MrsDrPoe: Our Lord and Savior

Today marks another Theology Thursday here on the blog.  As usual, please open you Bibles with me as we look at a portion of God's word.

There are several passages in the New Testament that refer to Jesus as both our Lord and our Savior (Lk 2:11, Ph 3:20, Tts 1:4, 2 Pet 1:11, 2:20, 3:2, 3:18, etc.), but what does that mean to us?

Savior 

This word in the Greek is soter (root word: sozo, meaning "to save"), and it's defined by Thayer as "savior, deliverer; preserver."

It's very easy to see how Jesus is our Savior- He sacrificed Himself on the cross, bearing our sins, so that we may have forgiveness from them...something the blood of bulls and goats could not take away (Heb 10:4).

The thought of having a savior of some kind is pleasing to most if not all people.  We don't want to be hurt; we want to be comfortable, and if someone can give that to us, we gladly welcome him.  As Christians, however, we must not forget that the salvation Jesus provides us is not necessarily from the physical pains of this world- we will see trials and persecutions.  He has saved us from the tyranny of sin and spiritual death.

Lord 

This word in the Greek is kyrios (root word: kuros, meaning "supremacy"), and it's defined by Thayer as "he to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has the power of deciding; master, lord.

Throughout the gospels, we find examples of Jesus' supremacy over all things in both the physical and spiritual realms: storms (Mark 4:35-41), leprosy (Mark 1:40-45), paralysis (Mark 2:1-12), demons (Mark 5:1-20), death (Mark 5:21-43), etc.  

All too often, however, we simply think of "Lord" as a synonym for "Jesus."  While the two can be used interchangeably, we must realize that the nuances of this terminology.  Jesus is to be our Master, which makes us His servants.  As servants, we must strive to do the will of our Master always- servitude isn't an 8-5 job.


As Mr. Holley always says- everyone wants a "Savior," but most don't want a "Lord."  It is imperative that we, as Christians, keep in mind that Jesus is both our Lord and Savior...we have been saved from sin to serve the Master of all things (Rom 6:1-7)- the True and Living God!