Jesus is Lord: The Basic Christian Confession

In confessing Jesus as Lord (e.g., Rom. 10:9; 1 Cor. 12:3), we Christians are not simply saying that Jesus is a great king. That he is, to be sure. We are not simply saying that he is king or sovereign of our lives, though he is. But we are declaring much more. We are confessing nothing less than that he is God over all, blessed forever (Rom. 9:5). Jesus is the sovereign covenant King of the old covenant, even YHWH, King of the nations, before whom there is no other. He is Lord of all. And if he is not Lord of all, he is not worthy to be Lord of any life, he is not a great king at all. But he is in fact Lord of all. And every tongue shall confess this in due course (Phil. 2:9-11).