Did you know the Disciples of Jesus never actually called Him Jesus when they talked to Him? Go ahead, look it up… now, I’m not saying that His name was too holy to use or something like that. They said the name, ‘Jesus’ whenever they were talking about Him, but when His followers were in conversation with Him, talking directly to Him, they didn’t use His name. And it didn’t matter if they were in a crowd of people, taking a leisurely walk, sitting by a campfire on a retreat or in the middle of a raging storm - these boys didn’t call Him by His name when they talked to Him.
You know, when you talk about someone, you use their name because Identification is the most important thing, but when you talk to someone, you sometimes use nicknames or titles. You don’t always need to use their first name, because they know who they are. You do this nickname or title thing because you want that person to know who they are to you.
So, what did the Disciples call Jesus when they were talking directly to Him? They called Him ‘Lord.’ They called Him ‘Teacher.’ They called Him ‘Master.’ Now, think back real quick… when was the last time you called Jesus, ‘Master?’
Do you know anyone who calls Him that? When was the last time you heard a prayer that started out like this: “Master, I pray that you would…”? Have you ever heard anyone call Him that? - And yet, the disciples did it like it was going out of style! Jesus is our Master. He is Almighty God who made us and then bought our lives with His own precious blood. He holds all things together and reigns over this whole universe. He has the power and the right to tell us what to do, but do any of us submit our lives to Him like that?
Now, don’t get me wrong - I’m not saying Jesus doesn’t want a close, familiar, mushy friendship with you - He totally does want that. He wants you to be free to be you in His presence, but isn’t there a place for this other attitude as well? What would happen to your heart if you called Jesus Master with your lips? Would that title work its way down into your heart and eventually out into your actions? Make no mistake, Jesus wants a love relationship with you. He doesn’t just want your behavior, He wants your heart. But an amazing thing happens when you actually give your whole heart to Him: you find that He begins to change the way you think and act. You see, we suck at running our own lives. We we try to be our own masters, we only lead ourselves into more hurt and pain. When you make Jesus your Master, you find out there’s nothing more freeing and more sweet than being led by Him.