𝗪𝗔𝗥𝗠 𝗨𝗣

• Share a situation where you had to prioritize one thing over another. How did you make that decision?

• Think of a person you admire or look up to. What qualities or characteristics made you admire him or her?

• Name a person who has had a significant impact on your life. What made him or her influential?

𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗗

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘸, 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥, 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝗣𝗛𝗜𝗟𝗜𝗣𝗣𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗦 𝟮:𝟵–𝟭𝟭

The kingdom of God and the Lordship of Jesus Christ has been central to the gospel message that Jesus, the apostles, and the early disciples proclaimed in the New Testament. This truth has many facets and implications, of which two stand out—Jesus’ position as Lord of all and how He practices His Lordship. In this lesson, we will focus on the first of these facets and its implications on how we respond to Him and how we live our lives.

𝟭. 𝗔𝘀 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝗝𝗲𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗹𝗹.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘸, 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘶𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘑𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘴 𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘓𝘰𝘳𝘥, 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝗣𝗛𝗜𝗟𝗜𝗣𝗣𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗦 𝟮:𝟵–𝟭𝟭

When we confess Jesus as Lord, we are acknowledging that He is preeminent over all. Though being Himself equal with God, Jesus humbled Himself taking on the form of a man and obeyed the Father by dying on the cross on our behalf (Philippians 2:5–8). Therefore, God the Father has placed all things under Him and no one in all of creation is greater or higher than Him.

Jesus is elevated to a position of supreme authority and honor, deserving of our allegiance, reverence, and worship. His Lordship extends over all creation. Every knee should bow down to Him and recognize that He is ruler over all. In light of this, how should we view the rulers and authorities in this world and in our lives? How does Jesus’ humility and sacrifice affect your view of Him as worthy of all your life?

𝟮. 𝗔𝘀 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝗝𝗲𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹.

“𝘞𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘥𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦. 𝘞𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵.” 𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗪 𝟭𝟬:𝟯𝟳–𝟯𝟵

When we confess Jesus as Lord, we are to put Him before everything and everyone else in our lives. He is our top priority. Our love for Him should take precedence even over the closest and most cherished relationships, such as with family. He should take precedence even over our own lives. Following Jesus requires surrendering our own desires in order to follow Him wholeheartedly. This means that Jesus deserves our utmost devotion, loyalty, and commitment. How can we recognize and live out Jesus’ Lordship in our earthly relationships?

𝟯. 𝗔𝘀 𝗟𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝗝𝗲𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝗹.

𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘣𝘺 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥, 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩, 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦, 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴—𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘪𝘮. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘤𝘩. 𝘏𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝗖𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗔𝗡𝗦 𝟭:𝟭𝟲–𝟭𝟴

Declaring Jesus to be first in all emphasizes the extent of Jesus Christ’s authority over every aspect of our existence. He is not just a category in our lives that comes before all other categories. He is to have dominion over all of life’s different areas. These include our bodies, mind, emotions, and will. They also include our family and relationships, money and resources, time, work, ambitions, and career. Recognizing His preeminence in all these areas requires surrendering them to His authority, seeking His guidance and wisdom, and aligning our actions to His will. How have you experienced this in your own life?

𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗟𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡

• What challenges do you encounter in submitting areas of your life to the Lordship of Jesus? What truths about Jesus and the gospel can help you overcome this challenge?

• Take a moment to evaluate your priorities. Are there any areas where you have placed something or someone above Jesus? How can you align your priorities to His Lordship?

• Reflect on the areas of your life where Jesus is already acknowledged as Lord. How does submitting to His authority in those areas bring about peace and fulfillment?

𝗣𝗥𝗔𝗬𝗘𝗥

• Pray for a renewed understanding of the greatness and majesty of Jesus as Lord of all. Ask God to deepen your awe and reverence for Him.

• Pray for a deeper revelation of Jesus’ Lordship in your life and a willingness to surrender all areas to Him.

• Ask for wisdom and strength to prioritize Jesus above all other things, relationships, and commitments.