The Names of Jesus - Elmer Towns

members of His body, retain an independent will by which they can and too often do refuse the
directives of the head.
That Christ is called “the head of the body” implies several truths concerning His
relationship to the church. First, it means His purposes cannot be frustrated; He holds ultimate
control. Even if one part of the body is rebellious and does not respond to His directives, another
will respond. Secondly, it suggests that no individual member within that body can be the
organic head of it. Attempts to do so will be frustrated, as in the case of Diotrephes, “who loveth
to have the preeminence among them” (III John 9). The place of preeminence in the church
belongs to Jesus alone. “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the
firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence” (Colossians 1:18).
The practical implication of this title of Christ relates to our submission to Jesus as the
head of the body. He demands our obedience to His will and reverential worship of His Person.
Anything less falls short of a personal acknowledgment of Jesus as the Head of the Body.
THE SHEPHERD OF THE SHEEP
Scripture often refers to the church as the flock of God, and so it is not surprising that the
Lord should bear the title “Shepherd.” When He sees the multitudes of people, He sees them
“scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). He was the Good Shepherd in
His death (John 10:11; Psalm 22), the Great Shepherd in His resurrection (Hebrews 13:20; Psalm
23) and will be the Chief Shepherd in His return to this earth (I Peter 5:4; Psalm 24). Unlike the
hireling whose primary concern is himself, Jesus cares for His sheep. He has entrusted the care
of parts of His flock to others called “pastors,” or more literally, “shepherds.” Jesus the shepherd
is the model for pastors in caring for the flock. The title “shepherd” was also one of the
Jehovistic names of Jesus in the Gospel of John.
THE BRIDEGROOM OF THE BRIDE
When John the Baptist became the first to call Jesus “the bridegroom” (John 3:29), the
term was already rich in meaning. The Old Testament frequently portrayed Israel as the wife of
the Lord (Isaiah 54:6; Jeremiah 31:32; Hosea 2:1-23). As John on that occasion noted, “He that
hath the bride is the bridegroom” (John 3:29). This title was to have special significance in the
New Testament, not for Israel as the wife of God but, rather, for the church, which is the bride of
Christ. The relation between the bride and Bridegroom is most fully taught in a passage in which
the Apostle Paul addresses several principles of family living (Ephesians 5:25-27). These verses
emphasize that Christ loved the church, gave Himself for it, purposes to sanctify and cleanse it
by the Word of God, and promises to take it to Himself as a perfected bride. This work of Christ
began in eternity past when He determined to die for her because of his love for her and will be
consummated in the new Jerusalem when we shall with John see “the holy city, new Jerusalem,
coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation
21:2).
The image of the bride and Bridegroom serves to emphasize the need for qualitative or
spiritual church growth-that is, growth in our love for Christ. The church was “espoused” to