The Penn's Grove record., 1915-06-04
The LAMB OF GOD
"Thou Shalt Call His Name Jesus,
For He Shall Save His People
From Their SINS"

the Baptist would have been called
Zacharias after his father; but in ear
ly times the Hebrews made names for
their children. The name a often a
memorial of some circumstance con
nected with the birth, descriptive OF
the child's appearance, or commemo-
rating some event.
to fix a name for the child of the Vir-
gin, we can hardly form a guess as to
what the result would have been. Not
a little friendly discussion is some
times excited by the difficulty Of fixing
a name. The right to determine the
name belongs to the parent, and God
the father had made the name known.
The name selected was beautifully
simple. A child may be taught to lisp
1t, and the dullest memory to retain
1t. Divine greatness is unostentatious.
The simplest word in our language is
God" and the next to it is Jesus"
This vas no new name brought
down from heaven. A new name Is
cold and meaningless, and stirs no
memories Of the past. There is a
warmth about an old name, and there
was more than one little Jewish boy
who bore this very name at that time.
In the high priests family alone there
were no less than three, each Of whom
would be high priest in turn. There
was Jesus, o. of Sapphia, who N day
would become a notorious brigand;
and there was the still better known
Jesus surnamed Barabbas, whom the
people would Que day prefer to Christ.
There was Jesus Justus, who later be-
came a faithful helper of st. Paul, and
Jesus the friend of %Josephus, and Je-
sus the peasant, who n day would
terrify Jerusalem with his cries. So
there was many a mothers head be-
side that of Mary which bent over a
little child Jesus.
Named After National Hero.
How came so many boys to be called
by the same name? Because there was
a hero back in the national history of
the Jews who bore that name. l
know that you will not find the name
in the Old Testament, but you must
remember that spelling and pronun-
citation had changed a great deal since
the son of Nun led Israel into the
land flowing with milk and honey. Je-
sus and Joshua are exactly the same
name, only one is the Greek form and
the other is Hebrew.
What does the name Of Jesus mean
to US? Is 1t to US merely the name
Of a child born in Bethlehem 1900
years ago? No, it means more than
that. Is it to US merely the name Of
a teacher, a marvellous teacher, in
deed. who spake as one having au-
thority, and who Is the founder of the
purest philosophy of life which the
world knows? No 1t means more than
that. Is it to us merely the name of
a prophet who foretold events to come
and made known to men the will Of
God? 1t is that and more. The name
Jesus" means to us the Lamb Of God
that taketh away the sin Of the world.
If Jesus is only q pedagogue or a
schoolmaster, he does not touch the
deepest necessities of mans condition.
Such a view of him may improve a
mans morals, and elevate him some
what in other respects, but 1t a new
err save him from the power and con-
sequences of sin. Jesus is himself the
salvation which he taught, and which
he commissioned his disciples to
preach. He alone can give pardon
for the past, purity for the present,
and power for the future.
For Love and Victory.
And his name stands for love. He
Is the love-gift from the father, and
he loved me and gave himself for
me-" In the power of his life 1 shall
possess my life, for the name Jesus
also stands for victory. In it is all the
power of the Nazareth victory, and the
wilderness victory, and of the great
climax victory of Calvary and of the
Resurrection morning.
The name of Jesus is a hidden name
to US until we begin to know and un-
derstand him personally, and then it
becomes to uB more than a name; it
becomes a spirit of power within us.
He belongs to US, this Jesus. He be-
longs to the beggar in the street, If
he will take him. He belongs to the
proud man, the vain man, the selfish
man. He belongs to the needy man.
He is medicine for every mans sick
ness and want. He Is the Savior that
stands to help every living creature.
Then bring to him all your needs,
bring to him your sins and he will
give you pardon, bring to him your life
and he will purify and bless it. Bring
to him the worship Of your heart, for
God hath given him "a mar which
is above every name; that at the
name of Jesus every knee should bow,
Of things in heaven, and things in
earth, and things under the earth; and
that every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of
the father"