“Anointed One” is translated as “Messiah” in Hebrew and “Christ” in Greek. Since the New Testament is written in Greek, “Christ” is almost always the term used. However, Jesus and his apostles primarily spoke in Hebrew (or the related language Aramaic) so they would have used the term “Messiah.” You can see this in action in John 1:41 and 4:25, where John explains that the term “Christ” is the same as “Messiah.”
The terms “Messiah” would have probably been the term used until about 50 AD when virtually all Christians were Jews who spoke Hebrew. From about 50 AD to 70 AD, the term “Messiah” would have been used by the Jewish Christians and the term “Christ” would have been used by the Gentile (non-Jewish) Christians. During that time period, the terms would have been synonymous. That is also the time period when virtually all of the New Testament was written in Greek, except for the books by John.
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One of the most important verses in the Gospel of John is John 17:3. Depending on the version you use, it will read something like, “Now this eternal life: that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” If you check out many versions, you could easily conclude the biggest difference in the translations is whether the translators say Jesus Christ or Jesus Messiah.
“Messiah” is English for the Hebrew word meaning “anointed one.” “Christ” is English for the Greek word meaning “anointed one.” Therefore, many Christians and writers have concluded that Messiah and Christ mean the same thing. Literally, that is true. Messiah and Christ both have the translation of “anointed one.” However, how those two names are understood can be far different.
The concept of Messiah probably originated after the Jews left exile and after the Old Testament was written. For a variety of reasons, including interpretations of certain Old Testament scriptures, many of the Jewish teachers began to believe God would be sending a savior to the Jews. By the time of Jesus, there were many differing opinions about the Messiah. Most of them centered around a person who would be a king sent by God to deliver the Jews from the Romans, establish God’s kingdom on earth, and provide justice for the Jews.
