mamabishop: Christ the King Sunday

The Collect

Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Old Testament Jeremiah 23:1-6

Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! says the LORD. Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. So I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the LORD. Then I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be missing, says the LORD. 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."

Canticle 16 The Song of Zechariah Luke 1: 68-79

Blessed be the Lord,

the God of Israel; *

he has come to his people

and set them free.

He has raised up for us

a mighty savior, *

born of the house

of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old,

that he would save us

from our enemies, *

from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy

to our fathers *

and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham, *

to set us free from the hands of our enemies,

Free to worship him without fear, *

holy and righteous in his sight

all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called

the prophet of the Most High, *

for you will go before the Lord

to prepare his way,

To give his people knowledge of salvation *

by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God *

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

To shine on those who dwell

in darkness and the shadow of death, *

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit: *

as it was in the beginning, is now,

and will be for ever. Amen.

The Epistle Colossians 1:11-20

May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers-- all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

The Gospel Luke 23:33-43

When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left. Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing." And they cast lots to divide his clothing. The people stood by, watching Jesus on the cross; but the leaders scoffed at him, saying, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, his chosen one!" The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine, and saying, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!" There was also an inscription over him, "This is the King of the Jews." One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying, "Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!" But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong." Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." He replied, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise."

I cannot imagine the cruelty and pain of the cross. I have had some major physical pain in my life, but nothing like what Jesus suffered. And in the midst of sheer agony and on the verge of dying, he forgave and redeemed the criminal hanging next to him. What a servant king to show such love in such horror. Love which is willing to be in our darkest and most painful places. I have spent the last week plus in the hospital. I went in for surgery to my Achilles tendon. They kept me for several days, awaiting transport to rehab. When working with the hospital PT, I fainted, and it turned out I had a pulmonary embolism. I came very close to dying. And there was never a moment I worried that I was far from God's love. The suffering King Jesus was with me there, in my darkest hours. How can I not be grateful for that love which is willing to draw near to us all in our most painful times and places!

A Litany for Christ the King Sunday

Loving Creator, source of all life

you are with us in our lives' terrors

you are acting always for justice

and for setting all people free.