She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins. (Matthew 1:21)
Hope at Christmas has a name, and that name is Jesus.
When the angel appeared to Joseph in a dream, he didn’t just announce a birth – he declared a mission. “You shall call his name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” That name wasn’t chosen randomly. It was given by God Himself because it tells us exactly why Christ came to earth.
The name Jesus – Yeshua in Hebrew – means “the Lord saves.” Every time Mary called her son in from play, every time Joseph taught Him in the carpenter’s shop, they were speaking a name that declared His divine purpose. For thirty-three years, Jesus wore this name that proclaimed He saves. And that’s exactly what He did.
There were many little boys named Jesus in first-century Israel. It was a common name, taken from Joshua. But there’s only one Jesus who could fulfill what that name truly means. Peter would later declare, “There is no other name given among men by which we must be saved but the name of Jesus.” His name is exclusive. His name is eternal. At the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord!
This is what sets Christianity apart from every religion in the world. Religion is humanity trying to reach up to God through our own effort, our own goodness, our own works. But the Christian faith is God reaching down to us. God came to us in order that we might be saved, because the gift of His grace is something we could never earn or deserve. You might as well stop trying. You can’t do it. Only Jesus saves.
How many of us have called upon the name of Jesus in times of trouble? Times of pain, times of struggle, times of heartbreak? Sometimes it’s the only thing we can breathe when we’re in such grief. Just Jesus. Jesus. And the power of this name and the presence of Christ changes everything. There’s music in the name of Jesus. It fits just right on our lips to say His name.
This Christmas, remember: Jesus came to earth to take us to heaven. But before He can take us to heaven, we must be forgiven. So, He came to forgive us of our sins, to prepare us for eternity with Him. What a wonderful name is Jesus’ name!
THE NAME OF JESUS REVEALS THAT GOD CAME DOWN TO US TO DO WHAT WE COULD NEVER DO FOR OURSELVES.
