Let every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord!

On the Day of Atonement,the holiest day of the year for the Jewish people, the high priest, carrying the blood of the sacrifice would enter the holiest part of the Temple. Once a year he would pass through the temple curtain and enter the Holy of Holies and there he would pronounce the name of God. The name consisted of four letters and was so sacred that it was never spoken at any other time or place. The Jews would substitute the name, Adonai, which means ‘Lord’, when saying the divine name. When the High Priest spoke the holy name, it made God present; and atoned for the sins of the nation of Israel.

This holy week, as Christians, we celebrate The Great Atonement (Heb.4:14;9:12) with the death of Jesus the Messiah, not only for the sins of Israel, but for ‘the sins of the whole world’(1John2:2; Romans 3:25).

St. Paul sharing a hymn of praise of the early church that existed before he wrote his letters tell us:

Christ humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the Name which is above every name,

St Paul does not use the divine name rather he uses Adonai (in Greek Kyrios, Dominus in Latin, and Lord in English). He goes on to tell us:

That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2: 8-11

By using the word Lord, St Paul means exactly the name that means God! This is the incredible truth of our faith! Jesus is the ‘I AM’. He is the everlasting almighty God. He has 'all authority and all power.' (Matt.28:18-20).

After the first Easter the proclamation, “Jesus is Lord!” took the place of the proclamation that our Lord made, “The Kingdom of God is at hand!” The early disciples were telling everyone that, ‘Jesus is risen, He is the Messiah, He is Lord!’ They were telling the most incredibly good news that Jesus, the King was at hand and, He is the Lord!

This was the heart of the good news! It is what is called the kerygma, the basic Gospel message. In these words are the power and authority of God that transforms lives as nothing else can. For those who have come to know the truth of this profound self -revelation of God it is revolutionary and imparts a confidence in what He can do through our proclamation. It elevates our faith in the Lord Jesus present among us in the Holy Spirit to save and continue his mission of redemption.

This proclamation, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ is like a buried treasure that must be uncovered and restored to the rightful place of prominence in our preaching and in our sharing with others. Yet currently it is a point of spiritual warfare and there is great resistance within the church to embrace the simplicity and humility that this proclamation calls us to. St. Paul tells us, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel!” (Rom. 1:16). We too must not be ashamed of the kerygma. For, “it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has faith…”(Rom 1:16b)

St Paul tells us, ‘every knee shall bow.’ That is the posture we need to have if we are to proclaim the essential gospel, that ‘Jesus Christ is Lord.’ It is a call to humility, and it is a call to obedience to God.

This Holy week, let’s seek the Lordship of Christ for our personal lives, families and friends, and reflect on his great mercy displayed at Calvary for sinners like you and me! Let us like the early Christians proclaim the joy of Easter, He is risen, Jesus is Lord!

If you have never asked Jesus to be the Lord of your life, of your everything, ask Him. Tell Him you want to surrender your entire life to his Lordship. Ask him to come as your God to lead you!