I believe that one of the greatest needs today is for preachers to preach "The Lordship of Christ" aka the doctrine of holiness; that Christ is the Lord and He must be perfectly obeyed.

So I wanted to re-post this article on The Lordship of Christ which I wrote awhile back. I know it's very strong, forceful, and possibly intense, but let me know what your thoughts are.


Naming the Name of Christ
By Jesse Morrell

“Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” 2 Timothy 2:19

The theology and terminology of many preachers today is quite repulsive to the heart that hunger and thirsts after righteous. Famous, influential, and respected preachers and authors publicly talk about being, as they call, “sinning Saints”. Scornfully they mock at the mere thought of living a life that is completely repented from sins. “Moral perfection is impossible” they believe as if a man can not truly live a life of holiness as Jesus did. “Follow me” Christ says, while these men say “you can’t”. While the New Testament church preached moral perfection, modern Churches have replaced it with moral imperfection. While the New Testament church preached entire sanctification, it has been replaced by the modern Church with part sanctification.

Preachers who preach the “sinning Saint” doctrine are in actuality strengthening the grip sinners have on their sins. If a preacher does not live holy, what are the other people left to do? The more acceptable and common an act is, the more likely it is to be done. What the masses do, the individual will do. Men are more likely to do what everyone is doing and are less likely to do what nobody is doing.

And so we have gotten to the point that it is commonly believed a man can be both a sinner and Saint rather then being one or the other. These ungodly men preach and teach such contradictions because their own lives contradict the Word of God. The bible has a different term other then “sinning Saint” and that term is hypocrite. Christ preached more extensively against religious hypocrisy and religious hypocrites then any other group of people. But rather then accusing the hypocrites in our preaching as Jesus did, our hypocritical preachers are justifying themselves, comforting their own hearts and the heart of sinners, yet subtly d**ning the souls of men. These preachers are broken bridges. They once may have bridged the gap between God and man, but now any that travel on them will die.

The way of the world and the way of heaven lead in different directions, but more then different directions, they lead in opposite directions. To walk with Christ you can not walk with the world. Half hearted commitment is no commitment at all. Leave all and follow Christ. Leave your pride, leave your lust, leave your dishonesty, leave your selfish ambitions, leave all and follow Christ. Compromised Christianity is not Christianity at all.

Let the “sinning Saint” carry on in his wickedness and he will in due time discover that he is among those whom Christ will say those dreadful words “depart from me you worker of iniquity”. No word will bring more terror and horror to the heart of man then hearing from the lips of his Creature “depart”. These words will echo in their heart for all eternity while they agonize in hell. Being so close and yet being so far! But the truth is that they didn’t truly want Christ in life and therefore they won’t have Him in death. They wanted heaven but not holiness. They wanted covering but not cleansing. They wanted right-standing but they didn’t want righteousness. They wanted to their sins to be forgiven but they didn’t want their sins to be forsaken.

More harm has been done to the holiness of the Church and the conversion of the world by religious hypocrites then by any other. How terrible it will be for the “sinning Saints” who gives Christ a bad name. By simply calling themselves Christians and yet not follow in Christ’s ways they make a mockery of Christ in front of the entire world. It is heinous blasphemy to be called by the name Christian and walk as worldly men do. You must walk as Christ walked. You must live as Christ lived. If you’re not willing to go all the way then please by all means go the other way. But for the name of Christ make up your mind.

“Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” Do you want the Lamb of God to forgive you of your sins? Then you must allow him also to take away your sins. It was your sins that nailed Christ to the cross. He gave His life so that you could have life! Yet life with sin is not life at all. Sin is bondage and it desires to hold you captive until death will come to slay you. Yet Death was slain by Christ. Captivity was taken captive!

God is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us if we sin but we must confess and repent. He does not want to merely cleanse you from some sin, but he wants to cleanse you from all sin. Is not all sin appalling to Him? Does not all sin infinitely offend Him? Does not all sin eternally separate men from Him? Therefore it is all sin that must be abandoned. When God casts sin into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, all those who are attached to sin will go with it. As a ball and chain it will drown you in the ocean of flames. Sin must be abandoned now because it can not be abandoned then.

God is hunting to kill you. But He does it in order to give you life. He wants to kill your corrupted nature and replace it with a nature like His. He wants to shatter your heart of stone and replace it with a heart of flesh. He wants to kill you because without being put to death you can not be resurrected in new life with Him. Through Jesus Christ our Lord you can be delivered from your body of death. God is waiting for you, to take you in, feed you and cloth you. But you must go back home to him. Seek the Lord while He can be found.

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YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT ABOUT TEACHING THE LORDSHIP OF JESUS CHRIST. I BELIEVE IN HOLINESS, WHICH ALOT OF THE BODY OF CHRIST DOESN'T LIVE BY. AS SOON AS YOU SPEAK OF HOLINESS EVERYBODY WANTS TO CHANGE THE SUBJECT. THAT IS ONLY BECAUSE THEY DON'T KNOW EVERYTHING JESUS DID FOR US ON THE CROSS, AND BY HIS LIFE WHILE IN HIS HUMAN BODY. EVERYTHING JESUS CHRIST DID IN HIS BODY WHILE ON THIS EARTH WAS A REPRESENTATION OF WHO WE SHOULD BE. I KNOW ITS HARD TO BELIEVE, BUT BELIEVE IT. EVERYTHING JESUS DID FOR US IS ABSOLUTELY AWESOME! GOD BLESS YOU RICHLY! APOSTLEPAUL.

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DAVID PACE

Yes the Lordship of Christ must be preached. The teaching of holiness is ultimately believing in the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus Christ.

I sent this article out on my e-newsletter, and for every 1 email that I recieved back against it, there were 10 others for it. Praise the Lord!

Great reminder Jesse,

I think of the passage:


And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that [u]without a foundation[/u] built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.(Luke 6:46-49)

In this passage obediance to Christ seems to be the very foundation on which our Christianity is built. Notice how a person whose life is built upon obedience to our Lord could not be shaken. The man 'digged deep' or in other words it was not a surface Christianity but a deep seated faith that showed itself by its works. I like Ron Bailey's definition of faith as 'response to revelation.'

The Christians life simply cannot be characterized as resisting the Holy Ghost. As many as are led the the Spirit [u]they[/u] are the sons of God. This is perpetual submission to the revelation of God's will through the scriptures and the power and revelation of the Holy Spirit as He brings them to our remembrance. If God says "DO" we "CAN" and we "MUST." Folk have got to shed the idea that obedience is somehow optional.

Obedience is essential. "Why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things I say", is a riviting question. Not mine, but our Lord's. It is as if He is saying, it makes no sense to call me Lord or even consider me Lord if you are not obedient.

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Robert Wurtz II

If we get back to preaching the Lordship of Christ, the doctrine of holiness would be restored, a pure perspective of Christ would be restored, and a true perspective of man would be restored.

And if we get back to preaching the Lordship of Christ to convert sinners, it will bring genuine conversion. It's not "come to Christ because of what he can do for you" (selfishness" but "come to Christ because of what He can get out of you". (godliness). Then converts will live a life of service rather then a life of being served.

We must get back to preaching the Lordship of Christ.

Heres a verse of scripture that i always turn to time and time agian. Its one of my favorites.

Titus 2:11-13 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ

Like Jesse said, to many people are all to glad to have their sins forgiven, but to be required to forsake theirs sins, to say NO to ungodliness -they would rather skip out on school, get the assingment later and try to play catch up. But like the foolish virgins they won't be prepared.

The preaching of holiness is indeed most urgent.

Still recall this one well from Jesse, glad you put it up...

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Mike Balog

The point of this is that if we are required by God to live the Life that Christ's lived, yet are denied the very source of this life, then we are left with an impossiblility.

Christ said, John 6:57 As the living Father has sent Me and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also shall live because of Me".

John 20:21,22 Then Jesus said to them again, Peace be to you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you. And when He had said this, He breathed into them and said to them, Recieve the Holy Spirit..."

The life Christ's lived was a normal life according to God's intent and purpose for Man. He was a man who lived by the Life of God and expressed God in his living. And we also as those who are redeemed, regenerated and born of God with His Life are called to live the same life. A life of God in Christ being expressed in us, redeemed human beings with His indwelling Life to live the same life He lived by the Same source He lived by. The Life of God.

Christ brings the Life of God into us and we live by Him as our life. "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I but Christ lives in me...

This alone is the Christian Life and anything that is not this is not the Christian Life.

Christ is Unique in both His origins and His redemptive death. But as a pattern and example, He is the standard for our human Life. A life lived as God created man to live. A Life indwelt by God and expressing God's attributes in our redeemed and resurrected human virutes.

We can do this only in and through the One, Jesus Christ. It is the Life of God in Him which we recieve. He is the Head, we are the body. He is the First Born, we are the "many brothers". He is the One who has brought God into Man and brouight man into God.

Graftedbranch