Who does God say Jesus is?
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| English: Jesus Christ - detail from Deesis mosaic, Hagia Sophia, Istanbul (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Psalm 110:1 is quoted more often in the New Testament than any other Old Testament text. In it, we see the name God has called Jesus, Lord.
The first time the word LORD appears in this verse it is in all capital letters. This means that in the original Hebrew we have the word YHWH, Yahweh, or Jehovah. This was the personal name God had called Himself when He appeared to Moses.
The second word Lord in this verse is the Hebrew word Adonai, which means “master.” Psalm 110 was something of a puzzle to the Jews, because they understood that it had been authored by King David. It would have been simple if the psalm had been written by one of David’s servants, for then it would mean that Yahweh had been speaking to “my lord David, the king.” Since it was David who wrote the psalm, however, it was David’s Lord to whom the LORD was speaking. This implied that there was a King higher than David, whose kingship had been established by God the LORD.
Jesus Is the Lord
What had puzzled the Jews was made plain in the New Testament. At the baptism of Jesus and at His transfiguration, God spoke and said, “This is My Son … Listen to Him!” (Matthew 17:5). Here God made it plain that Jesus was the Lord of all men, even of King David.
How does God look at Jesus? As the One to whom He has given all authority, and as the One God commands us to obey. As Paul put it in Philippians 2:9–11, “Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, 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.” What is that most exalted name that Jesus has been given? It is Lord.
“King of Kings and Lord of Lords”—that is the name given to Jesus Christ by God His Father. It is the name before which we are to bend the knee in humble submission and obey His every commandment. Is that how you see Jesus? There are many today who intentionally downplay the Lordship of Christ, compromising His authority over us. Today, ask the Father to give you a submissive spirit, one which delights to live under Christ’s authority. RC Sproul
Jesus Is the Lord
What had puzzled the Jews was made plain in the New Testament. At the baptism of Jesus and at His transfiguration, God spoke and said, “This is My Son … Listen to Him!” (Matthew 17:5). Here God made it plain that Jesus was the Lord of all men, even of King David.
How does God look at Jesus? As the One to whom He has given all authority, and as the One God commands us to obey. As Paul put it in Philippians 2:9–11, “Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name, 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.” What is that most exalted name that Jesus has been given? It is Lord.
“King of Kings and Lord of Lords”—that is the name given to Jesus Christ by God His Father. It is the name before which we are to bend the knee in humble submission and obey His every commandment. Is that how you see Jesus? There are many today who intentionally downplay the Lordship of Christ, compromising His authority over us. Today, ask the Father to give you a submissive spirit, one which delights to live under Christ’s authority. RC Sproul
