Avoid the Dominion of the World
In Preparation...
- Contemplate what it means to die to something, for something to be dead to us, or for that something to no longer hold lordship over us
- Look up the definition of the word “Dominion”.
8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:
9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.
Romans 6:8-9 (KJV)
Dominion Strong's 2961-kyrieuo
Greek Strong’s Number: 2961
Greek Word: κυριεύω
Transliteration: kyrieuō
Phonetic Pronunciation:
Root: from <G2962>
Cross Reference: TDNT – 3:1097,486
Part of Speech: v
Vine’s Words: Dominion, Lord, Lordship
Usage Notes:
English Words used in KJV:
have dominion over 4
exercise lordship over 1
be Lord of 1
lords 1
[Total Count: 7]
from <G2962> (kurios); to rule :- have dominion over, lord, be lord of, exercise lordship over.
James Strong, Strong’s Talking Greek & Hebrew Dictionary, (Austin, TX: WORDsearch Corp., 2007), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: “2961”.
3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve:
6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.
7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.
8 And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
1 Corinthians 15:3-8 (KJV)
Jesus is the Path of God
“…death hath no more dominion over him.” Jesus died on the cross. That fact is known. It is an event only the truly intractable hold as mythical. Jesus died on the cross, was witnessed by the masses of the day, and was buried in a tomb of the day. Just like any other man of the day…or was He?
Jesus spoke to people with power and was known for this. He did things and said things that only a prophet of God could do or say, and so many thought Him just that, a prophet of God but nothing more. Until three days after his burial and an empty tomb, the day we now celebrate as Easter.
From that point forward Jesus appeared to Mary, then to others, and finally to the disciples. Later, Jesus appears to over 500 people whom Paul references. The summary of which is contained in the letter to the Corinthians 1 Cor 15:3-8. So may witnesses to the living Christ after he was emphatically dead and buried. Miracles performed, healings done, power imparted. Finally, Christ ascends into the glory of God and the movement begins.
Why is this litany important? The resurrection is proof that while the living man was bound by sin, the resurrected man was not. Jesus lived His entire life under the law specifically so that He could fulfill it and release all of creation from its binds the very moment He rose from the dead. This is Jesus entering into the fullness of His power as God appearing to His disciples to prove that what He said about how to live, that what God says about how to live, that what scripture says about how to live is true, wise, and good. This was no secret meeting with five hundred of his closest friends. This was a large gathering of witnesses, the spark that ignited the flame of the Holy Spirit in all of God’s people burning still to this day.
The point? There are two masters at odds in the world, God, and Satan. We can choose to follow one or the other but not both. We cannot dangle our toe in the waters of sin and expect to claim kinship with the one who died to sin. We cannot choose sin as acceptable but still try to follow Jesus. That line is no more. A wall has been erected between sin and God now. We cannot straddle the wall and expect to be found an acceptable creature unto God.
That does not mean we will not make mistakes. Of course, we will make mistakes. We are fallen human beings and we are going to make mistakes. However, repentance is a thing and it is a way back from those mistakes, a way created specifically by Jesus for us. This is not legalism where we say the words but intend to violate them later. This is a heart-position of truly wanting to be better people and trying to do so along the path God has rather than the path Man has, and it is easy to see which path is which too.
The path of God is outlined in the Bible. Read it. Study it. Learn it. That path has a guide in the Holy Spirit who walks with us, talks with us, and is there to help us put one foot in front of the other along God’s chosen path for us.
The path of the World is filled with questions left unanswered of affirmations from people who bear no fruit from God. This path declares the creation is more important than the Creator. It puts the individual human at a higher place than the one who created that human. The path of the World denigrates the word of God rather than elevating it at the same time telling us we are fine just as we are without the need of doing anything to change.
With God, He opens His arms to take us in right where we find ourselves, mess, and all. God does not care what stage of life we are in or what mistakes we think we have made. God already knows and He wants us on His side anyway. The difference is that while God is willing to take us in in the middle of our mess, He calls it a mess and wants to help us clean it up. He expects us to want to clean it up because we know He is looking at it all the time.
These two paths are divergent. They are not parallel. They do not end at the same place. This is why God has invested His Son in our salvation. That salvation is what Paul talked about in today’s passage. Jesus’ death moved him away from the destination that the Law would have for human beings and put him firmly at the destination God would have for His children. That destination is life-eternal with Him, but that path can only be found in Jesus. He is the guide. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. We follow Him, and no other, and our destination is assured.
Digging Deeper
- Take stock of those things surrounding your life and the stated goals or objectives those things either have or aid you in achieving and perhaps write them down as a list in your journal.
- Divide the list of things in your life into two lists where one list is everything that is on a Worldly path, and the other list of things is on the path of God.
