What’s In a Name?
December 20, 2009
Names are important. Your name is who you are, it is a part of you. Maybe you were named after a certain person. For the most part, names have some kind of significance. In Biblical times, names were chosen to be descriptive. There are many different names given to Jesus in the Bible. In fact, they extend from A to Z. This morning, I’d like to go over a partial listing of those names with you, and some of the Biblical references.
Alpha
Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” (NIV)
Isaiah 44:6 “This is what the LORD says– Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. (NIV)
Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet, indicating that Jesus is the beginning. He who is the first, will also be the last, the one to come, who will bring this world to a close, just as He started it.
Branch
Isaiah4:2 In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel. (NIV)
Jeremiah 23:5 “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. (NIV)
Jeremiah 33:15 “`In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line; he will do what is just and right in the land. (NIV)
Zechariah 3:8 “`Listen, O high priest Joshua and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. (NIV)
Zechariah 6:12 Tell him this is what the LORD Almighty says: `Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the LORD. (NIV)
Branch is the title for the Messiah as the offspring of Jesse and David. He is the branch that grew out of the stump. When Israel appeared to be cut off, new growth came. “Behold a Branch is Growing” comes from this theme (# 645)
Counselor
Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (NIV)
As Counselor, Jesus has a care and concern for you, supplying you with the knowledge to make you wise unto salvation. Notice that He is called a WONDERFUL counselor. He gives us the consolation we need.
Daystar
2 Peter 1:19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: (KJV)
Other translations list this as “morning star.” Jesus is the light of the world who illuminates his people. As he shines on us, we are then to shine like stars.
Emmanuel
Matthew 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. (KJV)
Emmanuel literally means God with us. What a comfort we can get from this name, knowing that God himself is present with us in the midst of life, with all its hassles and hardships. Many of our Advent and Christmas hymns include this name.
Father
Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (NIV)
When Isaiah calls Jesus “everlasting Father” he is telling us that Jesus will always be our provider, protector and preserver.
God
Isaiah 9:6
There should never be any doubt that Jesus is God. This name emphasizes the divine power that was at His disposal, yet He laid it aside in order to accomplish your forgiveness through His death and resurrection. We confess that Jesus is truly God in the Nicene Creed: “God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God…being of one substance with the Father.”
Horn
Luke 1:69 He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David (NIV)
This name may sound a bit different to you. But upon hearing about the coming Christ child, Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, calls him a horn of salvation. A horn was something that denoted strength. Jesus is the one who has the power to save.
I Am
John 8:24,28 24 I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am, you will indeed die in your sins…28 So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me. (NIV)
Exodus 3:14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: `I AM has sent me to you.’” (NIV)
God identified Himself to Moses as the great I AM. Jesus applies that title constantly to Himself in an effort to show those who would listen that He is the God who rescues and delivers. Just as He once delivered His people from Egypt, so now He has come to deliver them from their bondage to sin.
Jesus
Matthew 1:21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”(NIV)
This name literally means “the one who saves.” This is what we most often identify our Lord by, viewing it as His personal name. It is perhaps the most meaningful name for most of us. Hymn #114 speaks of “Jesus, Name of Wondrous Love” reminding us it is the name above all names.
King Of Kings
Revelation 19:16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. (NIV)
Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. (NIV)
Luke 1:33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” (NIV)
This name describes how Jesus reigns in supreme authority over all things in heaven and on earth. He is our humble and exalted king, who chose to reign from a cross, crowned with thorns. His hand did not hold a scepter, but a scar from a nail. He rose triumphant to go into His eternal kingdom, where those who trust in Him will one day join Him in glory. “Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the newborn king!”
Light
John 1:9 The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. (NIV)
The light of Jesus has shined into the darkness of this world to overcome it, expose the deeds of wickedness, and guide us to the path of life eternal, which comes only through faith in Him. We are to let His light shine in us and through us.
Master
Luke 9:49 “Master,” said John, “we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we tried to stop him, because he is not one of us.” (NIV)
The disciples often called Jesus “Master.” This title acknowledges his role as teacher, leader, Lord, and the one who oversees. We should view Him in no less a manner.
Nazarene
Matthew 2:23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.” (NIV)
Mark 16:6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. (NIV)
Jesus was called a Nazarene because He came from Nazareth. But this name says more about Him than His place of origin. Nazarene was sometimes used as a synonym for “despised.” (John 1:45-46). And we know that Jesus was indeed despised for our sake.
One And Only
John 1:18 No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known. (NIV)
In this translation, Jesus is called God the one and only. Other translations call Him the only begotten Son. Both are acceptable, but this one is more literal, and it stresses His divinity, saying that to know God, you must know Jesus.
Priest
Hebrews 7:26 Such a high priest meets our need– one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. (NIV)
Jesus kept the Law perfectly in our place, and then offered the perfect sacrifice as our Priest: the sacrifice of Himself. That sacrifice completely atones for your sin. And as your priest, Jesus continues to plead your case before the Father’s throne.
Quickening Spirit
1 Corinthians 15:45 And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. (KJV)
Paul compares the first man, Adam, who had a natural body that dies, to the second Adam, who is a life giving spirit. Jesus will at the last day quicken (make alive) your spirits and give you new bodies similar to His resurrected and glorified body.
Rose of Sharon
Song of Songs 2:1 I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys. (NIV)
In prophetic and poetic language, Jesus is the groom that will come for His bride, the church. He is a rose that blooms in Sharon, a fertile plain known for its trees and foliage. One of our Christmas hymns, # 645, was originally titled, Lo, how a rose is blooming.”
Servant
Isaiah 42:1 “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. (NIV)
The promised one is called a servant. He came to serve us in order to save us. He was an obedient servant who did everything needed to pay the price for sin. He now calls us to serve Him.
Teacher
John 13:13 “You call me `Teacher’ and `Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. (NIV)
Matthew 7:29 because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law. (NIV)
Jesus didn’t hesitate to have people call Him “Teacher.” He taught with authority, we are told. His parables are perhaps the best examples we have of His teaching. He taught us how we might gain the Father’s favor and eternal life: Only by grace through faith in Him.
Unspeakable Gift
2 Corinthians 9:15 Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift. (KJV)
Jesus is a gift from God that defies description. As God gave us the gift of His Son, we respond to this indescribable, priceless gift to us by giving gifts to each other.
Virgin’s Son
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (NIV)
Matthew 1:23 “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”– which means, “God with us.” (NIV)
Jesus was born a man, true man, yet without sin. He became a man to take our place under the Law, to suffer and die in our place. As one of us, He died for us.
Word
John 1:1, 14 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God . . . The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (NIV)
Jesus is God’s Word of promise made flesh. He came to speak God’s Word of promise and truth to us personally. When you know Jesus, you know exactly what is on God’s mind, you know the WORD.
Xpristos
This is cheating a little bit, since there is no English word that begins with an X. CHRISTOS is the Greek word for Christ, or Messiah, which means the Anointed One. That was the official title of our Lord, the one set aside to save us. This is where we get the symbol known as the Chi-Rho, from the first two greek letters of CHRISTOS, and it stands for Christ.
Yes
2 Corinthians 1:20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God. (NIV)
In Jesus, all God’s promises are YES. Jesus has a perfect record of keeping His promises, so His name is YES and AMEN.
Zeal
Isaiah 9:7 Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, stablishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this. (NIV)
Isaiah 37:32 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant, and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this. (NIV)
John 2:17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” (NIV)
Jesus has a passion to establish God’s reign in our hearts. May His zeal for us and all people become our zeal to win others for Christ.
There are other names that you can come up with for these letters. My purpose in sharing these with you today is to help you grow in your appreciation for all that Jesus did as the one who came to earth to save you. As we once again prepare to celebrate the birth of Alpha and Omega, Branch…..Zeal, may our contemplation on who He is truly help us grow in our faith.
