For those who would say the the word ‘Jesus’ is false . . .
The Creator of the universe ( God The Father, God The Son and God the Holy Spirit – all of whom were there) has many ‘names’, some of which are titles, some are monikers, and all are descriptive and illustrative of ‘Who God Is’.
But what is a ‘name’? Dictionary.com says it is ‘a title given to something or someone.’ The FreeDictionary.com says ‘name’ is ‘a word or combination of words used to distinguish a person, thing, or class from others.’ Webster says ‘name’ is ‘a word or set of words by which a person, animal, place or thing is known, addressed or referred to.’ And though all of these are correct, we know ‘name’ means much more.
In addition, ‘Name’ refers to the ‘legacy, reputation, sovereignty, authority, right and power of the One who carries the Name’. Growing up in the south, we understand the concept of our actions impacting ( either negatively or positively) the ‘family name’, or the reputation and legacy of that name. So, in reference to The Creator of the universe, His Name is not only that by which He is known, addressed or referred to, but rather, His Name also refers to His legacy, power, reputation, sovereignty, authority and the right to be called by those titles and monikers.
So, the debate seems to be whether or not ‘Jesus’ is a false name or a legitimate transliteration of the Hebrew ‘Yeshua’. There is overwhelming evidence from multiple sources to support the legitimacy of the transliteration and transition of ‘Yeshua’ in Hebrew to ‘Jesus’ in the English. We are not going to redo the homework on that subject, since it is readily available with just a little research.
By the way, on the concept of ‘another Gospel’, ( a phrase he uses in Corinthians and Galatians) Paul is very clear. Anything beyond ‘salvation by grace through faith alone in Yeshua of Nazareth’ is ‘another gospel’. Acts 15:1 is a perfect example of ‘another gospel’.
But on to the subject of using the word ‘Jesus’ . We would agree, damage and false teaching have been brought about by the ‘denominational system’ down through the centuries, (along with much good) and it was performed in ‘Jesus Name’. But the damage and the false was not due to a ‘name’, but rather bad doctrine, poor discipleship and not being properly grounded in the full counsel of God’s Word.
Most all understand and agree, the One we call Jesus is the One promised by our Father, born of the woman Mary, baptized by John, crucified on the day of the Passover, resurrected on the 3rd day, ascended to the Father, witnessed by many, taken up in a cloud to return at an appointed time at the end of the last days. He is the Promised Messiah of Israel. Just because we, down through the centuries, have taught things about Him that are not accurate, and/or taught things ‘in His Name’ that are incorrect and erroneous, does NOT change the fact, truth and nature of Who He is. Just because someone speaks incorrectly concerning a matter or another person, does not change the truth of that person or matter.
Whether Jesus in English, Hesus in Spanish, Isa in Kurdish, Iesu in Japanese, uJesu in Zulu, or Yesu in Swahili, all are calling on The One Who went to the cross and came out of the tomb, the Lamb of God, the One Who takes away the sin of the World. Speaking something in error concerning Him or His teaching, does NOT change the Truth of His Word and the nature of Who He is and what He came to do.
So, in response to the statement, ‘call Him whatever you want’ (a statement made by us in one of our teachings), that statement was made in reference to the recognized monikers by which He is called. And, depending on your language, culture and those to whom you have been called to minister, we suggest all to pray, study, allow the Spirit to land you on a version of ‘the name’ to use, and then move forward with our Father’s business. Rhonda and I (like many) called on the name of Jesus and He answered and saved us from our sins. To proclaim the word ‘Jesus’ to be false, calls into question the salvation and eternal destination of every English-speaking person down through time that have called on Him in faith. If ‘Jesus’ is false, then every English-speaking sinner, that had no knowledge of or access to Hebrew, was left without a means by which to call upon the One Who would pay the price for their sins. God created the languages. A righteous, equitable and merciful God would not leave you in a language without a ‘word’ by which to call upon the One sent to reconcile you and save you.
‘For whosoever shall call upon the name – the legacy, the reputation, the sovereignty, the right, the authority and the power – of The Lord shall be saved.’
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