When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12
What does it mean for Jesus to be light? You know, one day we will not need the sun for light, because the son will be all the light we need. But I don't think Jesus is talking about physical light. He is talking about spiritual and emotional light.
When life seems to be overwhelmed with evil and sin, Christians know how to rise above it all, because we live in the light. We are called to live in such a way that the light of Christ shines from us, through us, and upon us. When His light shines from us, the world sees a unique person who has peace during the storms. When His light shines through us, we are able to distinguish good from evil in this world, and follow through with wise and capable choices. And when His light shines upon us, we are reminded that God is good, no matter what are circumstances may be.
Are you living with the light of Jesus? Are you walking with Him so closely that His light shines from, through, and upon you?
I've missed the last couple of weeks. :0( I always have the best of intentions . . . but here it is the end of February and it's time to start a new monthly calendar! In March I'll be studying the names God has for US. Should be interesting. I'm not done with the calendar yet, though. If you are interested in having your own copy, let me know and I'll email it to you.
As for February, below are the names of Jesus and the scripture references for all 28 days. Hope you'll have time to study them on your own!
Jesus is:
Christ 1 John 2:22, John 1:41
Messiah Matthew 16:16
Savior Ephesians 5:23, Titus 1:4 & 3:6, 2 Peter 2:20
Immanuel Matthew 1:23
Alpha & Omega Revelation 1:8
Amen Revelation 3:14
Beginning & End Revelation 22:13
Faithful & True Revelation 19:11
Good Shepherd John 10:11, 14
Holy & True Revelation 3:7
Almighty Revelation 1:8, Matthew 28:18
Morning Star Revelation 22:16
Rabbi Matthew 26:25
Lion of Judah Revelation 5:5
Lamb Revelation 13:8
Resurrection & Life John 11:25
Way John 14:6
Word John 1:1
High Priest Hebrews 2:17
Truth John 1:14, 14:6
King of Israel John 1:49
King of the Ages Revelation 15:3
King of Kings 1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 19:16
King of the Jews Matthew 27:11
King Eternal 1 Timothy 1:17
Author & Perfecter of our Faith Hebrews 12:2
The Stone the Builders rejected Acts 4:11
Light of the world John 8:12
Monday, February 28, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Jesus is the Lamb
In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and praise!”
Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!” Revelation 5:12-13
Does anyone else find it interesting that the Person who is known as the Good Shepherd is also known as the Lamb? How can He be both the finder and the found, the rescuer and the rescued? At least, that's the image those names bring to my mind.
I think it shows just what a sacrifice He gave. Can you imagine anyone else, in any kind of big position, coming down to the level of the "little man" just to show him how much He cares?
Can you imagine Barak Obama moving from the White House to a trailer park?
Can you imagine Oprah Winfrey washing cars instead of giving cars?
Can you imagine Tom Brady playing for free?
Nope, neither can I. It shows just how far removed our hearts are from God's heart. He could imagine a world where the King of Kings became a servant, where the Messiah became a sacrifice . . . where the Shepherd became the Lamb.
I've completely fallen in love with the Revelation Song, which is based in part on the above scripture. The lyrics are:
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Holy, holy is He.
Sing a new song
To Him who sits on
Heaven's mercy seat.
Yes, the Shepherd became the Lamb. And we could only receive salvation because of that.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Jesus is . . .
Sorry for being absent. I was on vacation last week and had trouble getting my computer to work well with me! I wanted to just highlight a couple of last week's names in order to get caught up. If you would like the calendar with each daily name, let me know and I'll email it to you. Next month, it will be God's names for US.
First of all, let's talk about Faithful and True from last Tuesday, which is found in Revelation 19:11: "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war."
What I love about this verse is the fact that Faithful and True are capitalized, which tell me that they were not used a adjectives, but rather proper nouns. That might not mean much to those of you who are non-grammar geeks like me, but it tells me so much. Can those words describe Jesus? Yes, of course! But they not only describe Him, they are His very essence! Faithful and True is who He is.
Remember, names were very important to the Jewish community. Names were descriptive, informative, even innovative. So for Jesus to be named Faithful and True tell us just how faithful and true He is!
On Friday, the name for Jesus was Almighty. We see this name used in Revelation (“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”) and also we see this characteristic described in Matthew 28:18: " Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.'" No one less than the Almighty could be given all authority in heaven and earth.
Again, Almighty is capitalized, so it is a name, not simply a reference. And the verse of Matthew tells us more about why He is so Almighty.
Today, Jesus is the Lion of Judah. This name is found in Revelation 5:5: 'Then one of the elders said to me, 'Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.'”
My Sunday School class has been studying the book of Genesis, from beginning to end. So, of course, we have studied the 12 Tribes of Israel, including Judah. It's so interesting that Jesus - the King of Kings - would be descended from the Judah. Judah was . . . less than high class. Let me show you.
First of all, Judah married a Canaanite woman, which had been forbidden, and then his oldest son - Er - turned out to be wicked, and God took his life. Er's wife was Tamar, and as was customary for his people, Judah gave Tamar to his second son, Onan, and told him to make babies with her. But Onan didn't want to do that, so, as the Bible says, "he spilled his semen on the ground" to avoid pregnancy. God didn't like that, so He took Onan's life, too.
Not such a good family tree at this point. Now Judah's final son, Shelah, was too young to be married, so Judah sent Tamar back to her family's home to wait until Shelah was old enough to take her as his wife. But secretly, Judah had no intention of bringing Tamar back into his family. One day, when Tamar knew that Shelah was old enough, she heard that Judah was in town. She disguised herself as a prostitute, and when Judah saw her . . . long story short, he slept with her. (It's important to understand that he didn't know who she was.)
Judah pledged payment to her in the form of a young goat, and for collateral he left his staff and seal with her. Later, he sent a servant to town with the young goat, but by that time Tamar had undisguised herself and went home, so the servant returned without Judah's collateral, his staff and seal.
Three months later, Judah hears that his daughter in law is pregnant, and he is incensed. Pick up the story in Genesis 38:24-26: "Judah said, 'Bring her out and have her burned to death!” As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,' she said. And she added, 'See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.' Judah recognized them and said, 'She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.' And he did not sleep with her again."
This story makes me feel icky. At first I felt even more icky to know that the Almighty came from that! Couldn't God have found more suitable lineage than that? Couldn't He have chosen less icky people than them?
Oh yeah. That's right. We're all icky. And in a strange way, it gives me hope. That if God can use those circumstances to bring His only son into the world . . . what might He be able do with me?
I hope you remember that it doesn't matte where or who you came from on this earth. It matters that you were fearfully and wonderfully made, knit together in your mother's womb by the creator. He made you, He loves you, He chooses you. And you have every opportunity to be with Him forever!
First of all, let's talk about Faithful and True from last Tuesday, which is found in Revelation 19:11: "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war."
What I love about this verse is the fact that Faithful and True are capitalized, which tell me that they were not used a adjectives, but rather proper nouns. That might not mean much to those of you who are non-grammar geeks like me, but it tells me so much. Can those words describe Jesus? Yes, of course! But they not only describe Him, they are His very essence! Faithful and True is who He is.
Remember, names were very important to the Jewish community. Names were descriptive, informative, even innovative. So for Jesus to be named Faithful and True tell us just how faithful and true He is!
On Friday, the name for Jesus was Almighty. We see this name used in Revelation (“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”) and also we see this characteristic described in Matthew 28:18: " Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.'" No one less than the Almighty could be given all authority in heaven and earth.
Again, Almighty is capitalized, so it is a name, not simply a reference. And the verse of Matthew tells us more about why He is so Almighty.
Today, Jesus is the Lion of Judah. This name is found in Revelation 5:5: 'Then one of the elders said to me, 'Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.'”
My Sunday School class has been studying the book of Genesis, from beginning to end. So, of course, we have studied the 12 Tribes of Israel, including Judah. It's so interesting that Jesus - the King of Kings - would be descended from the Judah. Judah was . . . less than high class. Let me show you.
First of all, Judah married a Canaanite woman, which had been forbidden, and then his oldest son - Er - turned out to be wicked, and God took his life. Er's wife was Tamar, and as was customary for his people, Judah gave Tamar to his second son, Onan, and told him to make babies with her. But Onan didn't want to do that, so, as the Bible says, "he spilled his semen on the ground" to avoid pregnancy. God didn't like that, so He took Onan's life, too.
Not such a good family tree at this point. Now Judah's final son, Shelah, was too young to be married, so Judah sent Tamar back to her family's home to wait until Shelah was old enough to take her as his wife. But secretly, Judah had no intention of bringing Tamar back into his family. One day, when Tamar knew that Shelah was old enough, she heard that Judah was in town. She disguised herself as a prostitute, and when Judah saw her . . . long story short, he slept with her. (It's important to understand that he didn't know who she was.)
Judah pledged payment to her in the form of a young goat, and for collateral he left his staff and seal with her. Later, he sent a servant to town with the young goat, but by that time Tamar had undisguised herself and went home, so the servant returned without Judah's collateral, his staff and seal.
Three months later, Judah hears that his daughter in law is pregnant, and he is incensed. Pick up the story in Genesis 38:24-26: "Judah said, 'Bring her out and have her burned to death!” As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,' she said. And she added, 'See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.' Judah recognized them and said, 'She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.' And he did not sleep with her again."
This story makes me feel icky. At first I felt even more icky to know that the Almighty came from that! Couldn't God have found more suitable lineage than that? Couldn't He have chosen less icky people than them?
Oh yeah. That's right. We're all icky. And in a strange way, it gives me hope. That if God can use those circumstances to bring His only son into the world . . . what might He be able do with me?
I hope you remember that it doesn't matte where or who you came from on this earth. It matters that you were fearfully and wonderfully made, knit together in your mother's womb by the creator. He made you, He loves you, He chooses you. And you have every opportunity to be with Him forever!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Catching up
Jesus is The Amen. Rev. 3:14
The Beginning and the End. Rev. 22:13
He is the Faithful & True. Rev 19:11
Sorry I can't post more. I'll try later. Faithful and true is my favorite!!!
The Beginning and the End. Rev. 22:13
He is the Faithful & True. Rev 19:11
Sorry I can't post more. I'll try later. Faithful and true is my favorite!!!
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Jesus is the Alpha & Omega
The fact that our Lord - remember, our Christ, Messiah, Savior, and Immanuel - is also the Alpha and Omega should really astound us. Look at Revelation 1:7-8:
“Look, he is coming with the clouds,”
and “every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him”;
and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.”
So shall it be! Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
It can be confusing, as I said earlier this week, to try to comprehend if some of these names we are studying are Jesus' or God's. Many can certainly apply to both, as in today's name - Alpha and Omega. We know that verse 7 refers to Jesus; and yet verse 8 could be spoken by the Father or the Son. Instead of allowing myself to be confused by this, I've decided that it's awesome. In this case, it's as if they are both speaking at the same time. They are one, after all! And to me it just shows how united they are.
I found a great commentary online at www.apocalipsis.org, and in referring to verse 8, the author says this:
Wooooooooooooooohooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He is the beginning of history, and the end of time as we know it, and absolutely everything in between. That's Alpha and Omega baby!! That rocks!
“Look, he is coming with the clouds,”
and “every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him”;
and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.”
So shall it be! Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
It can be confusing, as I said earlier this week, to try to comprehend if some of these names we are studying are Jesus' or God's. Many can certainly apply to both, as in today's name - Alpha and Omega. We know that verse 7 refers to Jesus; and yet verse 8 could be spoken by the Father or the Son. Instead of allowing myself to be confused by this, I've decided that it's awesome. In this case, it's as if they are both speaking at the same time. They are one, after all! And to me it just shows how united they are.
I found a great commentary online at www.apocalipsis.org, and in referring to verse 8, the author says this:
Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet . . . this should be thought of as the beginning and the end of history. He is the author of history. Revelation shows us that God is sovereign over human history, that God is both the beginning and the end is particularly appropriate to this book. He came to earth and died on the cross (who was), he is now exalted at the right hand of God and intercedes for us (who is) and he is coming again in power and glory to claim his own (who is to come).
Wooooooooooooooohooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He is the beginning of history, and the end of time as we know it, and absolutely everything in between. That's Alpha and Omega baby!! That rocks!
Friday, February 4, 2011
Jesus is Immanuel
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14
“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). Matthew 1:23
Immanuel. God with us. God - the creator of all things, the giver of all life, the eternal Father who exists outside the realms of time - THAT God with us.
How amazing that THAT God would want to make Himself finite, just to come and walk with us. How amazing that THAT God would want to make Himself small, just to come and talk with us. How amazing that THAT God would want to make Himself breakable, just to come and be with us.
Notice, I'm not saying "need." God the Son wanted to do these things, just as God the Father ordained them to be done. God didn't NEED to send His son. But . . .
We NEEDED Immanuel. We NEEDED God with us. And He came.
These names we've studied so far this week are very similar . . . and remind me of the need to praise Him for who He is! Not just for what He's done for me, but because He is Christ . . . Messiah . . . Savior . . . Immanuel.
“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). Matthew 1:23
Immanuel. God with us. God - the creator of all things, the giver of all life, the eternal Father who exists outside the realms of time - THAT God with us.
How amazing that THAT God would want to make Himself finite, just to come and walk with us. How amazing that THAT God would want to make Himself small, just to come and talk with us. How amazing that THAT God would want to make Himself breakable, just to come and be with us.
Notice, I'm not saying "need." God the Son wanted to do these things, just as God the Father ordained them to be done. God didn't NEED to send His son. But . . .
We NEEDED Immanuel. We NEEDED God with us. And He came.
These names we've studied so far this week are very similar . . . and remind me of the need to praise Him for who He is! Not just for what He's done for me, but because He is Christ . . . Messiah . . . Savior . . . Immanuel.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Jesus is the Savior
Savior. A person who saves, rescues, or delivers. Sounds just like our Jesus, don't you think?
Think back a few weeks to Christmas time. One verse that you, like I, probably read again and again comes from Luke 2: But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." (verses 9-10)
Can you imagine that moment? That moment was the fulfillment of the prophet Isaiah's words from chapter 19:20, "It will be a sign and witness to the LORD Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the LORD because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and he will rescue them."
The long-awaited birth. The Christ. The Messiah. The Savior.
And yet, while He was with them, they rejected Him. That didn't understand Him. It's almost as if they kept waiting for something more.
We do the same thing, right? Try to get someone who is not ready to believe in the free gift of salvation to believe in the Savior is nearly impossible. It's almost as if it costs too much to believe in something free.
It does cost a lot. The price is our independence. The price is our condemnation. The price is our very everything.
It cost Him more. Not just His life. God has been echoing this thought all around me lately, through song, study and sermons: He who had never sinned took on the sins of billions. The guilt and pain we bear after we sin . . . He took that on, multiplied but what, 40 billion people maybe?
It cost Him everything. And yet we find it so hard to understand Him. A Savior. Sent to us, to redeem us, for no other reason than love.
Just love.
Think back a few weeks to Christmas time. One verse that you, like I, probably read again and again comes from Luke 2: But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." (verses 9-10)
Can you imagine that moment? That moment was the fulfillment of the prophet Isaiah's words from chapter 19:20, "It will be a sign and witness to the LORD Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the LORD because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and he will rescue them."
The long-awaited birth. The Christ. The Messiah. The Savior.
And yet, while He was with them, they rejected Him. That didn't understand Him. It's almost as if they kept waiting for something more.
We do the same thing, right? Try to get someone who is not ready to believe in the free gift of salvation to believe in the Savior is nearly impossible. It's almost as if it costs too much to believe in something free.
It does cost a lot. The price is our independence. The price is our condemnation. The price is our very everything.
It cost Him more. Not just His life. God has been echoing this thought all around me lately, through song, study and sermons: He who had never sinned took on the sins of billions. The guilt and pain we bear after we sin . . . He took that on, multiplied but what, 40 billion people maybe?
It cost Him everything. And yet we find it so hard to understand Him. A Savior. Sent to us, to redeem us, for no other reason than love.
Just love.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Jesus is the Messiah
Yesterday, we learned that Christ and Messiah are really one and the same, just different translations of the same original word. And yet, it is important to understand the nuances of each name.
Messiah would have been the term that the Jews would have used, the redeemer who would come to save the nation. Remember, both terms mean "the anointed one." Also remember that messiah was used in the Old Testament to describe priests, prophets and kings. It was also used to describe the one who would rule as king in the End of Days.
As we know, sadly, most Jews do not recognize Jesus as the Son of God, the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Messiah. A common modern interpretation is that there is a potential messiah in every generation.
When the Messiah came, to suffer and die as an atoning sacrifice for our sins, He was a very different plan then what the Jews had in mind. When He spoke these words out of Matthew 10, He was not at all what the Jews thought they wanted:
“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn
‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’
Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." (verses 34-39)
My point in all this explanation is this: You can think whatever you want to of God, of Jesus. You have that right. But your thoughts don't make it true. Jews for thousands of years have missed the Messiah because He didn't "measure up" to their expectations.
Crazy, right? Jesus is the Messiah, the long-awaited King, the Christ, the Anointed One, the Ruler of the Ages, and He came to redeem you, to redeem me, to bring us home to live with His Father for eternity.
Does Jesus bring us peace? Yes, internally and eternally. But it's a false thought to think that He brings peace to the nations now. Becoming Christians doesn't make our lives physically easier. But it does make them better. Because the Messiah WILL win. In some ways, we are still like the Jews of old, waiting for the coming Messiah. We are still waiting for His final appearance. But because we believe He came, and is living within us, we can have hope. And peace. And love. Until He comes again.
Messiah would have been the term that the Jews would have used, the redeemer who would come to save the nation. Remember, both terms mean "the anointed one." Also remember that messiah was used in the Old Testament to describe priests, prophets and kings. It was also used to describe the one who would rule as king in the End of Days.
As we know, sadly, most Jews do not recognize Jesus as the Son of God, the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Messiah. A common modern interpretation is that there is a potential messiah in every generation.
To the Jew, the Messiah has a most important mission, namely to bring the world back to G-d, and make it a place of peace, justice and harmony. When Jesus failed to accomplish this, the early Christians had to radically alter the very concept of the Messiah. (Rabbi Aryan Kaplan)
When the Messiah came, to suffer and die as an atoning sacrifice for our sins, He was a very different plan then what the Jews had in mind. When He spoke these words out of Matthew 10, He was not at all what the Jews thought they wanted:
“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn
‘a man against his father,
a daughter against her mother,
a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’
Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." (verses 34-39)
My point in all this explanation is this: You can think whatever you want to of God, of Jesus. You have that right. But your thoughts don't make it true. Jews for thousands of years have missed the Messiah because He didn't "measure up" to their expectations.
Crazy, right? Jesus is the Messiah, the long-awaited King, the Christ, the Anointed One, the Ruler of the Ages, and He came to redeem you, to redeem me, to bring us home to live with His Father for eternity.
Does Jesus bring us peace? Yes, internally and eternally. But it's a false thought to think that He brings peace to the nations now. Becoming Christians doesn't make our lives physically easier. But it does make them better. Because the Messiah WILL win. In some ways, we are still like the Jews of old, waiting for the coming Messiah. We are still waiting for His final appearance. But because we believe He came, and is living within us, we can have hope. And peace. And love. Until He comes again.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Names of Jesus - He is the Christ
Christ is the English version of the Greek term, Khristós, which means "the anointed one." It is a translation of the Hebrew word which is translated, "Messiah." This is why you will often see Christ and Messiah used interchangeably. They mean the same thing.
The gospel writers use both the Hebrew and Greek terms. John used "Christ" twice in the very first chapter: "For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (verse 17) and "The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ)" (verse 41).
Luke also uses Christ in one of the most famous verses in scripture: "'He [Jesus] said to them, “But who do you say that I am?' Peter answered and said, 'The Christ of God.'” I love the Message version of this same story found in Matthew 16:16: "Simon Peter said, 'You're the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.'"
Why do all these verses matter? Because (according to wikipedia.com, and they're never wrong!) at the time of Jesus, "there was no single, coherent form or order within Judaism, and significant political, social and religious differences existed among the Jews. However, for centuries the Jews had used the term 'the Anointed' to refer to their expected deliverer."
In other words, what was the one thing that united the Jews? The coming of the Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah. While we know that most did not accept Him once He came, there seems to be a certain message of hope in a nation of people waiting for the promised deliverer.
Let's really think about the term "anointed." According to the Law, priests, kings and prophets were supposed to be anointed for their respective offices. Now, the Christ has combined these three "offices" into one person. He is our priest. He is our King. He is our prophet. (We will also be studying each of these names through the month.
To believe that Jesus is the Christ is to believe that he is the Anointed One, the Messiah of the prophets, the Savior sent of God, that he was what he claimed to be. To believe that Jesus is the Christ is to believe that He is the testimony of God. This belief is the faith that constitutes a Christian. (taken from christiananswers.net)
Who is Christ? He is the promised Messiah. The Anointed One. The Savior of all mankind.
Your Messiah. My savior. Our promise.
The gospel writers use both the Hebrew and Greek terms. John used "Christ" twice in the very first chapter: "For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (verse 17) and "The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ)" (verse 41).
Luke also uses Christ in one of the most famous verses in scripture: "'He [Jesus] said to them, “But who do you say that I am?' Peter answered and said, 'The Christ of God.'” I love the Message version of this same story found in Matthew 16:16: "Simon Peter said, 'You're the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God.'"
Why do all these verses matter? Because (according to wikipedia.com, and they're never wrong!) at the time of Jesus, "there was no single, coherent form or order within Judaism, and significant political, social and religious differences existed among the Jews. However, for centuries the Jews had used the term 'the Anointed' to refer to their expected deliverer."
In other words, what was the one thing that united the Jews? The coming of the Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah. While we know that most did not accept Him once He came, there seems to be a certain message of hope in a nation of people waiting for the promised deliverer.
Let's really think about the term "anointed." According to the Law, priests, kings and prophets were supposed to be anointed for their respective offices. Now, the Christ has combined these three "offices" into one person. He is our priest. He is our King. He is our prophet. (We will also be studying each of these names through the month.
To believe that Jesus is the Christ is to believe that he is the Anointed One, the Messiah of the prophets, the Savior sent of God, that he was what he claimed to be. To believe that Jesus is the Christ is to believe that He is the testimony of God. This belief is the faith that constitutes a Christian. (taken from christiananswers.net)
Who is Christ? He is the promised Messiah. The Anointed One. The Savior of all mankind.
Your Messiah. My savior. Our promise.
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