Would it be false advertising if the sign on the front lawn of your church building, instead of having some catchy Christian slogan, included the following statement: This Church Believes Jesus Christ is Lord? Would you truly be able to say to an inquirer that All decisions made in this church have Christ’s Lordship at the forefront? Would you be telling the truth by saying that the worship offered at your local church is presented with the mindset that Jesus is king over your church and the King is present in your midst? Does His headship extend to all areas of your congregation? These are not trick questions as some might assume. Perhaps you’ll answer these questions right away by wholeheartedly affirming that your church does conduct all that it does with Christ as head of the church, and if so, we give a hearty amen. We appreciate that some may even answer that their church believes in the Lordship of Jesus over them, and for that we are thankful. But I’m not asking you to ponder a theoretical reign, nor a verbal affirmation but a supremacy that you can see for yourself. A headship that finds itself visible among the congregants and engulfs everything that the Church does and practices. Such a mindset will have implications on your worship, how decisions are made within the congregation, whether you practice church discipline, and how your church will stand in the face of opposition from the world. It will also affect the way individuals look at the church and whether they see the Lord of the Church functioning in the midst of it. They will see a church that obeys its Risen Lord.
Head of the Church
In case someone believes that the above questions are simply our opinions, let’s take a moment to look to the early church to see if it functioned in this way. The apostle Paul certainly promoted this notion when writing his epistles. Jesus is proclaimed by the apostle as the head of the body, the church (Ephesians 1:19-23). After Jesus rose from the dead, He sat down at the right hand of God in power and glory having rule over absolutely everything but especially the church itself. Ponder this for a moment, the Pope is not the head of the church, nor are the bishops of the Greek Orthodox Churches, the King of England, any President, or Prime Minister, neither is the chair of your denominational association, not even your Pastor or Elders or the congregation itself. Jesus Christ was proclaimed the Head of the Church by none other than God Himself and He is its sole Lord by receiving God’s endorsement. He is head of the church because He purchased Her with His own blood. She is his possession and hence is required to obey Him. There is no greater authority over the congregation of the saints than Jesus Himself. What this means is that the head of the church should be involved in the church. It means that all matters that transpire in the church should be based upon and reflective of this Lordship over the church. The leadership in your church, whether in the form of a pastor or elders, are to make every decision based upon the consideration of His authority over them. He is the governing authority over all its matters and every activity or ministry should have in mind that sovereignty. When a conflict arises within the church or an external entity tries to burden the church with something contrary to the will of the Lord, the church is to reject it, and act out the will of Christ no matter what the cost.
Ambassadors
Christians are identified in scripture by the expression Ambassadors. Jesus, who reconciled us to God through the forgiveness of our trespasses against Him, has appointed these same recipients of this reconciliation as representatives.
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. (2 Corinthians 5:20)
While the above scriptural reference is contextually speaking of the proclamation of God’s reconciliation of men through Jesus, it demonstrates that the ones who proclaim that message are speaking on His behalf and with His authority. The evangelism of the church needs to be with Christ’s Lordship in mind. It establishes that there is a duty to be a faithful emissary of the Sovereign Lord and honour the King who is represented. Do you and your church consider yourself faithful ambassadors of King Jesus? If your church doesn’t reverence Him, or does a poor job at being His representative, you have no business being an ambassador. Ultimately, it will bring shame to the One whom the church represents. But if the ambassadors are exhibiting this Christ-Centric mindset and outcome, it will reflect upon the Sovereign who is represented in a positive way.
The Kingly Commission
Jesus left some very specific instructions to his disciples after His resurrection. These directions are at the heart of the mission of the Church of Christ.
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
Jesus commanded His followers to go out into the world to baptise and teach obedience to the nations because He has all authority in both Heaven and on Earth. Our mission as a church is founded upon the fact that Jesus is Lord. If Jesus is not Lord, or if you are baptizing individuals and teaching obedience without the therefore (Lordship of Christ as its foundation), then you are not properly baptizing and discipling. The church is a place where God is worshipped and where Jesus’ commandments are obeyed. As a church, when we disciple, we do so based upon the authority of the King. We are to obey all that He has decreed, and all that we do as a church needs to reflect this. What we should see in our churches are people who are growing in obedience and for that obedience to affect the church’s worship, ministries and especially the unity of the Church.
Implications and Outcomes
What repercussions can we expect if a church doesn’t hold Christ as Lord over it or only in a very minimal way? One of the most glaring consequences of a church that doesn’t function with Christ as Lord is that it will look to another Lord to be head over it. People, even some who profess being Christians, love to have authority over others and to lead things in their own way and by their own design. You don’t have to look far to see this happening. Many churches and para-church ministries are centered around a charismatic personality that would fail if they were taken out of the picture. This individual holds authority over the church that only Christ should possess. This is one example of many, not to mention the various hierarchical positions that have lead to churches with figures that usurp Jesus’ authority and commands. Keeping Jesus’ Lordship at the center of everything will create a mindset that we need to search His word through the scriptures not the opinions of another authority. Finally, it will replace the fallible authoritarianism of man with the infallible authority of Christ.
Another clear implication of removing or limiting the centrality of the authority of Christ in a church is that there will be little resilience against the enemies of the church. The church without its King has little hope against the world. A world that sees little use of the church and recently deemed it non-essential. If we take the perspective that Jesus is Lord over the Church, we can only attribute such a value to it that there can be no equal. It becomes more precious than any other institution in this world. When other institutions or even enemies of the church demand its submission, or when secular governments only see a secondary societal prestige associated with it, the Lordship of Christ provides a clear testimony to its merit.
Dilemmas & Hard Words
The obvious question that I’m sure you’re pondering is what on earth are you to do if you’ve concluded that the statement: Christ is Lord on the sign on your church’s front lawn is in fact false marketing? Here are a few thoughts:
- The first thing I’m going to counsel you to do is fight the temptation to abandon ship. It would be easier to move to another church that is dedicated to a more centric affirmation of Christ’s Lordship. It has perhaps already crossed your mind and You might already be searching the internet looking for a new church, but this is not the first step. My goal in writing this is not to cause division in churches nor to persuade Christians to change congregations.
- The next step is to pray. Pray for your congregation and for yourself. Go to the Lord with a plea to change you to exemplify the Lordship of Christ in your own life. Seek the Lord to change the heart of those in your church to reflect upon the glory of Jesus Christ, and the power that comes by obeying Him.
- Another step is to discreetly influence others to think about these things. Speak openly but humbly about the significance of the church’s obedience to its head and how we all need to reflect this headship functionally in all that we are and do in our churches. Become a faithful ambassador and represent Him as to bring Him honour.
Final Exhortation
I want to end by clearly stating that there is no perfect congregation, and no one who perfectly reflects Christ’s Lordship. In this small piece, I’m not insinuating that any church has met the standard as faithful Ambassadors or that churches that are not demonstrating a hyper-enthusiasm in affirming the Lordship of Christ functionally are a failed experiment. But a church that His headship becomes centric is a congregation that will unquestionably grow much stronger and experience the blessings of it. I’m only asking you for the time being to take into consideration this reality. Look to your church to strive to showcase the Lordship of Christ and make His authority the foundation behind the church’s decisions and ministries. But remember that we should first recognize that Lordship in our own lives and evaluate all that we do as a representation of the Lord.
The Moncton Herald 