer would he be concerned with numbers

                                    (That would be really hard, wouldn’t it?

                                    We evaluate our success by how many people and how much money we have

                                    We spend lots of time counting numbers in the church)

                                                but numbers are “of this world” > aren’t they?

                                                and Jesus said “My kingdom is not of this world.”

                        Rev. Gordon Cosby committed himself that night to quality rather than quantity.

            Returning home > looked for Christians who shared his passion for Gospel message

                        He found nine > On October 5 these nine people met together for the first time

                                    They wanted to be well-grounded in essentials of Christian faith

                                    Committed to inner growth > and accountable to each other for that growth

                                    They wanted to be active participants in mission

                                    Proportionate givers

            Thirty years later they had grown too large to be what they had been

                        So they separated into loosely connected faith communities

                        By 1994 (50^th anniversary) their twelve faith communities each had incorporated

            Their story continues today > Twelve “house churches” > Twelve small communities

                                    Faithful in prayer and open to the challenges around them

                                    Growing in understanding of scripture

                                    Fulfilling their commitment to be guided only by Christ’s example

KINDOM AT 36^TH AND YALE

Kings in the Bible, kings in the world, and the “kin” in the Church of the Savior

Let’s move from all these kings and kins to one spot at 36^th & Yale

      Where do we fit into all of this?

            Is Christ our “king” or, or is Christ our “kin”?

            Maybe we should mount an effort to rename this day in the church calendar!

And a second question is just as important as the first:  

      Are we closer to being a “kingdom” or a “kindom”?

            We already do many things typical of a kindom

                        We cook and serve meals for the homeless once a month

                        We gather supplies and spend time with children in our adopted school

                        A committed group gathers for Bible study twice a year

                        Our children are learning Bible in new and exciting ways

Becoming a “kindom” is a life-time endeavor

      It means learning the essentials of the Christian faith

      It means being committed to inner growth > and holding each other accountable

      It means learning what Jesus did, and asking not WWJD but What Would Jesus Have US Do?

      It means living into the day when we can say with Jesus

            “We’re not like the rest of the world”

            Having Christ as our “kin” and becoming a “kindom” is a life-long journey

            Are we up for it?