We are used to seeing the letters INRI on crucifixes, an acronym for the words “Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews” in Latin. When a friend of mine from High School would see a crucifix with the acronym on top, he would jokingly say that the crucifix, “It is a good brand.”

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. The Monarchy in Israel was not an institution invented by God. Once Israel passed through the Desert and settled in the Promised Land, Israel had God as its only King for about 150 years. After that Israel desired to have a human king just like the neighboring nations had.

The Israelites asked God to give them a human king which effectively meant that they rejected God as their king on earth. God granted Israel’s request, though warning the people that human kings run the risk of becoming greedy and corrupt. God provided Saul as Israel’s first king. Saul was faithful to God for a while, but eventually let God down. God then chose David, “A man after his [God’s] own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14). God promised David that the king of Israel would always be a descendant of David’s family. The monarchy in Israel lasted about 400 years until the beginning of the Babylonian exile. Hope for the fulfillment of God’s promise to David was never lost.

Israel’s desire for a human king could be understood as a manifestation of original sin. One way to understand original sin is the human desire to dethrone God as the highest authority in our lives and make ourselves king instead. The tension between Israel’s desire for a human king and God’s prerogative as the only King of Israel is fully resolved in the person of the Lord Jesus. The Lord is a descendant of David and the beloved Son of God. The way God fulfilled Israel’s desire for a human king exceeded all expectations. The most surprising aspect was the way this King was enthroned: on the cross.

Now, Israel’s experience is an image of the experience of the Church and of each one of us as disciples of the Lord. The Church as one body and each one of its members live in the tension between the desire of being in control ourselves and the prerogative of the Lord as the only King of the Church and humanity.

The earthly kings we are exposed to and tempted to follow are not necessarily people but things like power, possessions, pleasure, and honor. Just as God warned ancient Israel of the greed and corruption that human kings tend to have; in the same way God also warns us of the danger these things that we center our lives around can have. Power, possessions, pleasure, fame, and esteem are good things in themselves. They become a problem when we start giving them more importance than they are due. They may become addictive; in a sense they could control our lives. God and the things of God are what must reign in our lives. God must be our only king.

As God did with Israel, the Lord does not force us to have Him as our only king. The Lord allows us to have other gods if we wish. However, the Lord warns us of their danger. Again, the things of this world play the role of greedy kings. Material goods, power, prestige, and undisciplined pleasure when left unchecked tend to possess us completely and steal our souls in the process.

Thanks be to God for sending us His beloved Son to completely fill our human desire for a perfect human king. Thanks be to God for the wisdom that the divine and human King teaches us: that the things of this world can never be the reason for our life, but only the means to serve the Lord, who is the greatest good we can have in this world. Everything, absolutely everything, is subordinated to the Lord. Everything must be at His service. The King of our hearts cannot be anyone else or anything else but the Lord.

Let us humbly ask the Lord to grant us his grace to order our lives with Him as our only King.