The Christian movement began with Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost, says author David Bryant. That sermon centers on Christ’s reign over us.
“In Acts Chapter 2, Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost basically is about the reign of Christ over us, about how Jesus fulfills all of God’s desire that His kingdom would reign overall,” Bryant says. “In fact, when 3,000 people turned and gave their lives to Christ, it was primarily in response to a message about the reign of Christ, and Peter ended his sermon by saying ‘this Jesus whom you crucified, God has made both Lord and Messiah.’
“What he’s saying is, ‘Jesus is supreme. Jesus is ruling over all, and now it’s your decision whether you’re going to give your life to Him or not.’ That’s how the whole Christian movement began, with that sermon.”
What thoughts does the phrase “Jesus is Lord” evoke in you? It’s fact, based on the Scriptures, that Jesus is God. If we dive into the history of the Protestant Reformation, we find that all across Europe—despite many heated arguments—people agreed Jesus is Lord, Bryant says on the Christ Today podcast on the Charisma Podcast Network.
“There were at least three points on which all the Reformers agreed, and they pressed it forward even so that we hear it to this very day,” Bryant says. “First thing they agreed on was that Jesus is installed as Lord and is exercising His lordship right now. And that He’s doing it in at least six arenas, which is what we’re going to be looking at in the coming episodes: the workings of creation, the unfolding of world history, the design of global leaders, the destiny of Earth’s peoples, the rebellion of dark powers and the building of His church.
“Second, they agreed that finality in everything belongs to Jesus alone. In other words, everything will come out at His feet for final disposal, or as we read a few moments ago in Ephesians 1, everything under heaven and earth will be brought under Jesus as Lord; they’re all agreed to that. And finally, they were all agreed on this point: God the Father has given God the Son what you and I might call a manifest destiny. They didn’t use that term then, but given Him a manifest destiny, that is, there is a direction in which His kingdom is moving. It is moving with purposefulness, and there is no turning back.”
To learn more about the lordship of Christ, click here for the entire episode.
