Sermons for the Month
Truth Reigns
DATE: November 26, 2000
SERVICE: Christ the King
TEXT: John 18:33-37“To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN Just over a year ago, one of the significant items in international diplomacy surrounded the issue of the extradition of former Chilean president General Augusto Pinochet from Great Britain to Spain. As you may recall, Pinochet had ousted a civilian government in Chile back in the 1970s. In the years following this military coup d'etat, his regime used various violent means to subdue any opposition. And now, while Pinochet was in Britain for medical treatment, a Spanish judge requested his extradition to Spain to stand trial for murder and torture. Some of those who argued against his extradition brought attention to past British law that did not allow prosecuting a head of state, or at least one who was head of state at the time of the crimes in question. Meanwhile, no one has contradicted the prosecuting argument that there had been torture and murder, and that at the core of the case is the truth of criminality of torture under international law. Today, as we focus on the kingship of Jesus Christ, we are forced to face up to a different kind of legal proceeding. Yes, we have a king on trial! Just as the former British law forbid putting heads of state on trial, kings usually don't stand trial. They rule until their deaths, either natural or in defeat against an enemy. Prior to that, kings are in charge of everything that happens in their kingdom. They just don't stand trial for anything. Yet, Jesus, our king, is on trial. He hasn't done anything! What could he have done that would warrant a trial? We know the story well enough to say that there were quite a few trumped-up charges against him. All these set the stage for the trial, a trial in which questions were raised in order to ascertain his guilt. Our good news text has questions, and more questions. "Are you the King of the Jews?" "What have you done?" "So you are a king?" All the questions, coming form somewhat hesitant judge Pontius Pilate, point in one direction: the kingship of Jesus. The king is on trial. Some would say that Jesus' responses are evasive. If a king were on trial--and remember, you don't just put kings on trial--the responses certainly would be more direct and to the point, whether in defense or in contradiction. But Jesus takes the whole questioning to a different level. In a sense, he points the question back to Pilate: "You say that I am 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." It all boils down to one pivotal point--the truth. Jesus testifies to the truth. But, as Pilate asks (in verse 38, which is beyond our pericope), "what is truth?" Truth, as certain and concrete as it sounds, can also be a slippery subject. "Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?" These words typify the oath one makes in a court of law. The promise is to state the truth. It seems, however, that any truth is colored by one's perception of what the truth may be. This does not mean that one has to lie about anything. But truth is a relative matter, uncertain as it may be and less than concrete depending on your point of reference. And so, when Jesus says he has come to testify to the truth, it's no wonder Pilate wonders out loud, "What is truth?" What is the truth to which Jesus has come to testify? When he says that those who belong to that truth will listen to his voice, will hear him for what he is, what is it we listen for. This is a question for us. To put it bluntly, it is a question that puts us on the spot, just as it did Pilate as he failed to understand Jesus for who he is. We are put on the spot as if we are on trial. Yes, the trial of the king is really our trial. And the questions can be posed back at us. Who is our king? What have we done to speak of Jesus as our king to the unchurched? Do we know of this truth? Do we hear the voice of the one speaking this truth? Do we seek first the kingdom of God or do vote for what is financially expedient? Back toward the end of the first century, the Roman Caesar Domitian required all citizens, at least once a year, to bow down and worship him, calling upon his as "God and Lord." Christians, who worship only one God and Lord, couldn't do that. We know who our Caesars are. The rulers of our world are all those things that point to a certain king of truth: the truth that power controls everything; the truth that money is that which brings everything to fruition; the truth that violence speaks as the loudest form of coercion; the truth that relativism is easier to handle in addressing the difficult questions in life. Who is our king? If we look to the rulers of our world as our guiding principles in our lives, we have taken the same path as Pilate did on that fateful day; it is the rulers of this world whose voices pull us from hearing the truth that is in Christ Jesus. We don't hear. And Jesus goes to the cross. The surprising truth is that the cross is precisely where we find the throne of the true king. Through the cross, Jesus' form of kingship is to point to God's redemptive truth and love. Jesus' kingship is that of the good shepherd who calls the sheep to life. The kingship of Jesus lies in his very act of calling us to himself, we who are slaves to sin and deserve what we get from repeatedly turning away from God. This is the truth and for Jesus, truth is intimately connected with God's life and our living in God's grace, attuned to God's purposes for humankind. So we rejoice and give thanks: thanks to our Lord and king. Even as we perhaps cannot lift up our king in our lowly sinfulness, we can raise our voices in praise and thanksgiving. AMEN