05 What's In A Name?

05 What’s in a name?

Matthew 1:18-25

The message of Christmas is in His name: Jesus / Joshua – Jehovah Saves – Matthew 1:21 “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” His name is Yeshua – Jehovah Saves.

It is GOD who saves us. It always has been. The name JESUS means saviour / deliverer.

Jesus saves us from our sins. It is our sins that keep us separated from GOD.

The basis of sin is self-centeredness. That’s why we sin. We cannot be Christ-centered if we are self-centered.

It is our sins that ruin our lives, destroy marriages, and bring death and destruction. Our sins condemn us in the sense that we don’t believe in GOD enough to continue in obedience to HIS word. We don’t believe enough to accept His word; we don’t believe enough to accept HIS Son as Lord of our lives.

The message of Christmas is in His name: Immanuel – God with us – 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.” (Isaiah 7:14). GOD In flesh! Immanuel means God with us.

The message of Christmas is that GOD IS WITH US, no longer to be perceived as being against us. Through this Christ, this child, will come the Saviour who will “seek and save that which was lost”, who will die for the sin of the world.

And this will be your sign – problem with signs is that we don’t always heed them or believe them. Yet men always desire a sign.

“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14

God’s name is Jehovah or LORD. Jesus is his earthly name. He is called by many names:

Isaiah 9:6 “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.”

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.”

At Bethlehem we see God WITH us.

At Calvary we see God FOR us

At Pentecost we see God IN us.

Wednesday night we discussed the potential God saw in an insignificant place such as Bethlehem and God used her to bring forth two great Kings; King David and the King of kings, Jesus. I then tried to express the significance of your life in the eyes of God. No matter how little you think of yourself God sees you as significant and you need to know the message of Christmas is that God is with you; God is for you; and God is in you.

John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

“Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?” John 11:25-26.

Christmas is the beginning of the greatest story ever told, the beginning of the greatest deliverance ever orchestrated; “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.” 1 Timothy 3:16.

Without Christmas, (without Bethlehem and the birth of Christ), there would be no Calvary, and without Calvary there would be no Pentecost, and without Pentecost there would be no Way of Salvation, no way of reconciliation with GOD for you and me; there would be no filling of the Holy Ghost in us.

Do not allow the powers of darkness to envelope you and draw you out of the Light of Life during this Christmas season, but rather celebrate the fulfilling of a promise and the coming of the Messiah.

People die every day, but because of the hope you have in Christ you shall never die!

What is the message of Christmas? John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

His name is El Yeshuatenu – God of our salvation.

Do you know HIM?

Is HE lord of your life?

Is HE your Redeemer, Your Saviour?

He can be today – just come down here and give your life to HIM. It’s not about praying a prayer. It’s about surrendering your life to HIM. Come and be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. (John 17:3).