Lord And Savior

What we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.

WHEN FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST share stories of how they became Christians, they often say something along the lines of, “I decided to make Jesus my personal Lord and Savior.” Initially and ultimately, of course, it’s wonderful to hear brothers and sisters recount the moment when their hearts were opened to the incomprehensibly passionate love of God—a love that now captivates them in an intimately personal relationship with Jesus.

But this statement also minimizes the inherent authority of Jesus. Surely no one can decide to make him Lord. Jesus is Lord regardless of what you or I decide. The Bible is clear that one day “every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”^a The question is not whether we will make Jesus Lord. The real question is whether you or I will submit to his lordship. This is the essence of conversion.

On an even deeper level, all too often our “decision” to “make Jesus our personal Lord and Savior” fosters a customized Christianity that revolves around a personal Christ that we create for ourselves. Slowly, subtly, we take the Jesus of the Bible and twist him into someone with whom we are a little more comfortable. We dilute what he says about the cost of following him, we disregard what he says about those who choose not to follow him, we ignore what he says about materialism, and we functionally miss what he says about mission. We pick and choose what we like and don’t like from Jesus’ teachings. In the end, we create a nice, inoffensive, politically correct, middle-class, American Jesus who looks just like us and thinks just like us.

But Jesus is not customizable. He has not left himself open to interpretation, adaptation, innovation, or alteration. He has spoken clearly through his Word, and we have no right to “personalize him.” Instead, he revolutionizes us. He transforms our minds through his truth. As we follow Jesus, we believe Jesus, even when his Word confronts (and often contradicts) the deeply held assumptions, beliefs, and convictions of our lives, our families, our friends, our cultures, and sometimes even our churches. As we take Jesus at his word, we proclaim Jesus to the world, for we realize that he is not merely a personal Lord and Savior who is worthy of our individual approval. Ultimately, Jesus is the cosmic Lord and Savior who is worthy of everyone’s eternal praise.

Acknowledge Christ’s lordship over your life and over all things. Confess his authority and greatness.