In case you don’t know it, the famous Christmas song Handle’s Messiah written in 1742 takes most of it’s great verses directly from scripture. For instance, you probably will recognize Isaiah 9:6 as it is quoted in the song. “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
For unto us a Child is born. You know, Jesus could have come to earth with ten thousand angels, fully formed as a mature man. But the fact that He chose to come as a baby speaks not only to the humanity of Christ, but also the humility. There is nothing more humble than a baby. Jesus subjected Himself to all that a baby goes through, their utter dependence, for our sake, and also, I believe, as an example of what is required from us that would enter His kingdom.
And the government will be upon His shoulder. Jesus Christ will rule the earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, two other titles that appear many times in scripture.
Jesus is Wonderful. When we really understand who He is and what He has done for us it should fill us with wonder and amazement.
Jesus is our Counselor. Jesus can help you with your problems because He was one of us and went through what we are going through. “Tempted in all points like we are, yet without sin.” (Heb. 4:15)
Jesus is Mighty God. Equal with God in all aspects. Co author of all creation, the Lord who reigns in heaven, able to speak into being all of creation.
Jesus is the Everlasting Father: The idea in these Hebrew words is that Jesus is the source or author of all eternity, that He is the Creator Himself. “All things were made by Him…” (John 1)
Jesus is the Prince of Peace: He is the One who makes peace between God and man. When we were at enmity with God, Jesus became the arbiter of our peace.
Jesus was a common name in the first century for a Jewish male. It was the common Greek version of the Hebrew names Joshua, Jehoshua, and Jeshua. It means "The Lord (Yahweh) saves" or "The Lord "(Yahweh) is my help. He was named before He was born by the angel who was sent to Joseph. “She will bear a son; and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).
The word Christ is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word for "Messiah" or "anointed one." Christ was the title given to Jesus. Therefore He was Jesus the Christ—Jesus the Messiah. “The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, "We have found the Messiah" (that is, the Christ) (John 1:41).
There is also the title "Lord Jesus Christ." When the word "Lord" is added to Jesus Christ it means, "Yahweh (Jehovah) Jesus the Messiah. " It is speaking of His Deity as God as well as His human name and His title.
There are a number of other names for Jesus as well. The Word. “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (John 1)
The Lamb. “Behold the Lamb of God, who comes to take away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29) Savior. (Luke 2:11)”For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”
But the name I want to dwell on for a minute is the name Son. In God calling Jesus Son we see evidence of His deity, but there is another aspect that really hit me the other day. The name Son reveals something about God’s love. God loved the Son. I remember when Susie got pregnant with my son and the overwhelming love that I had for that little baby when he was born. The absolute pride and joy that having a son brings to a father is just something that has to be experienced to be understood.
And so we get a glimpse of God’s love for Jesus in the title of Son being given to Jesus. Twice the Bible recounts God’s voice bursting out of heaven saying, “This is my beloved Son!” God had all the love and pride in His Son that we have in our children.
But not only did God love the Son with this great, unfathomable love, but wonder of wonders, He loved us also. John 3:16 says, that “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes on Him shall be saved.” Not only did God love the Son, but He loves us also and wants us to be His sons and daughters. It’s like He came to an orphanage and fell in love with you and said I love you so much I will pay whatever price is necessary to make you my child. And so He goes through all the legalities and requirements to adopt you and then gives you all the privileges of being His child.
Do you ever doubt that God loves you? Well, here is the proof of just how much God loved us when we were orphans and outcasts of heaven. He loved us so much that He watched His own Son be beaten, tortured, crucified and murdered in order that He might be able to adopt us. The price of our redemption was the death and punishment of His Son, and God gladly paid it, because His love for us was so great.
Christmas is a time for gift giving and celebration. But let’s always remember that the thing we are celebrating is that God loved us, choose to make us His sons and daughters, and Jesus paid the ultimate sacrifice to purchase us for the Father, so that we might have eternal, abundant, real life with God in heaven.
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