Before Thy Kingdom

   

  Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

20 November 2022 

 

First Reading: 2 Sm 5:1-3

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5

Second Reading: Col 1:12-20

Gospel: Lk 23:35-43

 

Reflection

By: Bernard Borja

 

I remember a scene from a movie about pirates where the pirates needed to vote for their king. For a long time, there has never been a king elected because the pirates would only vote for themselves. The election then started by saying the name that they are voting for. One by one, the pirates say out loud their own name. But one pirate surprised everyone when he voted for another. Commotion began and the pirates 

were complaining. Eventually, they followed the rules and elected the one who has the greatest number of votes, which is two. It was a funny scene but it made me think, when one of them stopped thinking highly about himself, it was when the tradition of voting selfishly was broken. If they only looked past their own benefits or amusement, it would not have taken a long time for them to have a king.

God’s kingdom has always been with all of us. From the beginning, God continues to make His kingdom known to us. While it is very true that we receive salvation through Christ, it is also through His kingdom that we receive the fullness of grace that God wants us to take part. During Jesus’ ministry, he constantly proclaimed the kingdom of God through healing, repentance, and justice. In His sorrowful passion, many people still perceived the kingdom differently. They even sneered at Him to “save Himself.” and prove that He is a king. Today, this is somehow a familiar scene to behold. We expect to receive blessings because we believe that it is our birthright. We don’t look past ourselves and only think of the benefits that we can get. We look up and ask God to do things for us because we are constantly trying to test His greatness. While it is true that we can ask God anything through our deep faith, sometimes we forget that we are in His kingdom and that we are approaching a king.

In corporate offices, there is a courtesy needed when meeting the executives. When people go to a palace, we see how reverence is shown when a king or queen walk past them. Even government leaders are approached in a polite and well-mannered way. Why is it that there are times when we come before Jesus, our King, we unconsciously look at Him as our servant? Are we taking the verse “the Son of Man came not 

to be served but to serve others” (Mat 20:28) literally? Do we perceive our prayers as commands?

The repentant thief believes that he is with a true king. Though he also wants to be saved by Jesus, the thief believes that it will only be through justice for his crimes. The thief acknowledged it by admitting his sinfulness and conceding to the condemnation he was subjected to. He believes that salvation is received through Jesus and passed through His kingdom which includes justice and repentance.

When we come before The Lord to pray, remembering our disposition will help us recognize and acknowledge the kingship of Jesus Christ. When we only think of ourselves, the benefits that we will gain while setting aside concern for others, we forget about the kingdom of Jesus and how it welcomes us to receive His graces. We approach Jesus by remembering that we also need to come before His kingdom which is also built by justice. In this way, it will also help us prepare to welcome Him to dwell in our hearts, as He constantly pursue and accompany us in all our journeys.

Prayer

Dear Jesus, we come before You and acknowledge our sinfulness. We offer to You our struggles to recognize Your kingship over us, and we ask for guidance that we may be able to constantly proclaim Your kingdom through justice and repentance. We humbly pray that we may also be able to prepare for your coming. We ask these through the intercession of Mary, our Queen Mother, that we may also find consolation in the judgment subiected to us because of our sins. Amen.