Jesus Among the Pick ‘n Mix

The Good News is that Jesus is Lord of heaven and earth and that all the kingdoms of this world are His. He is not wringing His hands in heaven, hoping you will pick Him among the gods. He already reigns over all.

But when we bring the good news to others, what are we hoping for? We often hear (or use) expressions like, “Inviting Jesus into your heart” or, “accepting Jesus as your Lord and Saviour”.

These vague expressions carry with them all sorts of possibilities.

One of those possibilities is what we might call implied polytheism. Is Jesus one among many? Are we asking people to choose Jesus above all other contenders? Is that what it means to preach the gospel?

The short answer is no. We are not asking people to, “Pick Jesus”, or – and this is also implied in much of what passes for evangelism today – “Fall in love with Jesus”.

There are no other Lord’s or Saviours to choose from. Jesus is not sitting at the right hand of the Father hoping you will let Him be your Lord, your King or your God.

Jesus is already all of these things to all mankind. All authority in Heaven and on Earth is already His (Matthew 28:18). All souls are already His (Ezekiel 18:4).

We are not waiting for Jesus to make all things His. All things are already His. His to transform, His to renew and His to judge. And, on the last day, His to hand back to His Father in mint condition (1 Cor 15:24).

Because Jesus is Lord, all men are commanded to acknowledge it and all men are commanded to repent.

…we should not think that the Divine Being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by man’s skill and imagination. In times past God overlooked our ignorance but now, He commands all men everywhere to repent. (Acts 17:30)

That is what the gospel is calling this world to do. To recognise and submit to the Crown rights of King Jesus.

Yes, it is true that people, “Must choose Jesus”. But the emphasis is on the ‘must’, not the ‘choose’.

There are no other Gods. There are no other Lords and there are no other Saviours.

There is just Jesus.