Usually when people think of kings they think of the ancient kings like David who were military leaders.  Those kings led their armies to battle to achieve glorious victory or die trying.  History tells us that King Richard III of England was the last English monarch to die in battle defending his crown.  Kings and queens for that matter got extra recognition when they led their armies in victory and were usually called the Great or the Brave. But in today's Gospel we have a King, nailed to the cross accepting inevitable death. He is not leading armies into battle but dying mostly immobile, with a sign above his head mocking him as King of the Jews.  This King is not giving some orders to his commanders but is being reviled by authorities and even by one who is next to him crucified.   For any spectator he is a defeated king. Yet not where it matters. In our very human perspective he is done for, but in God's view he is just getting started. His surrender in death on the cross is a victory for God's plan of salvation.  He is not leading an army into battle but saving one person at a time, starting with the thief at his right and then the whole world. He is not giving orders to his commanders, but gently                accepts the request of the repentant thief to enter his kingdom in paradise. This King is teaching us is that there is victory in defeat and there is greatness in smallness. And he is teaching us to not conform to the standards of this age about what a King should be but rather seek to find the true signs of a King while he is hanging on the cross.