John spells out his purpose for writing his Gospel in chapter 20:31, “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” He wanted you to know who Jesus is, believe in Him as He is revealed, and receive Him and the abundant and eternal life He offers.
One way to find out who Jesus is would be to learn His names and/or titles. There’s an extensive list in the Gospel of John. To study His names and titles, start by collecting and writing them down as you read the book. Then correlate this information into an outline. Finally, crystallize what you learn into some applications.
Take the name Joseph and Mary were told to give Him, Jesus. It may surprise you that the name Jesus was a common name for boys in the first century. To some people the name Jesus merely represents a human being born in Israel about two thousand years ago.
When true Christians use the name, they’re referring to the unique one born in Bethlehem, declared by angels to be the Savior of the world, who grew up in the little village called Nazareth. His name, Jesus, is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew name Joshua, which means “God is my Savior” or “Jehovah is my salvation.” This is why Joseph and Mary were instructed to give this name to the child born to them. He would save His people from their sins.
When you add to His name the Greek name for Messiah, the Christ. Thus you have, Jesus Christ, meaning: “My salvation is found in, and only in, the promised anointed One.”
