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 “HIS NAME SHALL BE” Terry R. Baughman “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). “His Name shall Be” — JESUS Names for the newborn are usually chosen with much deliberation. Some will consult lists of popular names, or names that have special meaning, or names of family members several generations removed. All of this for a special name to identify a newborn child. Any name would do but there is the feeling that a name should hold some greater significance. Biblical names have meaning. Names chosen can identify some event that happened at their birth, or a feeling of emotion accompanying the birth, or some attribute of God in praise or worship because of the birth. Rachel died giving birth to a son that she named “Ben-Oni”, meaning, “Son of sorrow.” Daniel means “God is my Judge,” and Ishmael means “God will hear.” With this background of the Hebrew tradition names were chosen with care and selected with intention. Many references in the Old Testament point to the coming Messiah and He was identified by many descriptive names such as: Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6), and the child born of a virgin would be called, “Immanuel,” meaning “God with us” (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23). Though many attributes were identified throughout the Scripture, there would only be one name that would encompass them all. One name would be chosen for the Christ that would forever identify all the attributes of God, all authority vested in Him, and be the source of salvation. However, that one name was kept secret until the fullness of time when it was to be revealed to humanity. The angel Gabriel appeared to Mary, a young virgin of Nazareth with the astonishing announcement, “You will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus” (Luke 1:31). This was the revelation of the ages, the chosen name to identify the God of Glory wrapped in flesh, “The Word became 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” (John 1:14). Shortly after that momentous revelation to Mary, Gabriel appeared to Joseph to confirm this miraculous event and to insure the chosen name would be assigned to the promised child, “She will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). This is the name above all others, “That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, … and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:10–11). The name of Jesus comes from the Hebrew Yeshua or Yehoshua meaning “salvation” or “Yahweh saves.” The angel emphasized that understanding when he said, “He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). The name we proclaim is not just identity, it is the hope of the world and the means of salvation. His name is Jesus! His Name shall Be! Scripture: “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). 
 “HIS NAME SHALL BE”
Terry R. Baughman “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6). “His Name shall Be” — Prince of Peace! Upon the birth of Jesus in a stable in Bethlehem another unusual event took place not far away. Shepherds were living out in the fields during this time of year with their sheep as they moved from place to place seeking the tender fresh grass. On this night an angel appeared to the shepherds proclaiming the good news, “There is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). Then suddenly more angels appeared creating a multitude of the heavenly host. Together they were extolling the greatness of God and said, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:14). This Child born to Mary while a transient in Judea was destined to bring peace! Just previous to this event another miraculous birth took place when John (the Baptist) was born to Elizabeth and Zacharias, a previously barren couple. Zacharias broke forth with a prophetic utterance after he wrote that their child was to be called John. His prophecy concluded with the promise that the coming One from on high would visit to give light to those in darkness and “guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:79). Though the message of Jesus would often spark discourse and division among those who rejected His message, that was not the goal of His ministry. The truth was like a sword dividing those who were in opposition to the message of restoration with God. (See Matthew 10:34–39.) Jesus came to deal with the sin problem that has made us enemies with God. Only through salvation can we find peace, the peace that Jesus came to give all humanity. Jesus described this peace to His disciples before He went away, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27). The peace Jesus brings comes through reconciliation with God. His plan was to provide a path for peace. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life! (John 14:6). On one occasion Jesus slept in the stern of the boat while with His disciples as a storm brewed on the Sea of Galilee. The storm became so intense that these experienced fishermen became fearful for the loss of their lives. They awoke Jesus in desperation. He simply stepped up, “rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace, be still!’ And the wind ceased and there was a great calm” (Mark 4:39). In a world of fearful chaos Jesus is still there speaking peace into our most desperate situations. Not only can He speak with authority over natural forces, but Jesus is supreme over all of the spiritual forces of this world. He is the Prince of Peace. While some may fear our adversary, the prince and power of the air, there is great relief knowing that our God is able to bring peace not only in our atmosphere but in our most vital areas of conflict. He is our peace. His Name shall Be! Scripture: “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:14).
 “HIS NAME SHALL BE”
Terry R. Baughman “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6). “His Name shall Be” — Everlasting Father It might seem strange to name a child Everlasting Father, but this was no ordinary child. This prophesied child was the Son of God, the very God of Heaven who would take on the form of humanity. It would be more than a passing visit or an apparition. His appearance in Bethlehem would not be a temporary theophany. His birth would be the Incarnation, the fusion of God in flesh, deity in humanity. John said, “The Word was God …. and the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:1, 14 NIV). Charles R. Swindoll, in Jesus: The Greatest Life of All, named a chapter, “Deity in Diapers.” Truly this was the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prediction, “The virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Indeed this child was “God with us.” Jesus Christ became the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). According to the writer of Hebrews, God spoke in various ways throughout time, but in the last times He spoke by His Son, “being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person” (Hebrews 1:3). The prophecies proclaimed that the coming One would be the Anointed, a prophet, a ruler, a king, a deliverer, the Son of God, … and a newborn child. While much of the focus of prophecy was on the fulfillment of His purpose Isaiah predicted His beginning, and the truth of who He was. In His humanity Jesus always honored the Father. He prayed to the Father giving us an example to follow. He sought to bring glory to the Father in all He did. He acknowledged that He could do nothing without the Father. Eventually, Jesus revealed the unique oneness He had with the Father, “I and My Father are one” (John 10:30). So inextricably was Jesus one with the Father that when Philip asked if he might see the Father, Jesus responded, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father.” He went on to say, “Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me” (John 14:9, 11). The Father cannot be seen except in the face of Jesus Christ. John wrote, “No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him” (John 1:18). Jesus was born and called Everlasting Father. That name speaks of His eternal quality. In the prayer of Moses declared, “Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God” (Psalm 90:2). Jesus self-identified with this attribute, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, … who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty” (Revelation 1:8). He indeed is the Everlasting! The angel that appeared to Mary proclaimed, “He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:32–33). His kingdom is without end and “His Name shall be … Everlasting Father.” His Name shall Be! Scripture: “Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father’” (John 14:9).
 “HIS NAME SHALL BE”
Terry R. Baughman “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6). “His Name shall Be … Mighty God.” It must have seemed strange to hear the prophecy of Isaiah that a future child to be born in Israel would be called Mighty God. Of all names that could be chosen by prospective parents no one would have been so presumptuous to give their child this name. While people of other cultures might dare to deify children, adding to the plethora of false gods, Israel was not like other nations. Their religion was based on a strict monotheism that forbade worshipping any other deity but the LORD, the one true God. From childhood the descendants of Israel were taught the Shema, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!” (Deuteronomy 6:4). This teaching of the oneness of God was so ingrained in them that no one would dare to proclaim their child to be the Mighty God. However, the same prophet predicted that this child, Mighty God, would also be born of a virgin. It was to be a sign to the people that this was indeed a supernatural conception, an unusual birth, and the miraculous fulfillment of prophecy. He said, “The Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). The interpretation of Immanuel is “God with us.” This infant would be the manifestation of the Incarnation, God in flesh living among us! That’s why the prophet was justified in saying, “His Name shall Be … Mighty God.” No longer would God be viewed as distant and unreachable, with the coming Christ-child He would be both reachable and present with us. Never again could one say that God cannot be touched, or that He is unaware of our feeling. This Divine child was born as The Son of God and lived among us, feeling our pain and experiencing the human condition, while preparing to present Himself as the ultimate and vicarious atonement for the sins of the world. God is with us to save us from our sins, to deliver from the power of darkness, and to give us hope for life everlasting. In the New Testament John gave witness that “the Word became 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” (John 1:14–15). He identified “the Word” as being with God in the beginning and then plainly stated, “the Word was God” (John 1:1). John’s insight into the divinity of Christ was greater than any other Gospel writer. He quoted Jesus declaring, “I and My Father are one” (John 10:30). Yes, Jesus was the Mighty God. When Phillip asked to see the Father Jesus stated, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). Those who follow Christ come to that understanding. They receive this revelation of Jesus, that, “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself” (2 Corinthians 5:19). Paul wrote that, “God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory” (1 Timothy 3:16). His Name is … Mighty God! Scripture: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us” (Matthew 1:23).
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AuthorTerry R Baughman is Lead Pastor for LifeChurch in Gilbert, AZ. See his complete bio at trbaughman.com Categories |
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