Jesus – Name above all names: A 7-point guide

In this discussion, I put in perspective the claim and the reality that Jesus Christ’s name is the name above all names. This claim is prominent in Christian discourses and preaching. For the believer, there is no doubt that it is the case because of personal experience of healing, comforting and reading miracles that Jesus performed in the Bible. But for the unbeliever, it might not be so evident unless we take them step by step into the enduring journey of the name Jesus Christ, demonstrating the power that it has had over humanity and beyond. This articles, thus, builds the case for the name of Jesus Christ being above all other names by using a 7-point argument.

1. Name that endures time (2000 years and alive)
Our first point is to recognize the enduring nature of the name Jesus. It was given to a baby born in a manger of ordinary parents 2000 years ago. His earthly parents were Joseph and Mary from the tribe of Judah (incorporated into today’s Israel). The bible teaches that Mary was miraculously pregnant after a visitation from an angel. She did not have sex with Joseph her husband. Mary and Joseph did not do any propaganda for their new born child’s name to be enduring time and space. They did not write books about him. On the contrary, they faced hardship and persecution due the birth of their baby Jesus. Herod, the Roman king at the time wanted to murder the baby, but the bible says that divine intervention took the child away to Egypt to only return when king Herod was dead. This miraculous escape of the baby and his parents from Herod’s murderous hands perhaps gives some credence that Mary had a divine revelation about the name to be given to her child. This perhaps explains why over 2000 years on we still talk about the name of Jesus which keeps going strong.
Some of the popular names that we hear today are popular because they are given to children over the years. However, very few people carry the name Jesus but it has emerged to be the most popular names.
Equally, there are several historical names in philosophy, the science and literature, e.g. Plato, Aristotle, Auguste Comte, Marx, Einstein, etc. But none has the popularity that the name Jesus Christ carries, despite these names highly taught in schools, acclaimed in politics and the media. It is clear that there is something in the name of Jesus Christ that makes it survive the test of time.

2. Name that transcends space (in every continent and country)
Our second point to substantiate the claim that the name of Jesus is above all names is its transcendence of space. The name originated in Israel 200 years ago. But today it is heard across the globe, even the countries that profoundly oppose it. All continents and countries have churches where the name of Jesus is called upon regularly and is even the subject of worship. Emperors such as Julio Caesar, Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Pharaoh (be it Tutankhamun or others) or other religious names have never had that global ascendance, particularly sustained over millennia after their death. It is hard to reject the fact that only the name of Jesus has had this truly global rootedness after his death and ascension to heaven as the bible teaches.
3. Name that defines time (we tell time in reference to the name of Jesus Christ)
Our third argument centers on the fact that the name of Jesus Christ defines time as we know it today. Our calendar now is set from the birth of Jesus Christ. This is why our historical line is articulated in terms of Before Christ (BC) and After Christ (AD). It is incredible that the birth of a Jewish baby from unknown parents can go all the way to define the way in which we see time. There are other time frames currently in operation, e.g. the Chinese calendar, the Indian calendar, the Hebrew calendar, the Ethiopian calendar, the Buddhist calendar, the Islamic calendar, etc. But the overarching accepted global calendar is the Christian calendar that has Jesus’s name firmly attached to it. The way it has come to dominance and establish its authority in the way humans see time is incredible. A Romanian monk, Dionysius Exiguus, created the Anno Domini (A.D.) [the years of the Lord] time frame in the year 525. Since that time, we have been telling the years and historical periods using the birth of Jesus Christ as a reference point.
Today, literally everyone in the world says their date of birth in relation to Christ’s birth. There have been many attacks on the Anno Domini system, attempting to route it out. But none have succeeded. In recent decades, some historians have attempted blur the name of Jesus in the use of historical time by creating an alternative term called BCE (Before the Common Era) and CE (in the Common Era), but these have not fulfilled their intent. So, we have further evidence that the name of Jesus is above all other name if it defines the timeline of our human existence.

4. A unifying name/ love
The name of Jesus preaches nothing but love and hope. Christians and Jews/Gods creation. The name of Jesus is recognizable in other religions in some form, e.g. Islam, Buddhism, Ethiopian Church, Egyptian Coptic, etc. Name of Jesus is linked to holiness, gentleness and love. No violence is attached to it. Today, regardless of skin colour, nationality and political affiliations, billions of people on the planet identify themselves as Christians.
The name of Jesus Christ is recognizable in some form or another in other major religious beliefs as symbolising love, gentleness and merci. Islam, the second most widely spread religion after Christianity has the name of Jesus mentioned in the Koran numerous times. Many of these occurrences of the name of Jesus in the Koran, are linked to his compassion, healing the sick and attending to the poor. Islam also reproduces a lot of Jesus’ gospel as one that preaches love, mercy and redemption. Though Jesus is not mentioned explicitly in Buddhism and Hinduism, modern Hinduism sees Jesus Christ as an acharya (a teacher who practices what he preaches). His life is devoted to God and love for people. All major religions therefore link the name of Jesus Christ to holiness, gentleness, compassion and love.

5. Name that refuses to be suppressed, silenced and erased
In the New Testament, James [a leader of the early church] who was asked to deny Jesus in return for power but he tricked the authorities to use their platform to proclaim Jesus louder. Herod, a Roman king at the time of Jesus, sought to kill baby Jesu so that, as he grows, he does not rise to fame to overshadow the Roman supreme emperor Caesar. But he failed. The Roman empire collapsed but Jesus is still alive. Roman Emperor Diocletian – burned bible to erase the name of Jesus; the modern political system (even in the West). The Bible and the Koran talk about a coming antichrist. But they converge in their conclusion that the antichrist will not be able to erase the name and gospel of Jesus Christ, but on the contrary the antichrist will be defeated.

6. Name that saves.

Miracles happen in that name). This is an area of contention. But to do justice to our science, we need to have a scientific mind and investigate the evidence of miraculous healing that millions of people claim to have experienced calling on the name of Jesus. Names that speaks to us. My personal story of trusting that name, shows that in all situations of hardship I have faced since a child, calling upon the name of Jesus has brought me relief and victory. Many people cry out ‘oh Jesus’ – whether they mean it or not, they speak the name and the name speaks to them.


7. A name and a child whose birth was predicted 100s of years before the birth of Jesus.
No one in history or the present age has had their birth and name predicted with such precision for hundreds of years before they were born. Prophecies in the Old Testament the oldest part of the Bible have prediction of a baby to be born of a virgin, in Bethlem in Judea who will bring redemption to the people. His name is even given as Emmanuel. Extraordinary precision in the prophecies. What can it be if not of divine revelation.

Conclusion: How all the powers of the world have not been able to silence that name? That gives credence to the Christian story that Jesus rose from the dead, defeated the tomb and lives forever. Even death could not hold him. The name of Christ endures. The sceptics ought to reflect on these basic facts.