Rev. Doug Floyd

Christ the King 2025
Rev. Doug Floyd
Jeremiah 23:1-6, Psalm 46, Colossians 1:11-20, Luke 23:35-43

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah” (Psalm 46:1–3, ESV)

The mountains are tumbling down. The earth is collapsing. The sea is swallowing the land. All the world is in turmoil, chaos, terror, destruction. Psalm 46 carries the memory of the flood and the dread of the sea. The flood story in Genesis 6 gives us a horrific description of the coming flood.

“Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” (Genesis 6:11–13, ESV)

The foundations of the earth collapse under the weight of sin even as the flood waters cover the surface of all things. How do we begin the grasp the magnitude of this deluge. In 2004, a 9.2 earthquake in the Indian Ocean caused tsunami to envelope parts of Thailand and surrounding nations. The waves reached 100 feet high. In the end, over 227 thousand people died and over a million were displaced. The pain and grief and fear of that event still impacts the people there.

“On September 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene caused massive and catastrophic flash flooding in the lower Appalachian Region, leveling towns and forever altering much of the landscape.”[1] Water is life. We must have water to live. This same source of life can become terror that brings death and destruction, leaving a trail of chaos behind.

These images in Psalm 46, Genesis 6, and our own history help us to see and feel the dread of collapse. As W.B. Yeats, wrote after World War 1,

Turning and turning in the widening gyre   
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere   
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst   
Are full of passionate intensity.[2]

Psalm 46 expresses the intensity of this destruction firsthand. It can be a flood. It can be war. It can be the collapse in true leaders. It can be family crisis or even a health crisis. In Jeremiah 23, we see the failure of religious and political leaders,

““Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who care for my people: “You have scattered my flock and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for your evil deeds, declares the Lord.” (Jeremiah 23:1–2, ESV)

Then in our Gospel reading, we see the agony of the cross alongside, the mockery of humanity.

“And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!” The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” There was also an inscription over him, “This is the King of the Jews.” One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!”” (Luke 23:35–39, ESV)

If we are ever to understand the story of Christ the King, we must face the terrifying mystery of Christ the crucified King. He suffers and dies under of tumult human sin and corruption.

Our conceptions of kings, leaders, and power fall short. We see these kings all through Scripture. When Israel cries out for a king, the Lord directs Samuel to give them a king. But he warns them,

“He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots. And he will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants. He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants. He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work. He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves. And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.” But the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel. And they said, “No! But there shall be a king over us,” (1 Samuel 8:11–19, ESV)

The King will take your sons. He will take your daughters. He will take your fields, your orchards, your vineyards. He will take your servants. He will take your animals. Because of the king, you will cry out to God, but the Lord will not answer.

Even King David, the man after God’s own heart. Takes Bathsheba and has her husband killed in battle. Is it any wonder when we see narcissists running businesses, governments, churches, and even homes? Human understanding of power is corrupt and leads to chaos and destruction.

Jesus reveals a power rooted in humility, in self-offering, in death, in love. We still struggle to grasp this power. Even as we follow Jesus, we tend to follow in the way of human strength and power. Look at the disciples. James and John are ready to call down fire on a people who reject Jesus. Peter cuts the ear off a soldier coming to apprehend Jesus.

And we long for the fire from heaven that Elijah called down.

Jesus calls us to follow him in the way of the cross. In his way, we discover a path of peace and grace even in the midst of a world collapsing under the weight of its own sin. Our vision of the chaos all around changes, and we see beauty in the midst of struggle and strife.

In today’s Psalm we read,

“There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns.” (Psalm 46:4–5, ESV)

The city of Zion will be a place of peace where all nations stream to learn the wisdom of God revealed in Christ. In fact, we are part of that stream. We gather here to worship the one true king of Israel.

Even as Jeremiah prophecies about the unfaithful shepherds, he sees a true shepherd who is coming.

“Then I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, declares the Lord. “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’” (Jeremiah 23:3–6, ESV)

Jesus is mocked by humanity as He hangs upon the cross. He looks at the jeering crowds and pronounces judgment as king.

“And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34, ESV)

Then He responds to the cry of the thief.

“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”” (Luke 23:42–43, ESV)

This is what a true king looks like. On this Christ the King Sunday, we are invited to see this world with new eyes. In the place of pain and struggle and collapse, we see glimpses, hints of His glory and love. C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien came through the same World War that caused so many to lose faith, that cause Yeats to proclaim, “The center cannot hold.”

They came to see something else. Through the vision of Christ, they eventually tell stories of struggle and strife and fears of the end, and yet they find hope. A hope that emanates from Christ Jesus.

Our Psalmist today sings out, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1, ESV). In the final stanza of his song, he proclaims,

“Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah” (Psalm 46:8–11, ESV)

Our second lesson today fills us with this glorious vision of Christ Jesus,

“For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.” (Colossians 1:16–20, ESV)

St. Maximus the Confessor said that the vision of Christ heals us and restores our vision of creation. All things become translucent to the glory of the God.

“For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light.” (Psalm 36:9, ESV)

““The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light,” (Matthew 6:22, ESV)

With this vision of Christ, we see hope where others see dread. We see joy and beauty where others see encroaching darkness. Let us rejoice in the goodness of God in Christ which surrounds us in all things.

As I thought of today’s sermon, I kept thinking of Israel Kamakawiwo’ole (Kam A Ka V Vo Le). He combines two beloved songs to give us a vision of hope and beauty, and I would suggest this vision comes as we behold the goodness of God in Christ.

[1] Quoted from the Journal of Appalachian Health < https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11552676/>.

[2] “The Second Coming” by W.B. Yeats, The Poetry Foundation < https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43290/the-second-coming>