In the readings this coming Sunday, our idea of what a king represents is challenged. Surely, the way Jesus is presented to us is not as a king sitting on a throne or leading his troops to battle.
Our image of power, wealth, status and recognition associated with royalty is replaced with that of a humble king whose mission is to serve rather than to be served, to give us salvation through his acceptance of the most severe suffering and pain, to elevate us rather than to elevate himself.
It is indeed a lesson for life that Jesus was able to choose his destiny and still chose the most painful and humiliating death for the benefit of all.
We too are given the choice of partaking of that kingdom, now on this earth and for eternity. Yet, it is so tempting to continually be carried away with all that the world presents us with.
How often do we find ourselves doing the exact opposite of what we set out to do? Just because we have ended up going with the flow. It’s not just children who succumb to peer pressure or who dream of power and wealth, and who are driven by imminent gratification. Our own nature and our desires very often fail us, taking us to those places where we think our thirst will be quenched, but very often we are left with emptiness.
The crown that is presented to us this Sunday is not the shiniest one, but the one that is most meaningful and fulfilling. A life in Christ is all about His image being created in us, His kingdom being offered to us and us choosing that kingdom over the various other shiny alternatives that the world presents to us, accepting the humble and serving King to reign over our lives and choosing to be transformed into that image.
Our prayer in preparation for this Sunday’s mass is that we may truly be overcome by a desire to be transformed by Him, that we may be open to the power of the Holy Spirit to shift our desires from earthly gratification onto becoming more like Jesus, and allowing our hearts to be gently touched.
We invite you to join us for mass this Sunday 23rd November at the Chapel of the Convent of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in St Julian’s at 11am.
Also check out other Nonprofit events in Saint Julians.
