what is it all about:  JESUS! — why should I care about His church?
➟ What does God think of me?

What's in a Name? 

Names were very important in ancient times, particularly in the Hebrew culture. If we examine the names attributed to Jesus Christ we will uncover a great deal about who this man Jesus Christ was.

Jesus 
'Jesus' is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Jehoshua, (Joshua in English). Jehoshua simply means "to save". Jesus' name identifies him as a savior. In the familiar birth narrative we often hear during the Christmas season, angels appear to shepherds and announce:

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:11 ESV)

What is a Savior?
A savior is someone who works to save or rescue another. So who is Jesus saving? To answer that question, we will look to see who the people of Jesus' day thought he was saving. The book of John tells us about
a trip Jesus made through the region of Samaria. He spent two days preaching and teaching there, and we can eavesdrop on a
conversation between the woman who first met Jesus and the townspeople.

Jesus has come to save people from sin...

"'It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed
the Savior of the world.'" (John 4:42 ESV)

By listening to Jesus speak they knew him to be one who would come to save. But from what? Again, we go to another birth account, and again, another angel. This time the angel is in a vision speaking to Joseph, Jesus' soon to be father.

"She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." (Matthew 1:21 ESV)

Jesus has come to save people from sin. Sin is not a maladjustment. Sin is a human act of rebellion -- the created being rejecting a holy Creator. Sin is so tragic, and it's effect so powerful, a savior from God had to be sent to deal with its consequences.

Christ
'Christ' is the New Testament equivalent of the Old Testament term for 'anointed one', also known as the 'messiah.' To be anointed is to be 'set apart' for some specific function or position of authority, including that of a king. In fact, this designation was what the Pharisees and Sadducees hoped to exploit to the Roman government in order to get Jesus executed.

Then the whole company of them arose and brought him before Pilate. And they began to accuse him, saying, "We found this
man misleading our nation and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king." (Luke 23:2)

In short, Jesus Christ is the anointed Savior, one set apart by God to rescue mankind from their sins.