37. The Lordship of Christ
37. The Lordship of Christ
But Sanctify in your hearts Christ as Lord (1 Pet. 3:15, RV). In view of the context it is striking to note that it was Peter whom the Spirit of God first moved to write these words. As he did so, his heart, no doubt, was filled with sorrow and deep contrition. He says, “If ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled” (v. 14). On a never-to-be forgotten occasion, he had been afraid of the “terror” of the wicked. In Pilate’s palace the fear of man brought him a snare. But in our text he announces the divine remedy for deliverance from the fear of man.
But sanctify in your hearts Christ as Lord. In the light of its setting, this means, first of all, to let the awe of the lordship of Christ possess your hearts. Dwell constantly on the fact that Christ is Lord. Because He is Lord, all power in heaven and earth is His; therefore He is Master of every situation, sufficient for every emergency, able to supply every need. When a Christian trembles in the presence of his enemies, it is because he doubts or has lost sight of the faithfulness and power of Christ.
But sanctify in your hearts Christ as Lord. The motive for obeying this precept should not be our own peace and comfort, but His honor and glory. To guard against the feat of man, the saint is to cultivate the fear of the Lord, that Christ may be magnified. The Lord Jesus is glorified when His persecuted people preserve a calm demeanor and immovable fortitude in the face of all opposition. But this is possible only as our hearts are occupied with Him, and particularly with His lordship.
But sanctify in your hearts, Christ as Lord. These words have a wider application. How little professing Christians dwell on the lordship of Christ! How sadly inadequate are the real Christian’s views of that One who has a name which is above every name! “That I may know [obtain a better knowledge of] him” (Phil. 3:10), should be the daily longing of our hearts, and the earnest prayer of our lips. Not only do we need to grow in “grace” but also in “the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18).
How little we really know the Christ of God. “No man knoweth [perfectly] the Son, but the Father” (Matthew 11:27); yet much has been revealed concerning Him in the Scriptures. How little we study those Scriptures with the definite object of seeking a better, deeper, fuller knowledge of the Lord Jesus! How circumscribed is the scope of our studies! Many form their conceptions of Christ from the first four books of the New Testament and rarely read beyond those books.
The gospels treat of Christ’s life during the days of His humiliation. They view Him in the form of a Servant, who came not to be ministered unto, but to minister. True, Matthew’s Gospel sets forth the kingship of Him who was here as Jehovah’s Servant; yet it is as the rejected King. True also, John’s Gospel portrays the divine glories of the incarnate Son; yet as the One who was unknown in the world which He had made, and as rejected by His own to whom He came (John 1:10-11). It is not until we pass beyond the gospels that we find the lordship of Jesus of Nazareth really made manifest.
On the day of Pentecost, Peter said, “Let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36). The humbled One is now victorious. He who was born in lowliness has been exalted “far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come” (Eph. 1:21). He who suffered His face to be covered with the vile spit of men has been given a name more excellent than the angels (Heb. 1:4). He whom man crowned with thorns has been “crowned with glory and honor” (Heb. 2:9). He who hung, in apparent helplessness upon a cross has taken His seat “on the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Heb. 1:3).
The epistles, in contrast to the gospels, were all written from the viewpoint of an ascended Christ. They treat of a glorified Savior. How much we lose by their neglect! Why is it that when Christ comes to our minds our thoughts turn back to the “days of His flesh”? Why are our hearts so little occupied with the heavenly Christ? Why do we meditate so little upon His exaltation, His seat and session at God’s right hand? Is it not because we read the epistles so infrequently?
Many Christians find the epistles so much more difficult than the gospels. Of course they do, because they are so unfamiliar. Enter a strange city and its layout, streets and suburbs are unknown. It is hard to find your way about. So it is with the epistles. The Christian must live in them to become acquainted with their contents.
It is in the epistles alone that the distinctive character of Christianity is set forth; not in the gospels; the Acts is transitionary; and most of the Revelation belongs to the future. The epistles alone treat of the present dispensation. But present-day preaching rarely notices them. Christians, in their private reading of the Word, seldom turn to them. But in the Epistles only is Christianity expounded—Christianity has to do with a risen, glorified, and enthroned Christ. Thus, if we are to “Sanctify in your hearts Christ Jesus as Lord,” we must spend much time in the epistles.
