Another answer is a bit simpler:
The word 'Christ' comes from the Greek Khristos, 'the anointed one'. It is usually transliterated into English as 'Messiah'
'Jesus Christ' also means 'Jesus the Messiah' and does not necessarily refer to a literal anointing.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ
The word 'Christ' comes from the Greek Khristos, 'the anointed one'. It is usually transliterated into English as 'Messiah'
'Jesus Christ' also means 'Jesus the Messiah' and does not necessarily refer to a literal anointing.
Quote:Christ is the English term for the Greek Χριστός (Khristós) meaning "the anointed one".[1] It is a translation of the Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ (Māšîaḥ), usually transliterated into English as Messiah.
The word is often misunderstood to be the surname of Jesus due to the numerous mentions of Jesus Christ in the Christian Bible. The word is in fact used as a title, hence its common reciprocal use Christ Jesus, meaning "Jesus The Anointed One", or "Jesus The Messiah". Followers of Jesus became known as Christians because they believed that Jesus was the Christ, or Messiah, prophesied about in the Tanakh (which Christians term the Old Testament). The majority of Jews reject this claim and are still waiting for Christ to come (see Jewish Messiah). Most Christians now wait for the Second Coming of Christ when they believe he will fulfill the rest of the Messianic prophecy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ
