Matthew 1: Who Is Jesus Christ, Really?

Introduction

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor." Stéphane Burgos opens his message at the Assemblée de Dieu de Toulouse Ouest with this text from Luke 4:18, read just before during communion. Jesus was anointed, and anointed for a specific purpose.

In churches we hear many beautiful messages on many themes. But when do we take the time to stop and focus on Jesus himself? While preparing his sermon, the pastor had first written a message on a healing miracle. His heart was not at peace. As he kept praying, he understood that the Lord wanted to show him Jesus. "Jesus saves, but it is Jesus who saves. Jesus heals, but it is Jesus who heals."

So that morning he speaks "about Jesus, and Jesus alone": Jesus Christ, God who saves, the Messiah, the Son of God, the son of David and of Abraham, the Shiloh, the King and Priest, and Jesus Christ in the Trinity.

Message Outline

1. Jesus, the God Who Saves

The angel says to Joseph: "She shall bear a son. You shall call his name Jesus, for it is he who shall save his people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21). In Hebrew, Yeshua; in Greek, Iesous. The name means "the LORD saves," "God saves."
Other men in the Bible bore this name: Jesus called Justus, a companion of Paul, ancestors in the genealogy of Jesus, the priest Joshua, and Joshua son of Nun, the successor of Moses.
Joshua is only a shadow; Jesus is the reality. Joshua led the people across the Jordan; Jesus brings us through death. Joshua led Israel into the land of Canaan; Jesus leads us into the presence of God.
In the Bible, a name is never given by chance. The name of Jesus tells his mission. He did not come only to improve your life or bless you materially: he came to do what no one else could do in your place, to save you from your sins.
Some debate the right pronunciation: Yeshua, Jesus, Jesús. For the pastor, what matters is not the pronunciation but the one you call on. "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved!" (Acts 4:12).
The real question is: do you know him? You can say and sing his name a thousand times without knowing him. When you truly meet him, your life is transformed.

2. Jesus, the Messiah

Jesus is his name, Christ is a title. Christ comes from the Greek Christos, which translates the Hebrew Mashiach: the Messiah, the anointed one.
Andrew tells his brother Simon: "We have found the Messiah!" (which is, being interpreted, Christ) (John 1:41). The one the prophets announced, the one Israel had awaited for generations, is here. The Samaritan woman was waiting for him too (John 4:25).
In the Old Testament, anointing was given for three roles: king, priest, and prophet. Jesus unites all three at once.
The pastor mentions the song "Yeshua HaMashiach." The little word "Ha" makes all the difference: Saul or David could be called "an anointed one," but Jesus is "the" Messiah, the only one.
Moses had announced that the LORD would raise up a prophet like him, and that the people must listen to him (Deuteronomy 18:15). Moses came with the law; Jesus came with grace.
Knowing Jesus leads to humility. John the Baptist, whom the crowds followed, said: "the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and loosen" (Mark 1:7) and "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30).
If you serve God with a need to be seen, applauded, or thanked, you have not yet understood who Jesus is. The more you discover his greatness, the more you accept being small.

3. Jesus, the Son of God, Son of David and Son of Abraham

Before the high priest, asked "whether you are the Christ, the Son of God," Jesus answers: "You have said it" (Matthew 26:63-64). The high priest tears his clothes: to say "I am the Christ, the Son of God" is to say "I am God."
Jesus is not merely an inspired man or merely a servant of God. To say "Jesus Christ" is to say "Jesus, Son of God."
Matthew, who writes for the Jews, opens his Gospel this way: "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1).
Son of Abraham, because the promise made to Abraham, "in you all the families of the earth will be blessed" (Genesis 12:3), is fully fulfilled in Jesus Christ, not in Isaac or Ishmael.
Son of David, because the promised Messiah is a king. The blind man of Jericho does not cry "Jesus of Nazareth" but "Jesus, you son of David, have mercy on me!" (Mark 10:47). Jesus is the lion of the tribe of Judah, the shoot from Jesse, the heir to the throne of David.

4. Jesus, the Shiloh

"The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; and to him will the obedience of the peoples be" (Genesis 49:10). According to the pastor, this is the only verse in the Bible that speaks of the Shiloh, the one who comes with peace.
It is Jacob who prophesies here, at the end of his life, with his sons gathered around him.
The pastor opens a parenthesis for fathers, grandfathers, and mothers too: before we leave, we are called to leave our children far more than money or material goods: promises, prophecies, and good things for their lives.
Jesus Christ fulfilled this word. He is the King of peace, the king of Salem. He did not just come to earth: he reigns forever, and his reign will have no end.

5. Jesus, King and Priest

In Israel, the tribe of Judah held the kingship and the tribe of Levi the priesthood. Jesus is both: "You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek" (Hebrews 7:17). Melchizedek, king of Salem, was also priest of God Most High (Genesis 14:18).
Today, Jesus is at the right hand of the Father and intercedes for you: that is his priesthood. When he says "All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth" (Matthew 28:18), he speaks of his kingship.
He is exalted, and at the same time he humbled himself. He is king, and he washed his disciples' feet. He is the perfect king and the perfect priest.
He has made us a royal priesthood: "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession" (1 Peter 2:9). On the priesthood side: praying, interceding, worshiping, consecrating yourself, pursuing holiness. On the kingship side: exercising authority, taking responsibility, living according to God's justice, influencing those around you, managing what God has entrusted to us.
If you only have the priesthood, you lack the kingship. If you only have the kingship, you lack the priesthood. Without both, we are unbalanced, because our model is Jesus Christ.
We were in darkness; we are called to proclaim the excellencies of the one who called us into his marvelous light. Being children of God creates obligations toward the Lord.

6. Jesus Christ and the Trinity

The Trinity can give you a headache if you try to understand it with the intellect alone. For the pastor, we understand God by the spirit. That is why Sunday school children sometimes say who God is better than highly educated adults.
The word "Trinity" is not in the Bible, that is true. But the reality is seen there: the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Father, the Holy Spirit is neither the Father nor the Son; the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God.
The Holy Spirit is a person: he can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30), he has a will since he prevents Paul from going into Bithynia (Acts 16:7), he teaches (John 14:26), he speaks to Philip (Acts 8:29).
He is God: Peter tells Ananias that he lied to the Holy Spirit, then that he lied to God (Acts 5:3-4). To be God is to be omnipresent, omniscient, and almighty, and the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit meet these conditions.
Three gods, then? No. "At Toulouse Ouest, we believe in one God." Created in his image, we have a body, a soul, and a spirit, and yet we are one being. On the ceiling, several sources of light, but one single light.
At the baptism of Jesus, the Trinity is made visible: the Son in the Jordan, the Spirit descending like a dove, the Father speaking from heaven: "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:16-17).

7. Seek to Know Jesus

"We have said many things about Jesus, and at the same time almost nothing," because he is far greater than anything that can be said in a few minutes.
The heart of the message: seek Jesus, spend time in his intimate presence. The more you know him, the more you see how much there is still to know of him. The more you taste his presence, the more you long for it.
He is too great for our words, too deep for our understanding, too glorious for our reasoning. And yet he is close enough to dwell in us by his Holy Spirit, to love us, and to take us by the hand.
The pastor ends with a confession: "I love Jesus Christ. He truly is the Lord of my life."

Key Takeaways

The name of Jesus means "God saves": he came to do in your life what no one else could do, to save you from your sins.
Christ is not a family name, it is a title: Jesus is the Messiah, at once king, priest, and prophet.
Knowing Jesus better makes you humble: "He must increase, but I must decrease."
Jesus, King and Priest, has made you a royal priesthood: prayer and authority, holiness and responsibility go together.
Jesus is greater than anything you can imagine, and close enough to dwell in you.

Personal Application

Do you know Jesus personally, or only his name? What has changed in your life since you met him?
When you serve God, do you look to be seen, applauded, or thanked?
In your life, which dimension is weakest: prayer and worship, or authority and responsibility?
What are you passing on to your children or those close to you, besides material goods?
How much time will you set aside this week to seek intimacy with Jesus?

Verses Cited

Frequently Asked Questions

What does the name of Jesus mean?

In Hebrew, Jesus is Yeshua, and in Greek Iesous. The name means "the LORD saves" or "God saves." For Stéphane Burgos, this name announces the mission of Jesus: he came to save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). Whatever the pronunciation, what matters is the one you call on.

Is Christ the family name of Jesus?

No. Jesus is his name, Christ is a title. Christ comes from the Greek Christos, which translates the Hebrew Mashiach, the Messiah, the one who received the anointing. In the Old Testament, anointing was given to kings, priests, and prophets. Jesus unites all three roles at once.

What does "royal priesthood" mean in 1 Peter 2:9?

Jesus is king and priest after the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 7:17), and he has made those who follow him a royal priesthood. For Stéphane Burgos, the believer therefore lives both dimensions: prayer, intercession, worship, and holiness on one side, authority, responsibility, and justice on the other.