Royal Blood

We have been created by God and are new creations because of the work of Christ Jesus in us - we have been made for His purposes and designed for His will.  Isaiah 29 paints a compelling picture:
14 Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvelous work Among this people, A marvelous work and a wonder; For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, And the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden."
15 Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord, And their works are in the dark; They say, "Who sees us?" and, "Who knows us?"
16 Surely you have things turned around! Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay; For shall the thing made say of him who made it, "He did not make me"? Or shall the thing formed say of him who formed it, "He has no understanding"?

He is the potter, and He desires to form us for His purpose - we are uniquely equipped in the Lord in order that He may express Himself through us and that we may accomplish His will.  We no longer have the right, as children of God, to reject His plan for us; He desires for us to walk in total obedience to His Word.  In order to do that, we must know His Word and allow Him to direct our steps, so that He may be exalted.

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The Bible reminds us that we belong to a sovereign God and serve a great and mighty King.  1st Peter 2 says:
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

Recently, the announcement came that Great Britain's Prince Harry, and his bride, Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex want to be a little less royal, it seems.  As Maureen Callahan puts it at the New York Post:

In a statement loaded with confusing double-speak, the couple wrote, in part, “We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the royal family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen.”

I have learned a lot about British royalty from my wife, who is quite fond and knowledgeable of royal matters.  And, I can see that members of the royal family, as a result of their birth into it, have certain duties and decorum.

So, what does this new bifurcated relationship look like?  Well, as Callahan puts it:

How’s this for quitting your job: Abandon every aspect you hate, while continuing to reap all the benefits you love.

Well, it's no secret that American actress Meghan Markle has had trouble adjusting to life as a royal, and of course Harry is not likely to assume the throne, well, anytime - he has to fall in line behind his father, Prince Charles, his brother, Prince William, and his three children.  So, it's understandable that Harry might not see the point of it all. 

But, membership has its privileges.  As Callahan writes:

Anyone who has watched “The Crown” knows what the historic trade-off of royalty is: Untold riches and a life of privilege, in exchange for ribbon-cutting, waving and scrutiny. The latter might not always be easy, but seems a small price.

The hypocrisy here is Harry and Meghan announcing a “step back” rather than abdication.

To employ a cliché: They are having their cake and eating it, too.

Apparently the Queen was blindsided by the young royals' announcement, according to the article:

None other than Queen Elizabeth is confused. According to BBC royal correspondent Jonny Dymond, the statement blindsided the entire royal family, and they don’t know what this means either.

On Monday, the BBC published an article including list of questions and prospective answers about what this new arrangement might look like going forward.  This was in advance of what was being "described as the 'Sandringham summit...'" which was called by Queen Elizabeth, who was scheduled to "meet the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry, while Meghan is expected to join over the phone from Canada, as they weigh up what Buckingham Palace calls 'complicated issues.'"  The BBC's questions included:

Will their existing funding be cut?

How will they earn money?

Will they keep their royal titles?

Where will they live?

and..."Will they keep Frogmore Cottage?"

Well, it's hard to say how many of those questions were truly answered in yesterday's summit.  The BBC reported:

In a statement, the Queen said the talks at Sandringham, which also involved the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Cambridge, had been "very constructive".

"My family and I are entirely supportive of Harry and Meghan's desire to create a new life as a young family," she said.

"Although we would have preferred them to remain full-time working members of the Royal Family, we respect and understand their wish to live a more independent life as a family while remaining a valued part of my family."

As Jonny Dymond, Royal correspondent for the BBC writes: "Her regret over Harry and Meghan's move is obvious - she would have preferred them to stay in their current roles." He notes that there will be a transition period, but she does want some answers - soon.  He also states:

But she also makes clear that they are still royals and that they will be valued in the family as they become a more independent couple.

There are buckets of questions outstanding - on their future royal role, their relationship with the rest of the Palace, on who will pay what (not, the Queen says, the taxpayer), and on how Harry and Meghan will support themselves.

They. Are. Still. Royals.  That gives us something to think about, doesn't it?

Harry is part of the royal family by birth - that is his birthright...so the terms of that are well-established.  It is not up to Harry and Meghan to dictate the terms of the provisions of Harry's birth.

It is like that in the Christian life, as well.  When we accept Christ, we experience a new birth, and we understand that when His blood, the royal blood of heaven, is imparted to us, that He now is in charge of our lives - it is not up to us to craft our own Christian life; it is up to Christ, who has given us His new life and brought us into His royal family, a "royal priesthood," as 1st Peter 2 says.  We have been born - again - into the Kingdom of God, and we are called to swear allegiance to our King - the King of Kings and Lord of Lords; not maintaining a duality, with one foot in the Kingdom and the other in the world.

And, by the way, my anglophile wife and royal watcher, as we discussed the concept, says she approved this message!

So, when you get in a position in your Christian walk when you may want to say, "I didn't sign up for this?" or think you can't make it, recognize that your salvation experience became the entryway into dependence on God - your life is in His hands, and you have entrusted Him with it - we depart from God's best for us when we try to take back what we have already surrendered.