The World Says Let Them Eat Pie
Today we celebrate the solemnity
of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. This celebration was declared to help us
battle the things that keep us from God. Things like greed; selfishness; the absence of peace; the loss of stability of the
family; and the attack on Society.
The Church felt that if
the world focused on Jesus Christ King of the Universe it could fight the darkness
of these things that keeps us from God. Ninety years after the first celebration,
look around us. Greed, selfishness, no peace, family and social stability are
still being attacked today..
Maybe self-examination
is in order. Maybe we should ask “Is Jesus Christ the King of my Universe?”
Raised Southern Baptist,
I memorized Bible verses as part of my religious education. One I still
remember is from the end of the Book of Revelation “I am
the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.”
I learned that verse over 45 years ago.
Almost the same verse appears
at the beginning of the Book of Revelation. "I
am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, "the one who is and who
was and who is to come, the almighty."
These verses are truly
profound, especially for this celebration.
Profound for many
reasons, but one is that these verses tell us God is eternal and always.
Despite what a world that doesn’t believe tells us, God was not made up by a
bunch of old men in the desert. God the Father, creator of all things, exists
in the beginning and the end of all things; in us and all that is around us.
That brings me to a
second profound thought on these verses. Where is Christ in my life?
Someone told me how to figuring
out where Jesus Christ is in your life. I was told to draw a big circle. I was
to cut this circle up like a pie. Divide it up and put the things important to
you as slices of that pie. Each slice’s size should represent the importance of
that thing to your life.
In the business world
this is called a pie chart. I like pie!
For me, the biggest slice
of pie is family. Two other big slices are my job and my duties as a deacon.
Still, another is the people in this faith community. I like to write, so I
make a slice for my writing. To write, you have to read, so there is another
slice. Things like travel, education, hobbies, and friends also get slices. Pretty
soon your pie is all sliced up.
Where did I put Christ?
Maybe I need to divide
up one of these slices and put a little God here. A little sliver equals about an
hour a week most people give to God. Maybe we give Jesus a whole pie off to the
side. I wouldn’t want God messing up my everyday life. Or, do I can use God
like cool whip, keeping Jesus Christ closed in a container and adding a little
God on special occasions, like the holidays or when company comes over.
Sadly, some don't know
Jesus. Their pie slices are the darkness of abuse, addiction,
violence, and much more. Their pies are full of human things like selfishness, greed, the absence of peace, broken
family, and failed society.
That’s not what God
wants. It’s not what those verses mean that begin, “I am the Alpha and the
Omega, the First and the Last.” It means - God must be the basic ingredient of
your pie. God brings everything together.
The “I am” who is, was, and is to come created us;
God gave us our family and the gifts that allow us to interact with people. We
have the ability to love and Christ teaches us how to love. Some of us are still
working on it.
The almighty gives us
wisdom, intelligence, and common sense. And you know just because God gave some
people a big helping of one; they may not have gotten a big helping of another.
But, Christ can help us overcome where we are lacking.
Is Jesus Christ the one
who holds it all together for us, the main ingredient, and our eternal King? If
you say yes, consider as Jesus asked Pilate “Do you say this on
your own or have others told you …?”
Jesus Christ is the King of the Universe; yet, for
many the King of their life is not Christ. Even though every eye
will see him, the Christ that
many have in their eye and their heart is the Christ that fits their plans. People (some who in
all sincerity think their words, actions, and beliefs are based in Christ) can
change God and Christianity into what they want it to be. The King of their
Universe is the things the world calls them to their possessions, status, and
wealth.
We celebrate Jesus
Christ King of the Universe, but in Jesus’ own words, His Kingdom
is not here. He is not the King of the Universe we make of
worldly things; but, we can bring His kingdom to this world. Fight the darkness bring His Kingdom through a radical
conversion of our hearts and the acknowledgement that Jesus Christ is King. His kingdom is built one soul at a time, deep in the hearts of each
individual person.
When I think of all the
things people put before Jesus Christ as their King, another verse comes back to me. It’s short, simple and easy to learn. The Holy Spirit tells me this verse has
everything to do with Christ the King, who loves us so much. For all we put before him, “Jesus wept.”
Amen.
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