The Promise Of A Saviour To Reverse The Results Of The Fall

In GENESIS 3:15 even as satan manages to tempt God's children to disobey him, God promises that a descendant of Adam and Eve will "bruise and tread your head underfoot" in spite of satan's attempts to kill him  -  a reference to one who would reverse the terrible consequences of mankind's rebellion against God.

The Promise Of A Messiah  - "An Anointed One"

Throughout the Old Testament God promised he would send an anointed one (Hebrew mashiah) to bring in God's kingdom reign on earth for ever and deal with the consequences of the rebellion instigated by satan in heaven and propagated on earth by Adam and Eve's disobedience. (For more on this see the units headed THE ORIGINS OF EVIL and THE FALL OF MAN.)

The Hebrew word mashiah (translated in English Messiah) means "one anointed by God with the power of the Holy Spirit."

Three kinds of people in the Old Testament -  prophets, priests and kings - were anointed with sacred oil as a sign of God's empowering.

Hebrew Mashiah = Greek Christos

The Greek word for anointed is Christos, which gives us our word Christ. So Messiah and Christ both mean God's Anointed One. In Jesus the Messiah - Yeshua Ha Mashiah -  we see all three ministries of prophet, priest and king combined.