“‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will send you out to fish for people.'” — Matthew 4:19
A lord is someone who has complete control, complete power, complete authority and complete influence. When Jesus told His disciples to come follow Him, He was asking for complete surrender: to follow Christ and leave family, occupation and comfort. He was basically asking James and John in verse 19 of Matthew 4, “Will you make Me Lord of your life?”
I strongly believe that many of you have a similar testimony to me. You may have grown up in a Christian home and even had the privilege of attending a Christian school or college. There is no doubt in your mind that Jesus is your Savior. You asked Christ to forgive you of your sins and began that relationship with Him.
As we grow in our faith and spiritual maturity, Christ wants to not only be our Savior but also our Lord. When we acknowledge Jesus as our Lord, we move from the driver’s seat to the passenger’s side. Accepting Christ as Savior is inviting Christ into the car. However, we still have the tendency to want to drive. We want to be in the driver’s seat and still control the wheel of life. We include Christ but treat Him more like our co-pilot. Christ wants us to be “all in,” totally committed as believers and followers of Him. That’s making Him Lord! We not only move out of the driver’s seat to the passenger’s seat, we actually move to the back row.
So, what happens when we make Christ our Lord?
First, our identity changes. Life is all about Him and others. It’s not about us and what we do. Our identity is in Christ and what He did for us on the cross at Calvary. It’s so easy to get caught up in our careers or our possessions, but this is a false identity. It’s not who we are; it’s what we have and what we get to do. Actually, it’s what God allows us to do and steward. Those who make Christ their Lord realize that their identity is in Christ and Him alone.
Secondly, our priorities change. Matthew 6:33 says, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” I challenge you to make a list of your priorities. Take the time to write out what is important to you. What takes up your time, your money, your resources? Our list could include family, job, education, house, car, finances, etc. Ask yourself, “Is God even on my list?” Maybe He is, but perhaps at the bottom or just halfway up. Christ wants to be at the top of our list. Actually, when we make Him Lord, He is our list!
Finally, our purpose changes. God has created each one of us with different talents and gifts. Our sweet spot is when those talents and our passions collide head on. See, our talents are what we are good at and our passion is what we get excited about. Our passion has a direct correlation with our purpose. Our true purpose becomes to allow God to use us in any way that He sees fit to bring glory to His name, to use our platform to spread the Good News of Christ and play our part in building the Kingdom.
Author Jon Gordon reminds us, “We don’t get burned out because of what we do, we get burned out because we forget why we do.” Another author, John Maxwell, tells us, “When you’re bigger than your purpose, you have a career. When your purpose is bigger than you, you have a calling.” We realize that our calling is a divine touch by the Savior Himself. Make Jesus your Lord!
— Jim Good
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