Meet Jesus

esus Christ is the reason why Morning Star Christian Fellowship exists. He is the Head of the Church, His body, and is the Lord and Savior of the world. As we saw in session 1, He is also “God in the flesh” (John, chapter 1). This is the meaning of the word “incarnation.” It comes from a Latin word which means “to make flesh.” In Jesus Christ, God became flesh and came into the world.

What can we know about Jesus? There is much to know about Jesus and, in fact, His presence is to be found throughout the Bible. Though the name “Jesus” does not appear in the Old Testament, there are many passages that refer to His coming (more about that later).

The name “Jesus” is a mistranslated Greek word for the Hebrew name “Joshua,” (originally “Hoshea”) or “Jehoshua.” To Jesus’ family and friends, He would have been known as “Yehoshua” (Lord is Salvation), or more likely “Yeshua” (Salvation).[1] Yeshua (Joshua) was a very common name in first century Judaism, so Jesus would not have been the only person in His town to have that name. What distinguishes Jesus from the other “Yeshuas” of His day is that He was known as “Jesus of Nazareth,” which was His home town.

Most of what we know about the life and ministry of Jesus can be found in the gospels[2] – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Each of these gospels was written at a different time, by a different author, for different reasons (we will hear more about this in the session entitled “About the Bible”).

v Jesus was born to a virgin named “Mary,” who was engaged to a carpenter from Nazareth named “Joseph” (Luke 1:26-55; 2:1-20; Matthew 1:18-25).

v He was born in the town of Bethlehem, probably somewhere between the years 6 B.C. and 4 B.C.[3] (Luke 2).

v He was baptized in the Jordan River by His relative, John the Baptist (Mark 1:9-11).

v He called twelve men to be His disciples, beginning with four fishermen[4] (Mark 1:16-20).

v He spent approximately three years of His life in an itinerant ministry, preaching, teaching, healing, performing miracles, and casting out demons (Mark 2 -13).

v He celebrated the Passover with His disciples and instituted the Lord’s Supper (Matthew 26:17-30).

v He was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, while His disciples ran away and left Him (Matthew 26:36-56).

v He was tried by the Sanhedrin (the Supreme Court of Jewish law), condemned to die, and turned over to the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate (Matthew 27:1-26)

v He was laid in a tomb. The tomb was then sealed by a large stone (Matthew 27:57-61).

v He was raised from the dead. He appeared first to Mary Magdalene and some other women, then to the other disciples (Matthew 28:1-7; John 20:19-41).

One of the things we learn as we read about Jesus in the gospels is that not many people really understood who He was and what His mission was about.

“Someone came to Jesus with this question: ‘Teacher, what good things must I do to have eternal life?’” (Matthew 19:16 New Living Translation).

“The entire city of Jerusalem was stirred as he entered. “Who is this?” they asked.

¹¹ And the crowds replied, ‘It’s Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.’” (Matthew 21:10-11 New Living Translation).

“He returned to Nazareth, his hometown. When he taught there in the synagogue, everyone was astonished and said, ‘Where does he get his wisdom and his miracles?’” (Matthew 13:54 New Living Translation).

There are many titles and many “names” given to Jesus. In fact, there are too many to list in a brief study such as this one. You may want to consult a good Bible dictionary to look up some of the names and titles of Jesus. A few of the most important ones to know and remember are:

v Christ. Contrary to what some people believe, “Christ” is not Jesus’ last name. In fact, it is not a name at all, but a title. “Christ” is the Greek word for the Hebrew “mashiah” or “messiah.” Both “Christ” and “Messiah” mean “anointed one.” In early usage, it referred to anyone who was appointed by God to do something for His chosen people. By Jesus’ time, however, people had come to understand the term “Messiah/Christ” to apply to the one whom God would send to deliver His people from the oppression of the Romans who occupied Palestine and ruled over the people of Israel. In other words, the people of Jesus’ day were looking for a Messiah who would be a political and/or military deliverer who would drive out the Romans and set up God’s kingdom on earth. Jesus, however, made it clear that His role as Messiah was not a political or military role: “Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.’” (John 18:36 New American Standard Bible).

v Son of Man. This is a term that has a number of different meanings in the Bible. Sometimes, it is used as a reference to human beings: “What is man that You take thought of him,

And the son of man that You care for him?” (Psalm 8:4 New American Standard Bible). In the New Testament, the term is used almost exclusively by Jesus, and in reference to Himself: “If a person is ashamed of me and my message in these adulterous and sinful days, I, the Son of Man, will be ashamed of that person when I return in the glory of my Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:38 New Living Translation). In the way that Jesus used the term, it came to be associated with His role as the Savior of the world: “Then Jesus began to tell them that he, the Son of Man, would suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the leaders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, and three days later he would rise again.” (Mark 8:31 New Living Translation).

v Savior. The term “Savior” essentially means “one who delivers from danger.” In the Old Testament, it referred primarily to those judges and other leaders whom God had sent to deliver His people in times of crisis. In Isaiah 43:3 it is applied to God in reference to His deliverance of His people from Babylonian captivity.[5] As it applies to Jesus in the New Testament, it refers to Him as the one God sent to save people from their sins: “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit.

19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly.

20 But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

21 “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:18-21 New American Standard Bible).

v Lord. In the Old Testament, the word “Lord” was often used to translate various titles for God (like Adonai, or El Shaddai). It was also sometimes used in a secular sense to refer to one who might be a master or owner of slaves and/or property. Its use as a term for the kingship of Jesus did not come into play until after Jesus was raised from the dead. Then, the Apostle Peter could say with confidence, “So let it be clearly known by everyone in Israel that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified to be both Lord and Messiah!” (Acts 2:36 New Living Translation). So, when we speak of Jesus as “Lord,” we are acknowledging God’s kingly rule in our lives through His Son, Jesus. Or, to put it another way, Jesus is “the Boss” – He is the one who is truly in charge of our lives.

So, what does all this mean to you? When you become a member of Morning Star Christian Fellowship, you will publicly declare your faith in Jesus the Christ as your Savior and Lord. What that means is that you will be acknowledging your belief that Jesus gave up His life on the cross for your sins – as your Savior. You will be submitting to Christ’s Lordship in your life – you will be making a conscious decision to let Jesus direct your life. In other words, you are letting Jesus be “the Boss” of your life. Here is how it works:

“We are made right in God’s sight when we trust in Jesus Christ to take away our sins. And we all can be saved in this same way, no matter who we are or what we have done.

²³ For all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard. ²⁴ Yet now God in his gracious kindness declares us not guilty. He has done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed us by taking away our sins. ²⁵ For God sent Jesus to take the punishment for our sins and to satisfy God’s anger against us. We are made right with God when we believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for us. God was being entirely fair and just when he did not punish those who sinned in former times. ²⁶ And he is entirely fair and just in this present time when he declares sinners to be right in his sight because they believe in Jesus.” (Romans 3:22-26 New Living Translation).

You ask Jesus to come into your life, accepting what He has done for you on the cross.

“But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. ⁹ And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s judgment. ¹⁰ For since we were restored to friendship with God by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be delivered from eternal punishment by his life. ¹¹ So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God—all because of what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us in making us friends of God.” (Romans 5:8-11 New Living Translation).

You ask Jesus to be the Lord of your life and you live every day in accordance with His will and His word, the Bible.

“Jesus said to the people, ‘I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t be stumbling through the darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.’” (John 8:12 New Living Translation).

If you want to be a Christian – a follower of Jesus – and a member of Morning Star Christian Fellowship, and you have never asked Jesus into your life, pray this prayer from your heart:

Dear Jesus, I know that I am a sinner. I have disobeyed God’s law and God’s word. I have made many mistakes in my life. And, most important, I know I have not loved God or other people as I should.

I ask you to come into my life and save me from my sins. Be the Lord of my life and direct me in all I do. I dedicate my life to you here and now. I will follow you all of my days.

Congratulations! You have just made the most important decision of your life! Right now, all of your sins – past, present, and future – are forgiven. God looks upon you as a sinless person because of what Jesus did for you on the cross.

But that’s just the beginning! Now, Jesus will be with you wherever you go and whatever you do. He will strengthen you in times of trouble; He will guide you in times of decision and stress. And, when your life comes to an end on this earth, He will lead you to your heavenly home where you will live forever with Him and all your loved ones in the faith who have gone before you. “Thank God for his Son—a gift too wonderful for words!”

[1] Yeshua is the abbreviated form of Yeshoshua.

[2] When the word “gospel” appears with a small “g,” it refers to one of the first four books of the New Testament – Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. When it appears with a capital “G,” it refers to THE Gospel, or “The Good News,” which is what the word “Gospel” means.

[3] No one is entirely sure of the exact date of Jesus’ birth. In the sixth century, a monk named Dionysius Exiguus attempted to fix the date of Jesus’ birth. He created the A.D. (Anno Domini) system we use today. However, due to some miscalculations, he missed the correct year of Jesus’ birth by about 4 to 6 years.

[4] Jesus’ twelve disciples were: Simon Peter and Andrew, his brother; James and his brother, John (the sons of Zebedee); Philip; Nathanael; Matthew the tax collector (also called “Levi”); Thomas (also called “The twin”); James (the son of Alphaeus); Thaddeus (also called Judas, the son of James); Simon the Zealot; Judas Iscariot (who betrayed Jesus)

[5] In 586 B.C., Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem and carried many of the Jewish people away to Babylonia. They remained there until after King Cyrus of Persia conquered the Babylonians. He later allowed the Jewish people to return to their homeland (somewhere around 538 B.C.).