Think back to the first day of your first job or your first day of school. How did you feel? Could you do everything you needed to do right away? Did someone train you? How long did it take you to “get in the groove”?
Learning to follow Jesus takes time, too. We need to be trained by someone who knows what to do. Jesus is our “teacher” for the Christian walk. When He becomes Lord of our lives, our heart’s desire will be to obey Him and please Him more than anyone else.
But before we can make Jesus Lord, we need to revere, respect, and honor Him. Is He worthy of our reverence? Why does He deserve to be the Lord of our lives? Because He has the credentials!
Credential #1- He created us. Jesus is the Living Word of God. Read John 1:1-5 substituting “Jesus Christ” each time “the Word” is used. Compare that passage in John to Colossians 1:15-16. Jesus Christ along with the Father and the Holy Spirit created the world and created us.
Because He created us, Jesus knows how we function best. Read Psalm 139:13-16. Jesus Christ knows everything about us. His unsurpassed knowledge of us qualifies Him to be our Lord.
Credential #2 – He identifies with us. Picture in your mind a story where a young fearless prince delivers his country from an evil ruler. Jesus was that young fearless prince. He became a human being and then He “gave Himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father” (Galatians 1:4).
Since Jesus lived as a man for thirty-three years, He knows the problems and temptations we face every day. “We do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are” (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus deserves to be our Lord because He faced the same problems we face, yet remained sinless.
Credential #3 – He redeemed us. This one is the most important! Jesus Christ lowered himself, became human in our world, lived a perfect life and died for our sins. Through His death, He crushed Satan’s rule on this earth forever. Redeem means to “rescue” or “ransom.” Another definition for redeem is to “recover ownership by paying a specified sum.” Jesus has legally obtained ownership of our lives from Satan. He has the right to be our Lord because He has bought us with the price of His blood. “You are not your own; you were bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). Jesus has the credentials to be Lord of our lives. So what should that mean to us? It depends on how we define “lord.” There are three Greek words in the New Testament that describe Jesus as our Lord. Let’s look at each word and its English equivalent. Despotes (master) – This master describes “someone with unlimited power.” Because Jesus’ power has no limit, He can master any situation. Basileus (monarch) – This kind of ruler is someone with “all power and authority.” A monarch’s word is law. Jesus is superior to other monarchs because His word is not only law, but it is always truthful and right. His authority is the final authority. Kurios (lord) – A person who is “lord” is the owner. Kurios indicates authority, but also conveys a sense of wisdom and love. When Jesus is Lord of our lives, He is the wise and loving owner. The Apostle Paul expresses Jesus’ lordship through what God has done as a result of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection: “God exalted Him [Jesus] to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11).
Jesus deserves to be our Lord. He has the credentials. He has been given authority from God to rule in our lives. He desires to be the wise and loving owner of our lives. The question we must answer is simple: Do I revere Jesus enough to submit to His lordship in my life? Our response to that question is absolutely critical to our own personal relationship with Jesus, and also determines our ability to lead others spiritually.
Spend the rest of your time praying that the Holy Spirit would help you understand these truths more and more. Spend some time reflecting on your week and thanking God for what you have learned. Asking Him to continue to show you how to take home what you have learned.
by Jason
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