Becoming Savior and Lord

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." Luke 2:11

We sing that beautiful and iconic carol, "Silent Night" and it moves us deeply as it should, because it poetically depicts the greatest story ever told!

No doubt we will sing this carol at our Christmas service this Sunday! I hope so, anyway!

But as much as I love this song, at the risk of being cast out of the temple, I must call a few of the lyrics into question.

I know, take a deep breath, and remember how much you love your pastor. Here's the question, "Was Jesus really Lord at His birth?"

Let me pose it another way, "Did Jesus become Lord when they put on the swaddling cloths OR when He took off the grave cloths?"

Think about that for a second.

"But, PB" you may protest, "The Bible quotes the angel announcing Him as 'the Lord'"!

Yes, he did! But he also announced Jesus as Savior. Was that beautiful little baby boy a Savior as He lay helpless in the straw?

If you answered, "No, not yet" you would be right! 

He was a miracle baby!

He was born sinless because He was conceived of the Holy Spirit! Therefore, He was the only One who would be able to provide the atonement for the sinners of this world.

But He didn't provide that salvation at His birth did He?

Otherwise we would have mangers in our churches and on our steeples and as the charm on our necklaces but we don't do we? No, we have crosses!

The immaculate conception and the virgin birth are essential truths in Christian doctrine that identify and qualify Jesus as the Son of God Who would and could become the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world! But it wasn't His birth that brought salvation it was His death on the cross that conquered sin.

So, Jesus became your Savior and my Savior when He died on the cruel cross to provide the atonement for sins.

To be accurate but far less sentimental the carol would go "Jesus Savior at thy death"!

So, if it is proven that Jesus wasn't Savior at His birth neither was He Lord at His birth. He became Lord at His resurrection!

As I said earlier, Jesus wasn't Lord when they put on his swaddling cloths he became Lord when HE took off His GRAVE cloths!

Was His birth miraculous?

Absolutely!

Was His birth glorious?

Absolutely!

Was He born to become Savior?

Undoubtedly!

Was He born to become Lord?

Surely!

But becoming Savior and Lord required more than just a crib! It would also require a cross and a crypt!

And for Him to become YOUR Savior and Lord you will have to have a crib experience (be born again) and a cross experience (die to self) and a crypt experience (receive the fullness of the Spirit)!