Lordship of Christ | Part 1

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Welcome to Love Worth Finding featuring profound truth simply stated by Adrian Rogers. God wants us to live with kingdom authority. But there can be no reigning in this life until we confess these three words. Jesus is Lord.

Now Lord means someone or something having power, authority, or independence. When we claim to commit to Jesus Christ, we must surrender to His Lordship. If you have your Bible, turn now to Romans chapter 14 beginning in verse 7 as Adrian Rogers reveals more on the Lordship of Christ. The world, the flesh, the devil are not to have dominion over a child of God. God has made us kings and priests, and the Bible says thanks be unto God who causeth us always to triumph in Christ Jesus. But there can be no dominion. There can be no reigning in this life until we submit to the authority that God has placed over us.

And that authority is summed up in these words, Jesus is Lord. And no man dieth to himself. That is, we're not independent. We're not autonomous. We don't live and die alone by ourselves, to ourselves. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord. And whether we die, we die unto the Lord.

Whether we live, therefore, or die, we are independent. The Lord's. For to this end, Christ both died and rose and revived that He might be Lord, both of the dead and living. But why dost thou judge thy brother?

Or why dost thou set it not, thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, Every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.

Now, what had happened is this. In the church at Rome, Christians had begun to judge one another. They were criticizing one another about things where there were valid and different opinions about days, about diets, about particular behavior.

And what the apostle Paul said in this chapter that is talking about those things that are doubtful, he said this. He said, Would you people get your eyes off of one another? Stop judging. Stop criticizing one another.

It is not your opinion of them that counts, nor their opinion of you that counts. Remember this, you belong to God. You belong to Jesus. He is Lord. One of the worst things could ever happen to any church is for us to get our eyes off of Jesus and on to one another.

Amen? Jesus is Lord. Whether we live or whether we die, we belong to Jesus Christ because He died and rose again and therefore He is Lord. Now, what does the word Lord mean? It means the one who has absolute power, absolute authority, the one who is the owner, the master, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ.

Many so-called Christians don't understand this. When I was preaching in Romania, I was riding along with Joseph Son. Joseph Son was a man who was tortured, beaten for his faith under that cruel dictator Ceausescu.

They threatened to kill Joseph, but Joseph more I suppose than perhaps any other man has been a leader in the great revival now that took place in Romania. I was preaching some crusades in Romania and Joseph and I were riding in his little automobile and I said, Joseph, would you tell me please about your concept of American Christianity? He said, Adrian, I'd rather not do that. I said, no, Joseph, please tell me. He said, well, Adrian, in America the key word is commitment. I said, well, that's good, isn't it, Joseph? He said, no, not particularly.

I don't think it's good. He said, as a matter of fact, he said, if you were to use the word commitment and I'm translating for you in Romanian, he said, I do not have a word in the Romanian language to even translate the word commitment. He said the word commitment did not come into use in the United States until about the 60s. He said, it was in the dictionary but not in full use. But he said, over and over again in the churches in America today, you hear about the word commitment, commitment, commitment.

But he said, I began to think about that. And he said, when a new word comes in, it generally pushes an old word out. So I began to think, what word is commitment taking the place of? And he said, as I read the Bible, I found out that that word, that commitment has replaced as the word surrender.

Surrender. I said, well, Joseph, what is the difference between commitment and surrender? He said, when you make a commitment, you're in control.

But when you surrender, you're no longer in control. He said, for example, you can commit to win souls because you decide to do it. You can commit to study your Bible.

You can commit to tithe. You can say, I have to do this or that. But he said, suppose a man puts a gun on you and says, stick them up. He said, you lift your hands this way and you don't commit to anything. You surrender.

Now, he said, we Americans like to be in control. We like to make commitments. But the true word is surrender. He is Lord. Now, I'm not playing games with words. And if I use the word commitment, don't jump on me.

If you use the word, I'll not jump on you. But if we're committed to anything, we need to be committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. He is Lord.

He is absolute Lord. I was reading about a French naval battle when Lord Nelson, the commander of the British Navy, was fighting the French and they had defeated the French. And the French Admiral came on board Lord Nelson's ship to surrender. He walked up there in all of his regalia. He had his sword swinging by his side. And he came with a smile on his face and put out his hand to Lord Nelson.

Lord Nelson impassively said, your sword first, sir. You know, before we embrace the Lord Jesus, we have to lay our sword down. We have to advocate the throne. We have to surrender to the Lord Jesus Christ. He is Lord. This is what this passage of scripture says in verse 9. The day of the living.

Now, let me say this. The foundational truth in the New Testament is that Jesus Christ is Lord. To understand that is the fundamental key to knowing and exercising kingdom authority. Jesus Christ is called Lord no less than 747 times in the New Testament. Well, you say, Pastor Rogers, if that's true, I think I'll make him Lord.

You're too late for that. He's already Lord. Acts chapter 2 and verse 36, therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God hath made that same Jesus whom ye have crucified both Lord and Christ. You cannot make him Lord. The only decision you have today is number one, will you recognize that lordship and number two, will you bow to it?

Is that not right? He is already Lord. May I ask you two questions? Question number one, do you believe that Jesus Christ is Lord? Question number two, have you surrendered to the lordship of Jesus Christ? Is he Lord of all that you have and all that you do? Is he Lord of your thoughts? Is he Lord of your tongue? Question number nine, is he Lord of your testimony? Is he Lord?

Now having asked that question, I want us to think about three things. First of all, I want you to think about the redeeming claim of his lordship. How does he claim to be Lord? Because he died for us. Look in verse nine.

The dead and the living. Jesus died to claim us as Lord. Now when he died for us, he was redeeming us. He was buying us. Why is he Lord? Verse nine says because he died for us. Bloody Calvary says that he is Lord. He has purchased you. You're not your own. He has redeemed you with the silver of his tears and the gold of his blood.

Let this thought get into your heart. Jesus Christ has purchased you. He has redeemed you with his blood.

Therefore, the Bible says in First Corinthians chapter six and verse 19, what? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? You say, well, I belong to me.

No, you don't. Not if you're a Christian. If you're a Christian, Jesus died to claim you as Lord. By what right can he say that he is Lord of your life? He has purchased you with the silver of his tears and the gold of his blood, and he now lives in you to possess you as Lord.

That's what First Corinthians chapter six, verse 19 is talking about. When I first got saved, I learned about Jesus in the Bible, and that was wonderful to me. And then as I began to live the Christian life, I would see what Jesus would do in the lives of other people. And I saw Jesus in history and Jesus in action, and that was wonderful to me. And then as I studied more and more, I began to learn about Jesus in heaven ruling and reigning from his throne, and that was wonderful. But I'll tell you the great truth that I am now learning is that Jesus is in the Bible, yes, and Jesus in history, yes, and Jesus in heaven, yes.

But here's the great truth. Christ in me, the hope of glory. He now lives in me. He has possessed me. I am his purchased possession, and therefore I am under new management.

Let me tell you something, folks. We have a lot of pseudo-Christians, people who have come down church aisles and have never been born again, people who have gone through the Baptistry and have never been saved. But if you are saved, you are under new management, under new management. You are not your own. And when you gave your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ, that was the last legitimate independent decision you ever made. When you gave your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ, that was the last legitimate independent decision you ever made. Jesus Christ.

That was the last independent legitimate decision you ever made. You are not your own. You belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now you say, Pastor that's foreboding.

No, it is not foreboding, it is glorious. Why? Because He knows more how to manage your life than you know how to manage it. Why do you think Jesus wants to be Lord? So He can be boss? He's already boss. So He can have power? He already has power.

He can do anything He wants with you. He already has that. He wants to be your Lord because He alone can make out of you what He wants you to be and what you need to be and what you would want to be if you could only see it from His viewpoint. Get it down that He is Lord of all. Now, since He's got such a great investment in you, and verse 9 says He has died for you. As I say with the silver of His tears and the gold of His blood, He bought you and you're not your own.

Think about it. Have you ever made a big investment in something? If you made a big investment in something, did you not go about to protect it?

If you made a big investment for something, did you not go about to maintain it and to put it to optimum use? You see, His investment in you is a blessing because it means that He is going to watch over you. Ephesians 1, verses 13 and 14, it blessed me as I studied it. It speaks of those of us who have been saved and it says this, in whom ye also trusted, speaking of Jesus the Lord, in whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession. Now what does that mean?

Well, you and I are a purchased possession. And after we were saved, God put a mark on us. That mark is the Holy Spirit. After that we have believed we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit. Now what was a seal?

We're not talking about an animal in the zoo. And we're not talking about something that goes around your mason jar when you put up green beans. It's a legal document. And the Bible says when we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, He puts that legal document upon us.

Kings in that time would have a ring, a signet ring. They would make a document and then put melted wax on it and put the seal on it. When you went into a court and some transaction took place, a sale was made, a transference of property, a legal seal would be put upon it. Now this verse in Ephesians 1 says this, that we are the purchased possession. And because we're the purchased possession, God has put His seal upon us. That seal meant, number one, that there has been a legal transaction. Number two, it meant a transference of property.

Number three, it meant security. In the book of Esther, chapter 8 and verse 8, the Bible says the King's seal can no man break. You see the King's seal is on us. We are His.

We have been transferred over to Him. Satan has been defeated and we have been sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise. Is that a blessing to you?

It ought to be. Go think about it, friend. But now you have no right, listen, you have no right whatsoever to call yourself a Christian if Jesus Christ is not Lord in your life.

No right. You see, you're saved by believing that Jesus Christ is Lord and yielding to that Lordship. Romans 10, verses 9 and 10, that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Now this is more than just saying that Jesus is Lord. You can say those words. But when Paul wrote this book of Romans to the early Christians, to say Jesus Christ is Lord could cost you your life.

Why? Because Caesar was more than emperor. He was the God. The people of the Roman Empire had to say, Caesar is Lord. Now they could say Zeus is Lord. They could say that Aphrodite is Lord. But they also had to say that Caesar is Lord.

They had to put Caesar in with the other gods. Christians would not do that. They would take these Christians and they would say to them, do you want to get along in the empire? Then you must say what everybody else will say, say, Kaiser kurios. They would say, no I can't say that, Christos kurios. They would draw the sword and say, say it, Kaiser kurios.

I cannot say that. Jesus Christ is Lord. And these Christians were thrown into dungeons. They were burned at the stake. Their blood read in the mouths of lions because they said that Jesus Christ is Lord.

They could have been saved by simply offering a pinch of salt to Caesar and saying, yes Jesus is Lord, but so also is Caesar. It's not Christ and it is Christ only. Not Christ and this or that. Jesus Christ is Lord. That is the fundamental confession of the New Testament church. You know we hear so much today about receiving Christ as your Savior. Did you know that's not New Testament talk? The Bible doesn't talk about receiving Christ as your Savior. He is Savior. But you receive Christ. He is also Lord.

The Bible says believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. You say, well what's the difference? Well when Joyce and I got married suppose that preacher said to me, do you take Joyce to be your lawfully wedded wife? Suppose I said, well I take her as housekeeper. Now folks I have an idea that I would not have gotten married.

I take Joyce. I mean they're all that comes with her. You see I said to her and to that preacher, I do. And I spent a number of years learning what I did.

Now listen, I do. I gave all of me to all of her. Now I didn't understand all that marriage was about. I'm still learning what it's all about. When I gave my heart to Jesus, I didn't understand what it was all about.

But I'll tell you one thing, I did not come with my fingers crossed behind my back. I gave all I knew of me to all I knew of Jesus. And I said I do to Him. I took Jesus and so must you. He is Lord. And I'm telling you from my heart, listen to me, don't have the idea that salvation is like a cafeteria line where you say I'll take a little Saviorhood today but no lordship, thank you. Jesus Christ is Lord. That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved and you cannot have what he gives unless you accept who he is. And he is Lord.

One of the greatest preachers who ever lived was Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Let me quote what he said. Listen to it.

These words are worth hearing. If the convert declares that he knows the Lord's will but doesn't mean to attend to it, it is your duty to assure him that he is not saved. Don't imagine that the Gospel is magnified or God glorified by going to whirlings and telling them that they may be saved at this moment simply by accepting Christ as their Savior while they are wedded to their idols with their hearts and their hearts are still in love with sin.

If I do so, I tell them a lie. I pervert the Gospel. I insult Christ. I turn the grace of God into lasciviousness. It is not Christ and it is Christ war.

Now, why? Because he died for us. There is the redeeming claim of his Lordship. Maybe as you've listened to this stirring message today, you have questions about your faith in Christ. We'd love to offer you an insightful resource on our website. It's our Discover Jesus page. There you'll find answers you may need about your faith. Let us hear from you. Go to lwf.org slash radio and click the tab that says Discover Jesus.

Again, let us hear from you today. Click Discover Jesus at lwf.org slash radio. Now, if you'd like to order a copy of today's message, you can go to that website, lwf.org slash radio and request a copy of Lordship of Christ or you can call us at 1-877-LOVEGOD to order.

This message is also part of the insightful series, The Incredible Power of Kingdom Authority. For that complete collection, all nine powerful messages, you can call 877-LOVEGOD or go to lwf.org slash radio or write us at Love Worth Finding, Box 38600, Memphis, Tennessee 38183. We're so glad you studied in God's Word with us today. As a reminder, if you'd like to start receiving daily devotions and links to the program, be sure to sign up for our daily heartbeat emails at lwf.org slash radio. And join us next time for part two of Lordship of Christ right here on Love Worth Finding. Oh, I have to share this message from a listener we received recently.

Here's what he said. About 10 years ago, I started listening to Love Worth Finding. Adrian Rogers' anointed message said, kingdom messages have given me the strength to continue my walk of faith. We love to hear how these profound yet practical messages from Adrian Rogers have equipped you in your walk. As a way to say thank you for your gift right now, we want to send you the book, The Incredible Power of Kingdom Authority. How can you be a part of the awesome power of God's working in the world to build His kingdom? This study will give you answers to that question and others. Request the book when you call with a gift right now at 1-877-LOVEGOD, 1-877-568-3463, or give online at lwf.org slash radio. And again, thank you for your generous support of Love Worth Finding.