A Lordless Lord
There are some people who are upset about the notion of the “Lord-hood” (to coin an ugly phrase) of God. In a world that has become so democratic and egalitarian, the very notion of someone being a Lord over another seems barbaric and backwards. It seems the very opposite of what God would ever want, or even should want.
The problem with this objection is that it fails to understand God as God reveals Godself to humanity in Jesus Christ. What is odd about this problem is that the very instrument to overcome this misperception about God is found in the most conservative of churches who consistently fail to see it, while the liberal churches who would look for it are theological ill-equipped to discover it.
God’s self-revelation in Jesus Christ reveals that God is the Lord who made heaven and earth but chooses to be the servant of that creation and the redeemer of that creation to the point of self-death.
God is the Lord who shows us what earthly lords ought to be, not what they are. God empties Godself to weakness and oblivion. He does not puts earthly lords to shame by being more brutal and powerful and arbitrary than they. God washes the feet of his friends, gentle kneels at their feet, and offers his life for me and for you.
