+I. Christ is our Lord according to every notion and acceptation of
the word "Lord."+--He is our Prince and Governor, we are His subjects
and vassals; He is our Master, and we are His servants; He is our
Owner, or the Possessor and Proprietary of us; He is our Preceptor or
Teacher; that is, the Lord of our understanding, which is subject to
the belief of His dictates; and the Lord of our practice, which is to
be directed by His precepts. He is therefore also our Captain and
Leader, whose orders we must observe, whose conduct we should follow,
whose pattern we are to regard and imitate in all things.
+II. Christ is also our Lord according to every capacity or respect
of nature or office that we can consider appertaining to
Him.+--1. He is our Lord as by nature the Son of God, partaking of
the Divine essence and perfection. 2. He is our Lord as man, by the
voluntary appointment and free donation of God His Father; in regard
to the excellency of His Person, and to the merit of His
performances. 3. He also, considered as God and man united in one
Person, is plainly our Lord. 4. If we are to consider Him as Jesus,
our Saviour, that notion doth involve acts of dominion, and thence
resulteth a title thereto. Nothing more becomes a Lord than to
protect and save; none better deserves the right and the name of a
Lord than a Saviour. 5. Likewise, if He be considered as the Christ,
that especially implieth Him anointed and consecrated to sovereign
dominion, as King of the Church.
+III. Survey the several grounds upon which dominion may be built,+
and we shall see that upon all accounts He is our Lord.--1. An
uncontrollable power and ability to govern is one certain ground of
dominion. 2. To make, to preserve, to provide and dispense
maintenance, are also clear grounds of dominion. 3. He hath acquired
us by free donation from God His Father. 4. He hath acquired us by
just right of conquest, having subdued those enemies unto whom
(partly by their fraud and violence, partly from our own will and
consent) we did live enslaved and addicted. 5. He hath also further
acquired us to Himself by purchase, having by a great price bought
us, ransomed us out of sad captivity, and redeemed us from grievous
punishment due to us. 6. He likewise acquired a lordship over us by
desert, and as a reward from God, suitable to His performance of
obedience and patience, highly satisfactory and acceptable to God.
7. He hath acquired a good right and title to dominion over us as our
continual most munificent benefactor. 8. Our Saviour Jesus is not
only our Lord by nature and by acquisition in so many ways (by
various performances, deserts, and obligations put on us), but He is
also so by our own deeds, by most free and voluntary, most formal and
solemn, and therefore most obligatory acts of ours. (1) If we are
truly persuaded that Christ is our Lord and Master, we must then see
ourselves obliged humbly to submit unto and carefully to observe His
will, to attend unto and to obey His law, with all readiness and
diligence. (2) If Christ be our Lord, then are we not our own lords
or our own men; we are not at liberty, or at our own disposal, as to
our own persons or our actions. (3) If Christ be our Lord (absolutely
and entirely such), then can we have no other lords whatever in
opposition to Him, or in competition with Him, or otherwise any way
than in subordination and subserviency to Him. (4) If Christ be our
Lord, we are thereby disobliged, yea, we are indeed prohibited, from
pleasing or humouring men, so as to obey any command, to comply with
any desire, or to follow any custom of theirs, which is repugnant to
the will or precept of Christ. (5) Finally, for our satisfaction and
encouragement, we may consider that the service of Christ is rather
indeed a great freedom than a service.--_Barrow._