But the angel said to them, “Listen! Do not fear. For I bring you good news of great joy, which will be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:10-11).
There’s a lot for us to learn from this angelic announcement.
Jesus is the Savior. All religions and worldviews outside of Christianity have one thing in common: God is not the savior. Either you are your own savior, or there’s no savior at all. In Christianity, God is the hero, the rescuer, the redeemer, the Savior. This is Good News because it gives us hope. If the only hope we have is in ourselves, that’s a sad, futile existence. But if there’s a Savior, there is hope for us that is beyond us coming to rescue us.
Jesus is the Christ—the anointed king. Like Jesus, King David started humbly. David was a shepherd boy, taking care of his family’s flock, when a prophet showed up one day and anointed the boy as the future king of Israel. Before he could ascend to the throne, however, David endured great conflict with his predecessor, King Saul, and patiently prepared for his coronation day. Jesus is like that as a baby. He is the Christ—”anointed”—but until his kingdom is fully realized on earth, there is great conflict between the kingdom of Satan (“the ruler of this world”) and Jesus, the true King. It’s only a matter of time before “the ruler of this world” is deposed and Jesus goes from anointed King to appointed King (John 14:30).
Jesus is Lord. The angel worships Jesus Christ as Lord. This is another kingly title that means Jesus is the ruler over all. This reality should lead us to a deeper appreciation, understanding and adoration of Jesus, the preeminent sovereign of all existence.
The three titles the angel used to describe Jesus each tell us something important about the identity of Jesus Christ. Savior: Jesus is the hero who saves us from our sin in his death and gives us new hope in his resurrection. Christ: Jesus is the anointed one, chosen for this special purpose. Lord: Jesus is supreme over all religions, all nations and all peoples.
This unique declaration clues us in to the unique identity and power of the baby in the manger. The rightful, exclusive position of Savior, Christ and Lord belongs to Jesus. This is the true meaning of Christmas.
Is Jesus your Savior? Is Jesus your Christ? Is Jesus your Lord? {eoa}
Bill Wiese 
Chris Garcia 
Rabbi Eric Tokajer 
