From time to time, people ask why we often use Hebrew terms rather than their more traditional English counterparts.

Here are some examples of what they're talking about. We say things like ...

• Yeshua rather than Jesus
• Messiah rather than Christ
• Kehila rather than church
• Covenant (as in "New Covenant") rather than Testament
• Tanakh (or Jewish Bible) rather than Old Testament

We sometimes even quote from the Hebrew New Testament. Many Christians don't even know there is a Hebrew New Testament.

So what are we up to? Well, first let me assure you that we're not some weird "sacred name" pseudo-Jewish sect. We know there are extremist Hebraic movements where they say it's wrong to use the name "Jesus Christ" because it's rooted in paganism. One group even tries to link the English name "Jesus" with the name of the Greek god Zeus. They say Jesus is really "Gee—zeus."

This is the sort of skewed conclusion you come to when you don't have your linguistic ducks in a row. It's like saying that John 1:1-3 teaches that the world was created by a chunk of wood (logos = log). Or like saying Joshua in the OT had no father because he was "the son of Nun." (Get it? "Son of none"? And yes, there was reportedly a "sacred name" group that actually taught this.) The "evidence" is based purely on phonetics—which is virtually always misleading.

So then, why do we like to intersperse Hebraic terms with their more traditional, Greek- or Latin-based counterparts?

Answer: we use Hebrew terms because it's a reminder of the Jewish roots of our faith. After all, Christianity is essentially and historically Jewish. The Messiah was born in Israel and grew up in a Jewish family. He had a Hebrew name (Yeshua). His birth had been prophesied in the Jewish Scriptures. His followers were Jewish. The writers of His biographies (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), as well as the rest of the NT, were Jewish. The early church was so Jewish, in fact, that they had to convene a council at Jerusalem to decide if and how non-Jewish people could be admitted into their ranks (Acts 15:6-29).

This practice of using Jewish terms also makes for some interesting conversations with Jewish people, especially in Israel. If you're speaking with a typical, non-religious Jewish Israeli and you use the anglicized term "Jesus" or "Christ," they will understand that you're a Christian (Notzri)—and they're okay with that. They lump all "Christians" together (making no distinction between Catholic and Protestant) and they know those are the folks who bring lots of tour groups to the Land—and that's good for the economy. They also know that evangelical Christians in North America are overwhelmingly pro-Israel. So if they classify you with the Notzrim, chances are you'll be well-received.

But if you use the Hebrew term Yeshua ("Jesus") or Meshichi ("Messianic"), that's an entirely different ball game. When you say you're Meshichi, they know the pope is out of the picture. Now you're talking about a first-century Jewish rabbi who's quite controversial in polite Jewish society (some things haven't changed much in 2,000 years). And they know that there are Jewish people, many thousands of them in Israel, who follow Him as their Messiah and Savior. This input (for the culturally sensitive Jewish ear) is harder to process.

It's a historical fact that the Lord was known as Yeshua centuries before He was known as Jesus. It was His original name—and that's the Name the Apostle Paul was talking about when he said it's "the Name which is above every name" (Phil. 2:9-10). (Remember, Paul lived 2,000 years ago and never spoke or wrote a word of English. We find the name "Jesus" in English translations that have appeared only in the last 500 years or so.)

Some folks really need to get up to speed on the history here. They think the Savior's first name was "Jesus" and His last name was "Christ." So they imagine that if you could be transported somehow back to the first century, you could go to Nazareth and ask where the Christ family lived. You would be directed to the home of the Christs—Joseph Christ, Mary Christ, and their son, Jesus Christ, and His other siblings.

But that's not how it was in first century Israel. They didn't have surnames like we have today. In His day, the Lord would have been known as Yeshua ben Yossef (Jesus son of Joseph). The term "Christ" was a title—not a surname. It derives from the Greek word christos, which means "Messiah" or "Anointed One." In Hebrew, then, He is Yeshua haMashiach, or Jesus the Christ. In Aramaic, the Jewish street language of His day, it would have been pronounced something like Yeshue Meshikha. Not much different from Hebrew.

I could go on and on—but I won't belabor the point. You're probably already way ahead of me on this.

It's really very simple. We use Hebraic terminology from time to time because it's our way of keeping the conversation going about the Jewish roots of true, historic Christianity.

It also helps us keep the focus on interpreting the Bible from a messianic perspective.

That is, in fact, the name of our bimonthly paper and our daily radio program—Messianic Perspectives.

It's what we're about.

It surely doesn't mean we think it's wrong to use non-Hebrew terms for these same names and concepts.

Whatever language we use, God knows what we mean. He's more interested in what's in our hearts than He is in the words we use (Psalm 66:16-18).

And whether we call Him Yeshua or Jesus, He knows we're talking to Him.

Recommended reading; Christianity Is Jewish by Edith Schaeffer.