Arthur Gonçalves
Feb 7, 2026
When Jesus is more than a teacher but truly Lord
There are moments in Scripture that slow you down. They do not shout. They whisper. And yet their weight lingers long after you have closed your Bible.
Matthew 26:20-25 is one of those moments.
Jesus is seated at the table with His disciples. The air is heavy with anticipation. The Passover meal, a celebration of God’s redemption, becomes the setting for one of the most sobering revelations in the Gospels. Jesus announces that one of them will betray Him. The disciples begin to search their hearts. One by one they ask, “Is it I, Lord?”
But then Judas speaks.
“Is it I, Rabbi?”
At first glance, the difference may seem small. Rabbi means teacher. It is respectful language. It recognizes Jesus as one who instructs and leads. Yet Matthew is intentional in preserving the contrast. The others address Him as Lord. Judas calls Him Rabbi. The ESV Study Bible notes that there is no record of Judas ever calling Jesus Lord.
That detail struck me deeply.
Two words. Two postures. Two destinies.
The Difference Between Rabbi and Lord
To call Jesus Rabbi is to admire Him. It is to appreciate His wisdom, His clarity, His insight into life. Many in the crowds did this. They marveled at His teaching. They followed Him for a time. They listened, nodded, and even changed certain habits.
But to call Jesus Lord is something else entirely.
Lord is the language of surrender. It is the confession that He has authority over every corner of our lives. It is the acknowledgment that we do not simply learn from Him. We belong to Him.
Romans 10:9 says,
“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Salvation is not framed as intellectual admiration but as submission to His reign.
Judas sat at the same table as the others. He heard the same sermons. He witnessed the same miracles. He participated in the same ministry rhythms. Yet somewhere in his heart, Jesus remained a teacher rather than a sovereign King.
And that difference mattered eternally.
Two Kinds of Followers
This passage reveals that proximity to Jesus is not the same as surrender to Jesus.
There are those who come to Him as Rabbi.
They love good preaching. They appreciate sound theology. They enjoy being around Christian community. They might even say they are growing because they are learning new things. Their lives orbit around hearing but not necessarily obeying.
Jesus spoke about this kind of response in Matthew 7:26 when He described the one who hears His words but does not do them. Knowledge without submission builds a house on sand.
In everyday life, this looks like people who enjoy spiritual conversations but resist repentance. They admire Jesus’ ethics but hesitate when His authority confronts their priorities. They treat the church like a classroom rather than a covenant family. Faith becomes a preference rather than a surrender.
And then there are those who come to Him as Lord.
These are not perfect people. They struggle. They doubt. They sometimes ask, “Is it I, Lord?” like the disciples at the table. Yet their posture is different. They bring their ambitions, relationships, finances, wounds, and future under His authority. They trust Him not only to teach them but to rule them.
Luke 6:46 presses this question directly:
“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?”
The mark of true discipleship is not simply agreement with Jesus’ teaching but obedience flowing from love.
Transformation Versus Information
In pastoral ministry, I hear people say often that they love a church because of the teaching. That is a good thing. Faithful teaching matters deeply. But if we are not careful, we can subtly reduce the Christian life to listening rather than becoming.
The goal of the gathered church is not merely to hear the Rabbi. It is to be transformed by the Lord.
Second Corinthians 3:18 tells us that as we behold the glory of Christ, we are being transformed into His image from one degree of glory to another. Transformation happens when we yield ourselves to Him, not just when we agree with Him.
Judas listened to the greatest sermons ever preached. Yet his heart remained untouched by surrender.
The tragedy of Judas is not simply that he betrayed Jesus. It is that he walked so close to Him while never truly bowing before Him.
Standing Before Christ
One day every person will stand before Christ the Judge. Scripture tells us that many will say, “Lord, Lord,” and yet will hear the sobering words, “I never knew you” (Matthew 7:21 to 23). The issue will not be how many sermons we heard but whether we belonged to Him.
What will it mean to stand before the risen Christ having known Him only as a teacher?
To admire His wisdom but resist His authority.
To enjoy His words but avoid His rule.
To attend church week after week while keeping certain areas of life untouched by His reign.
This passage invites us to examine our own hearts. Are we sitting at the table with Jesus while quietly keeping Him at a distance? Do we speak of Him as a helpful voice in our lives or as the sovereign King who owns us entirely?
The Gospel Hope
The good news of the gospel is that Jesus receives sinners who come to Him as Lord.
Peter failed Him. The other disciples fled from Him. Yet their story did not end in betrayal because their hearts belonged to Him. After the resurrection, Jesus restored them, filled them with His Spirit, and transformed their lives.
First Corinthians 12:3 reminds us that no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit. The very confession of His lordship is evidence of God’s grace at work in us.
Calling Jesus Lord does not mean we have mastered obedience. It means we have surrendered our claim to self rule. It means we trust that His death paid for our sin and His resurrection secures our future. It means we are no longer trying to edit His words to fit our lives but allowing His lordship to reshape us completely.
An Invitation
As I reflected on this passage, I could not escape the contrast at the table.
Some asked, “Is it I, Lord?”
One asked, “Is it I, Rabbi?”
And it made me wonder how many of us come to church each week simply to hear the Rabbi.
We appreciate the teaching. We enjoy the atmosphere. We leave with notes and insights. Yet we walk back into our lives unchanged because we have not surrendered to His authority.
What if this week you came not merely to listen to Jesus as a teacher but to bow before Him as Lord?
What if church became less about finding the best instruction and more about covenanting with a body of believers where Christ shapes you, corrects you, and transforms you?
The difference between Rabbi and Lord is the difference between admiration and surrender. Between information and transformation. Between proximity and belonging.
Many come to church to hear the Rabbi.
Will you come to surrender to the Lord?
Because the One who sat at that table in Matthew 26 is not merely a teacher offering advice. He is the crucified and risen King who gave Himself for sinners so that we might not only learn from Him but belong to Him forever.