Daily Devotional For Friday, December 27, 2024
Now that Christmas is over, today is the final Advent Devotional for our Advent/Christmas season. The word of Christmas we are focusing on today is the word LORD. Let’s go back to the verse we read a couple of days ago. In Luke 2:11, the angel announced to the shepherds, “Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (ESV). What does it mean to say Jesus is Lord? Lord is not a word we use in everyday language. But it is an important word for worship. In the Bible, the word Lord means the person with supreme authority, the master. In our day, we might use the terms, owner, boss, CEO or manager. The lord is the one who is in charge.
Lord is a title God uses for Himself over seven thousand times in the Old Testament. So these Jewish shepherds knew the angel was announcing the birth of a divine person. This was no mere baby. He wasn’t even simply of earthly royalty. This baby, this Messiah — the Christ — was God Himself! Probably the most important passage about Jesus’ Lordship in the Bible is in Philippians 2:6:11. It describes his divinity, His incarnation, His suffering, His exaltation, and His Lordship over all creation. The Bible puts it this way in The Expanded Bible:,
”Christ Himself was like God in everything {Who, being in the form of God]. But He did not think that being equal with God was something to be used for his own benefit [or grasped; seized; held on to]. (7) But He gave up His place with God and made Himself nothing [emptied Himself]. He became like [took the form of] a servant [slave; bondservant] and was born as a man [in the likeness of humanity/men,The Incarnation]. (8) And when He was living being found in appearance/likeness] as a ·man [human being], He humbled Himself and was fully obedient to God, even when that caused His [to the point of] death—death on a cross. (9) So God raised [exalted] Him to the highest place. God made His name [or gave Him the name] greater than [far above] every other name, (10) so that every knee will bow to the name of Jesus—everyone in heaven, on earth, and under the earth. (11) And everyone [every tongue] will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and bring glory to God the Father” (EXB).
Jesus is the Lord, the supreme authority, the Master, the Owner of all because He is the Creator and Savior of all. He is your Lord, whether you want Him to be or not. If you refuse to surrender to Him, that does not mean He is no longer Lord. He is Lord. Period. Why? Because God said so. Jesus already paid the price to redeem you. He is your Lord. Therefore, He has the right to determine your eternal destiny.
The question is not: Is Jesus Lord? He is! The question is: Have I submitted to his Lordship? You don’t make Jesus Lord, as though you were awarding Him a ceremonial title. The position is already His, given to Him by God the Father. So you don’t make Jesus Lord, but you do acknowledge Jesus as your Lord by surrendering to Him. The choice is up to you . . . for now.
But as that passage says in Philippians, the day will come that “every knee shall bow—” whether in heaven or earth or hell itself—and “every tongue shall confess—” that includes the tongue of every person who has ever lived, including the tongue of satan himself— “every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” Some will bow and confess in worship, others will bow and confess in defeat. But it is inevitable—one day everyone will bow and confess the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
For those who acknowledge Jesus as their Lord in this life, the Bible promises this in Romans 10:9, “If you confess with your mouth, `Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (NIV). Why? Acts 4:12, “For there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (NIV). But for those who refuse to acknowledge Jesus as Lord in this life, Jesus says this about them in Matthew 10:32-33,
“Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. (33) But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (NASB).
I know it’s a heavy message, but we have to understand who the baby in the manger truly is. “O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.” Please don’t miss heaven by 18 inches – the distance between your head and your heart. A lot of people have a “head knowledge” about Jesus. They recognize Him as a historical figure. Some acknowledge that He is God’s Messiah to the world, but they do not personally want Him as their Savior and Lord in their heart. Death is final and there are no second chances afterwards. There is no such thing as purgatory. When you die, you either go to hell or to heaven.
So many “good” people live their whole lives saying, “I don’t want God. I don’t need God” and when they die, God says to them, “You didn’t want me while you were living on earth and so for all eternity you won’t have Me either. Depart from Me into everlasting punishment of the fires of hell. You will burn but not be consumed for all eternity knowing your existence did not have to end this way.”
Questions To Consider
- As you look at how you live, who would you say is the manager of your life for all areas? Jesus Christ” or yourself? Why?
- “Lord” implies that Jesus should be the manager of our lives in every area, right? Other than our sin and damnation in hell, what else does Jesus need to be Lord for us? Where in your life does Jesus need to be Lord and why?
- The question is not: Is Jesus Lord? He is! The question is: Have I submitted to His lordship? Have you personally and do you do this consistently? Why or why not?
- If you have children or grandchildren, “Lord” might be a term too hard for them to comprehend. But in some way, they look to you, their parent or grandparent to be their “manager” as young children. Use that as an analogy to help them understand how Jesus is their Lord.
Scripture To Meditate On: Revelation 19:16, “And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS” (NASB).
Prayer To Pray: “Jesus Christ, I confess that You are Lord. All glory and honor are Yours. You are the Creator of heaven and earth, and You are the Redeemer of all. I humbly bow my knee and lift my heart to You. I acknowledge You as the One to whom all my allegiance is due. I love You Jesus. In your name I pray, Amen.”
I love you Southside!--Pastor Kelly