by Eric Lyons, M.Min.
 Approximately 700 years before the birth of the promised Messiah, Isaiah prophesied about a virgin who would “conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (7:14). Years later, the apostle Matthew referred to Isaiah’s prophecy, specifying once again that, “they shall call His name Immanuel” (1:22-23). Many have wondered why, if the promised Son of Mary was supposed to be called “Immanuel,” this name is never used in the New Testament aside from Matthew’s quotation of Isaiah 7:14. Why do we never read of Mary, Joseph, John the Baptizer, Peter, Paul, or others calling the Messiah “Immanuel”?
Thankfully, as so often is the case with God’s Word, the Bible is its own (and best!) commentary. To better understand what Isaiah meant by the name Immanuel, it is helpful to consider what the prophet wrote two chapters later. In prophesying about the Messiah, Isaiah wrote:
“His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (9:6).
Did Isaiah mean by this that the Messiah would literally have as His given name “Wonderful,” “Counselor,” or “Everlasting Father”? Surely, to ask is to answer. These names were given to describe the nature of the Messiah, not serve as literal, given names. As commentator Albert Barnes noted: His [the Messiah’s—EL] attributes shall be such as to make all these applications appropriate descriptions of his power and work. To be called, and to be, in the Hebrew, often mean the same thing.... Such a use of a verb is not uncommon in Isaiah. ‘One calls him,’ is, according to the usage in Isaiah, as ranch as to say [the equivalent of saying—EL], he will justly bear this name; or simply, he will be (1997). By nature, the son of Mary was “Immanuel” (John 1:1-3; 10:30,33; 20:28), but by name, He was “Jesus.”
A similar distinction between one’s nature and name is found as early as Genesis chapter two. Following God’s creation of Eve from Adam’s rib, the first man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man” (Genesis 2:23, emp. added). Although Adam said, “she shall be called woman,” one chapter later Moses recorded how “Adam called his wife’s name Eve” (3:20). Obviously, Adam meant that by nature the one whom God created from his rib was a female human, “a helper comparable to him” (though with noticeable differences and roles—3:18-23), but by name, she would be known as “Eve.”
Gabriel’s conversation with Mary prior to her miraculous conception is also helpful in gaining a proper understanding of Jesus’ name and nature. Although Gabriel did not use the term “Immanuel,” notice how he distinguished between Jesus’ given name and the titles by which He would be known as a result of His divine nature: Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.... The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God (Luke 1:30-35, emp. added).
Finally, Matthew further clarifies God’s use of the “name” Immanuel in the very passage he quotes—Isaiah 7:14. Immediately before and after Matthew reminds his readers of the prophecy regarding the Messiah’s name being “Immanuel” (1:23), he noted how Joseph would call (1:21) and did call (1:25) the Messiah by “His name Jesus.” The fact that Matthew wrote of the Messiah’s “name” being “Immanuel” in verse 23, but “Jesus” in verses 21 and 25, clearly shows that Matthew understood that one name (Jesus) was a given, literal name, while the other (Immanuel), similar to Jesus’ title “Christ,” characterized His essence. REFERENCE: Barnes, Albert (1997), Notes on the Old and New Testaments (Electronic Database: Biblesoft). Source: Apologetics Press
by Eric Lyons, M.Min  Rarely (if ever) have I read the words “genealogy” and “exciting” in the same sentence. It seems most people consider the genealogies of Christ as some of the Bible’s dullest reading. They frequently are described as boring, dry, and monotonous—full of “begets” that many would just as soon “forget.” In reality, however, exciting pearls of truth often are overlooked. One of these truths that escapes the reader who simply skims (or skips) the genealogies is the virgin birth of Christ.
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 The question of whether Jesus actually existed has been asked for many years. There are those who say he was not real and others who, even though agree he did exist, make up stories about him like being married to Mary Magdaleine and having children; he was not really the Messiah; he never resurrected; and that he was even a Muslim. However, ancient history, together with modern archaeology has been able to verify a lot of the events in the Gospels. For some, it may not be that important whether or not the history of Jesus can be verified or not, after all, the bible states “the just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17). But the bible also states that we must test all things (I Thess 5:21) and to give a defense for our faith (I Peter 3:15). So when stories appear that ridicule or place our Saviour in a bad light, we must do what is necessary to find the truth and prove them wrong. The Gospel Accounts as HistoryThe historical accuracy of the New Testament Gospels has come under attack, not only by non-Christians but Christians as well. However, there are lots of archaeological and historical evidence that prove the Gospel accounts to be true. The Gospels themselves are not historical books, but testaments of faith, however, they do contain history in them as well. Some of the history we can gather from the Gospels are as follows: Jesus’ mother was Mary who was a virgin conceived by the Holy Spirit. Her husband’s name was Joseph. Jesus was born in Bethlehem while Joseph and Mary were there for the Census called by Emperor Augustus. Jesus was a descendant of King David. Herod the Great was ruler at the time of Jesus’ birth. He ordered all boys two years and younger to be killed as he felt his reign was threatened. Mary and Joseph took Jesus to Egypt to safety from Herod until Herod died in 4 BC. Jesus grew up in Nazareth in Galilee and had brothers and sisters He took up Joseph’s trade as a carpenter. He started his Ministry at approximately 30 years of age. He spent 40 days in the desert and was tempted by Satan who he successfully defeated. He lived in Capernaum in Galilee He had lots of followers, but 12 chosen ones called Apostles. It is also possible there were quite a few women followers, one of which was Mary Magdaleine. He claimed to be the Son of God. He performed miracles including resurrections, healing the sick and impaired, exorcisms and feeding 5000 people from 5 loaves and 2 fish. His primary message was proclaiming the Kingdom of God. He was betrayed by Judas Iscariot during a Passover. He was accused of blasphemy by the Jewish leaders and sent to Pontius Pilate who found nothing wrong with him and who wanted to release him. However, the crowd insisted he be crucified. He was crucified on a hill called Golgotha. After his death several miraculous events occurred. He resurrected after three days and was seen first by Mary Magdeline and other women and then the Apostles. He ascended into heaven 40 days after his resurrection.
The Gospels however, don’t tell us anything about Jesus’ life between the ages of 12 and 30, who his sisters were, what year he was born or what happened to Joseph. Archaeological EvidenceThere are lots of archaeological evidence that have proven skeptics wrong about the historical inaccuracy of the bible. Some of these include: - The discovery of a 2’ x 3’ stone in Italy with Pilate’s name on it.
- That crucifixions did happen by being nailed to a cross due to the discovery of a man that was crucified in mid-first century AD. This was found by Vassilois Tzaferis in a suburb of Jerusalem called Giv’at ha-Mivtar.
- That Nazareth did indeed exist despite its not being mentioned in the Old Testament by Josephus nor the Jewish Talmud. A tablet with the name “Nazareth” engraved on it was found in an excavation at Caesarea in 1962. This proves the existence of the little agricultural town.
Secular Sources that mention Jesus Apart from the New Testament, there are a few secular sources that mention Jesus. The main source is from Flavius Josephus in his book “Jewish Antiquities”. He wrote: Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, [if it be lawful to call him a man]; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. [He was [the] Christ.] And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; [for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him]. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day." ("Jewish Antiquities", 18.3.3). Other historical sources that mention Jesus are: - Thallus
- Phlegon
- Pliny the Younger
- Cornelius Tacitus
- Suetonius
- Mara Bar-Serapion
References by the Early Church Fathers There are lots of references by the early Church Fathers that verify the Gospels. Some of them are: - Clement of Rome (could be the Clement mentioned in Philippians 21:3)
- Ignatius
- Justin Martyr
- Aristides
Due to archaeology a lot of the Gospel accounts are proven to be accurate. New evidence due to archaeology are being uncovered on a regular basis to show that a lot of the biblical accounts in the Old as well as New Testaments are true.
 The gospel accounts paint a picture of the character of Jesus unrivaled by any other personality in human history. On one memorable occasion, Jesus was invited to eat with a Pharisee named Simon (Luke 7:36-50). During his stay, a woman who was known in the area for her sinful lifestyle approached Jesus. She proceeded to wash His feet with her tears, dry them with her hair, and anoint Jesus with fragrant oil. Simon, seeing the sinful woman’s behavior, said to himself, “This man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner” (Luke 7:39).
Notice two important aspects of Simon’s response. First, he spoke to himself. There is no indication that his thoughts were verbalized or in any way audible to those around him. Second, the criterion he set to determine whether Christ was a prophet was knowledge of the woman’s sinful lifestyle.
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Jesus Christ
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