Love As Power
Christ The King
Readings:
* 2 Sam:5:1-3;
* Col. 1:12-20
* Lk. 23:35-43
Love As Power
Ever-Present Power
One of the realities of life, which we all have to deal with, is that of power. Power operates on many, many different levels. There is the power we give to the leader of our country, the power we invest in police and other law enforcement people, the power we accept from our employers. All of these people have some kind of power over us. But most of us also have power over others - our children, those in our care, even our pets.
But there is another kind of power which we all hopefully experience. That is the power that comes from people who care for us. Wives and husbands exercise the power of love over each other. Parents who love their children are using their power of love. Friends and members of certain communities, through their kindness and caring, have a certain power, which they also exercise.
Power For Others
This power is power for others, not power over others. It is this kind of power that we celebrate today on the feast of Christ the King. This power that comes from love can be either a very strong kind of power or it can be no power at all - just a seemingly useless waste of time. Whether this power of love is effective or ineffective does not depend on the one who exercises such power. It depends totally on the one who receives it or refuses to receive it.
If someone loves you very dearly and you accept that love, then many things change for you. A life without meaning can become a life filled with purpose. A sad and lonely life can be filled with happiness and a sense of fulfillment. A sense of failure can be turned into a sense of accomplishment. All of this can happen if we accept the love that comes to us from others.
But we also know that the opposite can happen. No matter how much a person loves us, if we do not accept that love, then that love has no power whatever. Why even the love of Jesus was powerless when it was not accepted and cherished.
The Two Criminals
Look at the two criminals hanging on the crosses next to Jesus. One accepted Jesus and all that he could offer; the other did not. One was promised paradise; the other was lost in his anger and bitterness. Christ the King was not the king over the thief who refused to change. Christ is the King only when we allow him to be king. That power is in our hands. We have the power to refuse the power of God’s love for us.
These ideas affect us on a very practical level. Two people who are thinking of marriage must never enter such a relationship with the idea that, after marriage, they will change the other person. Love can’t demand change. It can only invite. Love may be the most powerful force in the world, but it is a force that depends on being received by a willing and grateful heart.
The Lure of Love
God is present and interacting with us every second by offering us promptings and urgings and nudges toward making the most loving and best decisions. But we, for our part, have to be open to hearing the call of God. In a way, God is luring us towards what is best by loving us at all times. We open ourselves to those divine invitations through prayer, meditation, listening, seeking guidance from others. God is always aiming us gently towards the most loving choice in whatever situation we find ourselves. The good thief experienced these urgings of God and responded to them by recognizing the goodness of Jesus and asking to be remembered by him. And that is just what Jesus did. He responded immediately by promising paradise to this criminal who was hanging on a cross next to him.
A King On A Cross
This is the true kingship of Jesus. He is a king who is with us and for us, ready to respond to our callings at all times. Jesus shows us that God is on our level and intimately aware of our struggles, joys and pain. But, at the same time, God is supremely respectful of the freedom that each of us possesses. We will never be forced into loving or into being good. Nor can we force any other person into being good or making the right decisions.
This doesn’t mean that we should stop loving others because they don’t respond the way we want them to respond. Imagine if God decided to stop loving us because we didn’t act the way we were supposed to? We would all be in a terrible state. Love is the power that God offers to us, and which we offer to one another. May we have the wisdom and openness to recognize and receive that love.