“She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” – Matthew 1:21
Do you know the meaning of your name? If not, I encourage you to look it up. You might be surprised by what you find! For what it’s worth, mine is a derivative of “Nicholas” which means “People’s Victory” (from the Greek nike – victory, laos – people). Many parents-to-be spend a good deal of time searching and thinking about what name to give their child. For Mary and Joseph the task was made a bit easier because they received the help of an angel.
As we hear in the Gospel reading for this Sunday, Mary’s child was destined to be the Savior, and that is why the angel told Joseph name him “Jesus.” This makes sense, since “Yeshua,” the Hebrew version of “Jesus” means “YHWH saves.”
The same Scripture passage also provides us with the meaning of another important title for Christ. The Gospel writer connects the angel’s message to the ancient prophecy from Isaiah: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel” (Matt. 1:23). As the writer explains, Emmanuel means “God is with us.”
And so, in these two titles for the Lord, we can find the entire Gospel. God saves us by being with us. He lowered Himself to become like us in all things except sin (Hebrews 4:15). He became the scapegoat for our transgressions and suffered in our place the death that we deserved. He died, so as to join us in the grave. And He rose from the dead, so that we could join Him in eternal life.
This is the hope that must carry us forward during the final week of Advent. The Lord will not fail to live up to the great meanings of His names. He will come among us once again, to save us, and He will do so, because He loves us.
In fact, He loves us so much that you could add “Love” to the list of His names! Saint John famously said that, “God is love” (1 John 4:8). More recently, Pope Francis has put a new spin on this same sentiment by proclaiming that “God’s name is mercy” (Meditation at the Retreat for Priests 2016).
As such, the best way that we can announce the coming of Jesus, the arrival of Emmanuel this Christmas, is by sharing His other names – love and mercy – and demonstrating them to all those whom we meet.
Come, Lord Jesus, be with us. Save us, and make us instruments of your love and mercy for the whole world. Amen.