Lesson for February 11, 2026

The Names and Titles of Jesus

Lesson 6

Servant

A servant is someone who carries out the will of another. Jesus Himself said that He came to serve others. Jesus is seen throughout the Scriptures as being a servant, Who fulfills God’s will.

Isaiah 53:11, “As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; by His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, for He will bear their wrongdoings.”

In this verse, Jesus is called God’s Servant Who would come in the future and die for our sins. Isaiah 53:3, “He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces He was despised, and we held Him in low esteem.” Isaiah 53 is a prophecy about Jesus as the suffering servant, Who dies in our place. Isaiah foretold the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ was serving the human race when on the Cross He was “pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5) In giving His life for us “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open his mouth; He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7)

At His trials, Jesus did not defend Himself but remained silent against His accusers. He suffered and died to pay the penalty for sin. The sins of all people were placed upon Him and He paid the price for our salvation. These are just a few of many details in Isaiah 53 that point to Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of messianic prophecy of Jesus as God’s Servant. (Matthew 8:17; Luke 22:37; John 12:38; Acts 8:32-33; Romans 10:16; 1 Peter 2:22, 24-25)

When Jesus came to earth, He took on the role of a servant. The Creator chose to serve His creatures. Jesus said that He had come “to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28) In the book of Acts, the word servant is applied to Jesus four times in connection with His death. (Acts 3:13, 26; 4:27, 30) The humility of a servant is unmistakably seen with regard to Jesus in Philippians 2:7-8, “He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When He appeared in human form, He humbled Himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.”

The Branch

Isaiah 4:2, “In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.”

Isaiah 4 describes a future time during the Millennium when God will restore Israel and when the Branch of the Lord prospers Israel.

Isaiah 11:1-2, “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.”

A Branch from Jesse’s roots (David’s father) will bear fruit, a reference to believers in the Messiah, Jesus Christ. In Jeremiah 23:5, God confirms that the Branch of Isaiah 11:1 is the Messiah. Jeremiah records that in future days God would raise up for David a righteous Branch Who will reign as King. This King will act wisely and do justice and righteousness. (Jeremiah 23:5) In those days, the Jews will be delivered as a nation and dwell securely in the Promised Land. The Branch’s name is Jehovah-Tsidkenu, which is translated, “The Lord our Righteousness.” (Jeremiah 23:6) The same idea is in Jeremiah 33:15, which records that there would come a righteous Branch of David Who would execute justice and righteousness on the earth. The same word for Branch is used in Zechariah 3:8 to describe “My Servant,” and again in Zechariah 6:12-13 to describe One who would build the Temple and serve as both priest and king. The identity of the Messiah is certain, and so is the promise that God will restore the nation of Israel one day. We can trust God to keep His promises to Israel for their restoration, and we can also trust Him to keep His promises to all who have believed in Jesus Christ, that they have eternal life. (John 6:47)

Redeemer

A redeemer is someone entrusted with securing one’s release from oppression, harm, evil, enslavement, or some other binding obligation. A redeemer restores the lost rights and freedoms of another by avenging any wrongs and paying whatever price is required to set that person free. The role of “Redeemer” is uniquely assigned to Jesus Christ, Who rescues believers “from the dominion of darkness” and delivers them into God’s kingdom of light. (Colossians 1:13-14)

In the Old Testament, two main words and their derivatives communicate the concept of redemption. The Hebrew verb gaʾal means “to buy back; to ransom or redeem by paying the price.” The term is used in Exodus 6:6 and 15:13 to designate God’s sovereign act of redeeming Israel from slavery in Egypt. (Psalm 77:15). Jehovah reveals Himself as a deliverer, redeeming people from danger, oppression, captivity, and death in Jeremiah 32:16-44; 50:34; Isaiah 43:1; 48:20. In the book of Ruth, Boaz acts as kinsman-redeemer to Ruth and Naomi, liberating them from destitution and widowhood by buying back the land of Elimelech and taking Ruth to be his wife. (Ruth 4:1-12)

The sin-bearer is described in detail in the Book of Ruth as the kinsman redeemer. The kinsman redeemer had to meet certain requirements by Jewish law in order to redeem (buy back) a relative from slavery or servitude. The requirements for this kinsman redeemer were that he had to be a relative, he had to be able monetarily to pay the price of redemption, and he had to be willing to pay the redemption price. In the Book of Ruth, we see Boaz fulfill all of these requirements and redeem Ruth. Boaz is the perfect type of Christ, our kinsman redeemer. It is Christ Who has met the purchase price for our salvation, as a willing sacrifice for our sin. Christ is related to mankind, the only Person Who could meet the price for our ransom, and He willingly sacrificed Himself on our behalf. Therefore, Jesus Christ met all the requirements of a kinsman redeemer and purchased us from the slave market of sin. (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45; I Timothy 2:6)

The idea of redemption from sin is included in the Old Testament legal term “padah.” (Psalm 26:11; 49:7; 103:8; 130:8; Isaiah 1:27; 59:20) It is a word which is associated with an animal being substituted as the ransom price for either a person or another animal. (Exodus 13:13; 34:20) In Israel’s sacrificial system for sin, the ritual served as a constant reminder that a price or ransom had to be paid for one to be released from the guilt and penalty of sin. The theme of redemption develops further in the New Testament with terms which mean “to redeem,” “to liberate,” or “to ransom.”

The Gospels use this word “ransom” to express the heart of Christ’s mission as Redeemer. (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45) His death on the Cross paid the ransom price to set sinners free from bondage to sin. (Revelation 1:5; Romans 3:23-24; 6:18, 22; Hebrews 9:15; Titus 2:14; Titus 3:3-5; 1 Peter 3:18) Just as the Old Testament animal sacrifices symbolically paid for Israel’s sins, Christ “bore our sins in His body on the tree” and satisfied the debt we owed. (I Peter 2:24)

A New Testament Greek word, “agorazein” is used to express the costly nature of God’s redemptive work by Christ. (1 Corinthians 6:20; Galatians 4:5) Redemption cost Jesus, our Redeemer, everything: “Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the Law. When He was hung on the Cross, He took upon Himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” (Galatians 3:13) Christ paid the ransom to secure our freedom from sin and death. (Acts 20:28; Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 9:12-14; 13:11-12; Revelation 1:5; 5:9-10). The apostle Peter testified, “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” (1 Peter 1:18-19)

Throughout the Bible, God’s work of redemption points to Jesus as the supreme Redeemer of humanity. (Isaiah 63:16) Christ is the fulfillment of Scripture’s redemptive plan for mankind. (Romans 3:24-25) Although our sins separated us from God, the Father sent His Son to be our Redeemer. Christ gave His life so we can live. (John 3:16; 10:10-11) Believers are “justified” by His blood and “saved from God’s wrath” through Him! (Romans 5:9) We are forgiven and cleansed from our sins. (Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 9:14; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; 1 John 1:7) We are released from guilt and condemnation. (Hebrews 9:14; Romans 5:9; 8:1-2) Jesus our Redeemer sets us free from evil forces and powers of darkness in Satan’s world system. (Acts 26:18; Colossians 1:13; 2:20; Galatians 1:4) And He rescues us from the “the terrors of the coming judgment.” (I Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9)

The plan, formulated in eternity past, called for a sin-bearer to bridge the gap between God and man. This sin-bearer had to be uniquely qualified. He had to have no sin of his own, he had to be equal with both parties involved, and he had to be willing to bear the sin of the entire human race. Jesus agreed to execute the plan and became our Sin-bearer by dying on the Cross to pay the penalty for our sin. (Romans 5:8; II Corinthians 5:21) [Source: gotquestions.org]