A name is powerful.  Each name is connected to feelings, memories, and ideas that represent something.  The brain is filled with a myriad of thoughts, even as a name is mentioned. 

• What comes to the screen of your mind when you hear or read this name:  "Barak Obama"?
• What does your mind highlight, at the mention of "Elvis Presley"? 
• What image comes to mind with "Tom Cruise"? 
• Now, consider the name, "Moses".  Do you envision a bearded guy, with tablets in his hands? 
• What about  "King David"? 
• Now, think of "Jesus Christ"? 

Surely these last three names bring to mind some of the main elements of the Bible.  The problem is, that these names are not historically accurate.  Nor are they correct, scripturally. 

The truth is, that Moses was never called "Moses."  David wasn't really "David."  Jeremiah wasn't "Jeremiah"!   Shockingly, Jesus Christ never addressed as, nor referred to as, nor answered to, nor heard the name "Jesus."  No.  Not ever. Not even once. 

 
How can this be? When scholars penned our English Bibles, they translated words to form complete phrases or thoughts.  Names, however, weren't carried over properly.  Rather, they were "transliterated," replacing ideas with English phrases, to convey a similar idea. 
 
The translators totally changed the names of each person to an "acceptable" English equivalent: The Hebrew name "Moshe" became Moses.  The prophet Yesha'yahu had his name changed to "Isaiah."  Likewise, the Hebrew name given to the Messiah by the angels in Luke 2 was changed from "Y'shua ben Yosef" to "Iesus" in Greek and then, to "Jesus Christ" in English.
 
With the result, today, our English-language Bibles contain poor substitutes for the true names used in Biblical times.  This is frightening due to the result of such error.  In Philippians 2:9, the name of the Savior is described as the "name above all names".  We are told in the New Testament, that every knee will "bow" and every tongue will "confess" the name of the Messiah. 
 
A name has power and meaning.  Such meaning is lost when the true name is replaced with a nickname or something totally different.  "Y'shua" is the Hebrew name of the Savior and literally, it means "salvation."  "Jesus" is one of the most popular names in the Latino culture, yet it carries no etymological meaning.  History records that the name of "Jesus" has been used for less than 500 years by Christianity. 
 
Does it matter what name a person uses?  In today's world, a person's name doesn't change because they travel to another country.  Regardless of the language or culture in the world, John McCain is John McCain.  John's name isn't changed to "Jorge" because he visits Spain.  DaVinci has been dead for hundreds of years but we still honor him by correctly using his real name. 
 
Why should Bible believers willingly accept substitutes for the truth?  Some would argue that this issue isn't valid because of grace.  We must understand that grace is forgiveness and mercy given by the Almighty because of sin.  Therefore, to say that grace is needed to cover the use of a wrong name would admit that error has occurred.  If your name is "Lester" or "Joan", why would you answer to "Don" or "Maggie"?  The Almighty knows who we are talking about when we refer to His Son as, "Jesus", but it's a lot more honoring to call Him by His given Name. 
 
Why not return to the true names, as given and used in the scriptures? 
 
To learn more of the truth from a Scriptural perspective visit www.emetministries.com.