At the Sounds of the Trumpet – November 21, 2021

Psalm 95:1-7, Revelation 11:15-19
Christ the King Sunday
November 21, 2021

Here in Revelation a lot of things happened “At the Sound of the Trumpet.”  That’s the title of this sermon today.  As a trumpet player, I’ve always liked that. It’s always been in the back of my mind that there is something, not only majestic, but also spiritual about that trumpet!

Think about the trumpets that have been played over the years at significant moments.  From way back, the Jewish people had the shofar.  That’s not exactly a trumpet.  It’s a ram’s horn.  But it’s played the same way.  And they played it (and still do) at important times and events.  Think about the fanfare that’s played every year at the Kentucky Derby.  Think about the trumpets that have heralded royalty throughout history.  I understand the British army has a special “fanfare unit” that plays at royal ceremonies and events.

The U. S. Army has buglers.  (Do the other services?)  And bugling also means more than just musical entertainment.  Bugle calls mean things.  “Reveille” is the wake-up call.  “To the Colors” is played at the raising of the flag.  “Mess call” says it’s mealtime.  And of course, at the end of the day, there’s “Taps.”  And “Taps” is also played at military funerals.  I don’t know about you, but I am always moved when that happens!

Not only am I a trumpet player, I’m also a former bugler!  Years ago, I played bugle for my scout troop.  And when we were at summer camp, there were troops around us that didn’t have a bugler.  But they found out we did!  So, after a while, I found myself walking from camp to camp each day, with my bugle, playing for different troops!  I was like a rent-a-bugler!

So here in Revelation, there are many things happening at the sound of the trumpet.  In our reading for today, we are seeing what was to happen at the sound of the seventh trumpet.  You can go back and read about the other six trumpet calls.  They start at chapter 8.  But hold on to your hats!  It’s wild, cataclysmic stuff!  Hail and fire falling to the earth, a great mountain of fire being thrown into the sea, a star falling from heaving, the sun, moon, and stars being dimmed, and an eagle flying in midheaven crying, “Woe to those who live on earth, for the other three trumpets are about to sound!”  (“And you ain’t seen nothin’ yet!”)

Well, after all that has happened, here at the end of earth history, here at the sound of the seventh trumpet, Jesus is hailed as “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.”  That’s where we find these words so wonderfully put to music by Handel, “The kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.”  I can hardly read those words without singing them!  (And I always hear the music!)

This is Christ the King Sunday.  It is the last Sunday of the liturgical year.  It’s also the culmination of the entire liturgical year.  Remember the liturgical year was set up to remember and celebrate the various events in the life and times of Jesus Christ.  And here at the end of the year, it all leads up to him being heralded and worshipped as Christ the King!

So today we focus on this passage from the book of Revelation.  And of course, many things have been said about this book over the years.  When I was in seminary, I was privileged to take a course on Revelation which was taught by Dr. Bruce Metzger.  I think I’ve told you before that Dr. Metzger was one of the editors of the RSV Bible.  If you have an RSV, you will find his name there!  We always said Dr. Metzger knew the most about the Bible, because he was there when it was written!  And it was wonderful to listen to him talk about this book.

“Revelation,” he said, “is a cryptic book!”  The original title of the book is “The Apocalypse.”  And an apocalypse is something that is written to people in difficult times, giving them hope for the future.  But, again, it’s written cryptically.  It’s intended as sort of an “underground newspaper” for people under oppression.  It was written so that it would have been understood by the people to whom it was written, but hard to figure out for their everyone else – including the oppressors.

So that makes it hard for us to understand.  And, as Dr. Metzger told us, we don’t have the code book to decipher it.  We can understand some parts of it because we have the rest of the Bible and other historical documents to work with, but we can’t know for sure about all of it.

But one thing we can know is this.  Are you ready for it?  Here’s the secret meaning of the entire book of Revelation!  God wins!  That’s it!  God wins!  That’s the overall theme of the book.  If people ask what’s the meaning of the book of Revelation, that’s the answer!  God wins!

That’s what we celebrate today.  God wins!  In the end, Jesus becomes “Christ the King!”  In the end, he is “King of king and Lord of lords.  And he shall reign forever and ever!”

But this is like what I said about the spiritual life – the heavenly life.  Our spiritual life doesn’t begin when we die.  It begins in this life.  The same can be said with Jesus’ “kingship.”  It doesn’t start when the seventh angel blows his trumpet.  It’s in the here and now!  Today, we celebrate that Jesus is King!  Not just that Jesus will be King.  This is not “Christ the Future King Sunday.”  It is “Christ the now King Sunday, too!”  He is king now, and then!  He is the true “Once and future King!”  or, more accurately, “The Now and Future King.”

So, as I always ask on this Sunday, the question is not merely “is Jesus King?”  The question becomes is he your king?  That’s a good thing to think about each year on this day.  Is Christ your king?  That’s the clear message in Revelation.  It goes right along with the message that God wins.  Because the further question is, who is on God’s side?  Much of the apocalyptic conflict in this book is the conflict between those who are on God’s side and those who aren’t.

Don’t we want to me on the winning side?  Don’t we want to be on God’s side?  That makes sense when I say it that way, doesn’t it?  But there’s a catch!  Being on God’s side, being God’s people, means that God is sovereign over our lives.  He is the king.  He rules!  And that’s what many people don’t want.  That’s why many people fight against God.  That’s why Lucifer was cast out of heaven.  He wanted to be in charge!

That’s why Adam and Eve were thrown out of Eden.  They ate of “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.”  And I’m convinced that the meaning of that is that it’s not just knowing what is good and bad, but having the power to decide what is good and bad!  In other words, like all the people after them, they wanted sovereignty over their own lives.  They didn’t want to be told what to do by God – or what not to do.

That’s the eternal battle.  Think about it!  What’s the battle today over the idea of sin?  It’s people saying they don’t want something to be considered a sin.  They want to be the ones to say what is and what isn’t sin.  They want to be the ones with that “knowledge.”  Do you see?  That’s the idea of “having the knowledge of good and evil.”

That’s the battle.  And in the end, God wins!  So I ask you again.  Whose side do you want to be on, when, indeed, “The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever, Amen.”

Prayer

Eternal God, we recognize this day that Jesus is king, knowing that he will also be the future king.  Help us to have the courage and strength we need to live as his people, and to be part of his kingdom.  And may we truly know the joy of the Lord.  And we pray in his name, Amen.