Jesus Christ is Lord of All of Most of Me
CHUCK BOKISA
Let’s start with something we can all confess: Jesus Christ is Lord of all. If there’s one thing we should come away from Scripture knowing, it’s that “the Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.” (Rom 10:12) The message that Scripture proclaims, even for those who reject his lordship, is that Jesus Christ is the promised, anointed, resurrected, and ascended son of God who, “sat at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” (Heb. 1:3) who will come, “with great power and glory… to gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.” (Mk. 13:26-27)
Here’s one more thing we can all confess: Jesus Christ is Lord of most of me. Until we die and are glorified, (Rom. 8:30) there are parts of our lives where we sit on the throne as poor imitations of the Lord Jesus. Until that day, we are promised sanctification whereby more and more thrones become occupied by the true and better King.
So, we hold two confessions to be true at the same time: Jesus Christ is Lord of all and Jesus Christ is Lord of most of us. Except “all” isn’t the same as “most” so both can’t be true… what are we to do. The good news is that the Bible speaks to both of these seemingly contradictory realities and theologians have named this cheeky concept - “Already/Not Yet.” It’s an easy idea to understand: Jesus is already Lord of all but not yet Lord of all. Thanks theologians.
But let’s be real, for us the problem isn’t so much a problem of technicalities and theological concepts. It’s a problem of guilt. We know that the Lord will do his work in our lives and that one day he will bring us to heaven where we will live sinless and perfect lives. But right now, I feel powerless most days to honor and obey the Spirit’s lead and ignore the weakness of my flesh. There are a million things I know I should be doing to be active in the Lord’s work of sanctification in my life, but they can wait until tomorrow right? This slow process of sanctification brings along with it a deep sense of spiritual guilt, that I’m not what I should be and what’s worse, most of the time I don’t really care. Guilt over our helplessness doesn’t just creep in, it gallops on an obnoxious and all too pompous regal looking horse. Again. . . what are we to do?
One thing’s for sure, this blog post will not dive into the finer points of sanctification and our active role in it, versus the Holy Spirit’s role. But what it will do, is hopefully help us to take a minute and reflect on what we confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord. No matter how active or inactive we are in our sanctification, he will win and one day the title of this blog post will no longer be true. However, the guilt we allow ourselves to wallow in because of our ongoing sin can kill any motivation to even try. This is where I want to try and help us, who just don't know what to do.
The Lord has been so patient with you and me. He has endured me for over three decades. He is patient until all the work is complete and until then he is making moves to ensure it’s completion. While he works and while he waits, he is not frustrated with us. We aren’t making it harder for him to do his work. As easily as you scroll this post on your phone or tablet, he is even now transforming your heart and renewing your mind, until all at once, he will finish and with a smile on his face say, “There you are son. Well done.”
Let’s be faithful. Let’s be obedient. Let’s pursue holiness and be active in our sanctification. Let’s repent, confess our sin to God in prayer, and get back up and go! Let’s do all these things, but let us not be a people who bind ourselves up in guilt because we aren’t who we will be one day. The fact that we are not there yet, should point us back to the forbearance of our Lord and his faithfulness to endure with us. The Lord is patient as we stumble along in our race of faith. As we walk, run, crawl, sprint, and hobble our way to the finish line, Jesus Christ is Lord of all.
Let’s start with something we can all confess: Jesus Christ is Lord of all. If there’s one thing we should come away from Scripture knowing, it’s that “the Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.” (Rom 10:12) The message that Scripture proclaims, even for those who reject his lordship, is that Jesus Christ is the promised, anointed, resurrected, and ascended son of God who, “sat at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” (Heb. 1:3) who will come, “with great power and glory… to gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.” (Mk. 13:26-27)
Here’s one more thing we can all confess: Jesus Christ is Lord of most of me. Until we die and are glorified, (Rom. 8:30) there are parts of our lives where we sit on the throne as poor imitations of the Lord Jesus. Until that day, we are promised sanctification whereby more and more thrones become occupied by the true and better King.
So, we hold two confessions to be true at the same time: Jesus Christ is Lord of all and Jesus Christ is Lord of most of us. Except “all” isn’t the same as “most” so both can’t be true… what are we to do. The good news is that the Bible speaks to both of these seemingly contradictory realities and theologians have named this cheeky concept - “Already/Not Yet.” It’s an easy idea to understand: Jesus is already Lord of all but not yet Lord of all. Thanks theologians.
But let’s be real, for us the problem isn’t so much a problem of technicalities and theological concepts. It’s a problem of guilt. We know that the Lord will do his work in our lives and that one day he will bring us to heaven where we will live sinless and perfect lives. But right now, I feel powerless most days to honor and obey the Spirit’s lead and ignore the weakness of my flesh. There are a million things I know I should be doing to be active in the Lord’s work of sanctification in my life, but they can wait until tomorrow right? This slow process of sanctification brings along with it a deep sense of spiritual guilt, that I’m not what I should be and what’s worse, most of the time I don’t really care. Guilt over our helplessness doesn’t just creep in, it gallops on an obnoxious and all too pompous regal looking horse. Again. . . what are we to do?
One thing’s for sure, this blog post will not dive into the finer points of sanctification and our active role in it, versus the Holy Spirit’s role. But what it will do, is hopefully help us to take a minute and reflect on what we confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord. No matter how active or inactive we are in our sanctification, he will win and one day the title of this blog post will no longer be true. However, the guilt we allow ourselves to wallow in because of our ongoing sin can kill any motivation to even try. This is where I want to try and help us, who just don't know what to do.
The Lord has been so patient with you and me. He has endured me for over three decades. He is patient until all the work is complete and until then he is making moves to ensure it’s completion. While he works and while he waits, he is not frustrated with us. We aren’t making it harder for him to do his work. As easily as you scroll this post on your phone or tablet, he is even now transforming your heart and renewing your mind, until all at once, he will finish and with a smile on his face say, “There you are son. Well done.”
Let’s be faithful. Let’s be obedient. Let’s pursue holiness and be active in our sanctification. Let’s repent, confess our sin to God in prayer, and get back up and go! Let’s do all these things, but let us not be a people who bind ourselves up in guilt because we aren’t who we will be one day. The fact that we are not there yet, should point us back to the forbearance of our Lord and his faithfulness to endure with us. The Lord is patient as we stumble along in our race of faith. As we walk, run, crawl, sprint, and hobble our way to the finish line, Jesus Christ is Lord of all.