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Acts 17:30–31
“The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”
Because the Christian faith is centered on the person and work of Christ, it is no surprise that the longest section in the Apostles’ Creed focuses on Jesus. We are moving on in our study of the creed today to that second section, which begins “and [I believe] in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, our Lord.”
What is a lord? Fundamentally, a lord is a person with authority, a person who can utter commands that those who receive them must obey. So when the creed refers to “Jesus Christ, . . . our Lord,” it is summarizing the core biblical truth that Jesus has authority and issues directives that we must follow. Many Christians today speak of “inviting Christ into your heart,” or they talk about offering an invitation for people to believe in Jesus. Such language is not entirely inappropriate, but it might give people the impression that the call to follow Jesus is merely optional, that just as we can turn down an invitation to a party without much consequence, so we can decide not to follow Christ. Jesus’ call, however, is not something that we can just take or leave. It is a divine command, as we see in Acts 17:30–31. God is going to judge the world by the “man whom he has appointed,” and those who have not trusted in Jesus will be condemned. The earliest confession of faith that we can find in the New Testament is the statement “Jesus is Lord.” “Lord” translates the same word used in the Greek version of the Old Testament for God Himself, so to say “Jesus is Lord” is to recognize His deity, at least implicitly. Thus, Christ is inherently Lord of all. Dr. R.C. Sproul rightly notes that “His lordship does not depend upon our submission to it or our recognition of it.” He is Lord whether we acknowledge it or not. The good news is that He gives eternal life to those who willingly bow the knee to Him, and He will even grant us to rule and reign alongside Him (2 Tim. 2:12).
Note also the word “only” found in the Apostles’ Creed’s first statement about Jesus. Jesus is the only Son of God by nature, possessing every divine attribute just as the Father and the Holy Spirit possess every divine attribute (John 1:1). He is also the only Lord. Many people outside the visible church, and even some within its walls, think that there are many lords—that is, many ways to be saved. In fact, there is only one. Salvation comes only to those who trust in Jesus Christ, for no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6).
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
It is right for us to plead with people to trust in Christ. Yet we must do so in a way that makes clear that rejecting the lordship of Jesus has consequences. Bowing the knee to Christ in faith and repentance is a divine command, and all those who refuse it will not inherit eternal life.
For further study
- Isaiah 43:11; 45:21
- Hosea 13:4
- Acts 4:12
- 1 John 4:14
The bible in a year
- Proverbs 23–24
- 2 Corinthians 5:1–6:13