The Lord Is My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus, King of the Universe, 24 November 2024
Daniel 7:13-14 ><}}}}*> Revelation 1:5-8 ><}}}}*> John 18:33-37
We are now on the final Sunday of the year, the Solemnity of Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. Next Sunday we begin the Season of Advent, the official countdown to Christmas which is the birth of Jesus Christ, King of kings.
See how our Church calendar begins and ends each year in Jesus Christ’s eternal kingship as seen by Prophet Daniel in his vision (first reading); Christ’s coming to the world was not an addendum or a plan B of God because Jesus has been enthroned at His side, conferred with “dominion, glory, and kingship” (Dn. 7:14).
Jesus reiterated this in our gospel this Sunday from John’s account of His trial before Pilate, His first “face-to-face” with a representative of political power. According to St. John Paul II in an interview published in 1994 (Crossing the Threshold of Hope), this scene continues to happen when we, too, like Pilate put God on trial when we insist in doing what we perceive as right and true. Let’s try to enter this scene to unravel its many layers of truth about ourselves who are actually the ones in trial, not Jesus Christ.
Pilate said to Jesus, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?” Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom does not belong to this world…” So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a 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” (John 18:33-36, 37).
From the very start of His trial before Pilate, we find Jesus so “cool” – so sure of everything, actually the One in control of the trial despite the sarcasm of Pilate who, eventually, would be the one to give in to the penetrating truth of Christ.
In fact, we find here how Pilate was already inclined to the truth of Christ as the King as he later affirmed unconsciously when he wrote the inscription on the Cross, “Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews” that the priests tried to edit but Pilate insisted, “what I have written, I have written” (cf. Jn.19:19-22).
Many times like Pilate, the more we try to justify our sins or inclinations to evil with our various excuses and alibis, the more we sink deeper into admitting the truth that Jesus Christ is King, that He is truth and good Himself. We imitate Pilate’s sarcasm even with God through others like our parents or elders, teachers, even friends who truly love us and care for us as we remain adamant with our wrong beliefs and points of view.
What really gave away Pilate – and us – in the process of our trial of Jesus was his final question which I love so much, “What have you done?”
Pilate was sincerely trying to know the truth about Jesus as he was evidently irritated with the case thrown to him by the priests and scribes. His asking Jesus “Are you the King of the Jews?” was a request for clarification as a Roman state official because the word “king” meant only one thing.
And here is the twist in our own days – it is the same question we unconsciously ask Jesus so often to clarify too!
How many times have we sought clarification on the kingship of Jesus especially in this modern time when we discuss divorce, abortion, same-sex marriage, and almost everything from clothes we wear to how we conduct ourselves in this modern time that has become so relative and permissive in morals?
Every time we put Jesus on trial when we insist on what we want and what we believe in, the Pilate within us question Jesus, what have you done? Let us count them… you may add .
"What have you done, Jesus?"
You have forgiven our sins, Jesus,
giving us new chances in life daily;
You have saved us, Jesus, from many
instances when we felt so lost,
even gone that's why we are
still intact at this very moment in our lives;
You have consoled us, Jesus, in countless times
that made us to keep believing,
hoping, and trusting God and others;
You love us so much, Jesus, in ways
we can't believe nor understand
that's why we too keep on loving
despite the hurts and pains;
and the list goes on and on and on...
that makes You truly our King, Jesus!
See that when we remember everything Jesus had done to us, we also realize His being a King of different kind who never forced us to believe Him nor follow Him unlike the powerful people of the world.
Jesus as a King simply invites us gently and lovingly to come to Him to find rest and comfort when we are burdened in life. There were times when we have felt Jesus just closed His eyes to our many sins and imperfections, not even reminding us of our shameful selves like when He washed the dirty feet of His Apostles after their last supper.
Jesus never threatened us when we were in the height of our pride and stupidity and instead waited patiently for us to come home to Him like the prodigal son. He never locked us, allowing us to go and explore everything, standing by just in case we cross the point of no return.
Whatever Jesus had done to us, it is always good and comforting, beyond our expectations and imaginations like healing us of our every sickness, feeding us and clothing us when we were hungry and naked, even cleansed us when we were so dirty and untidy.
Therefore, this Sunday as we celebrate the Solemnity of Christ the King, let us cast off all our fears of Jesus taking away our perceived “kingdoms” like King Herod who ordered all infants and children killed on that first Christmas upon hearing the news of “the birth of the king of the Jews” (Mt. 2:2).
Jesus never said “My kingdom is not in this world” because His kingdom while not of this world is right here below on earth that is why John tells us in the second reading from his vision of the end of time, Jesus is coming again here on earth to take us to eternity. The Kingdom of Jesus is here in the world but not of this world; similarly, we are in this world but we are called not to be of this world for our true citizenship is in heaven.
This Sunday, Jesus is asking us in the most personal manner, what have I done to you that have kept you running away from Me? Most lovely of all is that Jesus never asked us what have we done to Him nor for Him… Let us pray:
Lord Jesus Christ,
my Lord and my God,
You have done so much
good to me and I have done
so little for You and for others;
reign in my heart so that I can
make others experience Your
loving kind of Kingship.
Amen.
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