NOT OF THIS WORLD
Cooke’s-Portsmouth Church
November 22, 2015
John 18:33-37
Picture two men standing together face to face. They are marked opposites. One is
surrounded in opulence. The other was conceived in poverty. One is wrapped in the fine
garb of wealth and high political office. The other wears a tattered and stained robe. The
one has the backing of the whole of Rome at his disposal: Caesar, centurions and
soldiers. The other has a band of followers who are as poor as he; who carry no weapons
and are vested with neither political power nor ecclesiastical authority. Two men, facing
one another who appear to be as different from one another as night is from day. And yet
these two, despite their obvious differences, seem to also have some things in common.
Both are bound to obey the one in whose name they live, move and have their being. The
one is allegiant to his god, Caesar, and the other is allegiant to the Creator God. Both are
obviously intelligent, and perhaps even somewhat respectful of the other. They are
equally matched at the game of rhetoric in which we find them at play, answering
questions with questions. The powerful one says to the seeming powerless one, “Are you
the king of the Jews?” And Jesus circumvents the question with poise and subtlety,
“Where did you hear that? From my accusers?” Pilate responds, “You stand before me
accused by your own people. What have you done?” And Jesus answers, “My kingdom is
not from this world.” And then Pilate says, “Oh, so you are a king.”
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The title of “king is loaded with political and insurrectional meaning for the Romans,
who have little tolerance for any king save Caesar. As the chief authority of Rome in
Palestine Pilate is on his guard that this Jewish peasant poses no threat to the empire.
Jesus matches wits with Pilate, taking the upper hand by avoiding his questions and
pushing to access the information that Pilate has on him. How did you hear of me? Am I
here because of your curiosity and concern or because of that of others?
The rhetorical jousting continues when Pilate asserts that he is not a Jew; that Jesus’s
own nation and religious elite have turned him in for questioning and accountability thus
confirming for Jesus what he has suspected and warned his followers about: he will be
arrested, tried, convicted and killed in a collaborative effort between Rome and
Jerusalem. But his kingdom is not of this world.
His kingdom is not political. His followers have not banded together to negotiate his
release. They have not sent out a call to arms to fight the legions of Rome. They have not
congregated in cells with plots to attack and overthrow. His kingdom poses no threat to
Roman authority or rule. This is not to suggest that his kingship is not subversive. The
otherworldliness of his kingdom demands allegiance to God over allegiance to earthly
powers and kings. His faith and trust has been vested in things unseen; acknowledged and
accepted on faith. Pilate places his trust in the power and might of Rome embodied in
legions and wealth that can be seen and revered as powerful symbols. But Jesus has
placed his faith; his life and very future into the unseen but nonetheless powerful.
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His entire ministry has been pointing to the kingdom of God; and the kingdom of God is
the superlative though seemingly subtle by comparison. Looking at the political world
stage we continue to witness the cruelty that ensues when the worldly and the unworldly
become confused and fused in an unholy union. We cannot discern a grain of truth in
sects and factions that kill in the name of God. Indeed we look to the example of Jesus
and see that he willingly submitted to death to avoid further bloodshed. Bloodshed,
martyrdom and unjust punishment and cruelty came in time, again, because the worldly
kingdoms do not fully understand the otherworldly kingdoms.
The worldly kingdom relies on power, force, cruelty and hidden agenda; the unworldly
kingdom is rooted in faith, hope, compassion, forgiveness and equality.
Two men separated by nationality, religion and politics. Two men separated by class and
economics. Two men of wit and intelligence completely committed to the one in whose
name they are defined. One has his power vested completely in this world, and the other
has his power from the unseen. Both are regal and kingly, one because of wealth
opulence and power, and the other because of grace and providence.
The text for this morning is part of a larger exchange between Jesus and Pilate. Were the
entire passage read we would sense the rising fear in Pilate in the presence of Jesus and
his command of the situation. Jesus is not frightened or deterred by the persona in whose
company he stands. Several times his adversary tries to abdicate himself; telling the
priests to deal with Jesus according to their own laws. Twice Pilate concedes that he can
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find no law that Jesus has broken in claiming to be king. Several times he tries to have
Jesus released. He has him flogged and allows his soldiers to crown him with a crown of
thorns and wrap him in a purple robe in abject humiliation but Jesus takes it all in stride:
the pain, the abuse the humiliation. Though perhaps weakened in body by the assault his
resolve is undeterred. This is the kind of king not of this world that we worship and
follow in the kingdom of the world in which we live.
Pilate became increasingly afraid; the weight of his earthly responsibility weighing him
down. One man- a king not of this world-in humility is subjugating the very seat of Rome
in Palestine. His power is in seeming powerlessness and in humility he brings Rome to its
figurative knees. This is the power vested in a king not of this world.
This is a king who does not Lord it over his subjects but identifies with them. A king who
recognizes worth and potential even in the weak, young and marginalized. A king who
recognizes that some rules need to be broadened or broken to better serve the needs of
humanity. A king who is not defined by wealth, honour, prestige or pedigree but is
clothed in and empowered by grace, love and compassion. A king who truly understands
and teaches that the things that are seen are transient and the things that are unseen are
eternal.
Søren Kierkegaard was a Danish theologian, philosopher, poet and critic who wrote little
parables to illustrate his point. He recognized that the central point of Christian theologythat God would assume the life of a mortal to redeem and atone for humanity- was absurd
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and easily dismissed by the intellectual. So he crafted a parable titled The King and the
Maiden to illustrate its profound possibility. He opined:
Suppose there was a king who loved a humble maiden. The king was like no other king.
Every statesman trembled before his power. No one dared breathe a word against him, for
he had the strength to crush all opponents.
And yet this mighty king was melted by love for a humble maiden who lived in a poor
village in his kingdom. How could he declare his love for her? In an odd sort of way, his
kingliness tied his hands. If he brought her to the palace and crowned her head with
jewels and clothed her body in royal robes, she would surely not resist-no one dared resist
him. But would she love him?
She would say she loved him, of course, but would she truly? Or would she live with him
in fear, nursing a private grief for the life she had left behind? Would she be happy at his
side? How could he know for sure? If he rode to her forest cottage in his royal carriage,
with an armed escort waving bright banners, that too would overwhelm her. He did not
want a cringing subject. He wanted a lover, an equal. He wanted her to forget that he was
a king and she a humble maiden and to let shared love cross the gulf between them. For it
is only in love that the unequal can be made equal.
The king, convinced he could not elevate the maiden without crushing her freedom,
resolved to descend to her. Clothed as a beggar, he approached her cottage with a worn
cloak fluttering loose about him. This was not just a disguise – the king took on a totally
new identity – He had renounced his throne to declare his love and to win hers.
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Such is the love of the king not of this world. Such is the conviction of the king not of
this world who suffers to redeem and dies to atone. Such is the strength of the king who
is ruled by love, devotion, compassion, tolerance and justice. His is a kingdom not of this
world which is built upon a foundation of the unseen; for the things that are seen are
transient; the things that are unseen are eternal.
The power of Rome is no more, but the gospel of Jesus Christ, though altered by time
remains. And he shall reign forever and ever. Hallelujah. Amen.
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