A CHANGE OF NAME
(by brother Tarran Dookie)
ABRAHAM AND SARAH
Gen 12:1-3 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Gen 16:16 And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.
Gen 17:1-5 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.
According to Josh 24:2-3 God took Abram (descended from Shem) out of Ur of the Chaldees (belonging to Ham). He was delivered from serving other gods to serve the true and living God. He told Abram that He would make of him a great nation and that in him all families of the earth would be blessed. God promised Abraham that his seed would be numerous as the stars of heaven. Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness (Gen 15:6).
However, Abraham's faith wavered and instead of waiting for the promised seed through his wife Sarah he had a son through Hagar, Sarah's maid, when he was eighty-six years old. For thirteen years God said nothing to him. This was a period of trial and emptiness for Abraham. Nothing is heard of Abram during this time. These are the years during which Ishmael, Hagar's son, was growing up.
When we become discouraged we may cease looking to God and turn to ourselves for a solution. We may depend on the flesh to carry out God's will. In so doing we step outside of God's will and there is loss and stagnation.
But according to the richness of His grace God appears to Abram again when he was ninety-nine years old. God knew that Abram erred when he agreed with Sarah to have an offspring through Hagar. He now instructs him to walk before Him and be perfect. In humility and acknowledgement of his error Abram falls on his face and God makes His covenant with him. Brothers and sisters, God will restore the wasted years if we hearken unto Him and change our ways.
God also changes his name from Abram (a high or exalted father) to Abraham (a father of a multitude or nations). His sphere of blessing would be enlarged to encompass all the nations of the earth. Isaac, the son of promise was born to Abraham one year later when he was one hundred years old. God wants to make us an instrument of greater blessing but we must walk before Him and be perfect.
Gen 17:15-16 And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations: kings of people shall be of her.
Not only did God change Abram's name to Abraham but He changed his wife's name from Sarai (my princess) to Sarah (princess). No longer was she to be a princess to Abraham only but now she was also to be a princess to the elect for God was going to bless her with Isaac. She who was barren was to become a mother of nations, and Christ the son of David, the Anointed of God, would be of her. You too may be barren. But God is able to make you fruitful and make you a blessing. Let us yield ourselves to Him that we may bear much fruit.
ISRAEL
Gen 25:24-26 And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau's heel; and his name was called Jacob: and Isaac was threescore years old when she bare them.
Gen 27:34-36 And when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with a great and exceeding bitter cry, and said unto his father, Bless me, even me also, O my father. And he said, Thy brother came with subtilty, and hath taken away thy blessing. And he said, Is not he rightly named Jacob: for he hath supplanted me these two times: he took away my birthright; and, behold, now he hath taken away my blessing. And he said, Hast thou not reserved a blessing for me?
Jacob was a man of subtlety. He enticed Esau to give up his birthright. He cheated Esau of the blessing of Isaac, their father. But he who supplanted was himself supplanted. At the hands of Laban, his father-in-law, he suffered and learnt to cast himself upon God. When he departed from Laban's house and had to pass through Edom he humbled himself before Esau and was reconciled to him. He lost Rachel his wife on the way to Canaan. God arranged all these circumstances so that this man who was to be the father of the tribes of Israel would experience brokenness. We may not always understand why certain events happen in our lives. Why are there these problems and these obstacles? We must trust God's dealings with us as He moulds us after His own way and will. His chastening is for our growth and benefit. He whom He loves He chastens (Heb 12:5-7).
Gen 32:24-32 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me. And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed. And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. And as he passed over Penuel the sun rose upon him, and he halted upon his thigh. Therefore the children of Israel eat not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the hollow of the thigh, unto this day: because he touched the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank.
When Jacob wrestled with the angel of God until the break of day he was wounded in the hollow of his thigh. It was on that occasion that his name was changed from Jacob (he who supplants) to Israel (he will be a prince with God). This change of name shows how different a person Jacob had become after his trials and tribulations. Notice that when Pharaoh asked Jacob his age his answer included the words 'few and evil have the days of the years of my life been'. This was a true display of brokenness.
God wants to bless you and me that we may prevail and be triumphant. But He wants to break us that He may use us. He will have to change our character that we may become lamb-like. We must surrender to His chastening. As Jacob halted upon his thigh we too would not be the same again when God touches us and removes the dross from our lives.
PETER, JAMES AND JOHN
Mark 3:16-17 And Simon he surnamed Peter; And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder.
The Lord Jesus gave new names to the three disciples who witnessed the transfiguration and were with Him in the garden of Gethsemane. Simon was given the name Peter which means a rock or stone. He was also called Cephas which has a similar meaning. The church is founded upon the Rock which is Jesus Christ. Peter was a foundational member of the early church. He was the main spokesman on the day of Pentecost when the Spirit was poured out. Jesus commanded him to feed the sheep though he was sifted like wheat by Satan. God wants rock-like characters to establish and strengthen His people. May He find in us suitable stones for the building up of His temple.
James and John were called the sons of thunder. They were zealous for the Lord and suffered as a result. James was martyred (Acts 12:1-2) and John was exiled to the isle of Patmos for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev 1: 9). The sound of thunder cannot be hid. May our zeal and faith be like the sound of thunder that all may see and hear that God may be glorified.
PAUL
Acts 13:9 Then, Saul, (who also is called Paul,)…
The name Saul means 'asked for'. Saul, the first king of Israel, had to be sought and asked for when Samuel presented him as king before Israel. It was said that there was none like him in all Israel and that he was taller than all the people. Before Paul became an apostle he was known as Saul. Like king Saul he too was a Benjaminite. He was a tall one in the eyes of the Pharisees. He learned at the feet of Gamaliel. He was renowned for persecuting the church. But God called him and changed him. The Holy Spirit asked for Saul to be separated unto the work (Acts 13:1-2). He became an apostle. Thereafter Saul is referred to as Paul. In all his epistles he calls himself Paul. Paul means 'small or little'. The 'asked for' becomes the 'little'. He yields to God and counts all the former things as dung (Phil 3:4-8). He decreases that Christ may increase. May we be little in our own eyes, not minding high things, not thinking of ourselves more highly than we ought to think. He who exalts himself shall be humbled but he who humbles himself shall be exalted (Matt 23:12).
A NEW NAME
Rev 2:17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
God is looking for overcomers in the body of Christ. He will give us a new name. The name will be personal for no man will know it but he that receives it. The new name will reflect our character, our substance, what we have supplied to the body of Christ, the depth of our spiritual walk. He wants to change you, to have you conformed to the image of His Son. May we allow the Holy Spirit to have His way in our lives. May we be overcomers that one day we will receive that new name unto the glory and praise of God.
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