Who Does God Say Jesus Is?

The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” [Ps. 110:1]

Psalm 110:1 is quoted more often in the New Testament than any other Old Testament text. In it we see the name God has called Jesus—Lord.
In English translations the first use of the word Lord in this verse is in all capital letters, for the Hebrew is YHWH, for Yahweh, or Jehovah. This was the personal name God called himself when he appeared to Moses in the burning bush. The second use of Lord in 110:1 is the Hebrew word Adonai, which means “master.” Psalm 110 was a puzzle to the Jews because they understood that it had been written by King David. If the psalm had been written by one of David’s servants it would mean that Yahweh had been speaking to “my lord David, the king.” Since David wrote the psalm, however, it was David’s Lord to whom the Lord was speaking. This implied that there was a King higher than David, whose kingship had been established by God the Lord.
What had puzzled the Jews was made plain in the New Testament. At the baptism of Jesus and at his transfiguration, God spoke and said, “This is my Son … Listen to him!” (Matt. 17:5). Here God made it plain that Jesus was the Lord of all men, even of King David.
How does God look at Jesus? He views him as the One to whom he has given all authority, and as the One God commands us to obey. As Paul put it in Philippians 2:9–11, “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” What is that most exalted name that Jesus has been given? It is Lord. A popular Christian song proclaims that Jesus is the “name above all names.” In fact, Jesus has been given a more exalted name—that of cosmic Lord.

Coram Deo

“King of kings and Lord of lords”—that is the name given to Jesus Christ by God his Father. It is the name before which we are to bend the knee in humble submission. Is that how you see Jesus? Many intentionally downplay the Lordship of Christ, compromising his authority. Ask the Father to give you a submissive spirit, one that delights to live under Christ’s authority.
Sproul, R.C., Before the Face of God: A Daily Guide for Living from the Book of Romans, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books) 1992.