Daily Devotion On This Day, 21st of April 2016

For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living. (Romans 14:9 KJV)

There is of course a sense in which Jesus was always Lord, for He is the creator, governor, and provider of all things. By virtue of His divine nature, he is indeed Lord of all. But Paul is not talking about that. He is referring to His lordship in view of the atoning work He accomplished through His death and resurrection. 

Some theologians correctly call it “the lordship of redemptive relationship”. In a very special sense, Christ is Lord of those to whom He brought salvation through His death and resurrection. Christ secured the indisputable right to exercise lordship over both those believers who have already died and those who are still alive on earth. By means of His substitutionary death, followed by His intercessory life in heaven (Heb. 7:25), Christ as their Lord sees to it that whatever He has merited for His people, whether dead or living, is bestowed on them.

The connection between the lordship of Christ and His death and resurrection is emphasized here. He is, no doubt, Lord over all mankind; but what is here asserted is a lordship which only true believers can acknowledge. The Apostle Paul sees both the dead and the living as under the scope of this lordship of Christ. Christ died and rose again as a representative character of all His people, both dead and alive. He had gathered up in His one single person all the interests of all His people. Dying and rising again, He stands before all His people as their Lord.

Let us consider the implications of the lordship of Christ over His own people who are now dead. As one who died and risen, He gives to all His people who are dead now the assurance of victory over the sting of death. Soon their mortal bodies shall be fashioned like unto His own glorious resurrected body. He would lead them to the many mansions of His Father's house; and there He shall live with His people as their Lord and King forever and ever.

Now unto all His people who are alive, He is their Lord. They should submit their lives to Him to do His will. Self-surrender to His lordship is expected of all His people while they live and serve Him here on earth.

It is the most wonderful blessing of all His people, both the living and the dead, to have Him as their Lord. It is a source of confidence and joy to His people alike in life and in death.

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