Some constant questions are: Why, in Matthew 1:21, does it say Jesus will save us from our sins, yet in Luke 2:11, it says Christ the Lord is our Savior? But Luke 2:30, Priest Simeon called Christ God’s Salvation, so how does Jesus save us from our sins, when Christ is our Savior and Salvation?
Isaiah 37:4 calls the Lord of hosts, the Holy One of Israel, our Redeemer; Isaiah 63:16 calls Father God our Redeemer from everlasting, and yet 1 Corinthians 1:30, says God made Christ Jesus to become our Wisdom from God—righteousness, sanctification, and redemption; thus, we glory in the Lord, so is God, Jesus, or Christ, our Redeemer and Redemption.?
As our Savior, Jesus had to die to save us from sin, but He as the resurrected Christ, as our Salvation, never has to die again to forgive sins we commit along the way, and likewise, as our Redeemer, Jesus had to die to purchase us from the kingdom of darkness, so God could place us in the kingdom of Jesus, the resurrected Christ, the Son whom He loves (Colossians 1:13-14); as our Redemption, He never has to die again, for as long as we remain in Christ, we are safe.
These excellent questions need biblical answers, and Ephesians 4:1-8 assures us there is one God, one Lord, one Spirit, one faith (Romans 12:1-3; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 John 5:4-5), one baptism (Matthew 3:11-12; 1 Corinthians 12:12-14), all from the same God or Godhead—Father, Son (Word—1 John 5:7), and Holy Spirit, for they are One (1 John 5:7).
Ephesians 4:1-8—1 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. 2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. 3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. 4 For there is one body Christ’s body, the church) and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. 5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 and one God and Father, who is over all and in all and living through all. 7 However, He has given each one of us a special gift through the generosity of Christ. 8 That is why the Scriptures say, “When He ascended to the heights, He led a crowd of captives and gave gifts to His people.”
Jesus, in John 12:23-26, explains how He, the incorruptible Seed (1 Peter 1:22-23), the living Word (Hebrews 4:11-13), must die and then, as 1 Corinthians 15:12-19, and 35-38, be resurrected as Christ, unlike Jesus, the planted Seed, for Mary Magdalene , in John 20:11-18, did not recognize Jesus, the resurrected Christ, and neither did the disciples, in Luke 24:1-53, until He broke and bless bread, and until He opened their understanding of the scriptural promises.
In the Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—our Lord is called Jesus or Jesus Christ, but in the Epistles (formal letters), He is called Christ or Christ Jesus, but in Revelation, He is called Jesus Christ, because most of Israel has not accepted Jesus, the resurrected Christ, as their Messiah; however, in Romans 11, where the Apostle Paul explains Israelites are the “natural” olive tree and Gentiles are the “ingrafted” olive tree, for Romans 11:25-27 says Israel is now blind to who Jesus, the resurrected Christ is, and will be “until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in” or until every Gentile that can be saved, is, and then “Jesus Christ, the Deliverer”, or “the Current Messiah” “comes out of Zion (Jerusalem), and then He will reveal Himself to the Israelites that are still alive after the tribulation, forgive their sins, and make them legal members of His body, and these will be “the gleanings”, after the “first fruits” in Matthew 27:45-52; the “bulk or main harvest” in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; thus, all things will be complete.
In agreement with Scripture, do not assume once the “fullness of the Gentiles has come in”; and Christ comes to midair to call His bride-body-church, to come up, where He is, and the tribulation period begins, that Gentiles can get right with God, through Christ Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, for then God will only be preparing the remnant of Israelites for His second coming to earth, and their salvation, so if you plan to ever become a Christian, a member of Christ’s body, the church, do it now, for any day now you might be left here to face the seven-year tribulation.
God has given you plenty of time and warning, so you will be without excuse if you do not.
Jim Nabors
