Jesus' Lordship I. Introduction A. Jesus lived on the earth, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom 1. Matthew 4:17, 23 2. Luke 9:27; 17:20-21 3. The Kingdom was coming, even within their generation! B. Yet then Jesus was crucified C. Yet on the third day He arose! D. Forty days later, Jesus ascends to the Father 1. Luke 24:50-53, Acts 1:1-11 2. What would happen next? E. Matthew 28:18, Acts 2:36 1. Jesus declares that He now has all authority 2. Peter preaches this message to the Jews F. After Jesus' ascension and until Jesus' return, Jesus is Lord! G. How did it happen? How is it so? What does it mean? H. Let us consider Jesus' lordship! II. How Jesus Became Lord A. Luke 24:25-26 1. Jesus, after the resurrection, indicates how His life, death, and resurrection all part of the prophecies regarding the Christ 2. The Christ was to suffer and then enter into glory! B. The message of the prophets 1. Passages like Isaiah 52:13-53:12 spoke of His suffering 2. Most passages spoke of His rule and kingdom, as in Isaiah 2:1-4, 9:2-7, 11:1-9, among others 3. Many expected the Messiah to accomplish these things while on earth 4. Yet this was not God's intention! C. Jesus' Exaltation 1. Hebrews 4:14-5:10: Jesus becomes High Priest in order of Melchizedek through His suffering, obedience, God's elevation of Him to that honor 2. Philippians 2:5-11: God exalts Jesus because of His humiliation, crucifixion D. Therefore, since Jesus accomplished His purpose on earth, fulfilling the Law, humbling Himself, obedient even to death, the Father granted Him all authority E. Let us consider the nature of His authority III. Jesus is Lord A. From the beginning, the message of the Apostles 1. Acts 2:36: climax of the first Gospel sermon, leading to belief and repentance of 3,000 2. Acts 3:11-26: Peter speaks of the power vested in the glorified Jesus 3. Acts 4:8-12: Peter boldly affirms that he acted by Jesus' power 4. Acts 5:29-32: Peter again establishes that Jesus has been glorified and is Leader 5. Acts 10:34-43: Peter tells Cornelius of Jesus as Lord, ultimate Judge 6. Constant reference to the "Lord" Jesus B. Acts 9:3-9: Saul confesses that Jesus is Lord when confronted by Him C. Scenes in Revelation 1. Revelation 1:12-17: John has a vision of the risen Jesus as Lord 2. Revelation 19:11-16: great image of Jesus the victorious fighting those against Him D. All of these passages make quite evident how Jesus currently is Lord! IV. Jesus' Kingdom A. We have seen how Jesus became Lord and have seen, indeed, how He is Lord B. Yet over what is He Lord? C. Jesus the King of kings and Lord of lords, spoke constantly in life of the Kingdom 1. Kingdom: area of dominion of a king 2. We know who the King is; where is His Kingdom? D. In a true sense, the entire universe 1. Matthew 28:18: His authority is over all heaven and earth 2. All will be judged by His standard: Matthew 25:31-46, John 12:48, Acts 17:30-31 3. Therefore, Christ rules over all, and everyone must subject themselves to Him E. Specifically, over the church 1. Ephesians 5:22-33, Colossians 1:13 2. 1 Thessalonians 2:12, Hebrews 12:28, 2 Peter 1:11, Revelation 1:6, 9 3. These passages make it clear that Christ's Kingdom is here and now 4. What is His Kingdom? Those over whom He rules 5. Over whom does He rule? Those in the church, His body! F. Thus, Jesus is Lord over the world, but truly over His body, the church, His Kingdom V. What Jesus' Lordship Means A. What does it mean that Jesus is Lord? B. It means that He has all authority: He calls the shots 1. Christianity not a democracy, but a Monarchy! 2. A monarchy with an all-benevolent, loving, compassionate Monarch, but a monarchy nonetheless! 3. It is our place to serve and obey (Luke 17:7-10, John 3:36) 4. It is not our place to alter what He has said, to justify disobedience, or to attempt to "cut corners"! 5. What He says...goes! 6. Acts 9:1-10: Saul understood authority sufficiently to recognize that whatever this "Lord" said, goes! 7. If we properly understand authority, we will not hesitate to serve Him 8. If we do not properly understand authority, we may find ourselves on the wrong end of the judgment (cf. Matthew 7:21-23, 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9)! C. His Lordship means that disobedience not really an option 1. Yes, it is true that we have free will 2. But that is not to be construed as some kind of license! 3. Since Jesus is Lord, and will be Judge, disobedience not really an option (cf. Romans 2:5-10)! 4. America a bit too open, comfortable in this regard 5. If we suffered under some kind of dictatorship, we would better understand authority! 6. We should not get too cozy with sin (cf. Romans 12:9)! 7. In the end, if we truly "get" that Jesus is Lord, we won't often think twice about obeying Him: we will know that it is what we must do...or else! 8. If this concept offensive, hell will be much more offensive (cf. 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9)! D. His Lordship an important aspect of who He is 1. Many look at Jesus as the tender Shepherd 2. Others see Him as perhaps an ultra-powerful Santa Claus 3. Yet we have a picture of Him in Revelation 1 that is more fearful! 4. While these other pictures of Jesus are more "comfortable," they have led people to portray Jesus as entirely inoffensive and "soft" on just about everything! 5. This overemphasis on "grace" has led to the portrait of Jesus considered by many among liberal denominations and has led to the resultant compromise with the world 6. While it remains true that the Lord remains patient, compassionate, merciful (2 Peter 3:8, Luke 16:36, etc.), He also died to rid us of sin and has no desire for us to wallow in it or justify it (cf. 1 John 3:4-8, Romans 12:9, 2 Peter 2:20-22) 7. The Lord who died for us and the Lord who executed Ananias and Sapphira in His wrath is the same Lord (Acts 5:1-11)! E. His Lordship means that all are subject to Him, like it or not 1. Philippians 2:5-11: every knee will eventually bow to Him 2. There is not one person who will somehow avoid standing before the Lord, or who could appeal to some other authority (Matthew 25:31-46, Romans 2:5-10) 3. It will go much better for those who recognized His lordship during their lifetimes than for those who do not (Romans 2:5-10, 2 Thessalonians 1:6-9)! 4. It has been more persuasive to people today to appeal to their desire for self-preservation: Jesus died for your sins so that you do not have to go to hell, serve Him to avoid hell 5. While that is true, we must remember that it was also preached in the first century that since Jesus is Lord, that should be sufficient evidence for you to realize your need to serve Him! 6. If He is Lord, we should act accordingly! VI. Conclusion A. Jesus is indeed Lord, will remain that way until His return 1. Prophesied by the prophets: the Christ would suffer and then enter into glory 2. The Messiah reigns from Heaven as Lord of all 3. His Kingdom presently manifest in His church B. Since Jesus is Lord presently, we must obey Him! 1. While God has given man free will, has not coerced him, if man really understands that Jesus is Lord and Judge, no real option 2. He will serve the One who truly has authority! C. Let us serve our Lord, the Risen Christ! D. Invitation/songbook Scripture, Meditation, and Application 1: And Jesus came to them and spake unto them, saying, "All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth" (Matthew 28:18). By means of His life, death, resurrection, and ascension, God the Father established Jesus His Son as Lord and Christ: the King and Ruler, Lord of lords and King of kings. Jesus has all authority over heaven and earth. Jesus therefore is the one true Ruler; we do well to submit to Him in all things. What does it mean for Jesus to be Lord? 2: "Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly, that God hath made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified" (Acts 2:36). Peter and the Apostles proclaimed Jesus as the Christ, thus, as the King. Peter expected the Jewish people to understand what that meant: all powers were subject to Jesus, and they should subject themselves to Jesus as well. Jesus is the one who should call the shots; no one else. How do we honor Jesus as Lord? 3: And when the chief Shepherd shall be manifested, ye shall receive the crown of glory that fadeth not away (1 Peter 5:4). Jesus is Lord and Christ, the King. Yet Jesus is not an imperious tyrant; He reigns as He lived: as a loving Shepherd. He does not compel or coerce. He sacrificed Himself for the cosmos and does all He can to preserve and maintain it. All effective leadership is modeled after Christ's leadership; oppressive, imperious, dictatorial leadership is of the powers and principalities over this present darkness. What does it mean to lead like a shepherd? 4. Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name; that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11). Jesus humbled Himself, died, and God glorified Him. One day Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead, and every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. If Christians would like to be exalted with Christ, they first must humble themselves and suffer like He did. How can Christians obtain life in Christ?