Every Christian has heard or used the term “Jesus, my Lord and Savior! There are only five words to that statement, and yet those five words are the foundation of the entire New Testament. I think you would agree that as a Christian, I need to understand what the key three words, Jesus, Lord, and Savior, mean. Our eternal salvation, peace, and joy in life depend on knowing, believing, and acting upon these three words.
Before we look at the words Jesus, Lord, and Savior, we must agree that they only have meaning through faith. In other words, it is not about simply knowing about these terms but requires knowing, believing, and living accordingly. Remember Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV), “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Sometimes, we learn scripture verses like Hebrews 11:1 and don’t take the time to really understand what it means. Let’s take the time now.
Faith
The first part of the verse is “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for.” As Believers, we hope for what the scriptures promise. We know the scriptures are “God-breathed,” which means that the scriptures are not the words of man but the words of God, and God cannot lie; He keeps His promises. A term I want to introduce is mental assent. Mental assent means we believe or agree something to be true, but it doesn’t change or transform us.
While taking an evangelism course, I remember an example of the difference between mental assent and true faith. The teacher pulled a chair into the center of the room and asked, “Do you believe this chair will hold you up?” and everyone answered, “Yes!” the teacher said, “That is mental assent.” Then he went on to say that when you sit in the chair, that is true faith or trust. You see, believing something is true is mental assent; actually using or doing it is trust! Mental assent alone doesn’t change our behavior or our actions; true faith does. So, faith starts with mental assent, but something else is required to complete faith, and that is trust.
The second part of the verse is “the evidence of things not seen.” This is the hard part of faith, and this is where faith turns into sight, seeing the invisible, the spiritual. When faith becomes sight, then you can trust. Mental ascent + trust = true faith; God is moved by true faith! True faith not only believes but also trusts God to fulfill His promises. This kind of faith requires action, such as becoming doers of the Word of God. True faith transforms!
Genuine faith means that we trust in Jesus, His ability to save, and His ability to transform us into the person the Lord created us to be.
Faith in Jesus
Our faith and trust must be in Jesus and Him alone. He alone went to the cross and paid for our sins, adopted us into the family of God, and gave us Heaven. Your denomination didn’t do it, your local church didn’t do it, your pastor didn’t do it, and trying to be good won’t do it. All these things I mentioned are the tools God uses to bring the Gospel, but only faith in Jesus can save us. Listen to what Jesus said to the disciple Thomas when he asked how we can know the way. Jesus said in John 14:6 (NKJV), “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” There is no other way to Father God except through faith in Jesus Christ. Take a moment with me to examine this verse more closely.
- I am the way.
There are many in the world who would try to convince us that there are many ways to God. However, Acts 4:12 states, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” The context of this verse is, of course, Jesus.
Then Jesus speaks about himself in John 10:1-4 (NKJV). “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.”
Jesus makes it clear that He is the only way to the Father, and those who would follow Him would live an abundant life. John 10:9-10 (NKJV), “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”
- I am the truth.
Remember, we believe in a triune God, which means we believe in one God in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This means the three share the same attributes or character. In John 14:16-18 Jesus speaks of the Holy Spirit, which He will send. “16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”
As a born-again Believer, the Holy Spirit comes to make His home in you, and His wisdom and power are available to you. Now, I don’t know about you, but I really need a helper in my life because I know that I can’t be all that God wants me to be without His help.
Again, Jesus speaks of the Spirit of Truth in John 16:13 (NKJV): “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”
- I am the life.
Jesus gives life in two ways. The first is eternal life with God; the second is finding purpose and meaning in this life.
Without a doubt, having eternal life is the most important 1 John 5:10-13 (NKJV), “He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. 11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.” So, this truth of eternal life in Jesus is apparent to those who have “eyes to see and ears to hear and a mind to comprehend.
I heard someone say that the two most important events in life are when you are born and second when you find out why! When Jesus becomes our Savior, it is for a purpose, and we spend our lives finding and fulfilling our purpose in God. Walking in our God-given purpose is where we find the love, joy, and peace that He promises. Romans 8:28 (NKJV), “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”
- No one comes to the Father except through Me.
Jesus makes it very clear that there is only one way to salvation and relationship with God the Father, and that is through accepting Jesus as Savior and Lord.
Faith in Jesus as Savior
Getting back to the rest of the phrase, “Jesus, my Lord and Savior.” I’m going to look at the word Savior before the word Lord. Faith in Jesus as Savior means that Jesus has done all the work. It is a work of grace. Salvation is Jesus’ work. No person can add or subtract from it.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV): “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.” “For by grace” means that it is a gift of God, and like all gifts, the gift must be accepted. God’s grace can’t be earned or deserved; it is freely given and must be freely accepted.
Listen to what the Apostle Paul says in Romans 10:8-13 (NKJV), “But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”
Confidence in your salvation should bring a new perspective on this life. Knowing that you are forgiven and accepted by the Lord changes how you see yourself and what you see as important in life. Knowing that Heaven is yours also changes how you see your life today. As the Apostle Paul said, we run the race; the race is difficult, but we know that we will cross the finish line one day, and Heaven will be ours. Seeing Jesus face to face is our ultimate goal.
Faith in Jesus as Lord
Jesus as Savior is His work, but Jesus as Lord is our work. The word Lord means king or master, and when we use that word, it means that we will obey the Lord. A Christian is defined as one who follows the teaching of Jesus Christ. Following the teachings of Jesus means obedience to what he has called us to. Jesus has called us to a life of righteousness, a life filled with love, peace, and joy; unconditional love for one another, to be at peace with everyone where it is possible, and to know the joy of being loved by God. Our value in life is based upon what God says about us rather than what others around us say, and the Lord says as followers, we are precious in God’s sight.
All these things I’ve mentioned are based upon our obedience to the word of God. Our actions are the evidence of what we believe. Jesus says, if you love me, then obey my commandments. It is not enough to be a hearer of the word; we are called to be hearers and doers of the word. This is where many have missed the wisdom of God because they have given mental assent to the truths of the Bible but have not applied those truths to their lives.
The Apostle James makes it very clear that faith without works is dead. True faith is more than just knowing the truth; it is knowing the truth and applying the truth. Listen to what James says in the following verses.
James 2:14-20 (NKJV),14: “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! 20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?”
Being a doer of the Word is the evidence that we truly believe; it gives life to our faith. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” James 2:26
