Luke 6:46-48 - “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, thetorrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built."
Introduction:
Yesterday we ended our post on defining Christ's Lordship with how His authority transforms the hearts of those yielded to it. Certainly we may well begin with the attitude of obedience or an "I have to" approach to our Christian life. However as we become more closely acquainted with the Lord Jesus Christ, He has a way of turning my "have-to's" into "want-to's". What begins as a duty of obedience becomes a delight of surrender. As you and I wave the white flag of surrender to Jesus Christ's Lordship, we are really waving the flag of victory in the Christian life. Today's post aims to understand certain matters that are touched upon by Christ's Lordship. Luke 6 both begins and ends with reference to Jesus Christ as Lord. Anyone who has ever had issue with Christ's rulership, their responsibility to Him and His right of Lordship has done so in at least one of the following areas mentioned in Luke 6. When we read about Jesus Christ's Lordship in Luke 6, we can note the following areas or matters touched by His Lordship...
1. Jesus is Lord of my rest. Luke 6:1-5
The Pharisees confronted Jesus and His disciples over their eating of some grain plucked from a field on the Sabbath day. In their dispute, they referenced their own traditions in indicting Jesus' disciples of being lawbreakers. However Jesus referred back to David and his men in 1 Samuel 21:6 to show that what they were doing was not unlawful. The power of precedent coupled with the fact that David and his men had been granted permission to partake of used bread designated for the priests cancelled out the Pharisees accusations. Then Jesus asserts His ultimate Lordship over the Sabbath day, referring back to its institution by God in Genesis 2:3-4. In short - Jesus is declaring Himself as God in human flesh and Lord of all. The Lord alone can grant rest or true contentment.
2. Jesus is Lord of my health. Luke 6:6-11; 17-19
As Lord of the Sabbath, Jesus exercised His Lordship in a second area - healing. In Luke 6:6-11 He heals a withered hand and in verses 17-19 He exorcises demons. The first asserts His right to perform that which is good in reversing the effects of the fall. It must be remembered that the Sabbath was instituted pre-fall and points forward to what will be the ultimate rest we look forward to as Christians in eternity (see Hebrews 4). The second set of verses demonstrate Jesus' Lordship over the demonic realm. There were several people who claimed to perform exorcisms - however Jesus is the only One who actually did them. True exorcism was unprecedented until Jesus came. All types of diseases were overuled by Christ's Lordship.
3. Jesus is Lord of my salvation. Luke 6:20-26
This third area of Lordship deals with spiritual matters. We know from passages such as Romans 10:9 that confession of Jesus' Lordship is central to saving. A new convert may not yet possess the clarity of understanding concerning His Lordship. Nevertheless, the new convert will at bear minimum recognize Jesus' authority to forgive sins. Jesus as Savior and as Lord cannot be separated. Like the bonds of two Hydrogen Atoms and one Oxygen Atom in a molecule of water, we cannot have the true water of life - Jesus Christ - without His Saviorship nor Lordship.
4. Jesus is Lord in my relationships. Luke 6:27-36
Interestingly Jesus spends time instructing on loving one's enemies. We know we have taken to heart Jesus' Lordship when were able to exercise Christ-likeness to those who badly treat us. If we can express such Christ-likeness to enemies, moreso then to our family and friends.
5. Jesus is Lord in my finances. Luke 6:37-38
This is the area that many Christians tend to draw the line. Jesus can have any area - but my money is my money. The error in this thinking lies in the idea of us owning rights to anything. When we become Christians - God takes us out of ownership and puts us into management. Jesus' Lordship over our finances is the cornerstone of Biblical stewardship. Other passages such as Proverbs 3:7-9; Malachi 3:6-10 and 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 all assert God's right of ownership and expectation of us to take care of what He has given us.
6. Jesus is Lord in my obedience. Luke 6:39-49
This final section all has to do with obedience. Building the Christian life on obedience to Christ's Lordship is like building a house upon a rock. some may recall that old children's song that was sung in Sunday School regarding building a house upon the rock vss building a rock upon the sand. I know when I sang that song as a child, little did I realize it was a song predicated upon the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Closing thoughts
I would encourage readers to take a closer look at Luke 6 and discover how Jesus functions in each of these areas. We must evaluate ourselves everyday as to how much we truly practice what we say we believe about Jesus right of Lordship over our lives. To the degree we aknowledge His right to tell us what to do will determine how much we grasp His rulership and thus our clear responsibility to follow Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment