"You will be with me in Paradise."

I don’t think it’s a secret to anyone here that often our lives take turns that we did not expect. There was that degree that took decades to complete. The good news was that by then, we could afford the ’67 Mustang we had been wanting for forty years. My sister still shakes her head in disbelief when she realizes that she produced four children in only sixteen months. I sympathize with her and then add, ‘better you than me. Personally, I still kick myself for not buying that brownstone on west 20th street when they were going for ten thousand dollars. I didn’t want to raise my children in Manhattan, I told myself. So where did they grow up? On Chelsea Square, located between 20th and 21st streets. We also know all too well of those whose lives were filled with many more devastating detours and were, in some cases, unable to recover.

‘ I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’

Things unexpected: I am sure that when Mary of Nazareth dreamed of having her first child, she did not also dream of having to run and hide from those who would kill all the infants of Bethlehem. So too with the Baptist, shouldn’t his popularity have saved his head from Herod’s ax? And I doubt very much that even in his wildest thoughts regarding his life did the child Jesus consider the Gospel that Dcn. Terry just read. Further, I really do feel that the scriptures show His movement and growth towards the means that would be needed to open paradise for us. We see him approaching us with preaching, teaching, healings, exorcisms and other miracles, yet even those who were closest to him needed more and would receive it.

Sometimes life’s complications take us where we wouldn’t choose to go.

I read a cute story that could easily illustrate the above; it’s called, ‘For whom the Bell’ …. Tolls ~ It reads:

A Priest was walking down the street one day when he notices a very small boy trying to ring a doorbell on a house across the street. But the doorbell is to high for the little boy to reach.

After watching the boy's efforts for a while, the priest decides to give the lad a helping hand. So he crosses over, goes up to the house and gives the bell one solid ring.

Then, crouching down to the boy’s level, the priest smiles benevolently and asks, ‘And now what my little man?’

To which the boy replies, now we run.

Needless to say, the boy runs and the door opens.

‘ I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’

A note of concern: things said may not always be what we expect them to be either.

I know of another child, one that I really knew and led me to a profound understanding. We were studying in Lent and we read the passion. The child raised a hand read the sentence:

‘ I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’ Then the question followed: If Jesus went down to save Hell too, how did he meet the thief in heaven that day?

Beginning to answer, I realized I couldn’t. Good question, I replied; I’ll bring the answer for you to the next class. What I found was not what I expected it to be … and it had everything to do with simply moving a comma.

We read: ‘ I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’

The original Greek reads: ‘ I tell you today, you will be with me in Paradise.’

Maybe that faith grew through His humanity from childhood but when it mattered, it was there and his Humanity was of critical importance.

So, the feast of Christ the King, and here do we really want a messiah who shares our limitation? Personally, I think not. Perhaps not, but, if not, then how would he know us as he did, being fully human?

Christ the King, Lord of all realms, he brings the human into the divine by recognizing the essence of divinity latent in humanity. Even if we too come to the point that we want to yell, ‘ If you are the Christ, save yourself and us too.’

He did.

As we move towards and into Advent, into this most visible of God’s breaking into our time, let us reconsider the fact that Christ is King, not in spite of his humanity but through it, with it and in it.

May we all finish this year with enhanced perspective and with greater appreciation for all that we are and can become, through our Lord and King.

AMEN,
The Rev. Denise P. Mantell