His name was Jesus ; the word “Jesus” in Hebrew means, “God saves.” The Archangel Gabriel gave this name to St. Mary: “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.” (Luke 1:31). The angel of God appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matt. 1:20–21).
This name expresses His person and His mission . Regarding His person, He created Adam in His image, according to His likeness (Gen. 1:26). But Adam lost this likeness and his nature was corrupted by his sin, for he disobeyed the command. There is no one in heaven or on earth who is able to forgive sins except God. There is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12, 9:14; James 2:7). Thus, Jesus, who is God, is the one who saves; through His incarnation He became a human being who gathers the faithful into Himself and grants them forgiveness (John 3:18; Acts 2:21; 5:31; Rom. 10:6–13).
He was also called the Christ or the Messiah , meaning, “the anointed one.”
In the Old Testament, there were three categories that were considered “the Lord’s anointed”: kings; priests; and sometimes prophets. The anointed king from the tribe of Judah
311 Cf. Gregory of Nyssa: Homilies on Ecclesiastes , ed., Stuart George Hall, trans., Stuart George Hall and Rachel Moriarty, (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter & Co., 1993) Fourth Homily on Ecclesiastes 335:11: pp. 73– 74.
312 St. Gregory of Nyssa, In Sanctum Pascha, in The Easter Sermons of Gregory of Nyssa: Translation and Commentary , eds., Andreas Spira and Christoph Klock, Patristic Monograph Series 9 (Cambridge: Philadelphia Patristic Foundation, 1981): pp. 8–9.
was not permitted to perform the role of the priest, since he was not a descendant of Aaron, who was of the tribe of Levi. And once a king was anointed, no other person could become king, unless the king became corrupt and was rejected by God, as was the case with King Saul (1 Sam. 16:1).
As for Christ the Lord, He is the King of kings (Rev. 17:14) who makes the faithful to be kings and priests of God His Father (Rev. 1:6, 5:10). He Himself is the heavenly High Priest (Heb. 7:26) who alone is without sin, who does not need to offer sacrifices for Himself as Aaron did (Heb. 5:3). At the same time, He reveals the mysteries of the heavenly kingdom to the faithful and grants to them to experience an earnest of heaven. This divine heavenly King came not to be served but to serve and to give Himself as a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28). His service is manifest when those who believe in Him receive the life of communion with Him by His Holy Spirit, and so come to bear His resemblance. He was anointed to proclaim His kingdom on the cross (Acts 2:36). In this proclamation, the right hand thief delighted, and witnessed of Him: “Remember me O Lord when You come in Your kingdom” (Luke 23:42).
St. Cyril of Jerusalem says, “For He is called a Door (John 10:7, 9); but do not take the name literally for a thing of wood, but a spiritual, a living Door, discriminating those who enter in. He is called a Way (John 14:6), not one trodden by feet, but leading to the Father in heaven; He is called a Sheep (John 1:29; Isa. 53:7–8; Acts 8:32), not an irrational one, but the one which through its precious blood cleanses the world from its sins, which is led before the shearers, and knows when to be silent. This Sheep again is called a Shepherd , who says, ‘I am the Good Shepherd’ (John 10:11): a Sheep because of His manhood, a Shepherd because of the loving-kindness of His Godhead. And do you know that there are rational sheep? The Saviour says to the Apostles, ‘Behold, I send you as sheep in the midst of wolves’ (Matt. 10:10, 16).
“Again, He is called a Lion (Gen. 49:9; Rev. 5:5), not as a devourer of men, but indicating as it were by the title His kingly, and steadfast, and confident nature: a Lion He is also called in opposition to the lion our adversary, who roars and devours those who have been deceived (1 Pet. 5:8). For the Saviour came, not as having changed the gentleness of His own nature, but as the strong ‘Lion of the tribe of Judah’ (see Rev. 5:5), saving them that believe, but treading down the adversary. He is called a Stone , not a lifeless stone, cut out by men’s hands, but a ‘chief corner-stone’ (Isa. 28:16; 1 Pet. 2:4–6), on which ‘he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.’”313
The Fathers cited
- St. Cyril of Jerusalem