Her majesty queen elizabeth II
It is with a sense of unwelcome shock coupled with genuine sadness that I learned of the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II this afternoon.
From an early age, thanks to my parents first taking me on trips to Canada as a boy, my later doing studies in the United Kingdom, and my wife, Lindsey, and I living for a time in New Zealand, that I have long held a love for the history, culture, and people of Britain and the Commonwealth. This said, it goes without saying, I hold a special admiration for the longtime Head of the Commonwealth as well as the Defender of a shared faith and the unquestioned epitome of a selfless servant leader. Indeed, The Queen for me, like many people alive today, was the first and only reigning monarch I had ever known. I was blessed to first see Her Majesty in person in London in 2002 during the Golden Jubilee celebrations. The following year I was honored to be sat across from The Queen and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh at a service of remembrance in Westminster Abbey. Since then I have been blessed to meet and speak with other representatives of Her Majesty from His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales to members of Her Majesty’s Privy Council along with Governors and Governors General representing Her Majesty through various parts of the world. Regardless of the person or setting, we were always in agreement at the loyalty with which The Queen had served and indeed the love we had for such service and indeed her. In 2016, one of my first ‘acts’ after moving to New Zealand was to preach on The Queen’s Birthday weekend at Epsom Baptist Church in Auckland. My sermon was cleverly titled “O.H.M.S.” and I talked about the Old Testament figure of Joseph and his service to another monarch. Specifically, I explained how Joseph best served, and was blessed in doing so, when he pointed not to himself, but rather to God when the limelight came to fall on him. |
Observing Her Majesty The Queen’s long life and, a short time before this sermon, reading a publication from the Bible Society in England, I knew then, as now, The Queen to indeed have been, and uniquely still be, a genuine Christian believer. Moreover, Her Majesty was one who, like everyone from Joseph to Jesus, despite having cause to brag or boast, would instead give credit to others and ultimately glory to her God.
A former Archbishop of Canterbury supposedly once asked Queen Victoria, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s great-great grandmother, why she should have said she would like Christ to return during her lifetime. Was it, he speculated, to see her enthroned as the most powerful figure in the world at the time? After all, Victoria was Queen of Britain, Empress of India, and leader of an Empire truly upon which the sun never set and the longest reigning monarch at that time. To His Grace the Archbishop’s surprise such things were not the reason however. Victoria instead relayed she had hoped her Lord and Saviour might return during her lifetime so that she could lay her illustrious crown and unprecedented titles at his feet. I have no doubt this thought was one shared by The Queen and today indeed it can be the reality for her. In the words of the last verse of the royal anthem: “Thy choicest gifts in store, On her be pleased to pour, Long may she reign!, May she defend our laws, And ever give us cause, To sing with heart and voice, God save the Queen!” Very Respectfully, |