From the Editor Jul/Aug 2016

I grew up in a Catholic town. Most of my friends attended either one of the many Roman Catholic churches in the area or the First Congregational Church downtown. Had you asked me what the differences were between them, I could not have told you.

We had a Catholic orphanage; Catholic elementary schools; a big Catholic high school; two Catholic colleges; and, at one point, a Catholic hospital—which my mother preferred over the other hospitals because she liked the nuns.

The Catholic church near my home was called Christ the King—a name I did not understand. I was as puzzled about it as I was about the lyrics to “The First Noel,” a Christmas carol I learned in public school.

Why, I asked myself, do we sing, “Born is the King of Israel”? What does Jesus have to do with Israel? Why do people call him a king? Were His parents Mr. and Mrs. Christ?

One day in Hebrew school (I was about 10), someone asked, “Who was Jesus?” We all wanted to know.

Our teacher replied, “He was a prophet.” How is that possible? I thought. A Gentile prophet? That made no sense. There were no Gentile prophets. All the prophets were Jewish.

Then some boy piped up, “He was Jewish, wasn’t He?” Another shock! Jewish? Are you kidding? Mr. and Mrs. Christ were Jewish? That was when I discovered Jesus’ mother, Mary (née Miriam), and His father, Joseph, were Jewish. So where did the word Christ come from?

It was many years later that I learned Christ is His title, not His name. His name is Jesus the son of Joseph; in Hebrew, Yeshua ben Yoseph. He is also Yeshua ben David, Jesus the son of David, because He is the direct heir to the Davidic throne. The word Christ means “Messiah.” And Messiah means “anointed.”

Jesus the Messiah: Prophet, Priest, and King. I was 31 years old before God enabled me to put it all together and gave me the faith to believe.

This issue of Israel My Glory explains the offices of prophet, priest, and king and why Jesus is the only one anointed to hold all three. May it take you less time to understand the intricacies of these glorious truths than it took me!

Waiting for His Appearing,
Lorna Simcox
Editor-in-Chief

Features

From the Editor Jul/Aug 2016

I grew up in a Catholic town. Most of my friends attended either one of the many Roman Catholic churches in the area or the First Congregational Church downtown. Had you asked me...

Recycling History

Israel’s wise King Solomon, with years of world-watching behind him, concluded, “That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun” (Eccl. 1:9)...

The Greatest Prophet

Prophet, Priest, and King. That is how Jesus’ ministry roles are often portrayed. The Gospels emphasize His role as King of the Jews, though He has yet to occupy that position...

What Went Wrong

Contrary to what some people think, the concept of priesthood did not originate with Israel. In the patriarchal period, the male head of each household functioned as a...

Résumé of the King

Moses said, “You shall surely set a king over you whom the Lᴏʀᴅ your God chooses” (Dt. 17:15). Here is how God planned to administer His kingship authority over Israel...

The Divine Separation

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” So said Sir John Dalberg-Acton in the 19th century, and nothing happening in the world to date has contradicted him...


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