Thou Shalt Call His Name Jesus

Matthew, the first chapter, let
me read the text, verse 21. Matthew 1, 21, And she shall
bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall
save his people from their sins. Now Mary was engaged to be married
to Joseph. Both Mary and Joseph were of
the house and lineage of King David. This gives us some idea
of how low the house of David had fallen. If you look at verse
20, you'll find when the angel appeared to Joseph, he called
Joseph the son of David, the son of David. Both Mary and Joseph
were of the house and lineage of David. Joseph was a very poor
carpenter, and Mary was a very poor maiden of a village called
Nazareth, but they were of the house and lineage of David. And
Jesus Christ, by right and by birth, and by being of the son
of Mary, was in direct line for the throne of David. Now, in
Matthew, the first chapter, you have the genealogy of Joseph,
who was, as supposed, the father of Christ. But in Matthew, chapter
one, you have the house and lineage of Joseph, which goes through
David. And then in the third chapter
of Luke, you have the genealogy of Mary, If you'll check that
later, you'll find that both Mary and Joseph were of the house
and lineage of David. Now, Mary was found to be with
child. Before Joseph married her, they
were engaged to be married, but she was found with child. She
was three months pregnant when the angel appeared to Joseph.
Joseph had discovered this. And the scripture says Joseph,
being a just man and not willing to make her a public example,
by the law of Moses, Mary was supposed to have been stoned
for committing fornication. But Joseph, not willing to make
her a public example, thought about giving her a bill of divorcement
before they came together, and to do it privately. But the Scripture
says in verse 20, while he thought on these things, while Joseph
considered what to do about Mary, not to make her a public example,
to put her away privately, to disannul the engagement, to give
her a bill of divorcement, while he thought on these things, the
angel of the Lord appeared to him. And the angel of the Lord
said, Joseph, thou son of David, Fear not to take unto thee Mary
thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is not of man, it is of
God, it is of the Holy Ghost. And Joseph, she shall bring forth
a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus." Jesus' name of all
names above, Jesus' best and dearest Jesus, fountain of perfect
love, holy, tenderest, and dearest. Jesus, source of grace completed. Jesus, Savior all-divine. Jesus, holiest, sweetest. Thine is the name, and only Thine. Thou shalt call His name Jesus. I'd like to give you this morning
several reasons why his name was called Jesus. The first is
found in our text, verse 20. And thou shalt call his name
Jesus, for this is the reason, because he shall save his people
from their sins. Now, the name Jesus means Savior. We name children today, usually
we name them for a well-beloved relative or friend. But back
in Bible days, most of the children received their names because
of what the name meant. The name Jesus means Savior. The name Jesus means Savior. It was worn by Joshua in the
Old Testament. Joshua is the Hebrew word meaning
Savior, and Jesus is the Greek word meaning Savior. They mean
the same thing, Joshua in the Old Testament, Jesus in the New. Now let me show you that. Turn
to the seventh chapter of Acts. In Acts chapter seven, verse
forty-five, now look carefully at this and you'll see what I
mean. Now this is an important point. When the angel said to
Joseph, Thou shalt call his name Jesus, it meant something to
Joseph. Thou shalt call his name Jesus,
which is Joshua, which means Savior." Joshua and Jesus meaning
the same thing. Now listen to Acts 7.45. See
if you can interpret this. Let's read verse 44 and 45. Acts
7.44 and 45. Our fathers had the tabernacle
of witness in the wilderness, as he had appointed. speaking
unto Moses that he should make it according to the fashion that
he had seen, which also our fathers that came after brought in with
Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles, which God drave
out before the face of our fathers under the days of David." Can
you interpret that? Well, now, if you have one key,
you can interpret it. The word Jesus there is Joshua. He's not speaking of the Lord
Jesus Christ at all. He's speaking of Joshua of the
Old Testament. Joshua who took over when Moses
died and led the people into Canaan to possess the land. Now
read it with the word Joshua instead of Jesus. Now go back
to verse 44 and listen to it. Our fathers, our ancestors, had
the tabernacle. That was the tabernacle in which
they worshipped, the Holy of Holies and the holy place where
the atonement was made, where the blood sacrifices were offered.
Our fathers had the tabernacle in the wilderness as God appointed,
speaking unto Moses, telling him that he should make that
tabernacle according to the fashion that he had seen that God had
shown him, according to the blueprint, the design that God gave him,
which also our fathers that came after brought in, they brought
the tabernacle into Canaan. They had it in the wilderness,
they crossed the Jordan, they took it into the Canaan. They
brought in with Joshua into the possession of the Gentiles. They
drove out the Amalekites, they drove out the Canaanites, they
possessed the land, and Joshua took the tabernacle which Moses
had made with the people right into Canaan. So the word Joshua
is Savior, and the word Jesus is the same word. Now turn to
Hebrews 4. Now here's another time that
it's used. Hebrews chapter 4. And this is
a verse that you cannot interpret at all without the word Joshua,
because the word Jesus is used, and the Lord Jesus Christ is
not spoken of at all here. In Hebrews 4 verse 8, now watch
this. For if Jesus had given them rest,
then would he not afterwards have spoken of another rest.
When Jesus Christ did give us rest, he gave us the eternal
rest, he gave us the perfect rest, coming to me and I'll give
you rest. But this is not Jesus Christ at all here. That's not
who Paul's talking about when he wrote the book. of the Hebrews. In verse 8 it says, Joshua, and
some of you who have a Bible with a center reference have
it marked. There's a little figure beside
Jesus, and it says in the center reference, Joshua. Now here's
what he's saying. When Joshua took the children
of Israel into Canaan, after Moses led them across the wilderness
And Moses died, and they came to the Jordan, and Joshua led
them in, led them into the place of rest, into Canaan, into the
land that God gave them. If this was the eternal rest,
if this was the perfect rest, then he would not have spoken
of another rest to come. If Joshua had given them rest,
then would God not have spoken of another day to come. So what
we're saying is this. when the angel came to Joseph,
and said to him, Joseph, don't be afraid to take unto you Mary
to be your wife. For that which shall be born
of her is of the Holy Ghost, and thou shalt call his name
Joshua." Thou shalt call his name Joshua, which is the Greek
word Jesus, which means Savior. knew what that angel was saying. And he knew because he knew what
Joshua had done. What did Joshua do? Well, first
of all, why couldn't Moses take the people into the Promised
Land? Now, most of you who know a little bit about God's Word
know that Moses, God sent him down into Egypt. Moses was 80
years of age. He spent 40 years in Egypt. training
in the best schools of Egypt, the son of Pharaoh's daughter.
He spent 40 years on the backside of the desert keeping sheep for
his uncle. And then when he was 80 years
of age, God sent him down into Egypt to deliver his people.
He brought them out of Egypt, he came to Sinai, and there God
gave him the law. The law came through Moses. There
God gave him the design for the tabernacle, there God gave him
the sacrifices and the tithes, and all of these ceremonies picturing
Christ. Now after forty years of wandering
in the wilderness, they came to Canaan, the land of milk and
honey, the land of rest, the land of joy, the land which typified
the rest of God's children, which typified heaven. which typified
eternal glory, which typified eternal rest. Moses died, and
Joshua took him over. Now some people say, well, I
know why Moses died, because Moses struck the rock the second
time. The first time he struck the
rock, the rock gave water. The second time, God told him
to speak to the rock, not to strike it, to speak to it. And
Moses stood out that day and lost his temper and cried to
the people, you rebels, must I get water from the rock? And
he struck the rock, and it gave forth water. Now Moses ruined
the type there. Christ is the rock. Christ is
that rock. That rock is to be smitten once.
Christ is to die once. Not twice, not three times, not
just one time. All we have to do is speak to
him, call upon his name, cry unto him, and he gives us mercy.
But Moses smote it the second time. And God took him aside
and said, Moses, you did not sanctify me today in the eyes
of the people. Therefore you will not take the
people into the promised land. You're going to die. Joshua's
going to take them in. But that's not the only reason
why he died. The main reason is that Moses
could not take the children of Israel into rest because Moses
represented the law. Turn to Romans chapter 8. In
the 8th chapter of Romans, verse 3, the Scripture says there,
Romans 8, 3, For what the law could not do, what the law could
not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own
Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin condemned
sin in the flesh." Moses could not take the children of Israel
into rest. Moses could not take the children
of Israel into the inheritance. Moses could not take the children
of Israel into that type, that place that was a type of eternal
glory, because Moses represented the law. That was the work of
Joshua, Joshua the Savior, Joshua the Redeemer, Joshua the Deliverer. So when the angel came to Joseph
and said, Joseph, don't be afraid to take Mary to be your wife,
for that which shall be born of her is conceived of the Holy
Spirit, and thou shalt call his name Joshua, Savior. Deliverer. He shall deliver the
people over. He shall take them into the land.
He shall conquer the enemies. What did Joshua do? He led them
into rest. The second thing Joshua did was
this. He smote their enemies. The Amalekites
were smitten. Jericho, the stronghold fell. The Canaanites were routed. Joshua
defeated the enemies of the people. And our Joshua, Jesus Christ,
our Savior, defeats our enemies. What are our enemies? Our enemies
are sin, and He was made sin for us. Christ, Jesus the Lord,
delivered us from the curse of the law being made a curse for
us. Our enemies, death. Christ took our death. He said,
He that liveth and believeth on me shall never die. Our enemies
are judgment. There's therefore now no judgment
to them who are in Christ Jesus. What else did Joshua do? He not
only took them into the promised land, he not only defeated their
enemies, but he gave to every tribe and he gave to every family
that lot, that piece of land, that piece of ground that God
had ordained for them. And this is what Christ does
for us. Turn to the book of Ephesians. Chapter 1. Christ is our Joshua. Christ is our Savior who takes
us into the land and gives us that inheritance which God the
Father has for each one of us. Ephesians 1 verse 11. In whom
also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according
to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel
of his own will. Verse 14. The Holy Spirit is
the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased
possession under the praise of His glory. One other scripture
over in 1 Peter 1. 1 Peter 1, verse 3. Listen to this
carefully. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy
hath begotten us again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, that
fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you." When this angel
came to Joseph and said, Thou shalt call his name Joshua, Thou
shalt call his name Joshua, Jesus, Savior, Joseph knew what he was
talking about. His mind went immediately back
to the Old Testament days, to all of the messages he had heard
concerning his people, the family of David, and how that Joshua
led the people. Joshua the Savior, that's what
he was called, Joshua the Savior. How that Joshua led the people
over into the promised land. How that Joshua conquered all
their enemies. how that Joshua led them into
an inheritance, and every tribe and every family and every man
had his specified and ordained lot that God Almighty had given
to him. Every man sat under his own vine
and under his own tree, and he knew that this was what Christ
would do for his people. Now back to the text. In Matthew
1 verse 21, And thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall
save his people from their sin. Secondly, thou shalt call his
name Jesus, because it means God with us. Look at verse 23. Behold, a virgin shall be with
child, and shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his
name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is God with us. In John 1.14, the Scripture said,
the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. The Word was with God,
and the Word was God, and all things were made by Him. In John
10.30, our Master said, I and my Father are one. In John 14.9,
Philip said, Show us the Father, and Christ said, He that hath
seen me hath seen the Father. In Acts 20, verse 28, the Apostle
Paul, speaking to the elders at Antioch, said, Feed the church
of God, which he purchased with his own blood. In Hebrews 1,
verse 8, the Scripture says, Under the sun he saith, Thy throne,
O God, is forever. Thomas fell at his feet and cried,
My Lord and my God. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5,
19, God was in Christ. reconciling the world unto himself. I want you to turn to Isaiah
9, verse 6. Here's what we're saying. We're
saying that this Jesus, born of Mary, this Jesus conceived
by the Holy Spirit, Isaiah 9, verse 6, this Jesus, son of Mary,
is none other than God Almighty, God, very God of very God. Isaiah chapter 9, verse 6. Here's the scripture that the
angel is quoting here in Matthew 1. Unto us a child is born, unto
us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders,
and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty
God, the Everlasting Father. the Prince of Peace. Veiled in
flesh, the Godhead see. Hail the incarnate Deity. Pleased as man with men to appear,
Jesus Christ, our Emmanuel, is here. Thou shalt call his name
Jesus, for he shall save his people. He's the Savior, he's
the Joshua. Thou shalt call his name Jesus,
which is Immanuel, which is God with us." Now then, what does
God with us mean? What does this mean? Jesus Christ
coming down here, being robed and clothed in human flesh, dwelling
on this earth, what does it mean? Turn to Luke chapter 2. This
is the first thing that it means. It means a pledge of God's goodwill. a pledge of God's good will. Listen to the message of the
angels to the shepherds when Christ was born. Now listen to
this in Luke 2 verse 10, And the angels said to these shepherds,
Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day
in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. and
this shall be a sign unto you, you shall find the babe wrapped
in swaddling clothes lying in a manger.' And suddenly there
was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising
God and saying, Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace,
peace, goodwill toward men." Now what we have done in celebrating
the Christmas season We have sent cards to friends and relatives
and other people with this message on the front, peace and goodwill
among men. But that's not what this scripture
is saying at all. That's not what it's saying.
And it's not talking about goodwill between me and you. It's not
talking about peace and goodwill between nations. It's talking
about this. The Savior came down here to
this earth when God sent his Son. It meant peace and goodwill
from God to men. That's what it meant. The natural
mind is in me. We're God's enemies by birth.
We're God's enemies by nature. We're God's enemies by choice.
We're God's enemies by practice. God's at war with us and we're
at war with God because of sin. It started in the garden. We
tried to throw God off His throne. Human nature was revealed at
Calvary when they spat in His face and nailed Him to a cross
and said, we won't have this man reign over us. But the coming
of Christ into this world brings peace from God to men, goodwill
from God to men. It's a pledge of God's goodwill. That's what Christ's coming meant,
a pledge of God's goodwill. Secondly, What does God with
us mean? It means not only a pledge of
God's goodwill, but it means a pledge of deliverance. Turn
to Romans 8. In the 8th chapter of Romans,
beginning with verse 31, Romans 8, 31. What shall we say to these
things? If God be for us, who can be
against us? He that spared not his own son. He that sent His own Son into
this world to walk in human flesh, to be tempted and tried, to suffer,
to agonize, to die, to be buried in a tomb, He that sent His own
Son, it spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all.
How shall He not with us freely, with Him freely, give us all
things? Christ's coming is a pledge of
deliverance. If God takes our nature to redeem,
He'll redeem it. If God takes our nature to save,
He'll save it. If God takes our place as our
representative, He cannot fail. If God be for us, who can be
against us? What does it mean, thirdly? It
means that I shall be raised in His likeness. Turn to John
17. In John 17, verse 23, this is
our Lord's priestly prayer, John 17, 23. He says, I in them, and
thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that
the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved
them as thou hast loved me. Father, I will, that they also
whom thou hast given me be with me where I am. that they may
behold my glory which thou hast given me, for thou lovest me
before the foundation of the world, that those that thou hast
given me be with me where I am." If Christ came down here as my
representative and took my place and bore my sin and paid my debt
and fulfilled my obligations and all my responsibilities and
prayed for me, I'll be with Him where He is. It's assurance that
I shall be raised in His likeness It is a pledge of God's goodwill,
a pledge of deliverance and confidence and assurance that I shall be
with Him. Now thirdly, thou shalt call
His name Jesus first, for He shall save His people from their
sin. Thou shalt call His name Jesus
secondly, which means God with us. Thirdly, thou shalt call
his name Jesus, for no one else dare wear that name. Turn to Acts 4. In the fourth
chapter of Acts, verse 12, Acts 4, 12. Neither is there salvation
in any other. Neither is there salvation in
any other. For there is none other name
under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved." Now
will you listen to me for just a moment. The name Jesus, Joshua,
was not at all uncommon among the Jews, as it's not uncommon
today among Spanish-speaking people, Mexicans, because there
are many of their children whom they call Jesus or Jesus. Josephus, the oldest historian
that I have read, mentions no less than twelve persons in these
days by the name of Jesus. Why is this? Well, salvation
of a kind, deliverance from Roman bondage, deliverance from Roman
slavery, deliverance from Roman control, Salvation was so longed
for by the Jews that often when a little child was born into
a home, the father and mother would name that child Joshua
or name that child Jesus in the hope that that child would be
the expected and the longed for and the looked for Messiah or
Savior. These children had the name.
but they didn't have the power. The angel said, you call this
one Jesus, Joseph, for he not only will have the name, but
he will also have the power. His name is called Jesus because
he has the power to save his people from their sins, and he
is the only one who has that power, and he is the only one
who deserves to wear that name because there's salvation in
none other. Neither is there salvation in
any other. The law is not the Savior, Christ
is. The church is not the Savior,
Christ is. The ordinances can never save,
Christ can. The minister is not the Savior,
Christ is. Thou shalt call His name Jesus,
Savior, Joshua. He has the right, He has the
power, and He alone deserves to wear that name. And then in
closing, let me say this. I want you to turn to Romans
10. In Romans chapter 10. Now listen to this. Here's the
promise. The angel said, call His name
Jesus. He'll save. He'll save. He's the Joshua. He's the deliverer. He'll do for us what Joshua did
for Israel. Call his name Jesus. God with
us. A pledge of deliverance. A promise
of goodwill. Confidence and assurance that
we'll be in His light. Call His name Jesus. He's the
only one who has the right to wear that name. Because He's
the only one who has the power to do what that name implies.
To save. Jesus, Savior. Call on His name. Listen to Romans 10 verse 13. For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord." The name of the Lord is Jesus, Savior
Joshua. Whosoever shall call on the name
of the Lord shall be saved. Now what does it mean to call
on the name of Christ? I'm going to close, but I'm going
to give you four things briefly that this means, to call on the
name of Christ. First of all, to call on the
name of Christ. is to believe on him. Look at
the next verse. How then shall they call on him
in whom they have not believed? To call on Christ is to believe,
to believe that he's able to save, to believe that he's willing
to save, to believe that he came to save, to believe that he has
all of the sacrifice and sin offering and sufficiency to meet
every need, though my sins are scarlet," and he's able to wash
them and make them white as snow, to believe that he's able to
save. Secondly, to call on him quickly
is not only to believe him, but it's to what? It's to trust him.
It's to trust him. Paul said this, I know whom I
have believed. I know whom I have believed.
And I'm persuaded he is able, I'm confident he is able to keep
that which I've committed unto him. Lord, nothing in my hands
I bring, simply to the cross of Jesus Christ I cling. To call on him is to trust him,
to trust him. And then thirdly, to call on
him is to commit my soul totally to him. The rest of that verse. I am persuaded he's able to keep
that which I've committed to him, which I've surrendered to
him, which I've placed in his hands, which I've put upon his
shoulders. And then fourthly, to call on
him is to confess him. You remember what Anna and I
said to Paul when he came to him after Paul had seen the vision,
been stricken blind? God sent Ananias, his servant,
to Paul, and Paul, he came to Paul and said, Paul, the God
of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou mightest see the just
one, and hear a word of salvation at his mouth, and that you should
be his witness among the Gentiles. Now arise, why do you tarry? Arise and be baptized, and wash
away thy sins. Our Lord told his disciples to
go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature,
and he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. And the word baptized, if translated
correctly, King James wouldn't have it this way, but if translated
correctly, is immersed. He that believeth and is immersed
shall be saved. So calling on Christ's name implies
four things. It's to believe on Him, to believe
the record God had given concerning His Son. It is to trust Him,
to believe that He's able to keep that which I've committed. And thirdly, it's to commit it
to Him, to surrender my soul to His care and to His keeping.
And fourthly, it's to confess Him. It's to publicly acknowledge
my faith in Christ and publicly identify myself with Christ. He said, if you confess me before
me, and I'll confess you before my Father which is in heaven. You deny me before me, and I'll
deny you before the Father which is in heaven. Our Father, bless
the Word, anoint it with the power of thy Holy Spirit. magnify
and exalt the matchless name of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. What a precious name! Thou shalt
call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins. Our Joshua, our Deliverer, our
Redeemer, our Lord and our Savior Jesus Christ. May He be more
precious to us every passing day. May our messages exalt His
matchless name. May our thoughts throughout life
praise His wonderful name. Make His name the subject of
our conversation, His name the thoughts and joy of our hearts,
and His name the praise of our lips, for He alone is worthy. And it is in His name that we
call upon Thee. confess our sins, and ask these
things. Amen.

Thou Shalt Call His Name Jesus

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

Joshua

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Music

Recent Comments

About

Legal

Subscribe

Account

Articles

Featured Authors

Podcast

Recent Comments

Sermons

Featured Preachers

Books

Browse by Format

Collections

Music

About

Legal

Subscribe

Thou Shalt Call His Name Jesus

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

More from Henry Mahan

Related Sermons

Same Scripture

Articles by Henry Mahan

Books by Henry Mahan

Joshua

Where this book stands in the tradition

Plato

Augustine

The Western Christian Tradition

This Book