Christ Presbyterian Church

Foundations Class

Lesson 4

 

"I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord"--Christology: The Name of Christ

 

I. "Jesus "

A. Origin: Greek form of yeshua' or "Joshua" meaning, "The savior of the Lord"

Numbers 13:16--And Moses changed the name of Hoshea son of Nun to Joshua.

Hoshea means, "a Savior"; Joshua means, "Savior of the Lord" (added root "Jehovah").

Matt. 1:21--She shall bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

 

B. Savior as "Deliverer"

Judges 2:16--[after death of Joshua, the people did what was evil in the sight of the Lord] Then the Lord raised up judges [deliverers ]who saved [delivered ]them out of the power of those who plundered them.

C. Salvation and Deliverance from What and into What?

1. From their sins (freedom from all evil)

a. From the divine consequences of sin: (Romans 6:23). Sin is a personal offense against a Holy God who is our Sovereign Maker. God, in his holiness, repels sin. God is provoked to anger. Anger requires satisfaction. (Dt. 32:16; Joshua 7:1; Dt. 4:24; Ezk.5:13)

 

That God is holy is foundational to biblical religion. So is the corollary that sin is incompatible with his holiness. His eyes are "too pure to look on evil" and He "cannot tolerate wrong". Therefore our sins effectively separate us from him, so that his face is hidden from us and he refuses to listen to our prayers. (Hab.1:13; Is. 59:1)... Closely related to God's Holiness is his wrath, which is in fact his holy reaction to evil... What is common to the biblical concepts of the holiness and the wrath of God is the truth that they cannot coexist with sin. God's holiness exposes sin; his wrath opposes it. So sin cannot approach God, and God cannot tolerate sin.

John Stott, The Cross of Christ

 

b. From the power of sin itself: (Romans Gal. 5:13)

[Sin is] a power of tyrannical domination by which it deprives men of all that liberty and dignity which are worthy of the sons of God and wreathes about their neck a galling and oppressive yoke setting no bounds or measure to their labour, but with the daughter of the horseleech, incessantly crying, "Give, Give!" Herman Witsius

 

2. Into God's blessing and favor. Not simply the absence of evil and its consequences, but the happiness of possessing all good.

1. Participation of a Righteousness by which we obtain a new status with God. (Rom. 5:12-21)

2. Participation of a Righteousness by which we more and more share in the actual glory of God working in us, "in which the glory of the divine image may shine forth." (Eph.4:22-24)

3. Participation in the intimacy with God in grace so that we may have full access unto him (Heb.4:14-19) and full enjoyment of God's love. (Jn.14:23)

4. Participation in the "riches of full assured understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, of Christ." (Col.2:2-3)

5. Participation in the full enjoyment of God in our heavenly inheritance with other believers.

(2 Cor.5:1, Phil. 1:23, 3:21)

II. "Christ"

A. Origin: Greek form of "Messiah", literally meaning, "the anointed one."

John 1:41--"We have found the Messiah (which is translated Christ)"

The Heidelberg Catechism # 31:

Q. Why is he called "Christ" meaning "anointed"

A. Because he has been ordained by God the Father and has been anointed with the Holy spirit to be our chief prophet and teacher who perfectly reveals to us the secret counsel and will of God for our deliverance; our only high priest who has set us free by the one sacrifice of his body, and who continually pleads our cause with the Father; and our eternal king who governs us by his Word and Spirit and who guards us and keeps us in the freedom he has won for us.

 

B. Three "anointed" offices in Old Testament:

1. Prophet: 1 Kings 19:16--"and Elisha... you shall anoint to be prophet in your place"

2. Priest: Exodus 29:7--"And you shall take the anointing oil, and pour it on [Aaron's] head and anoint him."

3. King: 1 Sam. 10:1--"Then Samuel took a vial of oil and poured it on his head, and kissed him and said, "Has not the Lord anointed you to be the prince over his people Israel?"

 

All Anointed with oil to signify the designation by decree and the imparting of the Holy Spirit in order to set them apart and qualifying them for their respective offices. Jesus, the final prophet, priest, and king, was also anointed by the Spirit.

Psalms 2: 2--"The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and his anointed... I will tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to me, "You are my son; today I have begotten you."

Matthew 3:16--"And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, the beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

 

1. Jesus as Prophet:

Acts 3:20ff--"In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer...that he may send the Messiah, appointed for you... Moses said, "the Lord your God will raise up for you from your own people a prophet like me. You must listen to whatever he tells you. And it will be that everyone who does not listen to that prophet will be utterly rooted out of the people..." (see Dt. 18:15ff)

WSC #24: Christ executes the office of a prophet, in revealing to us, by his Word and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation.

2. Jesus as Priest:

Hebrews 4:14, 5:5--"Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God... So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest, but was appointed by the one who said to him, 'You are my Son, today I have begotten you.'"

WSC #25: Christ executes the office of a priest, in his once offering up of himself a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice, and reconcile us to God, and in making continual intercession for us.

3. Jesus as King:

Luke 1:32ff--"He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there will be no end."

WSC #26: Christ executes the office of a king, in subduing us to himself, in ruling and defending us, and in restraining and conquering all his and our enemies.

Sum: To believe in Jesus, the Christ, is to trust in him as savior and to confess him as one's prophet, priest, and king.

 

 

God is provoked to anger.

Dt. 32:16--"They made Him jealous with strange gods; With abominations they provoked Him to anger."

Joshua 7:1--"But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban... therefore the anger of the Lord burned against the sons of Israel."

Dt. 4:24 --"For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. (quoted by NT in Hebrews 12:29)

 

Anger requires satisfaction.:

Ezk.5:13--"Thus my anger will be spent, and I will satisfy My wrath on them, and I shall be appeased, then they will know that I, the Lord, have spoken in My zeal when I have spent my wrath upon them."