2. Jesus –  The rescuer!

But after Joseph had considered this, 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. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).  When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.  Matthew 1:20-25

We all have a name, and our name has a meaning which may, or may not, describe something that is true about us.  My name is Dennis and by looking on the internet, I discovered:

In English the meaning of the name Dennis is: Dionysius is the mythological Greek god of wine responsible for growth of the vines and the originator of winemaking: (equivalent to the Roman god Bacchus.).

Clearly, my name doesn’t describe me at all!  It is just a name that my mother chose because she liked the name, or, maybe it was popular at the time.

In the case of Jesus, His name was no accident, it was a name that fully described the whole purpose of His life on earth.

The angel said to Joseph:  “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. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 

The name ‘Jesus’ was not chosen by Joseph or Mary, it was the name that they were instructed to give Him because the name described why He had come.  Joseph was told to name Him Jesus because he will save people from their sins.  There is clearly a link between the name the child was to be given and what He would do with His life.

The name ‘Jesus’ stems from the Hebrew name ‘Yeshua’ which means ‘God saves/delivers’.  As such, the angel said to Joseph:  “….you are to give Him the name ‘God saves’ because he will save people from their sins.”

Jesus whole life, as revealed in the name He was to be given, was a rescue mission – he came to SAVE people from their sins.  His only focus was on fulfilling this mission and, as His followers, He invites us to Join Him in His Mission!

As Christmas approaches and you reflect upon all that Jesus has done to rescue you and save you from the consequences of sin, reflect also on the mission that He has invited you to join Him in.  This mission was his entire purpose, how much of a priority is it to you?