The Nicene Creed’s chosen title for the Son is “one Lord Jesus Christ.” Lordship is an aspect of christology that is inextricable from the identity of Christ. “Lordship” has a verbal quality that implies a dynamic relationship between Lord and lorded. For this reason, Emil Brunner provides a dynamic picture of lordship that establishes Christ’s lordship through the I-Thou concept of Martin Buber.
This paper characterizes Brunner’s theology of Christ’s lordship as ontologically rooted in Christ’s divine nature, as subjectively realized faith and a personal encounter, and as realized universally after the Parousia. The summary section identifies Brunner’s christology as set against German liberal christology in Schleiermacher, Ritschl, and Harnack that removes divine authority from Christ. For Brunner, Jesus can be Lord because he is divine. However, in an emphasis that could be attributed either to Luther or Kierkegaard, Brunner holds that he is an incognito Lord in this postlapsarian time and only becomes Lord subjectively by his personal appearance. Thus, Christ’s humanity is an essential part of his Lordship. Brunner holds that this hiddenness ends with Christ’s appearance in the Parousia. The evaluation section primarily praises Brunner for uniting authority intrinsic to Christ’s person de jure with the authority intrinsic to Christ’s person de facto. It primarily criticizes Brunner for retaining the Jesus of History / Christ of Faith divide that risks making these commands inscrutable.
The paper further contextualizes Brunner’s Christology in contrast to Neocalvinist concepts of sphere sovereignty, particularly through his debate with Visser’t Hooft over the meaning of Christ’s kingship. Brunner critiques efforts to assert Christ’s rule in political or cultural structures, insisting that only persons, not institutions, can submit to his direct lordship. The evaluation section praises Brunner’s careful distinction between Christ’s de jure and de facto authority while critiquing his retention of the Jesus of History / Christ of Faith divide, which risks making the commands of this Lord inaccessible.
By highlighting Brunner’s contributions beyond his well-known disputes with Karl Barth, this paper argues for a renewed appreciation of his Christology.