Photographs: © Imagesource / photolibrary.com© Alexander Kalina / Shutterstock.com

Design: Louise Blackmore

visit the brf website at www.brf.org.uk

978-0-85746-085-1

UK £8.99

Anne Le Tissier

JesusName above all Names

32 BiBle studies on the person and work of Jesus

BiBle studies on the person and work of Jesus

this book offers straightforward, devotionally based Bible study material on 32 names and titles ascribed to Jesus in scripture. from ‘advocate’ to ‘word of God’, the studies consider what we can learn about who Jesus is and what he has done for us from these different names and titles. the material includes extended reflection on the theme, questions for response, prayers and suggestions for further Bible reading.

prepared from articles originally published in Woman Alive magazine, Jesus: Name above all Names is ideal for small group use or individual Quiet day or retreat reading.

anne le tissier is a freelance writer and speaker, whose work aims to teach, encourage and equip Christian discipleship as well as engage with those on the fringes or even hostile to faith. she has also written The Heart of the Temple, Prepared for Spiritual Battle and Immanuel, God with Us and contributes regularly to Woman Alive.

‘It is our prayer that through these studies, readers from all walks of life might be drawn into a deeper relationship with him and a greater understanding of the person and character of our Lord and Saviour.’JackIe HarrIS, Woman alive

Jesus: Nam

e above all N

ames

aNN

e le Tissier

Contents

Foreword .......................................................................... 7Jesus: our Advocate with the Father ................................... 8Jesus: the Alpha and the Omega ...................................... 15Jesus: the Amen .............................................................. 22Jesus: the Apostle ............................................................ 28Jesus: the Author ............................................................ 35Jesus: the Bread of Life .................................................... 42Jesus: the Door into the Kingdom of God ........................ 49Jesus: the Faithful Witness .............................................. 56Jesus: the Good Shepherd ............................................... 64Jesus: the Head of the Church ......................................... 71Jesus: the Holy One ........................................................ 78Jesus: our Hope .............................................................. 85Jesus: our Husband ......................................................... 92Jesus: I Am ..................................................................... 99Jesus: the Image of the Invisible God ............................. 106Jesus: the King of Kings ................................................. 113Jesus: the Lamb of God ................................................. 120Jesus: the Life ............................................................... 127Jesus: Light of the World ............................................... 134Jesus: the Living Stone .................................................. 141Jesus: Prince of Peace .................................................... 148Jesus: our Protector ....................................................... 154

Jesus: the Resurrection and the Life ............................... 160Jesus: the Rock ............................................................. 167Jesus: Ruler of the Kings of the Earth ............................. 174Jesus: the Teacher .......................................................... 181Jesus: the True Vine ...................................................... 188Jesus: the Truth ............................................................. 195Jesus: the Way ............................................................... 202Jesus: the Wisdom of God ............................................ 209Jesus: Wonderful Counsellor ......................................... 216Jesus: the Word of God ................................................. 223

77

Foreword

We were coming to the end of a very successful series about the women of the Bible and the question loomed: what next? Our Bible studies had become an important part of Woman Alive magazine and highly valued by readers, so the pressure was on.

As I considered and prayed about it, I kept coming back to the person of Jesus. Having focused on many different biblical characters, perhaps it was time to focus on him.

I thought about the images he used to describe himself—the good shepherd, the bread of life, the vine—and then images used by others: Isaiah’s foretelling of the King of kings and the apostle John’s picture of an advocate for us in heaven. I mused not only on what these tell us about Jesus, but also the kind of response they may require of us.

Anne, who had written a number of articles for our previ­ous series, shared my enthusiasm. She developed the idea, providing not only helpful information but also searching questions that are rooted in real life.

Studying the names and descriptions of Jesus is not a new idea, but it’s certainly a rich source of study. It is our prayer that through these studies, readers from all walks of life might be drawn into a deeper relationship with him and a greater understanding of the person and character of our Lord and Saviour.

Jackie HarrisEditor, Woman Alive

88

Jesus: our AdvoCAte with the FAther

I have a confession to make! About 17 years ago, while liv­ing in a town flat in Guernsey, I returned home late one cold winter’s night, parked the car in the only remaining space and dashed indoors to my cosy bed. While getting ready the next morning, however, a commotion in the road outside drew my attention to a long tailback of traffic, unusual even at rush hour in that part of town.

It was only as I left the building and began walking past those frustrated, angry drivers that I realised what was caus­ing the hold­up. A large pickup truck was blocking the one­way system, with a couple of burly men rigging up tow­ropes to my car.

Yes—it was one of those unforgettable, stomach­churning moments, when I suddenly realised my mistake. In my hurry to get indoors the night before, I’d failed to notice I was parked across a delivery entrance, clearly marked with a sign: ‘PARKING PROHIBITED between the hours of 7am and 6pm’. I was caught ‘red cheeked’! The constable took my details, my car was unhooked, the pickup gave way to the snarled­up cars, and I was eventually allowed to drive away, then await my summons to court.

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Jesus: our Advocate with the Father

As it happens, however, I never actually went. A close friend, who happened to be an advocate, kindly offered to take my place, admit the offence and pay the fine on my behalf.

Whether or not you’ve ever had need of an advocate to complete a house sale, register a bond, represent or defend you, the apostle John reminds us of our advocate in heaven. ‘I write this to you,’ John says, ‘so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One’ (1 John 2:1, TNIV). The older NIV translates the word ‘advocate’ as ‘one who speaks to the Father in our defence’.

Indeed, it is his very righteousness (not a law degree), that qualifies him for the role, for ‘he is the atoning sacrifice for our sins’ (v. 2). Nor does he only ever plead our innocence; rather, he acknowledges to our Father those things we admit we’ve done wrong, then presents himself—his righteous sacrifice—on our behalf.

when we sin unintentionAlly

I unwittingly broke the law. I parked my car without checking that it could remain there past 7am. The penalty had to be paid. Without such a friend, I would have had to go to court, face the judge and pay the penalty myself. In that instance, however, I had a friend who was willing to acknowledge the offence on my behalf and presented his own cheque to pay my fine.

As believers in Christ for salvation from spiritual death,

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Jesus: Name above all Names

we have already been justified before God and adopted as his children. Furthermore, Jesus, who has become our friend (Luke 5:20; John 15:13–15), commands that we stop sin­ning (Matthew 5:48; John 5:14; 8:11), but there will be times when we inadvertently do something wrong, which the Spirit will make known to our conscience. Just because we’ve already been justified and forgiven through faith in Jesus Christ, we cannot simply ignore our wrongdoings, because our Father is holy and so cannot tolerate sin. But we can call upon the presence of our heavenly friend and advocate to come to our aid and restore a harmonious relationship with our Father.

As we confess and admit our wrongdoing, Jesus stands alongside us, lending his righteous presence and sacrifice for sin to reconcile our spirits to God. Unlike my advocate friend, however, whom I promptly reimbursed, our heavenly advocate cannot be repaid. He offers his righteous sacrifice as a gift of grace: nothing we could do or say could ever earn or repay it. But we can show how much we honour his advocacy and appreciate his gift by ensuring we rid our lives of those things that are wrong—seeking to walk in the light of Christ as we keep in step with the Spirit (1 John 1:7; Galatians 5:25).

when we sin wilFully

This is also true for the things we choose to do wrong, even though we know we shouldn’t. According to the laws of this land, I’ve not committed murder, theft or any other such

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Jesus: our Advocate with the Father

crime that warrants a legal penalty, so I’ve not yet had to call upon an advocate to represent me in court for a wilful offence. But as a Christian, my spiritual citizenship is now in heaven (Philippians 3:20), and I only have to begin to read Christ’s kingdom teaching to know I fall far short of its standards (see, for example, Matthew 5:17—7:6).

Like Paul, ‘in my inner being I delight in God’s law’ (Romans 7:22), but when I’m put to the test, the evidence of my impatient, unkind, critical or selfish attitudes goes against me. I do want to honour God with my life, but I recognise that I continue to fall short of his glory; that there are times when I continue to choose my way rather than his, to satisfy my cravings rather than God’s pleasure, to uphold my reputation rather than the honour of my king. And for that, as for my unintentional sins, I have need of a heavenly advocate to acknowledge my guilt and restore my broken unity with God.

when we Are ACCused FAlsely

It’s not just when we plead guilty that we have need of an advocate; he also comes to our defence when we’re innocent, pleading our cause if we’re falsely accused.

I would like to say that the innocent are always justified, but many a time the wicked find loopholes to win their legal battles in law courts, run roughshod over broken families, or feed their unending greed to the detriment of others. Indeed, although we hope for the perfection of eternal life with God, we continue to suffer the ravages of our enemy’s

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Jesus: Name above all Names

characteristics permeating life in this fallen world: hardship, pain, rejection, injustice and even martyrdom at the hands of those who have yet to bow the knee to Christ as Lord.

But we have an advocate on high who understands ad­versity. Only Jesus will ever be called ‘the Righteous One’, and yet ‘he was oppressed and afflicted… by oppression and judgment he was taken away’ and ‘assigned a grave with the wicked’, even though he had done no wrong (Isaiah 53:7–9). In fact, ‘The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death’ (Matthew 26:59).

Jesus understands how it feels to be falsely accused. More­over, no matter what evil is perpetrated against us in this world, our heavenly advocate stands before the Father in our defence, clothing us in his righteousness in a kingdom where the enemy has no influence.

So if, like me, you are suffering the consequences of in­justice, take time out to meditate on Psalm 37 and focus your heart—not on the pain, unfairness and wickedness of the ways of the god of this world, but on your righteous advocate who stands alongside you, stating your cause before your Father in heaven.

Wickedness may get its way for a time and cause us great suffering, but its perpetrators shall one day join us in bowing the knee to King Jesus; and on that day, our righteousness in Christ will shine like the noonday sun, for the arrogant cannot stand in God’s presence and their deceitful schemes will be shown for what they are. Our suffering is temporary, but our hope for justice is assured in eternity.

Meanwhile, we are not to fret or smoulder with anger,

1313

Jesus: our Advocate with the Father

jealousy and resentment when the wicked always seem to get their own way. Rather, we are to delight ourselves in our knowledge of and relationship with God, commit ourselves in trusting obedience to his ways, and wait patiently for his deliverance from evil, be that in this world or in the next.

So let’s give thanks that, as we confess our own sins, our advocate will continue to act on our behalf in heaven, thereby maintaining the close relationship we can have with God our Father, which will sustain us, no matter what we go through in this world. Indeed, ‘Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and do good’ (Psalm 37:1–3a).

[

tAke it Further

reflect

John said he wrote his letter ‘so that you will not sin’ (1 John 2:1). Sin doesn’t just unsettle our peace with God; it grieves his Spirit intensely (Ephesians 4:30). When my daughter did something wrong, I may have felt frustrated, I may have grown impatient, I may even have got really cross at times; but overriding all those emotions was a sense of sadness that she didn’t respect the way we’d taught her to live. Our heavenly Father has given his word to teach us his ways and his Spirit to guide our response. Are we grieving him by

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Jesus: Name above all Names

shunning his characteristics and choosing our own preferred lifestyle?

Pray

‘Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.’ (Psalm 139:23–24)

read

1 John 1:5—2:17; Ephesians 4:17—5:21; Psalm 37

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Photographs: © Imagesource / photolibrary.com© Alexander Kalina / Shutterstock.com

Design: Louise Blackmore

visit the brf website at www.brf.org.uk

978-0-85746-085-1

UK £8.99

Anne Le Tissier

JesusName above all Names

32 BiBle studies on the person and work of Jesus

BiBle studies on the person and work of Jesus

this book offers straightforward, devotionally based Bible study material on 32 names and titles ascribed to Jesus in scripture. from ‘advocate’ to ‘word of God’, the studies consider what we can learn about who Jesus is and what he has done for us from these different names and titles. the material includes extended reflection on the theme, questions for response, prayers and suggestions for further Bible reading.

prepared from articles originally published in Woman Alive magazine, Jesus: Name above all Names is ideal for small group use or individual Quiet day or retreat reading.

anne le tissier is a freelance writer and speaker, whose work aims to teach, encourage and equip Christian discipleship as well as engage with those on the fringes or even hostile to faith. she has also written The Heart of the Temple, Prepared for Spiritual Battle and Immanuel, God with Us and contributes regularly to Woman Alive.

‘It is our prayer that through these studies, readers from all walks of life might be drawn into a deeper relationship with him and a greater understanding of the person and character of our Lord and Saviour.’JackIe HarrIS, Woman alive

Jesus: Nam

e above all N

ames

aNN

e le Tissier