There are times when our human nature screams out for lordship. We desperately want someone to tell us what to do, which path to walk, which decision to make. In John's Gospel (13:13), Jesus makes a remarkable claim. "You call Me 'Teacher' and 'Lord', and rightly so, for that is what I am." The Scriptures teach that it is folly to call Jesus "Teacher," or "Lord" or any other title that presumes His authority, and then to be casual about His authority in our lives. While we can be fickle and apathetic about the Lordship of Jesus, such folly is often a descriptor of our humanness. On a wide array of issues, we convince ourselves that we believe something, even while our actions demonstrate otherwise. In their context, these are radical words and Jesus expects for them to be the driving force in our lives.
Part of the seeming confusion regarding discipleship is that we are often unequipped for what the Lord is leading us into. There are times when we must watch and wait upon the Lord until He acts. Waiting is perhaps the most difficult aspect of a believer's relationship with God. Our culture emphasizes speed, efficiency, and instant gratification. We pray, but often we are left to wonder at God's "silence" when His response isn't immediate. We forget the stories of Joseph, Moses, and many others who spent years, decades, in preparation for God's timing.
When we find ourselves impatient, directionless, aimless, and inconsistent, we must remember that all of His work is done on His initiative and that He takes time to prepare us for it. We are to wait and watch. We are to let His words, in the power of the indwelling Spirit, shape us no matter what the cost -- to let Him truly be Lord. We vividly remember the day He saved us, yet have forgotten that He pledges to transform us -- to challenge our innermost being. We find exceptions to almost all of His commands: "Go into all the world" (Mark 16:15), "love your enemies" (Matthew 5:44), "Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be My disciple. (Luke 14:33).
We forget that the nature of God in Christ is radically contrary to the nature of man in Adam. His authority often does violence to the "self" we've cultivated. We do not take into account how thoroughly He plans to change us. Understand, ask, and believe -- change is the heart of His gospel.