Lordship & Decision Making

THE WHEEL DIAGRAMTHE BASICS OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

TONIGHT’S FOCUS: THE HUB OF THE WHEEL

LORDSHIP

OBEDIENCE TO THE KING WHO DIED IN OUR PLACE

THE LORDSHIP OF CHRIST

How do I view Jesus? • Is He my King? • Or just one advisor among many? • Does something compete with Jesus for

authority in my life? !


How do I view Christianity? • Does it affect ALL of my life? • Or is it just an ACCESSORY?

!


Jesus is the King who suffered in our place

HE IS THE KING OVER ALL CREATION !• Rom. 11:36 - For everything comes from Him and exists

by his power and is intended for His glory... !

• See also: John 1:1-18; Col. 1:15-20; Heb. 1:1-3


Jesus is the King who suffered in our place

HE WORE OUR SINS ON THE TREE • Isa. 53:5 - But He was pierced for our rebellion, crushed

for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. !

• See also: Col. 1:20-22, 2:13-14; Gal. 3:13; 2 Cor. 5:21


The Christian Life is made up of a joyful submission to the

Kingship of Jesus !

COMPELLED BY HIS LOVE WE LIVE FOR HIM, NOT OURSELVES • 2 Cor. 5:14-15 - Either way, Christ’s love CONTROLS us…

He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life

WILL NO LONGER LIVE FOR THEMSELVES. Instead, they

will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.


BUT, do our lives really look like that all the time?

!

Jesus says, “So why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?” (Luke 6:46)


Do our lives look more like this? !

“But don’t just listen to God’s Word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.” (James 1:22)


Is partial obedience to a King OK?

!

!

Doesn’t partial obedience imply willful disobedience?


The gospel definitely brings forgiveness for sin, but it

doesn’t give us a license to willfully sin.


The Christian life should be made up of joyful obedience

to King Jesus at all costs.


1. Jesus exercises His authority as King through His WORD !

2. We acknowledge His Lordship over our lives by our OBEDIENCE to His Word !

3. Our obedience to the Kingship of Jesus is most clearly seen in the DECISIONS we make

How does Lordship work?

THE LORDSHIP OF CHRIST & OUR DECISIONS

Most common question of every Christian college student is,

“What is God’s will for my life?”


1. The decisions you make, end up making you. !

2. The way you make decisions today, is going to be how you make decisions the rest of your life.

This is SUCH a crucial topic because:


We are more concerned with finding out our “horoscope” than obeying God’s Word.

!

We call this horoscope “God’s Will” but we really just want to know what’s going to happen…


BRUCE WALTKE “The NT gives no explicit command to ‘find God’s will,’ nor can you find any particular instructions on how to go about finding God’s will. There isn’t a magic formula offered Christians that will open some mysterious door of wonder, allowing us to get a glimpse of the mind of the almighty.”


BRUCE WALTKE “God is not a magic genie. The use of promise boxes, or flipping open your Bible and pointing your finger, or relying on the first thought to enter your mind after a prayer are unwarranted forms of Christian divination.”


BRUCE WALTKE “The reliance on special signs from God is the mark of an immature person — someone who cannot simply believe the truth as presented, but must have a special, miraculous sign as the symbol of the authority from God.”


If we really knew ALL of God’s plans for our lives, it would

crush us.


We act as if God is a magician playing tricks on us instead of our loving Father who sent His

Son to die for us.He is not hiding His will from us or playing with us.

This is inconsistent with His character.


We can’t abuse Jesus’ Lordship & treat Him like some genie in a

bottle. He is the KING. !

He is not our fortune teller.


We typically go about making decisions & “finding God’s will”

all the wrong way.

We are SO superstitious in decision making. We have wrong assumptions & practices.


1. We assume Jesus wants us to make a lot of MONEY !

2. We assume Jesus wants us to be HAPPY !

3. We assume Jesus wants us to prioritize EDUCATION

THESE ARE ALL WORLDY VALUES!!!!

Common Wrong Assumptions


Romans 12:1-2 And so my dear brothers & sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living & holy sacrifice — the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. Don’t copy the behavior & customs of the world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good & pleasing & perfect.

WORLD WORD


1. “I’m just going to pray about it” • This has unfortunately become a spiritualized euphemism

for inactivity. Rarely does someone actually pray about it. !

2. “God will give me a sign” • Looking for repeated words, “putting out a fleece” • Jesus actually condemned those who looked for a sign

‣ (Matt. 12:39)

Common Wrong Practices

3. “God will give me a peace” or relying on other feelings • This is never taught in the NT. It MAY come as a result of a

decision, but not as a indicator on what decision to make. • Don’t “listen to your heart” !

4. “God will open a door” • This is never taught in the NT. !

5. Open & Point Method (Like a fortune cookie) • Just ridiculous…

!THESE ARE SILLY, MYSTICAL METHODS

Common Wrong Practices


The Bible contains 100% of what we need to know about

the Will of God.

We don’t have search for His will, we need to study His Word.

!God’s leading in your life won’t contradict His Word.


Charles Swindoll “The better you know the Word of God, the less confusing is the will of God. Those who struggle the least with the will of God are those who know the Word of God.”


2 Tim. 3:16-17 “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” !

His Word is our primary tool in decision making. We need to focus on what we can know (His Word) & not

worry about the rest.


The only barriers to making a wise, Biblical decision are

ignorance of God’s Word, or stubbornness to obey it.


How Do We Acknowledge Jesus’s Lordship in our

Decisions?

How Do We Acknowledge Jesus’s Lordship in our Decisions?

1. We acknowledge His Lordship by maximizing our obedience to the commands, priorities, values & principles He gives us in His Word. !

2. We acknowledge His Lordship by obeying & then trusting Him with the rest.

Maximizing My Obedience

VS.

Justifying My Obedience

What commands, priorities, values, &

principles in His Word do I need to obey?

1. PURPOSE: • 1 Cor. 10:31

• We need to make decisions that our going to bring

the most glory to God.

!

• Rom. 8:29 • We need to make decisions that will most shape us

into the image of Jesus.

!

What commands, priorities, values &


2. COMMANDS: • Mark 12:29-31

• We need to make decisions that our going to

make us love God the most.

!

• Matt. 28:18-20 • We need to make decisions that our going to help

us make the most disciples.



3. PRIORITIES & VALUES: • 1 Thess. 4:3

• We need to make decisions that our going to make

us the most holy. • He is more concerned for my holiness than my

happiness.



3. PRIORITIES & VALUES: • Heb. 10:24-25

• We need to make decisions that allow us to thrive

the most in community.

!

• 2 Tim. 2:22 • We need to make decisions that will allow us to flee

youthful passions the most. (1 Pet. 5:8)


principles in His Word do I need to obey?4. PRINCIPLES:

• Prov. 12:15 & 19:20 • You need a community of counselors that will give you

tough love and not just want you want to hear !

• 3 Types of Counsel • Biblical Counsel (Knows the Word) • Experienced Counsel (Been in the same situation) • Best Available Counsel (Special expertise in this area)


principles in His Word do I need to obey?4. PRINCIPLES:

• John 16:8 • Be sensitive to the conviction of the Holy Spirit

!

• 1 Tim 4:8 • Training for godliness is of high value.

!

• James 1:22 • Don’t let this come true of you

How Do We Acknowledge Jesus’s Lordship in our Decisions?

!1. We acknowledge His Lordship by maximizing our

obedience to the commands, priorities, values & principles He gives us in His Word. !

2. We acknowledge His Lordship by obeying & then trusting Him with the rest. (Prov. 3:5-6)

APPLICATION1. Have an open hand in all of life, that is ready to

submit to the Kingship of Jesus. !

2. Take 10 minutes and using all of the content we just talked about, think about your decision for your summer !

3. Find 10 verses that support your decision for your summer

Lordship & Decision Making

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