Ever hear people when referring to Jesus, call him Jesus Christ? Not as an epithet, but as if Christ were his last name? I do, and I hear it often. I’ve even seen it written that way. Wasn’t Jesus a Jew? During those times, did people where he lived even have surnames? I was told that, during his time, if he were referred to formally, it would have been as Jesus, son of Joseph, or Jesus bar Joseph. In fact, it’s used in that way in John 6:42.

Christ is a title, from a Greek word meaning the anointed one. It might be better to say Jesus the Christ or Christ Jesus. The same way it would sound silly to refer to the local mayor as Sally Mayor, unless that was her actual surname, the same should be for the title given to Jesus.

Yes, that’s what it is. A title, a description of his status. Yes, early Christian writers sometimes referred to Jesus Christ, but not as a surname as it has seemed to semantically change over time. Today we hear someone call out Jesus Christ! in anger or frustration. Early on, it was as if taking an oath, I swear to God, bur today, languishes in our language as a phrase that believers consider blasphemy. But then, these are people that only know and believe what they’re told.