Christ the King/Reign of Christ Sunday

Year B: November 25th, 2018

First Reading: 2 Samuel 23:1-7

Old Pig by Margaret Wild

(Written for ages 4-6)

Comment: Our text says that these are the last words of King David. King David is going to die, but before he does, he remembers where he came from, his family, and the things that are still true of God who was with him as a boy and is with him now. He speaks about being a just king, comparing it to various aspects of creation. He speaks of God’s covenant and help which are eternal, even though his life is not. In Old Pig, Old Pig and Young Pig live together, always by each other’s side. But Old Pig realizes she is going to die, and rather than avoid it, she takes the time to do final things. She takes Young Pig on a walk, she notices the world around her.s. Even as people who believe in eternal life, as people of faith, we know that our mortal lives will end. So it is important for us, like Old Pig, like King David, to face that, and to spend our lives, even up to our final moments, praising God, noticing the world and the goodness of creation and remembering what will carry on after we are gone.

Second Reading: Revelation 1:4b-8

In a Village By The Sea by Muon Van

(Written for ages 4-10)

Comment: In Revelation, it tells us that the Lord God is and was and is to come, and that the Lord God is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the Ending. God is before and after and throughout all things. This concept is impossible for humans to fully grasp. But we can get some sense of it through the book In a Village by the Sea. The story is circular, starting with a cricket painting and a man fishing, missing his family. It then journeys page by page back through the man’s family and kitchen and to the tiny nook where a cricket is, once again, painting a picture of a the man who is missing his family. The story cycles back, and never really ends, just as God never ends because God is and was and is to come, God is the Alpha and the Omega, God is the beginning and the ending.

Gospel Reading: John 18:33-37

The Quiltmaker’s Gift by Jeff Brumbeau

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: In The Quilt Maker’s Gift, a talented quilt maker whose quilts are praised and treasured by the people she gives them to catches the notice of a greedy king. He demands that she make him a quilt but she refuses to give in to his demands. She stands up to the king, telling him she will only give him a quilt if he gives away all his possessions, which he will not do. He tries to make her give him a quilt, and each time she refuses and stands up to him. No matter what, the quilt maker stands up to the king until he changes his ways. Pilate was one of the most powerful men in Jesus’ time and it had to be scary to be brought before him, but Jesus stood up to Pilate and answered back forcefully and without giving in to Pilate at all. Even to the end of his life, Jesus stood up for his purpose, even against the most powerful people. As his disciples, we follow him in standing up no matter what, always remembering our purpose in Jesus.

Thanks to Union Presbyterian Seminary alumna Sara Ann Berger for writing the Revised Common Lectionary Links this week.

Lectionary Links (RCL): November 25, 2018 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.