For centuries the Christ had been anticipated in prophecy by devout Jews as King, Counsellor, Wonderful, Prince of Peace, and other names indicating an expectation that the Messiah would wield worldly power or rulership. During and following his earthly sojourn, Jesus of Nazareth was known by many titles. Those who loved the Nazarene referred to him as Master, Teacher, Saviour, and Lord—titles indicative of service to, rather than rulership over, the mortal domain in which his life had been spent.
However, the identification which has been most familiarly applied to this great character, both in history and in connection with his teachings, is Christ Jesus. Mary Baker Eddy was the first to insist that Christ was not a synonym for the human Jesus, but rather his divine title (see Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 333). For many centuries the two names were used interchangeably. That they cannot properly be so used is evident when we consider the spiritual meanings of both, given in the Glossary of the Christian Science textbook above cited. Here (p. 589) Jesus is defined as "the highest human corporeal concept of the divine idea, rebuking and destroying error and bringing to light man's immortality." And Mrs. Eddy defines Christ (p. 583) as "the divine manifestation of God, which comes to the flesh to destroy incarnate error."
Even to the mind uninstructed in this Science there should be no difficulty in distinguishing between Jesus, a corporeal concept, and Christ, the divine manifestation of God. The conscientious student of Christian Science learns to use these terms precisely in both thought and speech, and this understanding instantly clarifies many an otherwise obscure passage of Scripture.
