kingship
The Cost of Truth
By Linda Rex
November 21, 2021, Christ the King or Reign of Christ, PROPER 29—I was standing in an aisle of the grocery store last week looking at the wide variety of crackers available for purchase. I was happy to see that there were more wholesome, natural products being offered at a price point similar to the common brand names. Then I looked more closely and realized that the price may have been similar but the amount of the product was significantly reduced in comparison to the others. It was obvious that an effort was being made to get buyers to choose their product, believing they would be buying a better product at a reasonable price, while in reality the buyer was being given much less product at a higher price.
I am saddened by all the different ways in which truth seems to inevitably depart from our human existence, especially when money or politics are involved. We give ourselves over so easily to the will and purposes of the father of lies rather than taking the difficult stand on what is truthful, authentic, and sincere. So often, we offer up our integrity on the altar of ease, comfort, pleasure, prosperity or popularity. We have made truth out to be something which is adjustable, according to our opinion or preference, rather than rooted in Someone outside ourselves—the One who is the God of truth, who came to us in Jesus—the way, the truth, the life—and who sent us the Spirit of truth to dwell in human hearts.
When Jesus was standing in the presence of Pilate during his last days here on earth, he was interrogated, asked whether or not he was the king of the Jews. Jesus did not lie about who he was, but rather, embraced the cost that went with telling the truth. He was born to be a king, but not the kind of human, political ruler Pilate should be concerned about. Jesus was the ruler of a spiritual kingdom—one which would be grounded in truth, rooted in his own self-offering on behalf of all humanity.
Pilate’s flippant comment at the end of their interview, “What is truth?” is a question that humans have wrestled with over the centuries. When we are not grounded in the One who is truth, we struggle to have a basis on which to establish truth. The loss of truth in our daily lives finds expression in a society and culture in which relativity reigns, where people adjust truth to suit their personal preferences and opinions, and where relationships falter and fall apart due to a lack of trust and authenticity.
There is a reason that truth is so essential. It is central to who we are. If we cannot simply be who we are—be truly sincere, genuine, and real—we find ourselves self-destructing and destroying our lives, our relationships, and the world in which we live. God never meant for us to struggle in this way. We were created to live and walk in truth because he is the God of truth in whose image we are made. We were designed to be people of integrity, honesty, and faithfulness because we are created in the image of the God who is faithful, honest, and reliable.
The necessary ingredient for truth to be central to our existence in relationship with God and others, though, is grace. We cannot have truth just on its own or it will destroy us, since we so often, by our human sinfulness, never seem to choose truth. Or we use truth to harm or destroy others rather than to build them up in love. This is why Jesus brought us both grace and truth. God knew that apart from him offering us forgiveness and mercy, we could never walk in truth—we always seem to wander away from this way of being we were created to live in.
Jesus was telling the truth to Pilate when he said he was born to be a king, and was the king of the Jews. He knew that his kingship was being rejected in that moment by his people, even though he had come to them and was offering them the opportunity to participate in his kingdom right then by faith. Jesus was establishing the divine kingdom of God in his flesh—living our life, dying our death, and he would rise again, bringing all of humanity into a new realm of existence in which they, by faith, could participate in his kingdom by the Spirit. This sacrificial self-offering was necessary for grace to undergird the kingdom of God being established by the One who is the truth of our existence as those made in the image of God.
When we read God’s word, we see how much God hates untruth. He hates it because it dehumanizes us—makes us what we were never meant to be—dishonest, unfaithful, inauthentic, untrustworthy—all ways of being which destroy and tear down society, relationships, and families. Untruth, though often considered an essential business practice, actually destroys people’s trust and ruins the reputation of a business or organization or leader. The power of untruth to destroy is seen all around us every day, but we still seem to choose it as an option when faced with the consequences of telling the truth.
This is because telling the truth, being honest, sincere and authentic, has a cost. This cost resembles what Jesus went through when he told the truth about who he was as the Son of God, the king of the Jews. The cost of telling the truth is a participation in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If you want the benefits of the kingdom of truth, you need to be willing to pay the price of entering into the kingdom—truth-telling involves dying to self, laying down one’s preferences, popularity and all the perks of this life, for the sake of the kingdom of God—for the sake of living and walking in truth.
How easy it is to varnish the truth a little! To slip in a little white lie rather than have that difficult conversation! To polish or add a little glitz rather than to humbly admit what really happened! It takes a great deal of humility, courage, and faith to simply speak the truth in love when we would rather do otherwise.
One of the spiritual disciplines we have studied in our spiritual formation group is truth-telling. In Adele Calhoun’s book “Handbook of Spiritual Disciplines”, she explains that truth-telling is an offering up to God of space in our hearts and lives by telling the truth, in love, in every situation, no matter the cost to ourselves. This can be a very difficult thing for some of us, because we may have lied so often to ourselves and others that we have a hard time discerning what the truth really is. This is why we turn to Jesus, the One who is the truth. We receive from him the Spirit of truth—Christ’s nature of honesty, integrity, and truthfulness. It is by grace that we become truth-tellers.
We can begin the process of truth-telling by humbly coming to Christ the King and telling him the truth. We do not need to fear telling Jesus the truth because he already knows it—he simply wants us to admit it, and to receive his grace for having been less than truthful. We can ask God for the grace to tell the truth in every situation, receiving from him the Spirit of truth we need so that we can be Christlike people who live and walk in truth. What will it cost you to tell the truth today? Receive from Jesus his own self-offering of truth so that you can pay the cost of being a truth-teller in his kingdom.
Dear Father of truth, forgive us for our dishonesty and untruthfulness, for all the ways we embellish or alter the truth. Thank you for the grace you offer us in Jesus, who is the way, the truth, and the life. Grant us, by your Spirit of truth, the grace to be truth-tellers, now and forever, in your heavenly kingdom, through Jesus our Lord. Amen.
“Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, ‘Are You the King of the Jews?’ Jesus answered, ‘Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?’ Pilate answered, ‘I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests delivered You to me; what have You done?’ Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.’ Therefore Pilate said to Him, ‘So You are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice.’” John 18:33–37 NASB
Consequences of the Resurrection
By Linda Rex
4th SUNDAY OF EASTER—I have met many people over the years as I have been doing ministry here in Tennessee. I am sometimes surprised by how many times a person has been baptized on their journey with Jesus Christ. It seems that some churches require baptism as a mark of entry even though the person had been baptized before. Baptism, I believe, can begin to lose its significance when it is treated solely as a ticket for membership.
Jesus tells a story about a king who sends out invitations to a wedding feast (Matt. 22). The people he invited didn’t come, so he had his servants go out and invite anyone they could find to come. Finally, the day came. At the banquet, he finds a guest who doesn’t have on a wedding garment. Since every guest had been given a wedding garment when they were invited, there was no reason for this man to not to be dressed in one. He was excluded from the banquet.
When Jesus hung on the cross, all of humanity hung with him. When he was laid in the tomb, we all laid there with him. And when the resurrected Jesus walked out of the tomb glorified, our humanity walked out glorified with him. In his life, death, resurrection and ascension, Jesus carefully constructed our white robes of righteousness, preparing before time began for us to share in his glory.
It’s not when we are baptized that Jesus includes us—we were included back when he did his perfect work in our place and on our behalf. But we do come to a point in our lives when the Holy Spirit brings us to the place of recognizing and believing in who Jesus is and trusting in his finished work, gratefully receiving what he has done for us in place of our self-centered and self-sufficient ways of living and being. Our baptism becomes a participation in Jesus’ baptism, a symbolic sharing in his death and resurrection.
We can know about Jesus and even believe he is the Son of God, but never put on what he has given us. He has given us a new life, a new existence, a sharing in his love and grace which is life-transforming, healing and renewing. Jesus has included us in his perfect relationship with his Father in the Spirit. He has drawn us up into their perichoretic dance of love, and is allowing us to participate in his life in the Trinity both now and forever. He has baptized us with the Father’s love by and in the Spirit.
We express our grateful reception of and participation in Jesus’ perfect and extremely expensive gift through baptism. But going beyond baptism, we begin to live in the truth of who we are in Christ. In essence, we take the white robes which are ours and we put them on. As we eat the bread and drink the wine of communion, we tangibly “put on” Christ—we acknowledge our dependence on and trust in Jesus—we “feed” on him in an ongoing way, because he is our life. God works to grow us up in Christlikeness, as we respond to him in faith.
A lot of us, though, act as if we have to make ourselves good people. We work really hard at “being good enough to go to heaven.” The reality, though—if we are honest with ourselves—is that we will never be quite good enough. We are broken, sinful people who just can’t get it right. We can put on a nice front, make ourselves look kind, helpful, and generous, but at the same time be greedy, selfish, and indifferent. We can learn a lot of Bible verses, spout them at will, and yet never have a kind and thoughtful word to say to someone who is hurting.
Jesus’ finished work speaks volumes to us if we are willing to listen. It is because we are so faulty and in need of rescuing that he came to rescue us. It is because we are broken and sinful that he came to live in our humanity and redeem us. It is because we were captured by the kingdom of darkness that he, like a knight in shining armor, came to our defense and brought us safely into the kingdom of light at the risk of losing his own life like a sacrificial lamb.
This shepherd king, Jesus Christ, is the one who found us starving and wallowing in the pig sty, and brought home to his Father. God created us for so much more than this—we were intended to share in Jesus’ kingship and priesthood by the Spirit—an elevation to dignity and worth which is far beyond our own ability to attain. We were meant to live with God forever, immersed in his love and grace, filled with his Spirit, and participating in his plans and activities. We have a reason to live—a purpose and a hope beyond the temporary pleasures of this life. Whatever we do in this life now, and in the life to come, has great meaning and value as it is connected through Christ and in the Spirit with God’s love and will.
The fundamental issue which we face when faced with Jesus Christ is—are we willing to submit, surrender, relinquish all our claims to the throne? Are we willing to take our appropriate place as his dependent children, humbly surrendering to God’s desire for us and our lives? Are we willing to allow Jesus Christ to define our humanity and how we live our lives? This is the place where we are faced with the ultimate decision.
It’s easy to go through the motions of repentance, faith, and baptism. We can do the things we believe are necessary to become members of whatever church we may wish to join. But can we—no, will we—allow Jesus Christ to be who he is, the Lord of this universe and our Lord as well? Will we surrender to all to his purposes and plans, allowing him to redirect our lives and our relationships? Will we live and walk in the Spirit and not in our flesh any longer? This is where things get tough.
When Abba through Jesus sent his Spirit on all flesh, he opened the way for each and every person to make their very own the finished work of Jesus Christ. There is substantial freedom in what God has done. We can come to the wedding banquet wearing our own clothes or we can toss them in the trash where they belong and put on the white robes Jesus made for us. We are free to make this choice. It does not alter God’s love for us, but it does alter our experience of that love and whether or not we can participate in what God has planned for us, both now and in the world to come. The Spirit says, “Come.” Will we?
Thank you, Jesus, for doing everything necessary so we can be with you both now and forever. Thank you, Abba, for the gift of your Son and your Spirit. Give us willing and obedient hearts, and enable us to gratefully receive and live in the truth of all you have given to us. Amen.
“After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.’ ” Revelation 7:9-10
Our Life in the Trinity 