149. What means the name of Jesus given to the Saviour ?
The name of Jesus means God the Saviour. Jesus means Saviour in Hebrew and this name suits Him perfectly because He is the Saviour of the world indeed. And it is perfect because it was not given by men but by the angel at the command of the heavenly Father, Who knew beforehand what wok His Son was to accomplish in the world.
`an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[a] because he will save his people from their sins.` (Matthew I, 20-21).
In the Old Testament Jesus Navi, the successor of Moses who led the people of Israel towards the Holy Land saving them from the wandering through the desert. But he was only a foreshadow of Jesus Christ Who saved the peoples from their wandering through sins and leading them towards the Kingdom of Heaven. He is not any savior, He is the Saviour in the full meaning of the word.
150. What means the name of Christ?
Christ means anointed. At the Jews anointed were the priests, the prophets and the emperors who were anointed with holy oil which symbolized the gift of the Holy Spirit. But they were only images of the true Annointed One, they received only partially the power of the Holy Spirit, as an aid for their ministration. But Christ receives the Holy Spirit Himself. Christ is not God bearer, but incarnated God. He is not anointed as a prophet by divine energy but by the presence of the plenitude of anointment. Saint John Chrysostom says: `All the grace was effused over that temple. Since the Father did not give the spirit sparingly but gave it fully to this temple. We have only a little, a drop from that grace. So Christ is the Anointed in the full meaning of the word, not one of the many anointed ones. He is the highest high priest, emperor and prophet and the spring of all the hierarchs, spiritual leaders and prophets. As we see the name of Christ suits Him perfectly because it was not given by men but by the angel who said to the shepherds: `But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.` (Luke II, 10-11).
Jesus says about Himself that He was anointed by the Holy Spirit as i twas prophesied about Him by Isaiah, the prophet:
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. 🙁 Isaiah 61,1)
The
Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to
proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim
freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. (Luke IV, 18).
151. Christ by the anointment He has from the Holy Spirit is the true high priest, prophet and emperor. Are these ministrations of Christ mentioned in the Holy Scripture and what is their meaning?
The Holy Scripture tells us in many places that Christ received by Anointment from the Holy Spirit the ministration of high priest, prophet and emperor. Saint Paul says that He was the greatest high priest and brought the complete sacrifice, His own body.
By this He cleansed the men of their sins not only prefigured that purification, as the priests of the Old Testament did when they sacrificed animals.
Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. 27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. (Hebrews VII, 26-27).
He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining[a] eternal redemption. (Hebrews IX, 12).
He was the highest prophet bringing the fullest teaching about God, like One Who hadn’t received it from the outside but from His own endless plenitude. That is why nobody can add anything to His teaching. It can only be better understood in the Church. In this meaning He is the last of the prophets who completed the divine revelation.
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. (Deuteronomy XVIII, 15). His disciples call Him `teacher` and Jesus says about Himself : `I am the Truth` (John XIV, 6), `I am the Light of the World` (John VIII, 12), or `In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth.` (John XVIII, 37).
And His royal dignity is prophesied by archangel Gabriel to Virgin Mary :
`The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.`(Luke I, 32, 53).
Jesus Himself says that He is a king but His Kingdom is a spiritual one, with spiritual arms and laws, not resembling those from this world. `My Kingdom is not from this world.`(John XVIII, 36), He answered to Pilate from Pontus. Jesus is the meek king we talked about when we explained the word `Lord`. He is the king lamb that sacrificed Himself for the sin of the world. (Apocalypse V) As King Jesus founded His Church, gave its laws and leads it mystically by His servants to whom He gives His grace and at the end of times He will judge the live and the dead.
