Christ the King Sunday

Baptists don't typically follow the traditional liturgical calendar with all of its festivals and prescribed readings and prayers. We expect our local church pastor to preach the Word as God speaks to him each week. I'm happy to say that I have a Sr. pastor (preacher) who faithfully delivers a message from God week by week. There is nothing wrong with following the liturgical calendar. We just as a general rule don't - probably because of its roots in the Catholic church and our Baptist forefather's desire to make sure we were NOT Catholic.

But we do follow the traditional liturgical calendar to some extent: we celebrate Christmas and Easter. Many of us make sure that we at least sing songs about the Holy Spirit on Pentecost (7 weeks after Easter) and in the last 30 years or so many Baptists have discovered the joy of anticipating Christmas by to some form or another observing Advent. For that matter, even more recently, many Baptists have begun observing Lent as they prepare for Easter.

Another festive day that I personally have observed for many years is Christ the King Sunday. My congregations don't know it, but they have been observing it too! Surprise!

In the church calendar Advent is celebrated or observed for the four Sundays before Christmas. The first Sunday of Advent is considered the first Sunday of the year.

What most of us don't know is that the Sunday before Advent (therefore the last Sunday of the year) is Christ the King Sunday.

Here are some verses from the New Testament that refer to Jesus Christ as King. (this was taken from wikipedia)
The name is found in various forms in scripture: King (John 18:36-37), King eternal (1 Timothy 1:17), King of Israel (John 1:49, Mt. 27:42, Mark 15:32), King of the Jews by Romans and Magi (Mt. 2:2, Mt. 27:11, cf. John 18:33-37), King of kings (1 Tim 6:15; Rev. 19:16), King of the ages (Book of Revelation 15:3) and Ruler of the kings of the Earth (Rev. 1:5).

So on Christ the King Sunday I like to lead our congregation in singing great songs about Jesus Christ as King.

Tomorrow at Hilldale we will sing:
Rejoice, the Lord Is King with Sing and Rejoice! (this will be on our new CD)
followed by
Sing to the King

Then our choir will sing Psalm 24 which is a great song taken from (duh) Psalm 24. (also on our new CD)
" Lift up your head,
 lift up your voice,
 lift up your heart
 come rejoice
 that the King of Glory may come in"

We'll end our congregational singing with
Majesty
All Hail King Jesus
and
You Are My King

I hope you'll join us tomorrow in singing praise to Jesus Christ the King of kings.