When we declare Christ as king…

(I preached this sermon on Sunday, November 22, 2020 in response to the Gospel reading — Matthew 25:31–46. You can find the full recording on our church website.)

The Feast of Christ the King is what we celebrate today. Do you understand what that means? Really take it in for a moment and consider what it means to declare Christ as king.

While that doesn’t sound very controversial, here’s what I know — every pastor that I know is struggling with what to preach today. They are struggling with how much of the Gospel to share. They are struggling with how much to talk about Christ being king and what that means and what Christ’s kingdom is really about. They are struggling because the proclamation of Christ as king has a natural tendency to butt up against the Civil Religion that we experience daily and that tugs at us and demands our allegiance and attention.

The American variety of Civil Religion doesn’t get talked about in the open all that much. It’s just assumed to be the normal way of life — of what we commonly experience. A civil religion has certain fundamental beliefs, values, and holidays (holy days) associated with its nation. There’s an origin story. There are rituals similar to religious practices. There are even martyrs — Abe Lincoln might be the best example in the US. Politicians act in priestly roles declaring God’s blessing on the nation. There are texts that are considered sacred — ours would be the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. There are sacred symbols, like monuments…