The Christ
Son of God|Christ|Prophet|Priest|King

Jesus saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Matthew 16.15,16

What do we mean when we say that Jesus is the Christ? The word "Christ" comes from the Greek word "christos," and means "anointed one." It appears 572 times in the New Testament. Messiah means the same thing, but comes to us from the Hebrew language. The Hebrew word "mashiyach" is translated "messiah only two times in the KJV Old Testament. The remaining occurrences of "mashiyach" are translated by some form of the word "anoint." The Bible uses this word to signify one chosen, equipped and ordained by God to do a specific work for God's people, and is always associated with a work of salvation.

The office of christ (in the Old Testament there were many referred to as "mashiyach's") is a mediatorial office. Paul wrote:

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. (1 Timothy 2.5 )

Job spoke of one who could put his hand on both God and a man as an arbitrator. (Job 9.33) A mediator is a go-between, generally called on to settle a dispute between two parties.

There are three ways in which a christ (messiah) carries out his mediatorial work between God and men.

• As a prophet. A prophet speaks to men in behalf of God. It is necessary that God speak to men for man is ignorant of God and cannot discover Him by natural means.

Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? Job 11.7

Moreover, God must speak to men by a prophet for Man cannot bear to hear directly from God. God's greatness is simply too much for men to bear. So:

God spoke to the fathers through the prophets. (Hebrews 1.1)

• As a priest. A priest speaks to God on behalf of men. In most cases, a priest speaks by way of a sacrifice. However, He also speaks by way of a special form of prayer called intercession. Due to man's sinfulness, nothing man offers to God can be accepted. Therefore, it is necessary that a priest make offerings for him. By sacrifices, a priest turns away the wrath of God and by intercessory prayer he assures that the purpose of his sacrifice is realized.

For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifice. (Hebrews 8.3):

• As a king. God's kings rule for the welfare of His people, protecting them from all enemies. God's people are, by nature, weak, and need a strong one to protect them.

In the Old Testament, the were many little-c christs: prophets, priests and kings ordained by God to save His national people, Israel, from their troubles. But Jesus, the Son of God, is the only "big-c" Christ. He is The Christ. In His person, all three of these mediatorial offices combine in perfection. He is "That Prophet" whom God sent to His people. He is our "Great High Priest," who offered Himself up as a sacrifice to God in behalf of His people and continues to make intercession for them. He is, "King of Kings and Lord of Lords," over all, ordering all things for the glory of His Father and the eternal welfare of His people.

A Christ or Messiah is an anointed one. With what was the Lord Jesus anointed. The Old Testament "christs" were anointed with oil. Was Jesus anointed with oil? There is no record in Scripture of any such anointing. The Lord Jesus was anointed with something far greater than oil - the Holy Spirit of God. As it is written:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me. (Luke 4.18)

It is true that all "christs" received some measure of the Spirit of God in order to enable them to do their work. But f the Lord Jesus it is recorded:

For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
John 3.34

When God gives the spirit to mere men, he does so "by measure," that is, in limited quantity. But the Lord Jesus was given the Spirit without limit. He is infinitely equipped to do the work that God chose and ordained Him to do. He lacks in no respect of "Christ-ness."

Even though The Lord Jesus was and is God in human flesh, He lived his life on earth entirely as a man would, not drawing from His own Divine power, but from the Divine power of the Holy Spirit. Though this is a mystery, yet it is necessary for our salvation that the Lord Jesus lived in this way, for, in order to e a suitable substitute for men, He must live entirely as a man.

Click on one of the above links in order to see articles on Christ's fulfillment of the specific offices of the Christ.