After my last post, a friend of mine asked me to write a post on "The Name of The Savior."
( Cue cherubs with banners ala Monty Python style.) Considering that I do occasionally take requests for posts when I get them, and there is a little bit to be said off the cuff on that subject in my head already... I told him I would consider it ( at least I think I did, I'm not sure if that text sent).
A few days later,
The most famous man in history is known by the name Jesus Christ. Some people know Him as the Savior of humanity, others as a Hebrew heretic, some as a swear word when you grab something out of the oven without an oven mitt, even though you knew full well that it was going to burn you and that you do NOT have super human burn resistance powers. If you read pretty much any English Bible the name in the story is going to be Jesus Christ. Fun fact (and part 1 of this post): Jesus is not His actual name. He didn't get held up at Ellis Island, give his name and the guy behind the counter was all, "Eh, not today buddy... its Jesus from now on. NEXT!!" That isn't how it went down.
Don't get mad when I say that His name isn't Jesus because:
1. He's Hebrew, Jewish specifically.
2. There is no J in Hebrew.
We get Jesus from transliteration (No, that isn't the Catholic thing where you eat the wafer and then magic happens and turns it into guts) The best I can explain transliteration is that it is an ancient google translate. You're close, but not the same. This happens when going from Hebrew to Greek to English. It gets tricky.
Them little squiggles are a big deal.
All the disciples have Hebrew names. The name "John," for example equates to Yochanan. The Bible actually outlines Paul's name depending on the language. Paul is Saul of Tarsus. That is where the Jesus part comes from. What about the rest, you ask? You didn't, but I'll tell you anyway.
Christ isn't a name, it is actually a title in Greek that means the Anointed One. When people talk about the anointed one, you get a sense of who they're talking about. Especially since Jesus' real actual Hebrew name is Yeshua... His Name LITTERALLY means God's Salvation. His name, coupled with His title give us "God's Salvation, the Anointed one" There is no H, that part is made up. I guess it could stand for Holy if you really wanted it to. I like to pretend it stands for Herbert because that is funny to me. Not Horacio, Jesus Horacio Christ would make Him exclusively Catholic. That might be racist to say so, please note that was a joke.
Yeah, Yeshua. He has one of those tenseless one- word names like Sting or Prince... but you know, He doesn't suck. God's real name ( if you read the fine print in the front of your bibles that
Now the world has no shortage of people who get all high horsed, haughty, and like to bully people with their intellect. Allow me to emphasize that again, THE WORLD has no shortage of high horsed, haughty, intellectual bullies. For this reason, I find it particularly frustrating when believers, instead of demonstrating the attitude of the Christ, are instead some of the loudest voices in the crowd of obnoxiousness. Allow me to elaborate.
There are people who come to a deeper understanding of God/Yah, His ways, and the Name of the Savior. The information swells in the brain and in many cases can cause a spiritual blindness. With study ( which is great and encouraged to grow stronger in a relationship with God/Yah), there are many who then begin to attack other people who do not hold their enlightened view of God/Yah (which is bad). I know this first and second hand. I've perpetuated and been the recipient of such things. There are even some people ( not me) who go so far to say that believers are worshipping a false god because they do not call Him Yah or Yeshua. That, my friends gets me worked up. That is like a freshman in high school walking into a 1st grade class and calling all the kids morons and idiots, threatening their lives because they don't understand algebra. Never mind the fact that the 1st grade class is focusing on sharing, and learning how to listen to the teacher and foundational precepts that we must NEVER abandon.
Now granted, there is truth and there are things that we learn in some Churches from tutors that are contrary to what the Teacher is teaching. I get that. Truth is important. I try to think of Truth as an anti-biotic. If I were a doctor and I was treating an infection of lies, administering an overdose could kill the patient. But, If I fight the infection treating accordingly and am gentle in waiting for recovery, the infection is cured..
I wasn't serving a false god when I first came to know Him as Jesus. When I called on Jesus for my Salvation, I was calling on my Savior and Yah who is great enough and strong enough to know that I mean Him, and who would lead me into a deeper understanding, the same way you call your mom 'mom' until one day you learn that mom isn't her name.
There is what is true and foundational. There is what is true that is important, but not pressing. Then there are things that seem true but aren't. The fact that people get riled up in a "war on Christmas" for example is something that seems like an important truth but isn't. IF you were looking for the biblical truth of the matter, the practices of Christmas are steeped in pagan traditions and they aren't Holy ( I hope I didn't lose you there). Would I go up to someone who does Christmas stuff and tell them that they aren't saved because they decorated a tree? No, I would not. This is truth that is important but not pressing, in my opinion. That is something for them to work out with God by conviction through the Holy Spirit. It IS worth mentioning the point of the sons of Aaron who decided that they were just going to offer God whatever they saw fit, even though that is NOT what God had instructed. They got smoked for that.
When a person comes to God, they aren't thrown in the role of a priest or pastor. Why? Because you need time to for the Grace of God to work in renewing your mind and heart, tempering you and working out a lot of the sin. Just as I would not tell someone that didn't say Yeshua that they are worshipping a false god because it is not a reflection of what the Bible reflects...
People should not be getting up in arms about a war on Christmas when Christmas isn't even in the bible that those people say that they're following. If you want to go there, Hanukkah has more scriptural support with one verse in John 10:22. It's a bit of a paradox that people of faith are trying to hold the feet of a coffee chain to the fire whose logo is a pagan goddess, yet they don't wish people a good Sukkot, Yom Teruah or Hanukkah.
TL:DR-
People that call Yeshua- Jesus or Christ are no less saved, and people that get outraged over non-Christian stuff not being Christian stuff should probably read their bibles a little bit more.
.... Happy Holidays people.
Psh, I said it.
