QUESTION #9 – How do you explain both Jehovah and Jesus being called by the same titles (eg. ‘Lord of Lords’, ‘Savior’, ‘Mighty God’, ‘First and the Last’, ‘King of Israel’, ‘Rock’, ‘Light’, ‘Almighty’, ‘Alpha and Omega’, and ‘Shepherd’)?

ANSWER – This is easily explained by those who know the Scriptures.

First, Jesus is Lord because the Lord Jehovah appointed him to be such. This is Truth 101. The apostle Peter explained this to the Jews who had just killed Jesus a few weeks before, but who were unaware that Jehovah had resurrected him. Peter said to the gathered crowd: “For David did not ascend to the heavens, but he himself says, ‘Jehovah said to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies as a stool for your feet.’ Therefore, let all the house of Israel know for a certainty that God made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you executed on a stake.”

The truth is very simple. God made Jesus Lord and Christ.

The apostle was quoting from Psalm 110:1, where it says: “The LORD says to my lord: ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’ – NIV

Most readers undoubtedly know that the popular translations preferred by trinitarians have removed God’s personal name, refusing to translate YHWH as a proper name. Following the lead of the original King James Version other translations like the New International Version use the title Lord instead of God’s personal name. But to make a distinction between Jehovah and other lords they use all caps. But Psalm 110 presents a dilemma for the trinitarian, since it is obvious that the all caps LORD invited the small case lord to sit upon his throne. Since Jesus is the small case lord it is apparent that he does not wield authority over the all caps LORD, nor are they equals. Although Jesus is rightly called the Lord of lords, it is undeniable that he is not lord over the Sovereign Lord Jehovah.

As for both lords sharing the title of Savior, that is easy to resolve as well. A few days after Peter originally spoke to the Jews he was arrested and ordered to stop preaching. In response the apostle said: “We must obey God as ruler rather than men. The God of our forefathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed, hanging him on a stake. God exalted this one as Chief Agent and Savior to his right hand, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses of these matters, and so is the holy spirit, which God has given to those obeying him as ruler.”

Peter again testified to the fact that God resurrected Jesus and exalted him to his right hand of power, making Jesus the Chief Agent and Savior. Not even the stiff-necked Jews who had Jesus killed were so thick-headed so as to imagine that Peter was saying that Jesus was God. No, Jesus was appointed by God to be the Savior due to the fact that he had sacrificed his human life, which is the basis for our salvation.

The other shared titles are similarly resolved. However, the designation of first and last is different.  As God states in Isaiah in numerous places, he is the first and the last. But the Christian Scriptures reveal that before his coming to the earth Jesus was the first creation of God. Revelation 3:14 confirms that Jesus was “the beginning of the creation by God.” In his letter to the Colossians Paul explained that not only was Jesus the firstborn of all creation, but he was first in all things; first born among many brothers, meaning he was the first person to be born again as part of the new creation; he was also the firstborn from the dead to attain to immortal life.

He is the last in the sense that his special place in God’s arrangement will never be surpassed by another. Jesus encompasses all of God’s purpose now and forever. With the exception of Jehovah himself, Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End —the First and the Last.

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