Thursday, February 18, 2016, 2:00 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song, “Give Ear to Jesus.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read Luke 6:46-49 (ESV).
Is He our Lord?
When we use the word “Lord” in relation to Jesus Christ, do we really think about what that word means? I think that, oftentimes, those who profess Christ as Lord of their lives think merely of the fact that he saved them from their sins. Yet, what does that word actually mean? It means “master,” “a person exercising absolute ownership rights” (biblehub.com). When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, he bought us back for God, so we are no longer our own, but we are his. We are his slaves (servants), and he is our master (owner). He delivered us out of slavery to sin, so that we might now become servants of righteousness. When we were still under the power of sin and Satan, we were free from the control of righteousness. But, now that Jesus set us free, we are free to live for Jesus, who gave his life up for us. We are NOT free to continue in sin without guilt, and without remorse.
The way I hear many people talking about Jesus and the gospel of salvation these days, you wouldn’t know that Jesus is to be Lord (master/owner) of our lives. Their approach to the gospel and to salvation is far too casual, and shows little regard for the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Much of what they teach is all “me-focused.” It is all about what Jesus did for us, but not about his Lordship over our lives. Many people are teaching a gospel absent of repentance and obedience to Christ, yet that is not the gospel that Jesus or his NT apostles taught. These modern-day teachers of the gospel speak as though Jesus died merely so we could be forgiven of our sins, escape the punishment of hell, and so we can go to heaven when we die. And, they leave the door wide open for people to continue in their sin, while promising them heaven and an escape from the judgment of God over their lives.
So, if Jesus Christ is truly “Lord” of our lives, what should that look like? When we get up in the morning, what would we do differently than we do now? Or, what might we do differently before we go to bed at night in preparation for the morning? What about as we go throughout our day? What habits might we change? What conversations or relationships might we avoid? Would we treat others differently than we treat them now? Would we be more purposeful and intentional in what we do and in how we interact with other people? Would we cheat on our spouses or on our time sheets at work? Would we willfully drive over the speed limit, and get angry at other drivers who don’t do what we think they ought? Would we laugh at crude humor, or find enjoyment in mocking those different from us?
What would change in our lives if Jesus was truly “Lord” (master/owner) of our lives and not just our Savior who forgave us of our sins? What about our evenings? Would we just sit and watch TV all night? Would we allow ourselves to be entertained by the sins of others? Would we watch raunchy commercials and seductive and Satanic half-time shows at football games? Would we hang out on social media sites and engage in worldly conversations with others, and fight with other believers in Christ over politics? Would we casually surf the internet, opening the door to going places we should not go? And, then would we willfully view pornography or engage ourselves in private conversations with people of interest with whom we are not married, and share with them what should be shared only with our spouses? What would we change if he was truly “Lord” of our lives, and not just our Savior? Or, do we think his Lordship over our lives is optional, or that we can delay that for some time in the future? That is how many people teach it, but that is not how it is to be.
When He is Lord
Jesus as “Lord” of our lives should not be something we just say or merely a title we give to Jesus. When he is truly our Lord, we will do what he says. This is not saying that we will live in sinless perfection, yet we are also not to use the lack of perfection as an excuse for willful and continued sin against God. When he is Lord of our lives we will conduct our lives according to the Spirit of God, and not according to our sinful flesh. Our lifestyles will change to be honoring to God, and to be pleasing to Jesus Christ. Not only will we obey his written word, but we will be in tune to his voice speaking to us via the Spirit living within us, prompting us to pray, to write, to speak, and to minister to the needs of others, etc. We will inquire of him before making big decisions in our lives, and even over some minor decisions. We will not just do what we want, but we will seek out what he desires for our lives, and we will do it, not in our own power, but in the power and strength of his Spirit within us.
Again, his Lordship over our lives is not optional. If he is our Savior, he is also to be our Lord. The two go hand-in-hand. If we say we have fellowship with God, but we continue to live our lives in darkness (in sin), then we are liars, and the truth is not in us. If, after we claim to be saved from our sins, we continue to conduct our lives after our sinful flesh, and not according to the Spirit, we will die. But if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, and we are walking (living our lives) according to the Spirit, we will live. A saved life is a changed (transformed) life, not a slightly cleaned up old life. Coming to Christ means death to sin and living to righteousness, yet in the power and working of the Spirit of God within us, as we yield control of our lives over to our Lord. A saved life is a life committed to Christ, submitted to the cross, and surrendered to the Lordship of Christ. It is not a perfect life, but it is a life committed to following Jesus in surrender and obedience.
When Jesus is truly Lord of our lives, then when the storms of life come against us they will not be able to defeat us and destroy us. And, it is because we are not merely hearers of the word only, but we are those who put the Word of God into practice in our daily lives. We will not be shaken from our stand for Christ and for his Word, and from our testimonies for him and for his gospel of salvation. And, that is because we have built our lives on the Solid Rock, and not just merely professed his Lordship over our lives. And, putting his Word into practice in our lives does not mean we get to pick and choose what we will obey, either. Now, we who are in Christ Jesus by faith are under the New Covenant relationship between God and his people, so not all that was commanded to the Jews under the Old Covenant applies to us, but God’s moral laws have never changed. And, God has not changed. Much of what he taught his people in the OT he has repeated in the NT. And, that we must obey.
When He is Not Lord
When Jesus is not Lord of our lives, we do what we want, when we want, the way we want. We live for self-pleasure. We don’t inquire of him, and we don’t do what his word says. Yet, when the storms of life come against us, we will crash, because our lives have not been built on the Rock, but on our own flesh. When God judges the people of this world, we will not make the cut. We will hear, “I never knew you, depart from me.” So, make him Lord!
Give Ear to Jesus / An Original Work
Based off Isaiah 55 / February 16, 2016
Call on your Savior.
Seek the Lord while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way;
Turn to the Lord.
God will have mercy.
He’ll forgive you of your sin.
He will freely pardon you
And give peace within.
Turn from your sin, follow Jesus,
Be cleansed from sin.
Give ear to Jesus.
Come to Him. Your soul will live.
Listen to Him speaking to you:
“Eat what is good.”
If you are thirsty,
Come to Jesus, drink from Him.
Drink His Spirit given to you.
Be born again.
Listen to Him. Do what He says.
Rejoice in Him.
God’s Word, eternal,
Will achieve what He desires.
He is willing none should perish,
Saved by His blood.
Share now the gospel.
Jesus died so we’d go free.
Walk in vict’ry,
Free from your sin, eternally.
Die to sin, and live to Jesus.
In Him believe.
“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”
Is He our Lord?
When we use the word “Lord” in relation to Jesus Christ, do we really think about what that word means? I think that, oftentimes, those who profess Christ as Lord of their lives think merely of the fact that he saved them from their sins. Yet, what does that word actually mean? It means “master,” “a person exercising absolute ownership rights” (biblehub.com). When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, he bought us back for God, so we are no longer our own, but we are his. We are his slaves (servants), and he is our master (owner). He delivered us out of slavery to sin, so that we might now become servants of righteousness. When we were still under the power of sin and Satan, we were free from the control of righteousness. But, now that Jesus set us free, we are free to live for Jesus, who gave his life up for us. We are NOT free to continue in sin without guilt, and without remorse.
The way I hear many people talking about Jesus and the gospel of salvation these days, you wouldn’t know that Jesus is to be Lord (master/owner) of our lives. Their approach to the gospel and to salvation is far too casual, and shows little regard for the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Much of what they teach is all “me-focused.” It is all about what Jesus did for us, but not about his Lordship over our lives. Many people are teaching a gospel absent of repentance and obedience to Christ, yet that is not the gospel that Jesus or his NT apostles taught. These modern-day teachers of the gospel speak as though Jesus died merely so we could be forgiven of our sins, escape the punishment of hell, and so we can go to heaven when we die. And, they leave the door wide open for people to continue in their sin, while promising them heaven and an escape from the judgment of God over their lives.
So, if Jesus Christ is truly “Lord” of our lives, what should that look like? When we get up in the morning, what would we do differently than we do now? Or, what might we do differently before we go to bed at night in preparation for the morning? What about as we go throughout our day? What habits might we change? What conversations or relationships might we avoid? Would we treat others differently than we treat them now? Would we be more purposeful and intentional in what we do and in how we interact with other people? Would we cheat on our spouses or on our time sheets at work? Would we willfully drive over the speed limit, and get angry at other drivers who don’t do what we think they ought? Would we laugh at crude humor, or find enjoyment in mocking those different from us?
What would change in our lives if Jesus was truly “Lord” (master/owner) of our lives and not just our Savior who forgave us of our sins? What about our evenings? Would we just sit and watch TV all night? Would we allow ourselves to be entertained by the sins of others? Would we watch raunchy commercials and seductive and Satanic half-time shows at football games? Would we hang out on social media sites and engage in worldly conversations with others, and fight with other believers in Christ over politics? Would we casually surf the internet, opening the door to going places we should not go? And, then would we willfully view pornography or engage ourselves in private conversations with people of interest with whom we are not married, and share with them what should be shared only with our spouses? What would we change if he was truly “Lord” of our lives, and not just our Savior? Or, do we think his Lordship over our lives is optional, or that we can delay that for some time in the future? That is how many people teach it, but that is not how it is to be.
When He is Lord
Jesus as “Lord” of our lives should not be something we just say or merely a title we give to Jesus. When he is truly our Lord, we will do what he says. This is not saying that we will live in sinless perfection, yet we are also not to use the lack of perfection as an excuse for willful and continued sin against God. When he is Lord of our lives we will conduct our lives according to the Spirit of God, and not according to our sinful flesh. Our lifestyles will change to be honoring to God, and to be pleasing to Jesus Christ. Not only will we obey his written word, but we will be in tune to his voice speaking to us via the Spirit living within us, prompting us to pray, to write, to speak, and to minister to the needs of others, etc. We will inquire of him before making big decisions in our lives, and even over some minor decisions. We will not just do what we want, but we will seek out what he desires for our lives, and we will do it, not in our own power, but in the power and strength of his Spirit within us.
Again, his Lordship over our lives is not optional. If he is our Savior, he is also to be our Lord. The two go hand-in-hand. If we say we have fellowship with God, but we continue to live our lives in darkness (in sin), then we are liars, and the truth is not in us. If, after we claim to be saved from our sins, we continue to conduct our lives after our sinful flesh, and not according to the Spirit, we will die. But if by the Spirit we are putting to death the deeds of the flesh, and we are walking (living our lives) according to the Spirit, we will live. A saved life is a changed (transformed) life, not a slightly cleaned up old life. Coming to Christ means death to sin and living to righteousness, yet in the power and working of the Spirit of God within us, as we yield control of our lives over to our Lord. A saved life is a life committed to Christ, submitted to the cross, and surrendered to the Lordship of Christ. It is not a perfect life, but it is a life committed to following Jesus in surrender and obedience.
When Jesus is truly Lord of our lives, then when the storms of life come against us they will not be able to defeat us and destroy us. And, it is because we are not merely hearers of the word only, but we are those who put the Word of God into practice in our daily lives. We will not be shaken from our stand for Christ and for his Word, and from our testimonies for him and for his gospel of salvation. And, that is because we have built our lives on the Solid Rock, and not just merely professed his Lordship over our lives. And, putting his Word into practice in our lives does not mean we get to pick and choose what we will obey, either. Now, we who are in Christ Jesus by faith are under the New Covenant relationship between God and his people, so not all that was commanded to the Jews under the Old Covenant applies to us, but God’s moral laws have never changed. And, God has not changed. Much of what he taught his people in the OT he has repeated in the NT. And, that we must obey.
When He is Not Lord
When Jesus is not Lord of our lives, we do what we want, when we want, the way we want. We live for self-pleasure. We don’t inquire of him, and we don’t do what his word says. Yet, when the storms of life come against us, we will crash, because our lives have not been built on the Rock, but on our own flesh. When God judges the people of this world, we will not make the cut. We will hear, “I never knew you, depart from me.” So, make him Lord!
Give Ear to Jesus / An Original Work
Based off Isaiah 55 / February 16, 2016
Call on your Savior.
Seek the Lord while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way;
Turn to the Lord.
God will have mercy.
He’ll forgive you of your sin.
He will freely pardon you
And give peace within.
Turn from your sin, follow Jesus,
Be cleansed from sin.
Give ear to Jesus.
Come to Him. Your soul will live.
Listen to Him speaking to you:
“Eat what is good.”
If you are thirsty,
Come to Jesus, drink from Him.
Drink His Spirit given to you.
Be born again.
Listen to Him. Do what He says.
Rejoice in Him.
God’s Word, eternal,
Will achieve what He desires.
He is willing none should perish,
Saved by His blood.
Share now the gospel.
Jesus died so we’d go free.
Walk in vict’ry,
Free from your sin, eternally.
Die to sin, and live to Jesus.
In Him believe.