Prince of Peace
The term prince of Peace came about in the Old Testament in prophet Isaiah’s prophecy about the coming Messiah (Isaiah 9:6). Jesus is depicted by Isaiah as the giver of inner peace to all who will embrace and believe Him. In the New Testament, Jesus’ qualities as the Prince of Peace are seen throughout his ministry.
My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful (John 14; 27, NRSV).
Jesus’ main purpose for coming to earth was to make peace between man and God through teaching repentance and died on the cross to fulfill that purpose. The term ‘Prince of Peace’ is mostly used to describe Jesus as the embodiment of peace in the hearts of His followers. Jesus left the Holy Spirit to help his people when he was ascending to heaven so that His followers could live in love, joy and peace (Galatians 5:22-23, NRSV).
Jesus; The Way, The Truth and The Life.
Jesus said in John 14 that He was the Way, the Truth and the Life. He was speaking to His disciples, particularly answering Thomas who had asked how they could know how to follow Him to wherever he was going if they did not know where He was going(John 14:4, NRSV). The term ‘way’ was used in the Old Testament in a metaphorical way to denote a person’s character. When used positively, it meant the character that god approves. Jesus called himself the Way, the Truth and the Life to show that truly He is man’s only way to God and eternal life. For it is evident that god sent Jesus to teach humanity about God’s ways and it is only through His death was the world washed from its sins. He went on to say no one goes to God, the Father except through Him.
Jesus as Immanuel.
The term ‘Immanuel’ means ‘God with us’(Matthew 1:22-23, NRSV). In Isaiah 7:14, the prophecy about a Messiah that will come is encountered, stating clearly that he shall have a name; Immanuel. When Jesus came he was in human form, thus literally, he was God in flesh, and he lived in Israel among His people thus fulfilling the prophecy.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was Godand the word became flesh and dwelt among us(John 1:1, 14, NRSV).
Jesus as the Alpha and Omega.
Alpha is the first letter in the Greek alphabet while Omega is the last letter. This statement is mostly used to denote the eternality of Christ. It was commonly used to mean the beginning and the end of all things by Jewish rabbis of old. Jesus proclaims himself as the ‘Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End’ (Revelations 22:13). As part of the Trinity, Jesus was there during creation. It is written that all things were made through Him in John, and in Christianity is widely believed His second coming will signify the end of creation as commonly known (2Peter 3:10, NRSV). In the Old Testament, Isaiah ascribes the nature of Jesus as the First and the Last (Isaiah 48:12, NRSV).
Works Cited
"Berith Road." : The Way, and the Truth, and the Life of Eschatological Torah in John 14:6. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2014. <http://berithroad.blogspot.com/2010/06/jesus-as-way-truth-and-life-john-14-6.html>.
Collins, Gerald. Christology: a biblical, historical, and systematic study of Jesus Christ. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995. Print.
" I AM THE WAY THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE no man comes unto the Father but by Me, and how the Fundamentalists use this to limit God's Love and universal salvation. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2014. <http://www.christianspiritualism.org/articles/Iamthewaytruthlife.htm>.
Keating, Susan Katz, and Alexander Mikhnushev. Jesus. Broomall, Pa.: Mason Crest, 2003. Print.
Clements, R.E.. Jerusalem and the nations: studies in the Book of Isaiah. Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2011. Print
