“‘And you, O
Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of
Judah;
for from you shall
come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
Matthew 2:6 ESV (cf.
Micah 5:2)
This was a prophecy given in the Old Testament about Jesus,
the Christ, that he was to come from Bethlehem, and that he would be a ruler
who would shepherd God’s people Israel.
And, who is the “Israel” that he shepherds? It is the body
of Christ, his true church, comprised of true believers and followers of Jesus
Christ. We are Israel, which is not a physical nation, but a spiritual nation
of people who are God’s people today. We are the sole heirs of the promise
given to Abraham and to his SEED, meaning Jesus Christ (Gal. 3:10, 16, 26-29;
Gal. 4:22-31).
And, what is our relationship with Jesus Christ supposed to
look like? He is to be our ruler and our shepherd. And, we are to be in submission
to him.
Our Ruler
In scripture, Jesus Christ is referred to as the Lord of his
people, which means he is owner and master of our lives. He is our sovereign
Lord who rules and who reigns supreme over our whole lives. He has supreme
power and authority over our lives. He is the one in control. He is the one
directing the course of our lives. He is the one leading us in the way that we
should go. But, is he really? He is Lord, surely, but do we honor him as Lord?
So many people today who claim faith in Jesus Christ do not
honor Jesus Christ as Lord, as sovereign over their lives. Many of them think
they don’t have to, that God does not require it of them. Others know that he
is to be their Lord, but they choose to continue ruling their own lives anyway.
They decide what they are going to do with their lives, and they carry out
their own plans, with little to no consideration at all for God’s plans for
their lives.
Salvation from sin, too, is taught much in a manner today in
which it does not teach the absolute rule and authority of Jesus Christ over
our lives. They teach it like Jesus went through all that he went through just
so he could forgive us our sins so that we can continue living in sin, going
our own way, doing what we want, while ignoring him and his Word, and yet be
free of the punishment and guilt of sin, and have the promise of heaven when we
die.
But, Jesus didn’t come just to free us from the punishment
of sin and to promise us eternal life with him. He came to deliver us out of
our bondage to sin, and to free us to come under his rule and authority, which
allows Him to be Lord (owner-master) of our lives. And, he came to empower us
to live godly and holy lives, pleasing to God, for the glory and praise of God.
God’s grace to us is not carte blanche to continue in
willful sinful practices. His grace, which brings salvation, instructs us to
say “NO!” to ungodliness and worldly passions (fleshly lusts) and to live
self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we wait for Christ’s soon return
(Tit. 2:11-14; Eph. 4:17-24; Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Gal. 5:16-21; Eph.
5:3-6; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).
When Jesus died on that cross for our sins, he bought us
back for God so that we would now be God’s possession and so that we would now
glorify God with our bodies. He died, too, that we might die with him to sin
and live with him to righteousness; that we might no longer live for ourselves,
but for him who gave his life up for us (1 Co. 6:20; 2 Co. 5:15; 1 Pet. 2:24).
Much of what is being passed off today as the gospel of
Jesus Christ is nothing more than a slap in the face to Almighty God and a
trampling of his grace under feet. For, it does not honor him as the Holy God
that he is, it does not give him glory, it does not submit to him as supreme
ruler of our lives, and it suppresses the truth by unrighteousness. It
exchanges the truth of God for a lie so that people end up worshiping the idols
of this world rather than giving their true worship to God (See Rom. 1:18-32).
The lie says that you can give a cursory acknowledgment of
Jesus Christ as Savior in order to get your sins forgiven and your guarantee of
heaven when you die. The truth says that you must die with Christ to sin and
live with Christ to righteousness; that you must walk (in practice) according
to the Spirit and not according to the flesh if you want to have eternal life
with God. He must be your Lord (ruler), and not be your “get-out-of-jail-free”
card just so you can keep practicing sin while claiming heaven as home.
Our Shepherd
Jesus also came to shepherd us. And, a shepherd is one who loves,
nurtures, guides, directs, leads, protects, guards against the enemy, encourages,
urges, persuades, teaches, counsels, warns, chastises (when we need it), and comforts
us, too. He is a friend like no other.
And, what is the relationship we are to have with him? His sheep
listen to his voice and they follow him (Jn. 10:27-30). And, this listening is
not just with our ears, but with our hearts. And it means we take him and his
word seriously and that we follow him in obedience to his commands.
As his sheep, we also don’t listen to or follow strangers.
And, who are strangers? They are those who are teaching a gospel other than the
one that Jesus and his NT apostles taught. They are those today who are pushing
a cheap grace substitute for God’s true grace, which bypasses death to sin and
living to righteousness, and which even coddles people in their sin while
promising them heaven when they die (See John 10:1-8).
As his sheep, we are also his followers. Jesus said that if
anyone would come after him, he must deny self and take up his cross daily and
follow him. And, what this means is that we have to refuse or say “No!” to our
sinful flesh daily, and daily we must die to sin, putting it to death by the
Spirit. And, daily we are to follow our Lord in obedience to his commands (Lu.
9:23-26).
For, if we hold on to our old lives of living for sin and
for self, then he says we don’t have eternal life with him but we will die in
our sins (See also Rom. 8:1-17; Gal. 5:16-21; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Eph. 5:3-6; Gal.
6:7-8).
Jesus also said that if we love him, that we will keep
(obey) his Word. And, the Father will love us, and they (God) will make their
home with us, and we will never see death (eternal separation from God) (Jn.
8:51; Jn. 14:23-24).
And, the Apostle John reiterated Jesus’ words when he said
that we know that we have come to know Christ when we keep (obey) his commands.
And, he went on to say that if anyone claims to know Christ, but doesn’t obey
his commands, then whoever does this is a liar and the truth is not in him (1
Jn. 2:3-6).
In Summary
So, basically, all these scriptures that I have referenced
here, under “Ruler” and “Shepherd,” speak the opposite of what the cheap grace
gospel people are promoting.
For, Jesus didn’t come to the earth just to save us from the
punishment of sin, and he didn’t come just to deliver us out of our slavery to
sin, either. He came to be the sovereign ruler (Lord) over our lives. And, as
Lord, he commands that we follow him in surrender and in obedience to his
commands, and that we walk (in practice) in accord with him and with His Word,
and that we leave our old lives of sin behind us.
So, please get this, for your eternity depends on it. There
are far too many people believing in the cheap grace gospel which makes no such
demands but which allows for continued sinful practices and the dishonoring of
God with our lives, while promising people heaven. But, that is a lie from
hell!
So, listen to what Jesus taught, and listen to what his NT
apostles taught – all of it, not just the parts which people use to appease
themselves while they live in sinful lifestyles. Read the scriptures in CONTEXT,
as whole, and understand that salvation from sin and eternal life with God are
not guaranteed on the basis of a profession of faith in Christ, but on a
lifestyle of living for Jesus and walking in obedience to his Word.
The Spirit Calling
An Original Work /
November 12, 2019
Hear the Spirit calling.
He’ll keep you from falling.
Tenderly He’s calling,
“Come and follow Him.”
Walk with Jesus daily.
Don’t give in to lazy.
Folks may call you crazy.
Fellowship with Him.
Follow where He leads you.
Eat what Jesus feeds you.
His love will renew you
If you follow Him.
Do what Jesus tells you.
Don’t let your faith fail you.
His love will avail you
If you walk with Him.
Jesus, Lord and Savior,
Reigneth now forever.
He gave us His favor
So we’d live with Him.
Turning now from our sin,
Holy Spirit live-in.
Holiness we walk in,
Purified by Him.
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