“Jesus is Lord” (1 Cor. 12:3). That is the fundamental article of faith for all true Christians. It’s the first essential confession of faith every true Christian must make: “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9). You cannot remove the lordship of Christ from the gospel message without undermining faith at its core. Jesus’ own teaching and ministry always kept the issue of His lordship at the center. He never once shied away from declaring His authority as sovereign Master.
He proclaimed it to disciples, to enemies, and to casual inquirers alike—refusing to tone down the implications of His demand for unconditional surrender. When Jesus called people to follow Him, He was not seeking companions to be His sidekicks or admirers whom He could entertain with miracles. He was calling people to yield completely and unreservedly to His lordship. The expression most often translated “Lord” in the English New Testament is the Greek word kurios. It speaks of someone who has power, ownership, and an unquestionable right to command. A nearly synonymous Greek term also sometimes translated “Lord” in the New Testament is despotes.
That word (the root of our English word despot) describes a ruler with absolute power over his subjects. Both words are used in reference to Christ as Lord in the New Testament. In John 13:13, for instance, Jesus took the title kurios for Himself: “You call Me Teacher and Lord [kurios]; and you are right, for so I am.” Jude 4 employs both words in parallel fashion: “Ungodly persons . . . turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master [despotes] and Lord [kurios], Jesus Christ.” Both words belonged to the vocabulary of slavery in New Testament times.
They Both words belonged to the vocabulary of slavery in New Testament times. They describe a master who has absolute dominion over someone whom he literally owns. His subjects are duty-bound to obey their lord—not merely because they choose to do so but because they have no rightful liberty to do otherwise. Wherever there was a lord (kurios) or a master (despotes), there was always a slave (doulos). One idea is essential to explain the other. That explains Jesus’ incredulity at the practice of those who paid homage to Him with their lips but not with their lives: “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46).
That Greek word doulos is used in Scripture to describe what it means to be a true Christian: “He who was called while free, is Christ’s slave [doulos]. You were bought with a price” (1 Cor. 7:22–23). Doulos is not an ambiguous term. It suggests a very specific concept, which—while repugnant to our culture and our natural minds—should not be toned down or backed away from. It is the main Greek word that was used to describe the lowest abject bondslave—a person who was literally owned by a master who could legally force him to work without wages. In other words, a doulos was a person without standing or rights. English Bibles tend to shield us from the full force of the word doulos because of an ages-old tendency among Bible translators to tone down the literal sense of the word—translating it as “servant,” or “bond servant” rather than “slave.” But service and slavery are not really the same thing.
A slave is someone who lacks personal freedom and personal rights—whose very existence is defined by service to another. This is total, unqualified submission to the control and the directives of a higher authority—slavery, not merely service at one’s own discretion. For example, in Matthew 6:24, Jesus said, “No one can be a slave to two masters” (literal translation). That rendering is much stronger (and actually makes better sense) than what you will find in most versions: “No one can serve two masters.” An employee with two jobs could indeed serve two masters. But slavery—not merely service—is what the word doulos and all its derivatives speak of. The distinctive idea is ownership. We are not our own, for we have been bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:19–20). We have a Master who purchased us (2 Peter 2:1).
To be specific, we were purchased for God with the precious blood of Christ (Rev. 5:9). This is the very essence of what it means to be a Christian: “For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living” (Rom. 14:7–9).
My name is Cesar and I’m A Voice in The Desert
www.avoiceinthedesert.net
www.mywalkwithmycreator.com
#avoiceinthedesert
He proclaimed it to disciples, to enemies, and to casual inquirers alike—refusing to tone down the implications of His demand for unconditional surrender. When Jesus called people to follow Him, He was not seeking companions to be His sidekicks or admirers whom He could entertain with miracles. He was calling people to yield completely and unreservedly to His lordship. The expression most often translated “Lord” in the English New Testament is the Greek word kurios. It speaks of someone who has power, ownership, and an unquestionable right to command. A nearly synonymous Greek term also sometimes translated “Lord” in the New Testament is despotes.
That word (the root of our English word despot) describes a ruler with absolute power over his subjects. Both words are used in reference to Christ as Lord in the New Testament. In John 13:13, for instance, Jesus took the title kurios for Himself: “You call Me Teacher and Lord [kurios]; and you are right, for so I am.” Jude 4 employs both words in parallel fashion: “Ungodly persons . . . turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master [despotes] and Lord [kurios], Jesus Christ.” Both words belonged to the vocabulary of slavery in New Testament times.
They Both words belonged to the vocabulary of slavery in New Testament times. They describe a master who has absolute dominion over someone whom he literally owns. His subjects are duty-bound to obey their lord—not merely because they choose to do so but because they have no rightful liberty to do otherwise. Wherever there was a lord (kurios) or a master (despotes), there was always a slave (doulos). One idea is essential to explain the other. That explains Jesus’ incredulity at the practice of those who paid homage to Him with their lips but not with their lives: “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46).
That Greek word doulos is used in Scripture to describe what it means to be a true Christian: “He who was called while free, is Christ’s slave [doulos]. You were bought with a price” (1 Cor. 7:22–23). Doulos is not an ambiguous term. It suggests a very specific concept, which—while repugnant to our culture and our natural minds—should not be toned down or backed away from. It is the main Greek word that was used to describe the lowest abject bondslave—a person who was literally owned by a master who could legally force him to work without wages. In other words, a doulos was a person without standing or rights. English Bibles tend to shield us from the full force of the word doulos because of an ages-old tendency among Bible translators to tone down the literal sense of the word—translating it as “servant,” or “bond servant” rather than “slave.” But service and slavery are not really the same thing.
A slave is someone who lacks personal freedom and personal rights—whose very existence is defined by service to another. This is total, unqualified submission to the control and the directives of a higher authority—slavery, not merely service at one’s own discretion. For example, in Matthew 6:24, Jesus said, “No one can be a slave to two masters” (literal translation). That rendering is much stronger (and actually makes better sense) than what you will find in most versions: “No one can serve two masters.” An employee with two jobs could indeed serve two masters. But slavery—not merely service—is what the word doulos and all its derivatives speak of. The distinctive idea is ownership. We are not our own, for we have been bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:19–20). We have a Master who purchased us (2 Peter 2:1).
To be specific, we were purchased for God with the precious blood of Christ (Rev. 5:9). This is the very essence of what it means to be a Christian: “For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that He might be Lord both of the dead and of the living” (Rom. 14:7–9).
My name is Cesar and I’m A Voice in The Desert
www.avoiceinthedesert.net
www.mywalkwithmycreator.com
#avoiceinthedesert
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