THAT NAME
Is there something important about your name? In a day and time when it seems that people have begun to name their children just about anything, we have lost sight of what God says is important about naming our children. In Bible times, when children were born, they always given names that carried some significant meaning that would shadow them for their entire lives.
Genesis 17:5, "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."
The name Abram meant “high father”, while the name Abraham meant “father of a great multitude”. God changed his name because God wanted Abraham to know that there was only one “High Father”, our Father in Heaven. Abraham would be the one who God would bless to bring forth God’s own chosen people of Israel. The name that God gave to Abraham was like a seal upon the promise of God to multiply Abraham’s family until they were as many as the sands upon the seashore.
If a name was not important and did not carry some significance, why would God bother to change Abram’s name in the first place?
In Genesis 32:28 we see where God changed the name of a man once again, "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."
The name Jacob means “one that supplants, undermines; the heel”. Jacob certainly lived up to his name. From the moment of his birth when he caught his twin brother by the heal during their delivery, until the time that God changed his heart forever, Jacob was always attempting to get what he wanted by being devious. He stole his brother’s birthright through scheming to catch Esau when he was at his weakest moment. He stole his father’s blessing when Isaac lay dying by wearing an animal skin to fool Isaac into thinking that he was Esau.
In Jacob we can see all the efforts of man to by-pass or to ignore God’s plan for salvation and to attempt to get to Heaven through his own plans and methods. Just as it took Jacob wrestling with God all night long before he could be forever changed, men and women everywhere will wrestle with their own heart, fighting against the Call of God, arguing with the Truth of the Gospel, until one day, hopefully, they will finally come to the conclusion that there is only one way to Heaven, and that’s God way, through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jacob’s name was changed to Israel, meaning “one who prevails with God”. That doesn’t mean that Jacob defeated God to get his own way. It means that he would not give up until he received God’s blessing. Before the “angel of the Lord”, who every Bible scholar agrees was a pre-incarnate Christ, left the fight with Jacob, he touched Jacob and gave him a limp to let him know two things. First, that Jacob didn’t have the physical ability or power to overcome or alter God’s plan, and secondly, that God was giving Jacob a new name and a new purpose, as though he were being “born again” after a fashion into a new life that would give him the ability to be a part of God’s plan for the salvation of all men through his generations of children that would, one day, bring forth the Messiah.
God chose to change the name of Jacob to Israel for a purpose because there is a great significance in a name.
Proverbs 22:1, "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver and gold."
Ecclesiastes 7:1, "A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth."
People have lost the significance of a name in our present society. Either the names they give many of their children are whimsical or they are named with no thought of God in mind.
There is an old joke, and please do not be offended by this, that many Oriental children are named by simply picking up the first thing available at the moment of their birth and throwing it. Whatever sound the object makes becomes the child’s name for life such as “Ping”, “Wang”, “Chung”, or such. We all know it is the “sing-song” language that determines how these names sound but each name still carries some significance.
Illustration:
When the 1960s ended, San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district reverted to high rent, and many hippies moved down the coast to Santa Cruz. They had children and got married, too, though in no particular sequence. But they didn’t name their children Melissa or Brett. People in the mountains around Santa Cruz grew accustomed to their children playing Frisbee with little Time Warp or Spring Fever. And eventually Moonbeam, Earth, Love and Precious Promise all ended up in public school.
That’s when the kindergarten teachers first met Fruit Stand. Every fall, according to tradition, parents bravely apply nametags to their children, kiss them good-bye and send them off to school on the bus. So it was for Fruit Stand. The teachers thought the boy’s name was odd, but they tried to make the best of it.
"Would you like to play with the blocks, Fruit Stand?" they offered. And later, "Fruit Stand, how about a snack?" He accepted hesitantly. By the end of the day, his name didn’t seem much odder than Heather’s or Sun Ray’s.
At dismissal time, the teachers led the children out to the buses. "Fruit Stand, do you know which one is your bus?"
He didn’t answer. That wasn’t strange. He hadn’t answered them all day. Lots of children are shy on the first day of school. It didn’t matter. The teachers had instructed the parents to write the names of their children’s bus stops on the reverse side of their nametags. The teacher simply turned over the tag. There, neatly printed, was the word "Anthony."
There have been those throughout history who have realized just how important their name was and they have done everything within their power to guard that name. No one could persuade them, at any cost, to bring a reproach upon their good name because, for many of them, that good name was all they had.
Illustration:
After the American Civil War the managers of the infamous Louisiana Lottery approached Robert E. Lee and asked if he’d let them use his name in their scheme. They promised that if he did he would become rich.
Astounded, Lee straightened up, buttoned his gray coat, and shouted, "Gentlemen, I lost my home in the war. I lost my fortune in the war. I lost everything except my name. My name is not for sale, and if you fellows don’t get out of here, I’ll break this crutch over year heads!"
There have been a lot of people throughout history who have also earned names that they really didn’t want and many who have committed evil crimes and allowed Satan to let their names be forever remembered as a scourge upon humanity. Names of men like Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and others are an unforgettable reminder of man’s inhumanity to man.
Illustration:
Charles the Simple, Son of Louis the Stammerer. So called for his policy of making concessions to the Norse invaders rather than fighting.
Louis the Sluggard, noted for his self-indulgence, he ruled from 986 to 987 over the Franks.
Ethelred the unready (968-1016) so called because of his inability to repel the Danish invasion of England. At first he paid tribute to the Danes, but their raids continued and he was forced to abandon England for Normandy in 1013. Those who are more generous call him Ethelred the ill-advised.
Louis the Fat, like his father, was obese. At the age of 47 because of his extreme corpulence, he was unable to mount his horse.
Names like George Patton, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Charlemagne, and William Wallace remind us that there are men who will give their all to make this world a better and safer place to live.
There are names like Billy Sunday, Billy Graham, Jonathan Edwards, John Wesley, John Calvin, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and many more who bring to mind the heroes of our faith and the great evangelistic moves of God in this world.
Yes there is something very significant about a name. All of us should guard our name so that when your name is mentioned there will always be a positive thought that pops into people’s minds.
The best way to guard your name is by being faithful to God and living in obedience to his Word. Listen to what Paul says in Galatians 5:22-23, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."
If we don’t break the laws of man, nor do we offend the laws of God, then we will carry a good name that bears respect. Live by the Spirit, be filled with the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in other tongues, and walk in the ways of the Lord and you will never find your name as a law breaker and you will always be known as a responsible citizen. And if your name is ever known as a lawbreaker in this world it will be because you are living according to a higher law.
Your name, my name and the names of all people will immediately bring to mind the kind of person that we are in the eyes of others. But there is one name that is above every name, and one name that carries a greater significance than any other name in history. That name is the name of Jesus Christ.
Philippians 2:9-11, "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
We sing the chorus that goes something like this:
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus – there’s just something about that name. Master, Savior, Jesus – like the fragrance after the rain. Jesus, Jesus, Jesus – let all Heaven and earth proclaim. Kings and kingdoms will all pass away. But there’s something about that name.
No other name can bring peace to a troubled heart and soul like the name of Jesus.
No other name can bring encourage those who depressed and discouraged like Jesus. No other name can give strength to weak and lonely like the name of Jesus. No other name can bring deliverance to a sin-sick soul like the name of Jesus.
No other name can bring us to a place of victory, power, healing and love for our fellowman like Jesus.
David wrote a beautiful prayer and song of praise unto the coming King of Kings in Psalms 72:1-20, "[…] He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment. The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness. He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor. [...] He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth. [ …] He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust. [ …] all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him. For he shall […] shall save the souls of the needy. […] His name shall endure forever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed. Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name forever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory…
No other name in history has had, or will ever have, the impact that the name of Jesus has.
When we speak that name, Jesus, everything in both Heaven and Hell, stops to see what will happen next.
When we speak that name, Jesus, demons tremble in fear and awe before his great power. When we speak that name, Jesus, sickness and disease must obey his command.
When we speak that name, Jesus, peace will flood our soul and the Holy Ghost within us suddenly seems to come alive in a greater measure.
At that name of Jesus, all of creation bows in obedience.
At the name of Jesus, the winds and waves cease to roar.
At that name of Jesus, all of Heaven sings in glorious victory and praise for the Son of God, who has purchased victory over sin with His own Precious Blood upon the Cross.
Jesus Christ, the only Son of God came down to this earth and took upon him the form of a man. Driven by his love for man, who was created in the image of God, and who was eternally condemned to death for sin, Jesus chose to go to the cross and give his life, shed his blood and die there for you and I because we had no other hope of deliverance.
Jesus Christ, died and rose again by his own power on the third day, to become the first-fruits of all men who will only believe in the name of Jesus as their Savior, Lord and King. Stephen saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God as though Jesus were standing to welcome Stephen to the portals of Heaven, as he died a martyr’s death. Paul saw Jesus seated at the right hand of God signifying that all power in heaven and in earth belongs to Jesus for the term “right hand” always speaks of a place of authority and power.
The name of Jesus brings to bear all the power of God to meet every need that anyone will ever have. The problem is that not all men will call upon him in their hour of need.
What about each of you right now? What does the name Jesus mean to you this morning? When you hear the name Jesus what thoughts come immediately to your heart and mind?
For many, the name of Jesus carries little significance other than some story like a fairy tale that they heard long ago because they have never met him and don’t know him.
For others the name of Jesus only strikes fear and dread into their hearts because they have learned of him and heard of him and they know that they must come to him and accept his sacrifice or they will face eternity without God. They know that Jesus is the only way but they are unwilling to surrender to him, choosing rather to serve their own desires and to walk in the paths of rebellion against God while gambling with their very soul. What a sad state these are in. They are rejecting and spurning their only hope and eternity without Jesus will be a long, long, long time to remember that they chose not to allow him to be their Savior and Lord.
For others, perhaps even some of us here, we have heard that name Jesus, and we have accepted his sacrifice for our sins and began to walk according to his will. But, somehow, over time, we have lost our zeal for him. We have begun to take him for granted. The name of Jesus doesn’t excite the “fire within our hearts” that it used to. We have become complacent in our walk with the Lord. We aren’t excited about being a part of his Church any more. We only live a good life, just squeaking by, walking just far enough away from the Lord so that we seldom hear his voice anymore. We go for days without praying or talking to Jesus. He is still there with us but we just tend to ignore him most of the time. It won’t be long until we won’t hear him at all if we continue that way. It’s time to turn back to him, look full into his wonderful face. When you are looking into the face of Jesus, calling on his name, you can’t live without him. You need his presence, his glory and his power in your life and you can’t live a minute without thinking of his will for your life.
I hope that all of us that are here this morning are just amazed beyond words that the very Son of God, Jesus Christ our Lord, lives within your heart right now. To think that the same God who is omnipresent throughout all creation, and who has all omnipotent power to speak and do whatever he wants, and who is omniscient, knowing everything about everything from eternity past to eternity future, cares enough about you and I to move in and live within our hearts in just incomprehensible to me.
I can’t understand it. I just accept him by faith and let him move in. What a wonderful life we can have when Jesus moves into our heart.
Paraphrasing one of the old hymns found in most church hymnals we sing these words:
What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought since I light in my soul
I have ceased from my wondering astray and my sins are washed away
I possess a hope that is steadfast and sure and no dark clouds my sight now obscure
There’s a light now in the valley of death and the gates of Heaven I can see
I shall go there to dwell I know and I’m happy, so happy, as onward I go
Since Jesus Came into My Heart
Can you sing those words this morning? Is that how the name of Jesus makes you feel? The name of Jesus will have a powerful effect upon your heart and life, either for good or for bad depending on how you treat him and whether you accept him or not.
What will you do with that name? Will you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Now is the accepted time. Come while the Spirit is calling!
