The most important question you'll ever
answer is this, "Who is your Lord?"
Hello, I'm Phil Sanders, and this is a Bible study
"In Search of the Lord's Way."
And today, we're going to explore what it means to
call Jesus "Lord." Stay tuned.
In all the hurry and hustle and confusion of modern living,
the Lord has the way.
We believe that the Bible is the revelation of His way.
We invite you to join us
In Search of the Lord's Way with Phil Sanders.
Welcome to In SEARCH of the Lord's Way!
We're here to search the Scriptures for God's will.
We know the Scriptures teach us what God truly expects of us.
The New Testament is the true measure of Christianity.
The true disciples of Jesus Christ abide in His words.
They seek to please the Lord not the world.
They take their faith seriously.
Thanks for taking time with us today.
We want to be a part of your life each week.
Matthew 16 verses 13 to 17 says: Now when Jesus came
into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking
His disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"
And they said, "Some say John the Baptist; and
others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah,
or one of the prophets."
He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Well, Simon Peter answered, "You are the
Christ, the Son of the living God."
And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon
Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this
to you, but My Father who is in heaven."
My friend, what you decide about Jesus is crucial to
your spiritual well-being.
Ultimately, you have to decide for
yourself what you believe.
You cannot ignore the Lord Jesus, because one day you
will come face to face with Him.
Each one will face judgment.
And can you confess Jesus and say what Peter said,
that "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God"?
To say Jesus is the Christ is to recognize Him as the
promised Messiah, the One who fulfilled prophecy and
set up His kingdom in the first century that would last forever.
To say Jesus is the Son of God
is to recognize His Divine nature.
Do you believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God?
Are you willing to make Him Lord of your life?
Now, if you want to study more, we offer this lesson free.
If you'd like a printed copy or a CD of our study
and you live in the United States, mail your request
to In Search of the Lord's Way,
P.O. Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083
or send an e-mail to searchtv@searchtv.org.
Or, call you can call our toll-free telephone number.
That number is 1-800-321-8633.
We also have materials free on our website at www.searchtv.org.
The Edmond church will now worship in song, and we'll
read from Philippians 2 verses 5 to 11, and then
we'll explore what it means to call Jesus Lord!
Our reading today comes from Paul's letter to the church at
Philippi in Philippians chapter 2 verses 5 to 11.
"Have this attitude in yourselves which was also
in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the
form of God, did not regard equality with God a
thing to be grasped, but He emptied Himself, taking
the form of a bond-servant, and being
made in the likeness of men.
Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled
Himself by becoming obedient to the point of
death, even death on a cross.
For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and
bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow,
of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the
earth, and that every tongue will confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of Father."
That's a wonder reading from God's holy word.
Let's pray together.
Oh Father, help us to bow our knees and confess that
Your son Jesus is our Lord.
Help us to always humble ourselves and to give
ourselves fully and freely to you.
May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
In Jesus name, Amen.
The apostle Peter told the household of Cornelius in
Acts 10:38-43, "You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how
God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with
power, and how He went about doing good and
healing all who were oppressed by the devil,
for God was with Him.
We are witnesses of all the things He did both in
the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem.
They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a cross.
God raised Him up on the third day and granted that
He become visible, not to all the people, but to
witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, that
is, to us who ate and drank with Him after
He arose from the dead.
And He ordered us to preach the gospel to the
people, and to solemnly testify that this is the
One who has been appointed by God as
Judge of the living and the dead.
Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through
His name everyone who believes in Him receives
forgiveness of sins."
God anointed Jesus as the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
He will judge us all on the last day.
The Lord Jesus said, "He who rejects Me and does
not receive My sayings, has one who judges him;
the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last
day" (John 12 and verse 48).
We will not be judged by what people think, by what
councils vote, or by opinion polls.
We will be judged by the words Jesus spoke, words
that are found in the New Testament.
Since he is our King and our Judge, we must
recognize our accountability before Him.
The apostle Paul told the Athenians in Acts 17
verses 30 to 31, "Therefore having
overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now
declaring to men that all people everywhere should
repent, because He has fixed a day in which He
will judge the world in righteousness through a
Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to
all men by raising Him from the dead."
You can be sure that one day you will stand before
the Lord Jesus in judgment.
God will hold you and me accountable for our lives.
Now we're accountable for our attitude toward other people.
The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 5 verses 21 to 22,
"You have heard that the ancients were told, 'that'
'You shall not commit murder' and 'Whoever
commits murder shall be liable to the court.' But
I say to you' Jesus is talking' 'that everyone
who is angry with his brother shall be guilty
before the court; and whoever says to his
brother, 'You good-for-nothing,'[that is
Raca, "empty-headed"] shall be guilty before the supreme
court; and whoever shall say, 'You fool,' [that is you moron]
shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell."
God knows all that happens in our hearts.
And we're accountable even for our thoughts.
The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 5:27 to 29 "You
have heard that it was said, 'You shall not
commit adultery'; but I say to you that everyone
who looks at a woman with lust for her has already
committed adultery with her in his heart.
If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out
and throw it from you; for it is better for you to
lose one of the parts of your body, than for your
whole body to be thrown into hell."
When people think immoral thoughts, they sin against
their spouses and they sin against God.
We're also accountable for our words.
The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 12 verses 34 to 37,
"For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart.
The good man brings out of his good treasure what is
good; and the evil man brings out of his evil
treasure what is evil.
But I tell you that every careless word that people
speak, they shall give an accounting for
it in the Day of Judgment.
For by your words you will be justified, and by your
words you will be condemned."
We are accountable for our actions.
2 Corinthians 5 and verse10 says, "For we must
all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,
so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds
in the body, according to what he has done,
whether good or bad."
Now, God's Word further says in Romans 2 verses 6
to 11, that "He will render to each one
according to his works: to those who by patience in
well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality,
he will give eternal life; but for those who are
self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey
unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.
There will be tribulation and distress for every
human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the
Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who
does good, the Jew first and also the Greek.
For God shows no partiality."
More than that we're accountable to Jesus
whether we know it or not, whether we acknowledge it
or not, or whether we agree with it or not.
Jesus, our Creator, who died to save us from sin,
is also our Lord.
Not only do we confess Jesus as the Christ, the
Son of the living God, we also confess Him as our Lord.
On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit proclaimed
through Peter and the apostles to all the Jews
that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this
Jesus whom you crucified (Acts 2and verse 36).
God has made Jesus to be your Lord and mine.
Now the word "Lord" indicates two crucial concepts.
First, to call Jesus "Lord" means; He is
divine, that is He is deity, He is God.
The word "Lord" is often spelled with all capital
letters in the Old Testament.
"Lord" is the English word that's used to translate
the Hebrew word "Yahweh."
This is the word the Lord God used to identify
Himself to Moses at the burning bush.
In Exodus chapter three, God called Moses to lead the
children of Israel out of Egypt and into the Promised Land.
Moses was reluctant and he offered several excuses to
God as to why he shouldn't lead them.
At one point Moses said to God, "If I come to the
people of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your
fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me,
well 'What is his name?'
what shall I say to them?"
God said to Moses, "I am who I am."
And he said, "Say this to the people of Israel, 'I
am has sent me to you'" (Exodus 3verses 13 to 14).
Now the word in Hebrew "I am who I am" translates
into Greek as "kurios" and into English as "LORD."
When the Holy Spirit through Peter proclaimed
Jesus as Lord on Pentecost, he was speaking
clearly of the Divinity of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 2 verse 6, which we read earlier,
says that Jesus also existed in the form of God.
Let's hear Philippians 2:5-11 again.
"Have this attitude in yourselves which was also
in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the
form of God, did not regard equality with God a
thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking
the form of a bond-servant, and being
made in the likeness of men.
Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled
Himself by becoming obedient to the point of
death, even death on a cross.
For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and
bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow,
of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the
earth, and that every tongue will confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
Jesus has always existed in the form of God, but He
emptied himself and took the form of a servant,
being fashioned as a man.
Now in humility He obeyed His father
by dying on a cruel cross.
Because Jesus suffered and died for us, God exalted
Him, gave Him a name above all names, and demands
that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and
every tongue will confess Jesus Christ is Lord!
This type of worship is not for men but for deity, for God.
Second, to call Jesus "Lord" means you have
decided that you will obey Him.
He is your master, and you are his servant.
The word "Lord" in the Bible often reflex and
refers to the one who owns slaves.
When we became Christians, we
became the slaves of Jesus Christ.
Now a master owns his slaves and has the right
to make decisions governing the lives of his
slaves, decisions the slaves cannot stop or change.
You may not always understand His decisions, but you
can always trust that He will act for your best interests.
We are all servants to someone or something.
Romans 6 and verse 16 says, "Do you not know
that if you present yourselves to anyone as
obedient slaves, that you are slaves of the one whom
you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or
of obedience, which leads to righteousness?"
Now some folks serve sin.
They think sin will bring them happiness; and
instead, it brings them a lot of misery it fills
their lives with all kinds of ruin and problems, and
it makes them a slave.
Sin fills them with guilt and it ruins
their hearts and their lives.
Hebrews 3 verses 12 to 13 warns Christians, "Take
care, brothers, lest there be in any one of you an
evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away
from the living God.
But exhort one another every day, as long as it
is called "today," that none of you may be
hardened by the deceitfulness of sin."
What we choose in this life will affect our eternal destiny.
Romans 8 verses 12 to 13 says,
"So then, brothers, we are debtors,
not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.
For if you live according to the flesh you will die,
but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of
the body, you will live."
Following sin and the flesh will lead only to
many problems in this life and separation from
God in the life to come.
Galatians 6 verses 7 to 8 says, "Do not be deceived:
God is not mocked, for whatever one sows,
that will he also reap.
For the one who sows to his own flesh will from
the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to
the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life."
Now that's why repentance is so vital so important!
If we put to death the deeds of the body, we can
live spiritually with God; but if we continue in sin,
we can lose our souls.
Isn't it better to be the servant of One
who loves and cares for us?
Some enslave themselves to their lusts and pleasures,
which only last for a time and later destroys them.
Some become the servants of the devil, who uses
them with cruel, false promises.
The devil is never your friend; no matter what he may offer you.
If you choose to follow him, he will lead you
where you never want to go.
When you take Jesus as Lord, you give yourself to
the only One who will always love and take care of you.
The only one who can save you.
The question is not whether the Lord Jesus
will be a good and kind master, oh He will; the
question is whether you will be a good and obedient servant.
Obedience is not always natural to us; we have to learn it.
The Bible says of Jesus in Hebrews 5:8-9, "Although
He was a Son, He learned obedience from
the things which He suffered.
And having been made perfect, He became to all
those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation."
Now if we are to please our Lord, we must learn to
be obedient to His will.
Obedience is how we show to Him our faith and our love.
Jesus is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, but
you must decide whether you will bow before Him
now in this life or whether you will bow
before Him when He comes again.
But be sure of this, one day every knee will bow,
and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord
to the glory of God our Father.
Let's pray together.
Oh Father helps us to be obedient
to Your will in everything.
Help us to love You and to trust You and to know what
a great God You are and how You care for us and
Father may Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
In Jesus name, Amen.
Someone has well said,
that, "If Jesus isn't Lord in every aspect of our
lives, He isn't our Lord at all.
If Jesus isn't Lord every day, He isn't Lord any day."
Jesus doesn't want half-hearted followers,
fair-weather friends, or convenient Christians.
He expects us to deny ourselves, to take up our
crosses daily, and to follow Him.
He wants us to present our bodies a living and holy
sacrifice, acceptable to God.
He wants us to live by faith in the One who loves
us and gave Himself for us.
God wants you to love Him with all your heart, and
all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.
Sadly, many have become Christians in name only.
They say they believe but you couldn't tell it from
the words they use or the lives they lead.
1 John 2 verses 3 to 6 says, "And by this we know
that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments.
Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his
commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in
him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the
love of God is perfected.
By this we may know that we are in him: whoever
says he abides in him ought to walk in the same
way in which He walked."
Are you walking like Christ or like someone who
simply claims to know Him?
We must hear His words, revealed in the New Testament.
We must believe Jesus Christ is the Lord, the
Son of the living God.
We trust what the Lord says, because we trust Him.
In trust and love, we turn from rebellion
and sin and turn to the Lord.
So, whatever he asks, we're ready to do because
we love Him-you see that's repentance.
Then upon the confession of our faith, we're baptized.
That's when He will wash away every sin.
That's when He'll add us to His family, the church.
That's when He will save us and we'll become a child of God.
Oh, won't you obey the Lord today?
We hope that today's lesson will lead you to
make Jesus your Lord.
If you live in the United States and want a free
printed copy or a CD of this message, mail your
request to In Search of the Lord's Way,
P.O. Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083
or send an e-mail to searchtv@searchtv.org.
Or, you can call the Search office
toll-free at 1-800-321-8633.
Now, there's a schedule of our programs and a map
with the location of churches in your area on our website.
You can watch SEARCH anytime on YouTube as well!
Subscribe to our channel, "SearchTVMinistry."
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Now if you get a hold of us we're not
going to try to exploit you.
We're here to help you get to heaven.
Please get involved with a church of Christ.
If you're looking for a healthy, Biblical church
home, we'll be happy to help you find one.
We'll be back next week, Lord willing.
So keep searching God's Word with us
and tell a friend about the program.
God bless you and we love you from all of us at
In Search of the Lord's Way.
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