The Servant Queen and the King she serves

On 21^st April, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be 90 years old. From this date until her official birthday celebrations from 10^th-12^th June, people in this country and around the commonwealth will be organising and participating in a wide range of activities and events. Although the celebrations will be similar to the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of 2012, this occasion gives us the opportunity to look not just at how she has fulfilled the rôle of Queen but to think about her as a person.

Any objective account of the Queen's life would give a prominent place to the rôle of her Christian faith in her life, which is illustrated by the title of a book published by the Bible Society, churches' group HOPE and the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity to mark her birthday. The book is called “The Servant Queen and the King she serves”. Jesus, the King of kings, said that those who wish to be great should be the servant of all. The Queen has embodied this way of being great; she could have revelled in her position and abused it for her own purposes, but instead she sees it as her duty to serve the people the God had made her monarch of. In the Book of Common Prayer Communion service we pray that the monarch, knowing whose minister they are, may above all things seek God's honour and glory, and the Queen is an example of just that.

In her 2014 Christmas broadcast the Queen said “For me, the life of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, whose birth we celebrate today, is an inspiration and an anchor in my life. A rôle-model of reconciliation and forgiveness, he stretched out his hands in love, acceptance and healing. Christ’s example has taught me to seek to respect and value all people of whatever faith or none.” In her 2002 Christmas broadcast the Queen said “I know just how much I rely on my faith to guide me through the good times and the bad. Each day is a new beginning. I know that the only way to live my life is to try to do what is right, to take the long view, to give of my best in all that the day brings, and to put my trust in God … I draw strength from the message of hope in the Christian gospel.”

The message of hope in the Christian gospel is that we are more sinful than we ever imagined, but more loved than we ever dreamed. So even though we mess things up God still loves us and will forgive us and help us to change if we ask him. In the foreword to the book, the Queen writes “I have been – and remain – very grateful to you for your prayers and to God for his steadfast love. I have indeed seen his faithfulness.” Perhaps you need an anchor in your life or freedom from past mistakes and the chance to start again. The Queen has found these in the King she serves, Jesus Christ, and the Christian gospel; I pray that you will too.