Pilgrim Uniting Church, Adelaide SA SUN 22-NOV-2020 - 11.00 AM Sermon Rev Dr Greg Elsdon Reign of Christ – In his Hallelujah Chorus from "The Messiah", Handel tries to describe the reign of Christ with words such as "Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!"; "The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ"; "He shall reign for forever and ever"; and "King of Kings, and Lord of Lords". The reign of Christ the King is unlike any other reign or dominion, because it is not maintained by unbridled power and control, but by compassion, justice, forgiveness and reconciliation. It is not held together by pomp and ceremony, but by hospitality and generosity. The Lord of all asks us to respond to the desperately needy, be they hungry, sick, imprisoned or lonely, to identify with them and accompany them. Remember also the dispossessed and forgotten, victims of violence, and people held in detention centres. These are more than statistics, they are people of Jesus. The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats is not necesarily about the end of time, but about the presence of God in our history. In the grounds of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, Republic of Ireland, there is a sculpture of a vagrant lying under a blanket with his feet uncovered. The feet have wounds from which large nails have been extracted. It is an image of Christ among us. Matthew 25: 31-46 Playing Time   –   15:19