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449 By attributing to Jesus the divine
title Lord, the first confessions of the
Churchs faith affirm from the beginning that the
power, honour and glory due to God the Father are due also
to Jesus, because he was in the form of God ,6~
and the Father manifested the sovereignty of Jesus by
raising him from the dead and 653 exalting him into his
glory.66 450 From the beginning of
Christian history, the assertion of Christs lordship
over the world and over history has implicitly
668672 recognized that man should not submit his
personal freedom in an absolute manner to any earthly power,
but only to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Caesar
is not the Lord.6~ The 2242
Church.. . believes that the key, the centre and the
purpose of the whole of mans history is to be found in
its Lord and Master.68 451
Christian prayer is characterized by the title
Lord, whether in the invitation to prayer
(The Lord be with you), its conclusion ~
(through Christ our Lord) or the exclamation
full of trust and 26642665 hope: Maran atha
(Our Lord, come!) or Marana tha (Come,
2817 Lord!) Amen. Come, Lord
Jesus!6~ 452 The name Jesus means God saves. The child born of the Virgin Mary is called Jesus, for he will save his peoplefrom their sins (Mt 1:21): there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). 453 The titleChrist
meansAnointed One (Messiah) .Jesus is the
Christ, for God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the
Holy Spirit and with power (Acts 10:38). He was
the one who is to come (Lk 7:19), the object
of the hope of Israel (Acts 28:20). 454 The title Son of God signifies the
unique and eternal relationship of ,~::::s Christ to
God his Father: he is the only Son of the Father (cf Jn
1:14, i8; 3:16, 18); he is God himself (cf Jn 1:1). To
be a Christian, one must ibelieve that Jesus Christ is the
Son of God (cf Acts 8:37; 1 Jn 2:23).
1455 The title Lord indicates divine
sovereignty. To confess or invoke Jesus is Lord is to
believe in his divinity. No one can say
Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit
(i Cor 12:3). |
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