“Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom does not belong to this world.'” (John 18:36)
This is a truly amazing statement that Jesus makes in the Passion Narrative of John: My kingdom is not of this world. While on the surface it may appear rather simple, there is a level of depth to this statement. The celebration of Christ the King Sunday may seem simply to be a reminder: Jesus is King.” Then, we go back to our usual daily living. The Church emphasizes this specific point, and then we go ack to living our faith in a usual way…
However, like all of the many things that scripture records Jesus saying, they aren’t meant for just one person, or simply for His own time. He isn’t saying something hollow either, but is actually revealing something for us to do within ourselves as well. Jesus’s kingdom has several different components- but the central one is that it isn’t of this world. It isn’t something we’d be used to or something akin to what one may find studying a history book. His leadership doesn’t match up to what we would expect. Historically, kings live by their own interests and live lives of luxury, often far removed from difficulty or issues. They live lives of prestige, making a name for themselves, making monuments, building great things, and going out on conquest, often at no cost or consequence to them.
Jesus Christ is where that all changes. Because His kingdom is not of this world, He has different standard- far different than any kingdom that has come before. Because of this, He excels in giving us gifts far greater than any earthly rule could give us: giving us freedom from sin and from death. Freedom from worry. The ability to one day enter into Jesus’s Kingdom- the Kingdom of Heaven. Because His kingdom is not of this world- He suffers and dies on the Cross to give us all of these magnificent things.
However, His kingdom isn’t something that we just happen to get into- but it takes acceptance and work on our part. Surrendering false kingdoms. Giving up all of those things that bar us from living out our faith.
We have so many different things that can interfere with seeking out the Christ’s Kingdom. Often times it is our own pursuit of authority and the sense of control. Or, even in cases where we are in positions of power or prestige, we can become insecure, and begin to judge, envy, and even make authority felt in a harsh or even horrible way. We can start to live in fear in our own sense of power and control, simply because we are afraid of losing our own little kingdom or our own small sense of control.
What does Jesus Christ encourage us to do? Surrender our own kingdoms. Live in freedom, peace and security of Christ’s kingdom. Certainly, we have to sacrifice self-centeredness and even our own sense of control and power. Often, these false senses of power and control are only fleeting anyways. What we gain by seeking after Christ’s own Kingdom is a place of eternal peace, security, and freedom, and one that is far above any of our own dreams and expectations.
His Kingdom is not of this world. Neither is ours. Let’s seek to live in pursuit of that Kingdom that is far above anything we can imagine.
