February 8

Rock of Salvation

Jesus Christ, the Son of God. — Mark 1:1

Mark does not intend that there shall be room for mistake concerning the person of our Lord. Each of the names he here uses represents one particular phase of his character.

Jesus means Saviour. “Thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.” None of his names can be sweeter than this. It is enshrined in every Christian heart. This is the name that brings hope into our souls. The first thing we all need is to be saved, and he is the only Saviour.

Christ means the Anointed One. He is the one whom the Father has anointed to be prophet, priest, and king. He is our prophet, our teacher; he is our priest inter ceding for us, having already made himself an offering for our sins; he is our king, and we ought to obey him.

Son of God tells of his divine nature and his eternal sonship. This is the name that gives security to all our hopes and trusts. If he were only a man, he might be very tender, loving, and kind, but could he do for us everything we need? Could a man make atonement for our sins? Could a man put his own life into our dead souls? Could a man fight our battles for us, and rescue us out of the hands of Satan? Could a man be with us in all the ways of toil, sorrow, need, and struggle? Could a man save us in death and bear us through the dark mystery to glory? Could a man stand for us in the judgment? The divinity of Christ is the rock of our hope and our salvation. Our Saviour and anointed King is the Son of God. We can lean upon his breast and know that we are folded about with divinity, that our refuge is the eternal God, and that the arms which are clasped about us are everlasting. In all danger we may rest secure, for the power that would pluck us out of our resting place must be mightier than God’s.