Chalke Talk 73: Apostle Paul: Preacher or Political Revolutionary?

“Jesus is Lord” is often viewed as a resounding imperial call, when actually it’s root is about living life radically. This week Steve takes looks back at the Roman Empire; an empire under which Jews, like Paul, were subjugated.

As Steve puts it, “for Paul, to follow Jesus as King was the ultimate act of political revolution; because it was about liberation FROM the pursuit of power and self-interest rather than liberation THROUGH the pursuit of power and self-interest.” To say Jesus is Lord, therefore, in a time where Augustus had passed away a mere 20 years beforehand was extremely subversive.

Steve goes on to argue that, “we often make the mistake of believing the Christianity is primarily about intellect; that it’s somehow about believing the right stuff, about having ‘orthodox’ beliefs that can be written down and stated clearly without hesitation or deviation.” But for Paul, it’s about a life-changing commitment; a societal revolution.

 Therefore, “we have to admit that, driven largely by unfettered capitalism, our version of imperial globalism  is producing great social dislocation and poverty.”



So a question for you: What does it mean for us to say ‘Jesus is Lord’?