-- Mark 8:29
Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.
-- Acts 2:36
Most of us are so familiar with the title "Christ" that we may think it is Jesus' last name. But what exactly does it mean? Like "Messiah," "Christ" means the "anointed one." The phrase "anointed one" refers to someone who has been set apart for a special mission. That was how the first Christians thought about Jesus, as Israel's Messiah.
The Jews had been waiting for years and years for the promised Messiah. When Jesus began His public ministry, He was recognized by His followers as the Messiah, the Christ. But what He did wasn't in line with what they thought the Messiah would do. The Jewish people were under the rule of Rome and they hated it. Their hope was that the Messiah would be a powerful political and military figure who would overthrow Rome and restore Israel to its glory days under King David.
What they couldn't understand was that God wasn't as interested in their current status as He was in their eternal status. God knows that what we all need saving from the most isn't from another person but from the sin that holds us captive. We need to be saved from the sin that will sentence us to eternity separated from God.
That's what Jesus, the Messiah, came to do...to rescue us from sin. And that's one of the reasons why they crucified Him. Jesus didn't live up to their wrong expectations of what the Messiah ought to be. They didn't understand, until He rose from the dead, that He saved them from so much more...from an eternity in Hell, separated from God. Jesus was anointed, given the mission, to put an end to our deepest troubles - to rebellion, sin and death. When we pray to Jesus Christ, we are praying to the Messiah, the Anointed One, whose mission involves calling the world back to God through the power of His love.
Discuss: Talk about the name(s)/title(s). What does it mean to be "anointed"? What are some examples of "anointing" in the Bible?
Prayer: Jesus, my Messiah, I praise You for triumphing over the powers of sin and death. Thank you for allowing Yourself to be raised up on a cross and then raised from the grave. Cover me with Your forgiveness, and fill me with Your Spirit so that my one purpose will be to glorify You now and forever. Amen.
Songs: Jesus, Messiah by Chris Tomlin, Joy to the World
Craft: You could build a nativity scene with your child(ren). The nativity is the beginning of Christ’s earthly walk.
Service Project Idea: For the student who accepted Christ as their Savior they can share their testimony
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