God the Father gave us Himself in the flesh. His name is Jesus Christ. We can read much about Jesus in the New Testament of the Bible. When you read the Old and New Testaments, you will come upon many different names that have been used to refer to God, the Father and Jesus Christ. There is much power in the many names given to God in Scripture. In Scripture it says, “I will reveal my name to my people, and they will come to know its power.” (Isaiah 52:6)
I have not done so, but I would like to take the time someday to read about and learn as much as I can about the names of Jesus and their meanings in Scripture. One of my main reasons for writing this blog entry is to kick-start myself with doing this. What I like about writing a blog entry each Sunday is that I can set time aside for myself (which is okay to do), research information about Christianity and Catholicism, and learn as much as I can about my faith. The information below is what I learned during the process of researching the names of Jesus and the meaning of each of these names. Today is just the beginning of my learning about this. I encourage you to do your own research and learn as much as you can about Jesus’s names and each of their meanings. I will continue to do this after I post this blog entry. Prosit!
Some of the Names of Jesus and Their Meanings
- Jesus: God saves.
- Christ: Anointed.
- Savior: Sacrificing His life for the salvation of humans.
- Redeemer: One charged with the duty of restoring the rights of another and avenging his or her wrongs.
- Bread of Life: We are not spiritually satisfied unless we have Jesus in our lives.
- King of Kings: Jesus is the highest authority.
- Son of the Living God: Jesus is the Only Begotten in the flesh.
- Alpha and the Omega: A designation of the comprehensiveness of God, implying that God includes all that can be.
- Wonderful Counselor: We can trust Jesus to listen to our problems and guide us in the right direction.
- King of Israel: Jesus came as the promised Jewish Messiah, and as a true king to lead His people, the Israelites.
- Rabbi: The one prophet in whom the teaching of Moses was fulfilled and yet superseded.
- Teacher: One who can impart wisdom and truth for life.
- Emmanuel: God with us.
- Lamb of God: God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving us His Son, Jesus Christ, as a sacrifice for our sins.
- Good Shepherd: Jesus is the Only One who can truly protect and save His people – His flock.
- The Word: Jesus was the means through which God the Father brought all physical reality into existence and because He is the One Who represents the Father’s invisible nature and character to that creation.
- Messiah: The One who fulfilled the messianic prophesies in His mission, death, and resurrection, and that He will return to fulfill the rest of the messianic prophesies.
- Son of Man: Jesus aligns Himself with the prophetic figure from prophet Daniel’s vision and emphasizes His dual nature as both human and divine.
- Prince of Peace: Jesus chose to offer Himself as a sacrifice on the cross for our sins so that we can have peace with God.
- Prophet: Jesus was sent by God the Father to speak to the people.
- Son of David: Jesus is a direct descendant of the house of David as a fulfillment of this Old Testament prophecy.
- The Way, The Truth, The Life: Jesus is the only way to salvation, He is the one true God, and He is the way of life (“the living way”).
- Light of the World: Jesus’ example and teachings illuminate the path we should follow to be with Him and His Father in heaven.
- Almighty One: God is omnipotent. He has unlimited power.
- I Am: A self-declaration by Jesus identifying Himself as God.
- Resurrection and The Life: Jesus rose from the dead and He had life after death.