2002-01-01
Greetings Faithful Readers,
God causes me to feel enthusiastic about sharing citations He gives me about Jesus Christ as our Lord and Master. Yes, because He is one of God’s personalities, the name, Adonai, can be used for Him too. The word, Lord, is translated from two Greek words in the NT. The first is “despotes,” meaning an “absolute ruler.” The second is “Kurios,” meaning “supreme in authority.” So, let’s take some time look at these NT citations that reveal Jesus as Adonai, our Lord and Master.
Paul, inspired by God in PHIL 2: 6-11, reveals to us Christ’s very essence. “He always had the nature of God, but He did not think that by force He should try to become equal with God. Instead of this, of His own free will He gave up all He had and took the nature of a servant. He became like man and appeared in human likeness. He was humble and walked the path of obedience all the way to death-His death on the cross. For this reason God raised Him to the highest place above and gave Him the name that is greater than any other name. And so, in honor of the name of Jesus all beings in heaven, on earth, and in the world below will fall on their knees, and all will openly proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord [Adonai], to the glory of God the Father.” Does the humility and greatness of that blow you away like it does me? I hope so! The Father is supreme, and Christ never does anything that the Father doesn’t direct. We know this from many Scriptures which convey this relationship. I have often said that the Bible is our “road map” and that Christ is the ideal for us to follow. That is why I believe that JN 12: 25-26 goes hand in hand with the PHIL passage above. “Whoever loves his own life will lose it; whoever hates his own life in this world will keep it for life eternal. Whoever wants to serve Me must follow Me, so that My servant will be with Me where I am. And My Father will honor anyone who serves Me.”
The cost of being a disciple of Jesus can be great, that is as measured in human terms. LK 14: 25-27 reveals Adonai’s attitude to us. “Once when large crowds of people were going along with Jesus, He turned and said to them, ‘Whoever comes to Me cannot be My disciple unless he love Me more than he loves his father and his mother, his wife and his children, his brothers and his sisters, and himself as well. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” This concept seemed as strange to me as the correct stance that a person needs to take to make an effective golf swing at first. I had always thought that my first loyalty needed to be to my earthly family. However, Adonai wanted me to have a higher perspective on this. His is that He richly deserved my first priority in loyalty, even more than my beloved husband, Pete. But that was not all. He has told me that if I will take up His cross, those I love will also have everything they need from me. What a different and righteous way He looks at things! His is the attitude of a loving Lord and Master. How extraordinary that His love extends to all His children that way! He not only commands us to take up His cross leaving our own agenda behind, but He equips us to do that.
This same message is said another way in MT 10: 34-40 illuminating the tragic truth that often one’s own family will reject him when he takes up his cross to follow in Christ’s steps. I can speak to this from first hand experience [of course, not referring to my dear husband, Pete]. “Do not think that l have come to bring peace to the world. No, I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. I came to set sons against their mothers, daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law; a man’s worst enemies will be the members of his own family. Whoever loves his father or mother more than Me is not fit to be My disciple; whoever loves his son or daughter more than Me is not fit to be My disciple. Whoever does not take up his cross and follow in My steps is not fit to be My disciple. Whoever tries to gain his own life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will gain it.” Christ experienced this in Nazareth Himself [LK 4: 16-30]. We were never promised that the path to righteousness would be easy, but we can share in the joy that it will lead to eternal peace and fellowship with our Lord and Master, Adonai.
There has never been a human master to equal Jesus Christ. One of the stories I cherish from the Scriptures is that of Christ washing the feet of His disciples in JN 13: 12-17. “After Jesus had washed their feet, He put His outer garment back on and returned to His place at the table. ‘Do you understand what I have just done to you?’ He asked. ‘You call me Teacher and Lord, and it is right that you do so, because that is what I am. I, your Lord and Teacher, have just washed your feet. You, then, should wash one another’s feet. I have set an example for you, so that you will do just what I have done for you. I am telling you the truth: no slave is greater than his master, and no messenger is greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know this truth, how happy you will be when you put it into practice.’”
PRAYER: O Lord, through the example of Your Son, You show us what real strength and power is. You show us a very different picture of Lord and Master than any ordinary human one ever can be. Christ’s humility and His greatness is the example of a Master Who is Your Servant. His very servanthood demonstrates Your power, glory, and righteousness. Through Christ’s example, You show us the way to share Your glory. You want us to inherit Your Kingdom eternally as joint-heirs with Him [RO 8:17]. Because of Your remarkable love for us, You reveal, through Him, the way for us to do this. We are given the call to take up our crosses to follow His steps, and we dedicate ourselves to answering that call in the affirmative. “Yes,” we say to You, and “Yes,” we say to Him! We acknowledge that there will be opposition and difficulties along the way. We know that some of us will suffer the rejection of members of our earthly families, just as Christ did. But, we place our trust in You that as our Adonai, You have told us the truth that we can look forward to our completed sanctification and a glorious eternity in close fellowship with You to come. We adore, worship, honor, glorify, trust, obey, praise, and thank You. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, we will look at a few more of these precious citations revealing Christ as our Lord and Master. If space permits, we will begin looking at Jehovah as “I AM WHO I AM,” the self-existent One. Our lives are blessed every hour of every day by His presence and His love. Peter and I send you our love too.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn