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Mark 8:27–30
“[Jesus] asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Christ’” (v. 29).
Although Son of Man was the favorite title of Jesus for Himself during His earthly ministry, outside the Gospels it appears in the New Testament only five times. The title Christ, however, appears in the New Testament more than four hundred times outside the Gospels. Clearly, we must pay special attention to this title to know Jesus and what He has done.
The word Christ comes into the English language from the Greek term christos, which translates the Hebrew word mashiach, or “anointed one.” Mashiach, in turn, comes into the English as the word messiah. From this, we can see that to refer to Jesus as the Christ is to speak of Him as the Anointed One, as the promised Jewish Messiah.
Under the old covenant, even the pagan king Cyrus could be called God’s “anointed” because he was the Lord’s chosen instrument to rescue His people from the Babylonian exile (Isa. 45:1). Thus, the title Christ or Messiah was associated with salvation, rescue, or redemption. We understand the meaning of Christ more fully, however, when we look at who was typically anointed in the old covenant community.
The Old Testament tells us that an anointing with oil was applied to those who held one of three offices: prophet, priest, and king (Ex. 29:1–9; 1 Sam. 16:1–13; 1 Kings 19:16). This anointing set a man apart unto the Lord for special service and demonstrated to the people of Israel which man held each office. Prophets, of course, were to speak God’s words to the people (Deut. 18:15–22). Priests were to represent the people to God, offering sacrifices on their behalf and praying for them (Lev. 1). Kings were to govern the people according to the Mosaic law and deliver them from their enemies (Deut. 17:18–20; 2 Sam. 19:9).
In light of all this, we can see that the title Christ tells us that Jesus holds the threefold office of Prophet, Priest, and King. Thus, theologians have frequently spoken of our Lord’s threefold office, also called in Latin the munus triplex. Jesus, as the promised Messiah, the Christ, the Anointed One, serves as the perfect Prophet who delivers to us the Word of God, as the perfect Priest who represents us before God as our atoning sacrifice and intercessor, and as the perfect King who leads us in righteousness without fail and delivers us from all His and our enemies. In the days ahead, we will consider the work of Christ under this threefold office.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
Reformed theologian Petrus van Mastricht tells us that knowing Christ as Prophet, Priest, and King brings great consolation to us. Certainly this is so. Jesus’ threefold office indicates that He gives us everything we need most: God’s Word to guide us, the sacrifice to reconcile us to our Maker, and the defense to preserve us for all eternity.
For further study
- Psalm 105:1–15
- Daniel 9:24–27
- Acts 10:38
- Hebrews 1:1–4
The bible in a year
- Psalms 79–81
- Romans 8:1–17