Submitting to Christ's Lordship

By By A.W. Tozer

Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? (Luke 6:46 NIV)

No one has any right to believe that he is indeed a Christian unless he is humbly seeking to obey the teachings of the One whom he calls Lord. Christ once asked a question (Luke 6:46) that can have no satisfying answer, "Why do you call me, `Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say?"

Right here we do well to anticipate and reply to an objection that will likely arise in the minds of some readers. It goes like this: ìWe are saved by accepting Christ, not by keeping His commandments. Christ kept the law for us, died for us and rose again for our justification, and so delivered us from all necessity to keep commandments. Is it not possible, then, to become a Christian by simple faith altogether apart from obedience?î

Many honest persons argue in this way, but their honesty cannot save their argument from being erroneous. Theirs is the teaching that has in the last fifty years emasculated the evangelical message and lowered the moral standards of the Church until they are almost indistinguishable from those of the world. It results from a misunderstanding of grace and a narrow and one-sided view of the gospel, and its power to mislead lies in the element of truth it contains. It is arrived at by laying correct premises and then drawing false conclusions from them.

Prayer

O Christ, I acknowledge You as Lord and I bow to Your Lordship in all of my life.

Thought

If Christ is really our Lord we will submit to His Lordship, not just in selected areas of life but in all we are. For Christ to be Lord there can be no restrictions placed on His Lordship.

Used with Permission

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