Who is Jesus? This popular hymn inspires a meditation about what you really believe about the Son of God.
As early as the 1950s, religious communities began to attract young people (and others) using worship songs based on more contemporary tunes. A number of anonymous scripture songs resulted from this movement. One such popular song is “He Is Lord.”
The most familiar words to this song are as follows:
He is Lord, He is Lord!
He is risen from the dead and He is Lord!
Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess
That Jesus Christ is Lord.
There are several other anonymous stanzas which are printed in the British Methodist Hymns and Psalms and in The Worshiping Church (1990). This song appears in over 40 hymnals and has been combined with others hymns and worship songs.
The key word in this song is Lord. In the New International Version of the Bible, Lord occurs 6,749 times. Over ninety percent of those occurrences are in the Old Testament. In the New Testament (NT), Lord occurs 635 times. So, there are many possible NT passages to draw from regarding this song. Some have suggested that the words are based on confession of faith in Philippians 2:9-11 as follows:
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
However, for this meditation, let’s look at a well-known concept from C.S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity. In this book (page 52), Lewis suggests that what many propose about Jesus is not an alternative. Many (today) propose that Jesus was a “good man” and a “great teacher,” maybe even a prophet. But Lewis suggests this good man/teacher designation is not possible. Instead, Lewis indicates that Jesus is either a
(1) liar,
(2) lunatic, or
(3) Lord.
You see, Jesus claimed to be God as the Son of God. No one would make such a claim and simply be a good man and a moral teacher. So, either He is lying or He is crazy or He is who He says He is — Lord.
Lewis may have very well been led to this conclusion by the account of an event early in Jesus’s ministry as recorded in Mark 3:20-35. In this passage, we read that His own family thought He was crazy . . . verse 21, “He is out of his mind.” So, His family (except for Mary) thought He was a lunatic. Initially they did not believe him. And at this point perhaps, they wanted to rescue Him from the crowd that was “crushing in on Him.” Later on in Acts (chapter 1) we read that they were with the believers in the upper room. And we know that James (his half-brother) and Jude (his half-brother) wrote NT books. So they did come to believe in Him later. Now, the Pharisees claimed Jesus was possessed by the Devil . . . “the father of lies.” So, they claimed He was a liar . . . deceiving them. But, the Holy Spirit testifies to the truth . . . “He is Lord.”
What does it mean to confess (say), “He is Lord”? Again, there are a number of NT passages we could refer to, but let’s look at three.
First, Jesus asks us all this penetrating question in Luke:
Why do you call me Lord, Lord and do not do what I say?
Luke 6:46
Jesus immediately follows this question with the comparison of the man who builds his house on a rock foundation (He is the rock or cornerstone) with the man who builds on sand (shifting worldly beliefs). He concludes that the house built on the rock withstands the storms of life. But the one built on worldly beliefs comes down with a great crash when it is tested.
Second, Jesus teaches the same message in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew:
Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Matthew 7: 21-23
So there have been and will be those who say “He is Lord” but only give that phrase lip service. They don’t really believe it because their actions don’t provide the evidence of genuine saving faith (belief).
Third, Paul reminds us of this same issue in Corinthians:
. . . and no one can say, Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit.
I Corinthians 12:3
Paul is affirming the teaching of Jesus. For us to confess “He is Lord” and to really believe that, we must have received the Holy Spirit.
How does that happen?
Peter answered that question in his first great sermon recorded in Acts 2. Peter was preaching to the men of Israel trying to get them to see that they had crucified the Son of God. When they heard this (and accepted it), they were “cut to the heart.” They asked Peter what they could do. Peter responded that they must repent of their sins and believe the gospel then “you will receive the Holy Spirit.”
The use of the term Lord in this context denotes authority. It means Jesus has authority in our lives. We love Him because He first loved us. We have a new heart that is responsive to Jesus and the Holy Spirit. So, obedience is a result of regeneration given by God. For Him to be Lord means He is first in our lives. Jesus reaffirmed this teaching in Luke 9:23-26: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.
God so loved us (the world) that He sent His only Son to save us from our sins. Jesus is the only way to receive that salvation. This is a critical component of salvation as stated in Acts:
Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.
Acts 4: 11-12
This critical point is found throughout the NT. There is no other way for salvation . . . eternal life. Our works won’t do it and no other religion offers a savior who died for our sins that we might be with Him eternally in heaven.
Today, how do we answer the question: Who Is He — Liar, Lunatic, or Lord? I pray we can sing with all our hearts, “He Is Lord.”
— H. Carter
Hymns for Him 