Who Is He To You?

We often hear that we need to make God the Lord of our life, but do we really know why such a perspective is so important?

Jesus came to this earth, the Son of God was born into this world He created to relinquish the hold that sin and lie had on humanity. To free humankind from the wages of sin by having His own sinless perfect life die on the cross in replace of us.

"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 6:23

"For God so loved the world that He gave is only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16

I accentuate the verb Lord in the previous verse because first and foremost he must be remembered as our Lord. But why?

Numerous times Jesus is referred to with different discriptors. Teacher, Rabbi, the Mother Hen, an Heir that we can be equals with (a Royal brother per se), Prince of Peace, King of kings, The Way Truth and Life, The Light, The Source of one's Saltiness, The Alpha and Omega... the list can go on. My focus here will not be on some of the more abstract or obscure descriptors but on one very practical and tangible for everyday life descriptor - Teacher/Rabbi.

What is a teacher? The head of a classroom, below the Principle; a workplace trainer, a mentor, and sometimes a wise friend. Jesus is all of these - and so much more.

A Rabbi in the Christian faith can be likened to a priest, pastor, elder, minister, reverend, bishop or the like. Again Jesus is all of these.

How you view, approach, and revere Jesus is actually quite crucial to the health and well being of your faith.

"When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve. And as they were eating, he said, 'Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.' And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, 'Is it I Lord?' He answered, 'He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me.' ... Judas, who would betray him, answered, 'Is it I, Rabbi?'" - Matthew 26:20-25a

Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: "The one I kiss is the man; arrest him."Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" and kissed him. - Matthew 26:48-49

Judas' use of the title Rabbi is not in and of itself a bad thing, nor is it when anyone else uses it in reference to Jesus. However, when one compares the loyalty one might carry toward a Lord vs a teacher as one may see in the text above it isn't so hard to see the importance of remembering that first and foremost Jesus is Lord!

Remembering such a thing may make it harder for you to commit that habitual sin. Think about it, how do you view the teachers in your past, and yes I do mean high school, elementary, post-seconday teachers. How well did you respect them? How do you view your dad? Is it easy to pull the wool over his eyes on certain things? What is your respect level like for an older brother, friend, or mentor?

These are important questions to ask yourself. The reason is because how you view these men or figures of authority in your life will have an effect on how you view The Authority in life.

With that in mind, never forget that Jesus must be Lord of your life, just as much and maybe more than he is your friend, father, teacher, guide, and all that rests between.