Pharaoh Failed to Recognize Jesus: Just like us!

I get a little discouraged at times, not for me, but for and on behalf of God! Why? Jesus was here all along! When we read Old Testament Bible "stories" they are so much more than that. Those stories tell of Jesus because he was there. Let me be clear. God's name is "I AM". Jesus is God. The name of Jesus, the man-God is "I AM". From whence does the name Jesus derive?

Matthew 1:21 (ESV)  "She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

Please note that Matthew defined the meaning of Jesus' name right here! It means "He will save".

Mary conceived a child by the Spirit of God. That child's name was NOT Jesus. Mary was told "you shall call his name Jesus". You see, Jesus already had a heavenly name. It was and is "I AM". The name "Jesus" was his earthly name. "Jesus" is Greek for the Hebrew name "Joshua". Jesus' name in Hebrew was "Joshua" which means "Yah is salvation". Yah  (pronounced yaw) is the Hebrew name which means LORD which is God's title. Hence, Jesus means "God is salvation"!

Therefore, Jesus is more than a name! His name represents his purpose. First off, Jesus means the Son of Man, the Christ, is I AM. Furthermore, Jesus' destiny is revealed in why he was born. He was born to save! You've seen the jacket worn by bikers? In rebellion they flaunt "Born to die". Jesus was born to die, but unlike the bikers, his death has a purpose! He died for all of us!

1 John 2:2 "And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."

"Propitiation" means that Jesus himself was "the offering to God". He died it in our place. Whereas animals were continually sacrificed for the sins of mankind in olden times, Jesus' death was a blood sacrifice, one time, and for all time for everyone! That's what his name means. That's why he came!

But wait! There's more:

Matthew 1:23 "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us."

 The Son of God was also to be called "God with us", since he is the great I AM. In essence there is only one difference between God the Father and God the Son: God took on flesh to fulfill what he said when Adam was created. Man was to be created in "our image". Man was to have a spirit and flesh because in his foreknowledge God knew how he was to form Jesus. Adam was made like Jesus, not Jesus like Adam!

Emmanuel is not a "saving" name. It merely identifies that Jesus is the all-powerful God. Jesus' second name complements his first. Jesus signifies that "God is salvation", but "Emmanuel" validates that Jesus is God! God's two earthly names validate that he is indeed God and that his purpose is to save mankind! Therefore, there is power in the name of Jesus:

Acts 4:12 "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name (Jesus) under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

It's important that the repentant person believes it's Jesus who saves and that there is power in that name:

Matthew 28:18 "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth."

Only Jesus has the power to save and salvation is through Jesus only. The bumper sticker says it all: "JESUS SAVES". God does save, but it's necessary to understand that it was the flesh which was sacrificed by God. That "flesh" has a name: Jesus.

Philippians 2:10 "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth..."

 "God is salvation": what the name Jesus means, is the Way to eternal life! That's the only way.

God who had flesh and walked the earth is "The Word" of the Old Testament! God, manifested to man with attributes and speech, is "The Word". In the Old Testament, God revealed himself by various means since his presence is so holy that man could not bear setting eyes on his glory. "God revealed" is "the Word" and the Word put on flesh. Whereas before, God revealed himself as light, a burning bush, a cloud, an angel of God,  a high-priest, as a man in the furnace and many other forms, Jesus became more than a picture of what's real to us, but became reality. "Jesus" himself, the same God who walked in the cool of the Garden before man sinned, then walked again because he came here so that man could be saved from those sins. His own skin was the sacrifice. That's why Jesus had to be flesh. Salvation is must be by blood and it shed.

Hebrews 9:22 (ESV) "Ideed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins."

Jesus was here all the time! He was with Adam, Abel, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Elijah, Shadrach, Joshua and all of the patriarchs! He gave visions to all the prophets! In spite of being here all the time, "he was in the world... and the world did not recognize him":

John 1:9 "The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God."

Before Jesus came the people were stiff-necked, Save the few, the Jews always failed to see that it was the Savior (Jesus' name) who was always there saving them!  Likewise, when Jesus came in the flesh, the people still "did not recognize him". They killed "God who came to Save them" (Jesus name)!  Unknown to them, by killing Jesus, they made it possible for mankind to be saved. Without evil men crucifying Jesus, the man who was "born to die" would have never died for us! The unwitting sinners made it possible that I may go to heaven because I recognize him. He's "God is salvation".

Yet still, Jesus lives again. Most people "do not recognize him"!  How dense can we be? More dense than Pharaoh who failed to see that the One True God was an all-powerful God and that God came to save his people. Pharaoh failed to recognize Jesus although Jesus stood right there alongside Moses begging Pharaoh to soften his heart and open his eyes. Yes, although Jesus was there, he didn't stand in front of Pharaoh, but chose a replacement. Aaron was there! He was a picture of Jesus.  He stood right there alongside Moses and he was "the Word" who spoke for Moses! Aaron's assignment was to become "the Word". He spoke for God on behalf of Moses and his voice was the voice of Jesus. Aaron had no power to speak. It was God, the Word, speaking through him.

It's strange. Even we Christians fail to recognize Jesus. His voice was right there condemning Pharaoh and saving the Jews, yet still to this day when we read about Aaron and Moses, we fail to know it was Jesus who challenged Pharaoh to "let my people go"!