Is Jesus Really Lord?

IS JESUS REALLY LORD? PRIORITY MATTHEW 6:33 OCTOBER 6, 2013

I heard a pastor offer this prayer while lifting up the offering plate: “Lord, no matter what we say or do, this is what we think of you.” Yes, it made me flinch, too. You’ll see, in a little while, where that connects up with my message. She was finally at summer camp. She’d heard stories from kids that went to camp, and then she had dreamed the day she could do. And finally she got to go. She quickly found girls at camp form little friendship circles. She also learned that one friendship circle might not like another friendship circle, and a friendship circle I’m not part of is called a clique. She had friends in this group and friends in that group, and all went well… for a while. One group of friends wanted her to go out with them in on the lake in a row boat. As she walked out onto the dock, the other friends called to her to go on hike with them. She found herself standing with one foot on dock, one on the edge of the boat. She couldn’t decide who to go with. Do I go hiking with them or boating with them? Indecision, with one foot here and the other foot there. You know where this is going. A bit of a breeze caused the boat to drift a few inches. Then a bit more. Both groups called for her to come with them. She still couldn’t decide. The boat drifted further, her legs stretched out, and she ended up falling in the lake. Both groups of girls were laughing. Sometimes you can’t do both things. Sometimes you have to choose one and not the other. It’s really a simple matter of setting your priority. Not priorities, but priority. What one thing is most important in your life? Did you know, originally “priority” was only a singular word, not a plural? It wasn’t priorities, but priority. The fact that we speak of priorities only shows how we’ve muddled up things. Which brings me to the big question for today: Is Jesus THE priority of your life? He wants to be. He says we can live our lives best if we stay focused on him and his concerns above all else. He told his first followers, who were concerned about what they’d have to eat and drink and wear, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all those other things will be added to you.” (Mt.6:33) 2

Seek first the kingdom of God. Is the kingdom of God, is Jesus, THE priority of your life? Jesus says if he REALLY is your priority, your attitude toward life, material things, money will reflect it. Why would Jesus be THE priority of someone’s life? Well, it might be because of all he’s done for us. Coming from heaven to earth, becoming one of us, taking the sins of the world, my sins, your sins onto himself, suffering and dying on the cross to pay for those sins, so we could be forgiven if we’d accept his gift to us, rising from the dead so his followers could follow him into eternity, giving his Spirit to us so we can live a new life right here and now, answering so many prayers. How about that for reasons to make him your life’s priority? We Christians repeatedly say he is our priority. We say it in the songs we sing and in the prayers we pray. We say it every time we say, “Jesus is Lord.” The Bible describes God as Lord of the universe, the one who created it all, who sustains it all day by day, the one who owns it all, the sovereign, the king, over all things. Let me give a short lesson on how biblical languages express this. In Old Testament Hebrew there are two words translated into English as “Lord.” In our English Bibles we see it as “LORD” in all capital letters and “Lord” with only the first letter capitalized. They are referring to two different Hebrew words. LORD with all capitals is the personal name of God, first given to Moses at the burning bush. It is the Hebrew letters YHWH, which was probably pronounced Yahweh. It is sometimes written as Jehovah. Its literal meaning is “I am, I will be, I am the God who is always present.” Lord with only the L capitalized is the Hebrew word Adonai. It means superior, master, or owner, the boss, the one in charge. It is a term of respect and deference. In New Testament Greek there is no separate translation for YHWH and Adonai. One Greek word was used for both Hebrew terms. Our English word “Lord” translates the Greek word “kyrios.” It’s related to the words Kaiser and Caesar, which gives you a hint of its meaning. Generally it was a term of respect, indicating the superior position of the one called “Lord.” It would be applied to a boss, an owner and master of a servant. But often in the New Testament kyrios is used in the Greek translation of Old Testament scriptures where it means LORD as in Yahweh. It is often clearly a statement of divine identity. And in many of those instances, kyrios is used to identify Jesus. Jesus is Lord, as in master and ruler, and as in Jesus is God. Jesus called himself, “Lord of the Sabbath.” (Mt.12:8) When doubting Thomas encountered the resurrected Jesus, 3

he exclaimed, “My Lord and my God!” (Jn.20:28) In the earliest chapters of the book of Acts, the church proclaimed, “Jesus is Lord.” In Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi, he quoted an earlier hymn about Jesus which included the confession that “Jesus Christ is Lord.” (Phlp.2:11) It was an expression that communicated Jesus’ place as the one in charge of the life of the believer, and even of Jesus’ divinity. Jesus is Lord, Lord of the universe, Lord of my life. This was a dangerous thing to say in that time and place. because this was the claim of Caesar, that “Caesar is Lord.” Some Caesars even expanded that to “Caesar is Lord and God.” They demanded faithful obedience to their imperial authority above all other authorities. They admitted no rivals, no priority equal to or higher than Caesar. So the claim that “Jesus is Lord” drew a strong response of Roman power. That’s a big part of why Jesus was crucified and the early church was persecuted. “Jesus is Lord” sounded a lot like revolution. To proclaim it out loud was dangerous. Yet, even with the danger, “Jesus Christ is Lord” was the foundational claim of the first generation of the church and the second generation of the church, and has remained the claim of the church ever since. Jesus Christ is Lord, Lord of all, Lord of my life. What do you think? Is Jesus really Lord of all? Is he Lord of your life? If you say “yes,” how does that play out in tangible ways? What practical difference does it make in how you live day to day? Does it show up on your calendar? Is there regular time carved out to spend with Jesus? A daily time for prayer and Bible reading? Is worship a regular feature of every week? The studies show that today people who say they regularly attend worship actually participate in worship about once a month. Once a month is average. But Jesus did not die to make you average. Average does not clearly say “Jesus is Lord.” Once a month says, “when it’s convenient,” or “when I’m not doing something else.” Are there regular times on your calendar when you roll up your sleeves and serve him, doing his will, volunteering your time and energy in the work of his church, pursuing his kingdom goals in the world? Does the lordship of Jesus show itself on your calendar? Does his lordship shape your family life? 4

Do you love your husband or wife sacrificially and tangibly? Do you love your kids that way? Do you discipline them out of love, or out of anger and frustration? Do you take the time to listen to them talk about the things that are important to them? Do you love your aging parents enough to inconvenience yourself to stay in touch with them, to help them? Does the lordship of Jesus influence your workday? At school, at the office, do his values shape the way you treat others? How do you relate to your coworkers, your boss, those you supervise, customers? Is it Christ-like? Are you honest and aboveboard in all your business dealings? Do you do your very best, working hard, working smart, because you know ultimately you are serving Jesus in whatever you do? Do you steal much company time to check your Facebook page or surf the internet? Is Jesus Lord over your workday? If someone examined your checkbook, would they see evidence there that Jesus is Lord of your life? Money is one of those areas where people can get pretty touchy. I saw a cartoon of a man being baptized by immersion. He was all the way under the water, but he was holding his wallet up to keep it dry. But Jesus had a lot to say about our attitude toward and use of money. In fact, in his teaching recorded in the Bible he made more frequent references to money than to prayer. So we’re going to talk about it, too. If Jesus is really Lord of all, Lord of my life, that means he’s Lord of my money. So let me ask a few questions about your personal finances, questions for which the Bible provides great guidance. Do you live beyond your means, not because you were laid off, but because you want more stuff and you want it now, with no real plan as to how you’ll pay off your debts? Are you saving for emergencies and retirement so you won’t be a financial burden to others? Do you keep enough margins in your finances so you can give to worthwhile causes? Or does it all get spent on you? Jesus’ whole life was about giving himself to others, giving himself for others, with nothing held back. It was extravagant generosity. Would anyone see in your checkbook evidence of Christ-like extravagant generosity? Do you give substantial financial support to the work of his church? The Bible teaches the principle of the tithe, giving 10% of your income to God’s work. (Mal.3:8-12) And, yes, there are some of us who give at least that much. Generous giving to the church is not just a matter of paying salaries and utilities. It funds ministries that point people toward Jesus. It is children learning Bible stories, and a bunch of them giving their lives to Christ in Vacation Bible Camp. 5

It is youth learning how biblical principles can guide them in their relationships, knocking on doors and offering to pray for our neighbors, going on a mission trip and helping rebuild a home for a man whose home burned to the ground. It is people of all ages raising their voices to worship God, studying the Bible together, getting connected in meaningful and lasting friendships, discovering God can use them to bless other people. Do you give substantial financial support to the work of his church? Do you offer any financial support to people who find themselves in need? I’ve seen some wonderful examples of that around here. A single mom, out of work, receives anonymous gifts of cash to tide her over until she can land a new job. A collection of over 11,000 diapers that given, through the Agape Pregnancy Center, to new moms in tough situations. Christmas gifts that flow through the Angel Tree Project to children with one or both parents in prison, and through Operations Christmas Child to children living in poverty. Are you a part of that extravagant generosity? Is Jesus Lord over your wallet? Jesus knew the money thing might be one of the most difficult areas for us. That’s why, in the Sermon on the Mount, he said, “No one can serve two masters. Sooner or later you’ll end up hating the one and loving the other. You cannot serve both God and Mammon.” (Mt.6:24) You cannot serve both God and money, God and material things. You’ve got to make a choice. Set ONE PRIORITY. So is Jesus really Lord of your whole life? Most of us, if we’re honest, would have to confess that we tend to pick and choose which parts of our life he can have charge of. Do you divide things up like that? He can rule over my Sunday morning, but once the football game is on… Well, let’s just say attitudes change. He’s got me while I’m in the church building, but stay out of my way when I’m behind the wheel. Church and business do not mix. God and school are different arenas. And the hymnal and my wallet have nothing to do with each other. You might take a look at one of our old familiar hymns: I Surrender All. Can you really sing that and mean it? Or would you prefer to sing, I Surrender Some? Is Jesus really Lord of your whole life? 6

I say “whole life” because, if it’s anything less than that, if we’re picking and choosing what he can have of us, then he’s really not the one in charge. You are. If Jesus is not Lord of all, he’s not really Lord at all. Is he really your life’s priority? Have you ever been in a hurry and buttoned up a shirt with lots of buttons and when you were done, found out that the shirt was uneven? What went wrong? When you don't get the first button in the right hole, all the rest are out of sequence too. That's a parable about life. Jesus said it in the Sermon on the Mount: "Seek first God's kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well." (Matthew 6:33) If Jesus is not the priority in your life, if he’s not Lord of all, then, like that shirt, many other things in your life will be out of whack as well. But if you get that first button right, all the rest falls into place. We come to the Lord’s table today, and we are reminded of the first button: Jesus. And on this World Communion Sunday we’re reminded of the many Christians of many denominations, many places, and all times, who have gathered at the table to say Jesus is their priority.

Scriptures referenced: Matthew 6:33; 12:8; John 20:28; Philippians 2:11; Malachi 3:8-12; Matthew 6:24