Can Jesus be our Savior but not our Lord?
2 Thess 1:8b is easily overlooked, that judgment comes upon "those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ".
The unfortunate yet common dichotomy between Jesus as Savior and Lord is grossly real at this point. It is thought that he can be our Savior, yet at a later point possible become our Lord; thus, some theologies unwittingly undercut obedience such that people actually believe that some isolated prayer secures their salvation despite not obeying Jesus thereafter, i.e. perseverance. Conventionally, all who make this division assume foremost that Jesus is (their) Savior--that role thought to benefit them most. However, this presumption not only excuses sin, such as apathy, and exposes our arrogant deference for convenience, but it is without logical or theological ground. Jesus can never be one's Savior without "first" being one's Lord.
First of all, only the humility of recognizing his authority over our lives will enable us to repent. Second, only Jesus as Lord has the efficacious power to save. How can he be Savior or be recognized as such if he is not sovereign over sin, death, and judgment? It is only possible to be Savior when in fact he is Lord!
