Christ the Lord

Philippians 2:9-11 

“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” 

Christ the Lord 

                Exodus 3:15 reads, “God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations.” Psalms 110:1 says, The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

                The Hebrew word that “LORD” translates in Exodus 3:15 is Yahweh. We know when we see the name “LORD” in all capitals in the Old Testament it is referring to the Hebrew name Yahweh. Likewise when you see the name “Lord” with upper case “L” and lowercase “ord” in the Old Testament it is referring to the Hebrew word Adoni. The difference between the two is that Yahweh is the name for God that is not given to any created being and the name refers to God alone. Adoni refers to someone who has rule or authority; one of high rank; one who has dominion; one who is the owner or possessor of a person, place or thing. God is Adoni as He owns all things.

                The name Lord in the New Testament translates the Greek word Kurios. Kurios describes the person to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has power of deciding; his or her master or lord. It can be referred to when someone in kindness acknowledges another person like we do with sir. What is interesting about this name is that it is given to Jesus Christ by God the Father as Philippians 2:11 reads.

                In the apostle Paul’s day the Greek translation of the Old Testament was prominent. The Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament was completed around 200 BC. We call this version the Septuagint. Another term to describe the language is the Koine Greek. Why is this important? It is important because when the Hebrew Old Testament was translated into the Koine Greek, the translators used Kurios to translate both names Yahweh and Adoni. Kurios is used 7,380 times in the Septuagint. 6521 times Kurios translates the name Yahweh.

                So let’s tie it together! Paul says in Philippians 2:11 “that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” Romans 10:9 says, “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Thomas used Kurios when he said to Jesus in John 20:28, “My Lord and my God!”

                Luke 2:11, “for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” The Jewish people were waiting for the Messiah but probably did not realize that the Messiah was going to be God Himself. This proclamation by the holy angels must have floored the Sheppard’s when they heard, “Christ the Lord.” God didn’t just send a Savior. He came Himself to save those who are lost!

                The term savior translates the Koine Greek word soter. 22 times in the Septuagint it is used. Most of which the term is referring to God. 24 times it is used in the New Testament with most of the uses referring to Jesus. This is not to diminish the title of Savior but, the New Testament refers to Jesus as Lord about 615 times and refers to Him specifically as Savior some 15 times. Jesus is God and the Bible makes it perfectly clear when it refers to Jesus as both Lord and Savior.

                God the Father Himself bestowed the name of Lord onto Jesus as the Bible says in Philippians 2:9. Never before has a man been referred to as Lord and never will another man be referred to as Lord. The Father wasn’t just saying something nice about Jesus but was declaring that Jesus is God. When we refer to Jesus as Lord we glorify the Father as the part of Philippians 2:11 says, “to the glory of God the Father.” The first part of Isaiah 42:8 says, “I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another.” May this study enrich your understanding of who Jesus is and cause you to love Him more!

“But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence.” – 1 Peter 3:15