WHO IS JESUS? by Daphne Harrington

Jesus' birth day (the day we celebrate His coming to earth in human form) is celebrated all over the world and his fame has not diminished in 2,000 years. But sometimes the way in which his birthday is "celebrated" is anything but what it should be. Much of the time it is with disrespect. His name is used to sell merchandise. This is the only time of the year when the stores play Christian music and we hear the name of the Lord in the public square. At other times there would
probably be lawsuits over mentioning Christ in these places.

The name of Jesus has been so maligned these past 2,000 years yet, according to the Bible, His name is above all names. Among other things, He is the Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Wonderful Counselor, The Holy One, The Lamb of God, the Prince of Life, The Word of Life, Author and Finisher of Our Faith, our Advocate. He is The Way, the only Begotten Son of God, the Messiah, The Truth, Savior, Lord of All, The Righteous Judge, The Light of the World, The Resurrection and Life, our Horn of Salvation. He is The Alpha and The Omega, The Beginning and The End. These names describe His essence, His character, and His provision for us.

He is not just another prophet. In the Old Testament as well as in the new, there are lists of "begats." These are long lists of family lines, as in Genesis5:3 where it says, "And Adam ... begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth." In the New Testament we are told that Jesus is the only BEGOTTEN Son of God. (Therefore, God begat Jesus - a Sonin His own likeness.) "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring fortha son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us" Matthew 1:23. Jesus is God in the flesh and He was sent to "save His people from their sins" Matthew 1:22.

We, as sinful men cannot come to God, the Holy Father, by ourselves. We must have a mediator and God provided that in His Son. We read in 1 John 2:23, "The man who will not recognize the Son cannot possibly know the Father, yet the man who believes in the Son knows the Father as well"(Phillips Translation) . This thought continues in 1 John 5:11-12.

"...God has given men eternal life and this real life is to be found only in His Son. It follows naturally that any man who has Christ has this life; and if he has not,then he does not possess this life at all."

So Jesus is God's love gift to us. He says, "...the greatest demonstration of God's love for us has been His sending His only Son into the world to give us life through Him. We see real love, not in the fact that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to make personal atonement for our sins" 1John 4:9-10 (Phillips Translation).

Simply put, without Jesus we perish eternally. But by faith in Him, we are forgiven our sins and united with God both now and forever. This Christmas,let' s celebrate Jesus for who He really is.