Christianity is Not a Democracy

Mary Rodgers, February 6, 2005
Scripture: Psalm 99; Luke 23:33-38

Like many of you I watched some of the State of the Union Address last week. I'm not into politics, but every year I try to watch the President's speech for two reasons:

1. I feel like I need to be an informed citizen and
2. As much as I am interested in what the Presidents says I find it more interesting to see how the congress and other attendees react.

Every year it is an adventure. Will one side stand and applause affirming what the president is saying while the other side stays seated in silent disagreement? Even more intriguing to me are the looks on the faces of some who are sitting in the crowd. Surely they did not realize that the camera was going to do a close-up shot at that moment. A look can speak a thousand words. This year I actually read all the articles in the paper the next day and as expected, it ran the gamut of analysis. I don't usually read the paper, but I had to fill in the gaps in the speech where I dozed off. I also read the paper so I could keep up with my friends. Many of them are way into politics and they had plenty to say about Bush, his agenda and his speech. To be honest, by Friday I was weary of the passionate discussions that seemed more like arguments or a fight. All this is to say that I think maybe it is time for something different. A radical change, something that could heal the apparent divide in our nation. Maybe instead of electing a President of our choice, we need a King. Think of all the advantages. No campaign commercials. No lobbying by special interests groups. No partisan bickering. No voter fraud. No term limits. No need to please the left and appease the right or vice versa. So what do you think? Should we scrap democracy? Are we ready for a king?

I didn't think so. Besides a few expatriates of the mother land, I'm guessing that few of us are open to this radical idea. As Americans we love our democracy. I love democracy. But would it be better if we had a king? Perhaps if someone didn't have to worry about loosing their power they would always use it well. Perhaps if someone had all the authority to make the difficult decisions, they'd always make the right ones. Maybe if we copied the way God works everything would run smoothly.

Copy the way God works. Well that would be a radical change in polity because Christianity is not a democracy. It is a straight forward, no holds barred monarchy, with one clear leader, one obvious King. As one person said: "When we stand at the pearly gates of heaven, we probably are not going to be asked whom we voted for, we are going to be asked in whom did we believe, in whom did we place our trust, in whom we swore our allegiance.." Christianity is not a democracy.

The Bible has plenty to say about kingship and who is King. It's the first line of the psalm today. "The Lord is King." No wishy washyiness or spin there. "He sits enthroned on the cheribim….let the earth quake; let the peoples tremble! I can't speak for you but I don't really like the idea of a King. I don't even like the language. The image of the king sitting in his glory on a throne just doesn't feel right. It doesn't fit with our 21st century sensibilities yet, Christianity is not a democracy. So what in the world was God thinking when God made Jesus our King?

Perhaps God made Christ King because given a choice we would never elect someone like Jesus. We value leaders who have staying power. We value leaders who when given the chance to display power will use it and use it well in ways that impress us and make us feel safe and confident in them. Jesus was a leader who did none of these things. He loved the marginalized and he criticized the establishment. He showed little political savvy-he only lasted three and a half years and worst of all, when given a chance to exercise his power he laid it aside. In the face of adversity, in the face of false accusations and political backstabbing Jesus was soft and weak.

Imagine the field day the press would have with the story in Luke 23 if it were happening today. You know it would be big because Jesus was good about shaking things up, and everyone loves a scandal. Imagine the headlines "Jesus of Nazareth, "King" of the Jews Crucified. The analyst would have a hey day giving their opinion about the whole ordeal. Someone would certainly mention the fact that when called to defend himself Jesus said nothing. What kind of leader is that? Surely following the actual bodily crucifixion there would be another crucifixion with words. No, given the choice we would never elect anyone like Jesus. But it doesn't matter because Christianity is not a Democracy.

It is easy to be distracted by the King language in the bible. As I said earlier "glory, throne, cherubim, let the people tremble and the earth quake" just doesn't cause a connection for most of us. It doesn't move many of us to adoration. But if you read carefully through the psalm you'll see that that kind of language is only in the first 3 verses. Key to entire psalm is the idea that the King is Holy. In the first three verses the kind of Holiness that is spoken about is an awesome, mighty presence of a King. A presence that evokes fear and requires humans to keep a distance or to approach the King only after taking special precautions. But as the psalm proceeds the tone changes and there is a fundamental shift in the definition of holiness. Rather than keeping humans at a distance, rather than being the King who is "out there somewhere" God the King is right there in the midst of them, relating to them., doing justice, answering cries, and both forgiving and holding accountable. By the time we get to verses 4 and 5 God the "mighty king" is not enthroned above it all but rather is found in the midst of the struggle of being human. Not only is God the king a "lover of justice" God does justice. Not only does the King value equality, the king establishes equity. Truly A king of the people! No one would argue about having that kind of King.

Can you imagine having that kind of King today? The king would leave his throne, his palace, and live among us commoners. Not just live among us but experience our lives. Not just the highs and the lows but the everyday and the mundane: the three kids and the carpools, the daily gridlock, the worry over money, and over health, the joy of new life, and blue skies. the factory work, the unemployment, the struggle for good grades and to be included. The king would do it all: the King would be intimately involved with each of us, Know us so well and love us so much that he would know every hair on our heads. The King would do it all. The King would become us.

Whenever the Bible gives us one of these "Royal Psalms," it is always in the context of a time when it appears to the people of God that God, the King, does not reign. And the psalm is a proclamation of sorts that reminds the people that the King is always in control. In the midst of the Iraqi war, terrorism, and divided elections perhaps this is a psalm for us. Especially since Christianity is not a democracy.

I'm glad we have a King. A King that reigns not just over America but over the world. A King who does justice and establishes equity with no special interests except the whole of his people. A King who's Spirit works through democracy and its leaders to bring together an Iraqi woman and the mother of dead American Soldier in an embrace of mutual respect and thanksgiving giving us just a tiny glimpse of the kingdom that comes. We have a king. A King that works through us and sometimes in spite of us to bring about healing, justice, equity and love. A King whose agenda is not power in the sense we know it but whose agenda is love. We have a king. A King who is God. Hail to the King!

© Copyright, 2005, Rev. Mary Rodgers
All Rights Reserved.
Providence Presbyterian Church
Fairfax, Virginia