I’m Not Ashamed To Own My Lord
How many times have we sung this hymn? Perhaps many, but do we believe what we sing? Do we understand the proclamation we are making? Or do we simply mouth the words, hopefully in harmony with the tune, and live differently than we declare. We need to be aware of the words we sing (or speak) and understand the meanings of them lest we profess something false or condemn ourselves as hypocrites.
To many, the phrase “to own” means that we possess something we have purchased or has been given us and we retain the receipt or title. However, this can only be applied to physical things, so the meaning must be different in the song and in the lives of those who can truly say the words of the name of the song. According to A.I., “The phrase ‘to own’ primarily means to have legal possession or rightful title to something.” This can apply spiritually as one who has truly obeyed the gospel, according to the Word of God in 1Cor 6:19 and is no longer their own because they have submitted to God and have “surrendered” themselves to Him in full obedience to His Word.
There are many instances in the New Testament Scriptures in which the brethren to whom these were written were told to not be ashamed. In Rom 9:33, the church there was reminded that in “Sion” (Zion or Jerusalem), the Lord God had laid a “tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation” (Isa 28:16), and “whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.” This latter part is reiterated in Rom 10:11. The Spirit had the apostle Paul, in Phil 1:20, express his earnest expectation and hope that in nothing he would be ashamed. Rather, that with all boldness Christ would be magnified in Paul’s body, whether by life or death.
While Christ was on earth calling Israel to repentance in preparation for the kingdom for which He would die, in Mark 8:38, told the people and His disciples that whoever was ashamed of Him and His Words in that adulterous and sinful generation, of them He would be ashamed when He came into the glory of His Father (when the church for which He died was established in Acts chapter 2). This is much like the teaching of Jesus in Matt 10:32-33 after choosing His disciples (apostles elect) and preparing them for the limited Commission. He taught that those who confess Him before men, He would confess them before God the Father. But whoever denies Him before men, He would also deny them before His Father in Heaven.
One of the reasons God, through His Providence, saw to it that His Word was made available to humanity was so man could learn it, teach it and preach it. Paul was given the inspired Words we read in Rom 1:14-16. He was keenly aware of his debt to preach the gospel to the Greeks, Barbarians, wise and the unwise, and all at Rome as well. He was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ as it is the power of God unto Salvation to all who “believeth” (a continuing belief which includes continuing obedience). Paul was directed in 2Tim 2:14 to instruct his young protégé to remind those that heard Timothy preach of the things Paul wrote in 2Tim 2:2-13. In verse 15, we see the admonition that applied to Timothy then and to us today to “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
As we return to the words of the song which forms the title of this article and the song, we find we are also not to be ashamed to “defend His cause”. As we again consult AI, we find to defend a cause means to actively support, protect, and speak up for a belief, principle, or movement when it faces criticism, opposition, or hardship. In 1Cor 16:13, the Spirit had the apostle Paul to instruct those brethren what to do in defending the cause of Christ. They (and Christians today) are to “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.” This means to be vigilant, to remain rooted in the faith (the gospel), to show maturity and strength, and to depend on the Word and its power.
In Gal 5:1, the Spirit had the same apostle address an issue that was prevalent in the early church. That issue was the threat of some going back to the Old Law, where there was no Sacrifice for sin. They were told to “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” The yoke of bondage was the Old Law and to attempt to embrace the Old Testament Law of God (which had been nailed to the cross), is contrary to defending the cause of Christ. One who tries to live in accordance with that Old Law and its tenants are not able to “own the Lord” because they refuse to submit to Him and His Word. But according to Eph 6:10-18, all those who “own the Lord” are told to “be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might”, that they might be able to defend the cause of Christ. To be able to accomplish this, each must “put on the whole armour of God” and use it properly.
Doing this is to transform the lives of all Christians. In Phil 1:27 as the Spirit had Paul pen the epistle, the brethren there were admonished to “let your conversation” (which means their manner of life) “be as it becometh the gospel of Christ”. Paul wanted to hear that they owned the Lord by standing fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel. This applies to all Christians everywhere and if we can, in full accordance with the Word of God, be “transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom 12:2), which will enable all children of God to remain faithful, to grow spiritually, and to successfully defend the truth against all enemies.
Finally, in 2Thess 2:15, we find that all brethren are to “stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.”. When the “traditions” (precepts or ordinances) within the gospel are heard from the pulpit or across the kitchen table, or are read within the New Testament, Christians are showing they are not ashamed to own the Lord and are fully committed to defending the faith. This was what the Spirit had the Lord’s brother write in Jude vs 3. There we find, “it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”
If you haven’t been baptized into Christ for the remission of sins, you don’t have a Lord to own. Why not learn the truth, obey it, proudly “own the Lord”, defend His cause, and prepare to spend eternity with Him and His Heavenly Father?
Dennis Strickland – Mooresville church of Christ
