The official title people used for Jesus in the New Testament. It shows his role as the anointed Savior and refers to his spiritual qualifications for saving his people.
What Does "Christ" Mean?
The word comes from the Greek word Christos. Christos is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word Messiah (John 1:41). Both words come from verbs meaning “to anoint with sacred oil" and as titles they mean “the Anointed One.” When people call Jesus "Christ," they express the belief that God chose him for his role and function.
How Did Jesus and Others Use the Title "Christ"?
In the New Testament, the title is used in different ways:
combined with Jesus's name, as “Jesus Christ” (Matthew 1:1; Mark 1:1; Romans 1:4) or “Christ Jesus” (Romans 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:1)
with the article “the” (Romans 7:4)
with another title like “Lord” (Romans 16:18)
alone as the one preferred other name or title for Jesus (John 20:31; Romans 15:3; Hebrews 3:6; 5:5; 1 Peter 1:11, 19)
The Gospels show Jesus as humbly accepting the title and role of the Messiah. His baptism shows that God chose him for three important jobs:
to speak God's messages (prophet)
to help people come to God (priest)
to lead God's people (king)
At his baptism by John (the new Elijah, Matthew 11:14), the Holy Spirit came down on Jesus and God told him to begin his ministry (Matthew 3:16–4:17). John himself denied being the anointed one but suggested Jesus was the Christ (John 1:20; Luke 3:14–17).
Jesus’s first disciples followed him because they knew he was the Messiah (John 1:41). The demons recognized him as “the Holy One [anointed] of God” (Mark 1:24; compare Matthew 8:29). The crowds followed him as the Prophet, the new Moses (John 6:14, 32). But they deserted him when they understood that his kingdom was a spiritual realm, not a political realm (verse 66). The Twelve remained loyal, saying, “We believe . . . You are the Holy One of God” (John 6:69). The confession of the disciples spoken by Peter and approved by Jesus as a divine revelation (a message from God) is “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). At his trials, Jesus's claim to be the Christ was the main reason he was condemned (Matthew 26:63–64, 68; 27:11, 17, 22, 37).
An important part of the earliest Christian preaching was declaring that Jesus is the Christ (Acts 2:36; 3:18–20; 9:22; 28:23, 31). This remains the earliest (as in Matthew 16:16) and most basic article of Christian confession (1 Corinthians 1:23; 1 John 5:1). It affirms that Jesus perfectly fulfilled the role of anointed prophet, priest, and king as God's servant for his people (Luke 7:16; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Hebrews 7:22–28; Revelation 19:16).