Jesus – Jehovah Saviour!
“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil 2:9-11)
That Infant to Whom the Name was given those years ago would grow into THE most polarizing figure in human history! His birth would scare the living daylights out of the most powerful of Kings! His miracles would astound crowds of people! His ministry would attract thousands of curiosity seekers as well as seekers of truth! His teachings would challenge the establishment, but would endure for millennia! His call to discipleship would promise nothing but persecution and harsh times, yet would attract millions over the centuries. His critics would blast him for His unorthodox ministry, and eventually take Him to the cross for His execution! His claim to deity would confound many, yet would be so unmistakable when the tomb was found empty! And His followers would spread their new religion all over the known world within a generation! Jesus Christ is a remarkable Individual… and that is the greatest of “under-statements!”
The Bible gives us a larger and clearer picture of who Jesus is through the rich variety of titles attributed to Him throughout the Old and New Testaments. He is known as Lord and Savior. Some call Him the Son of God, but He seemed to prefer the title Son of Man. To the Jews, He was the long-awaited Messiah or Christ. He is the Word made flesh, the Good Shepherd, the Great High Priest. He is the “I AM” and the “Ancient of Days.” He also is known as Immanuel, or “God with us.” To name just a few of the titles which identify Him as God Almighty.
Isn’t it amazing that the God of the whole Universe, when He chose to take on appearance as a man would choose such a common name? You would think He would pick something grander, something more royal, and something more fitting a GOD!
The name is a profound theological statement: It is God’s Promise to Save! In its older Hebrew form, the name literally meant “Jehovah Saviour.” It’s the oldest name known to us that contains, Jehovah, within it; that in and of itself is a testimony to the uniqueness of God as the One in whom mankind can safely trust for salvation! It suggests that there is no one worthy of comparison to Jesus, because He (and He alone) can save! No other name offers what His name promises! That explains why the angel in Matt. 1 told Joseph to name the child Jesus “because He will save his people from their sins.” The angel was telling Joseph that this Child is God’s promise to save mankind from their sins! His name (very literally) is God the Savior!
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12 ) In Luke’s account, he doesn’t bother with the Hebrew names and their meanings– he’s a Gentile and he’s writing to Gentiles and he relates the announcement of the angel to the shepherds out in the field this way, Luke 2:10-11 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. He is SAVIOR! He is CHRIST! And He is LORD!
That claim (made by his very name) is exemplified so clearly in Mark 2:3-12. While Jesus made the direct and unambiguous claim to be God Himself in a number of settings, this is one of the clearest– and one which demands a decision on the part of its witnesses. Jesus was in Capernaum and quite a crowd had gathered to hear Him. Mark 2:4-12.
The man very clearly wanted physical healing… but initially Jesus just told him, “Your sins are forgiven.” But, it’s that statement that brings about the harshest response of those around! “Who are YOU, that you can forgive sins? Only God can do that! Are YOU God?” And so that they would see that He indeed was God and that He indeed DID have that authority. He heals the man… the man picks up his mat and walks! And nobody can believe their eyes! “We’ve never seen anything like it before!”
The two things you can’t miss in this text: Jesus did indeed claim to be God Almighty! No doubt about it! Here Jesus’ critics had their premise right, only they drew the wrong conclusion. They knew that only God had the ability to forgive sins, and they were right. But when Jesus claimed this authority for himself, the choice was clear. Either Jesus was God or he was guilty of blaspheme (on top of being a lunatic.) They chose to believe the latter. They were wrong. There are some today who want to make the claim that Jesus was just a great teacher and that He never claimed to be anything more but they are wrong! Jesus did indeed claim to be God! And either He IS or he IS guilty of blaspheme and pulling the greatest hoax the world has ever seen! Jesus leaves no room for any ‘middle ground’ position on Who He is.
Jesus did indeed claim the ability to forgive sins! And further He proved it by miraculously healing the man… he gave power to back up His claim! If all he had done had been to say, “Your sins are forgiven” and left it at that, His critics would have simply replied, “No they aren’t” and they could have gone back and forth forever! But Jesus told the man to walk and the man walked! If Jesus could do THAT, then He could certainly forgive the man of his sins and ONLY God could do that!
What have YOU decided about Jesus? Is He God? The very name of Jesus proclaims that He is God! The very name of Jesus proclaims that salvation can be found in no other!… there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved!
Anyone having once understood the significance of the Name of Jesus would certainly then understand the command of Peter on the Day of Pentecost when he answered the question with, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sin and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” (Acts 2:38).
In the Name of Jesus—the Name of the One True and Living God!
From Jesus The Savior
-jlg-