Romans 10:9 (ESV)
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
So, you started off presenting the case for Christ with that outrageous Monty Python skit. Are you finished? Was your argument for the resurrection your version of the gospel?
It’s only a piece. The evidence for the resurrection is the evidence that Christianity is true. I haven’t even begun to say what Christianity is, or how to join.
But I want to start by explaining what Christianity isn’t, because the Christianity you’ve been exposed to all your life is quite possibly a weakened version of the real thing. Your skepticism may be quite justified.
Look up the word “Christian” in the dictionary, and you’ll find something weird. Skip past the definitions of Christian as a noun to the definitions as an adjective. There you’ll find something like, “Commendably decent or charitable.”
Yeah. I sometimes like to say that you Christians aren’t being very Christian.
Exactly. The dictionary implies that Christians are the good guys.
How did that happen?
That definition wasn’t just handed to us; it was earned. Through great sacrifice, the first Christians established themselves as people who were commendably decent or charitable. The dictionary doesn’t invent definitions—it reports them—and decency and charity are what people thought of when they thought of a Christian.
But nowadays many Christians aren’t living up to the standards of our forebears. Something’s wrong. We’re not as serious as Christians were back then.
Wow. We actually agree on something.
But here comes the complicated part. Our Christianity is weak because our faith is weak. Romans 10:9 says, because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Many, if not most, American Christians are not solidly Romans 10:9 Christians. Many never even confessed Christ as their Lord in the first place; they only confessed him as their “personal savior.” That kind of confession appears nowhere in scripture.
That’s like accepting a job offer by announcing that you “accept” the retirement benefits. What about the job?
Many Christians are weak on the other half of Romans 10:9 too, That’s why I spent so much time on the resurrection. Doubt about that is catastrophic. You have to believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead. That’s not a “gee, I think so” faith.
And these two parts are inseparable. If Jesus is raised, then He is Lord. If not, then He isn’t Lord—He isn’t anything. Faith is either rock solid, or it’s Jell-O.
And you think modern Christians doubt the resurrection?
I think they’re just not thinking about it. They “choose” to believe, but they’re unprepared to make much of a defense if challenged.
But the bigger problem is with the first part. The New Testament consistently describes confessing Christ as a declaration of His lordship.
And here’s where that gets deep; does this mean “Jesus is the Lord,” or, “Jesus is my Lord”?
Why does that matter?
Because saying Jesus is the Lord is just assenting to a fact. It doesn’t imply loyalty. It’s not joining the team. Even demons know that Jesus is the Lord.
You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! — James 2:19 (ESV)
So, you’re saying that it’s more precise to confess Christ by saying, “Jesus is my Lord.”
I suppose. It’s okay to say it any way you like. There’s no need to split hairs, as long as it’s clear in your mind what you mean. It needs to be a pledge of fealty.
But another thing that should be clear is what you mean by Lord. Lord means absolute king-boss 24/7. Lord means more than just boss because He rules over more than just your work week. Lord means more than king because His rule is in every nook and cranny of your world. No moment is excluded from His rule. No place is out from under Him.
But it’s even more than that. Jesus’s lordship is more than any earthly relationship because it’s over every aspect of your life—the invisible as well as the visible. Jesus is Lord even over your thoughts.
“But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” — Matthew 5:28 (ESV)
A proper confession of faith is a pledge of fealty to Jesus as Lord over your whole being.
Well, at least that’s self-consistent; I’ll grant you that much. Let’s keep going tomorrow.
