“What’s in a Name?”
(Acts 4:5-14)
Well, what a privilege to again be in God’s house, in God’s pulpit, to share God’s message from God’s word with God’s people. It truly is a joy to be able to be with you this morning. The reason we’re here is to worship the true living God in spirit and in truth. We’ve come together to worship His majesty and sing praises to the King of Kings and we’ve done that this morning. He is worthy of our worship!
But we’ve also come to fellowship with those who share the grace of God and let Him have His way in our hearts. We are known as “brethren”. The word “brethren” means to be “born of the same womb”. That’s what we are as believers. We have something in common. We’re “born from above”. We’re all in this thing together through the good and the difficult. I hope that’s why you’re here today, to worship and to fellowship.
As we are gathered here this morning, we have come together in the name of Jesus. And if you’re a Christian this morning, the name of Jesus is very special to you. Think about it: He’s the one who paid the price that you and I could never pay. He’s the one born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, desired the Father’s will not His own. The one who was betrayed by one of His own followers; He was mocked, spit upon, beaten and eventually taken out and crucified. And He did all of that just for you and me because He loved us. (Quote John 15:13)
Now folks, if you don’t hear another word I say this morning, I want you to hear this, the Lord Jesus Christ loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.
But the story didn’t end there. He conquered death and rose again, ascended into heaven, He’s preparing a place for us and one day He’s coming back. Now, that’s kind of the Gospel in a nutshell. That’s not all! There’s everything in between and what’s happened since then and what happens everyday. Folks, He’s an awesome Savior!
Think about the songs we sing about the name of Jesus, “There is a name I love to hear. I love to sing its worth. It sounds like music in my ear. The sweetest name on earth.”
“Take the name of Jesus with you”. “Lord, I lift your Name on High”. “Precious Name, oh how Sweet”. “Jesus, Name above all Names”. “His Name is Wonderful”. “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, There’s just something about that Name”.
The name of Jesus – the name every knee will bow to and every tongue confess that He is Lord to the glory of God the Father! Well folks, if you haven’t guessed by now, I’m going to speak today about the name of Jesus Christ. I’ve entitled this morning’s message, “What’s in a Name”. Turn if you will to the book of Acts, chapter 4. We’re going to be looking at verses 5-14.
While you’re turning there, let me remind us that the Bible says that “All scripture is given by inspiration”, it’s God-breathed! And it is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction and instruction in righteousness (II Tim. 3:16). Very simply put, the Bible shows us what’s right. It shows us what’s not right. It shows us how to get right and it shows us how to stay right. Heb. 6:18 tells us that “It is impossible for God to lie”. So what God says we can take to the bank! With that said let’s look at Acts chapter 4, verses 5-14 (Read/Pray).
Before we get into the text, let me give you just a little bit of background of what’s happened up to this point. In chapter 2 the Day of Pentecost has just taken place, where the Holy Spirit came to permanently dwell in the lives of believers, and as a result of that, the once fearful disciples have now become bold ambassadors for the Lord Jesus Christ. People all around are filled with the Spirit and there’s an accusation made, “Hey, these guys are drunk”.
Well, Peter, being that most vocal, shoot first, ask questions later disciple that he was, stands, preaches a sermon, lays down the law, sets them straight, and when he’s finished there are 3,000 new believers in Jesus Christ! How’s that for the power of the Holy Spirit?
In chapter 3 Peter and John go up to the Temple where they encounter a lame man begging for alms. To make a long story short, the man is healed, the people see that he’s healed and they’re amazed. But they think Peter and John had something to do with it. But Peter wants to give credit where credit is due so he takes another opportunity to preach about Jesus and this time 2,000 more come to Christ.
Let me tell you something folks, that doesn’t happen in the name of Mohammad. It doesn’t happen in the name of a Mormon prophet. It doesn’t happen in the name of Buddah, Confucious, Madame Cleo or any other religious figure ever born, but it does happen in the name of Jesus Christ! Because He lives!
Now, I want to talk about names for a minute. Names are special and they should be. When I think about some of the things I could have been called, I thank God for Marty everyday. Now, in Jesus’ day names meant alittle bit more than they do today – even more so in the Old Testament. For instance, the name “Isaac” means “laughter” and if you read Genesis 18 you’ll see why. The Angel of the Lord tells Abraham that he and Sara are going to have a baby in their old age. Well, Sara just happens to be listening in and starts laughing probably thinking something like this, “yeah, right, me and that old coot.” Well, what happens? A year later they have a baby and they name him Isaac and it means laughter.
The name “Jacob” means “heel grabber” and if you read Genesis 25 it tells you why. A set of twins are born to Isaac and Rebekah, the first one comes and the other one is holding onto the heel of the first. In bible times names either described the circumstances or the character of the one born.
Later on people named their children after famous people. Now, my name is Marty and it’s short for Martin. Anybody else here named Marty? Folks, my name means “Warlike”. I think I got a bad deal. Those who know me know that’s not my character. My parents named me after the country singer Marty Robbins. I was born the year “A White Sports coat and a Pink Carnation” was a hit. My name is Marty Robin Hopkins. I’m proud of my name. It’s special to me.
Proverbs 22:1 says, “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches”. It’s my responsibility to keep my name a good name so that when the name of Marty Hopkins is spoken hopefully good things come to mind.
Well, when the name of Jesus Christ is spoken good things are in store for sure and in this passage of scripture from Acts chapter 4, verses 5-14 I want to show you 6 things that are found in the name of Jesus and all of them are very important to our Christian lives. The first thing I want you to see is that in the name of Jesus there is,
1.Authority – Look at verses 5-7.
The day after all these conversions took place, a group of the religious leaders mentioned here play this little game. It’s called “Gang up on the Apostles”. They surround them with Peter and John in the middle (sounds like a group of bullies doesn’t it?) and they put them on the hot seat. They start grilling them, “By what power or by what name have you done this?”
Now, for the life of me I don’t know why they asked them this because they already knew. Look at verses 1-2 at the beginning of chapter4 (Read). They knew who they were talking about! But do you know why they were disturbed about it? They were seeing some pretty powerful things happen with these guys around. They heard these guys speaking in a powerful way.
As a matter of fact, in the Greek the phrase “In the name” means “by the authority of”. When a policeman says, “stop in the name of the law” we know what that means. He’s speaking with the authority that’s been given to him. That’s why people listened to Peter and John. They spoke by the authority of Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself said right before the Great Commission, “All authority or power is given unto Me in heaven and on earth.”
But there are 2 verses that are the icing on the cake concerning this point. The last 2 verses in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:28-29 say this, “And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings (chapters 5,6 &7, the Sermon on the Mount), that the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, now here it comes, not as the scribes.” Whoa, talk about knocking the wind out of their sails. That was another thing that bothered them. They were listening to Peter and John but they weren’t listening to them! There’s authority in the name of Jesus! Not only is there authority, but also in the name of Jesus there is,
2.Ability – Look at verses 8-10.
Now, Peter has a problem keeping his mouth shut anyway. We’ve seen that throughout the Gospels. But when he gets filled with the Holy Spirit he speaks with the same boldness he did to those multitudes that were saved. I mean it’s powerful! He doesn’t beat around the bush. He gets right to the point (Read verse 10). He said, “You killed Him but God brought Him back to life.” That’s pretty bold when you remember who he’s talking to here.
Well, what did Peter say in chapter 3 to the man that was healed? He said, “Gold and silver have I none but what I have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” Well, guess what happened? He not only stood up and walked, he went to church with them and when he got in there the scripture says he was walking, leaping and praising God. Sounds to me like he was healed, how about you? That’s what happens in the name of Jesus. We know there’s power in the blood, but there’s also ability in the name. It’s where life takes place!
Remember that familiar verse of scripture in John 1:12? “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the power to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” There is authority in Jesus name and there’s ability in Jesus name. But there’s also,
3.Acceptance
This is something that’s very important, because acceptance is something we deal with in every phase of our lives. Everybody wants and needs to feel accepted. When the Lord Jesus came He wanted to be accepted by everyone but He wasn’t. As a matter of fact, John 1:11 says, “He came to His own and His own did not receive Him.” Look at verse 11 in Acts 4. It talks about the stone that the builders rejected that has become the cornerstone. Jesus knew what it was like to be despised and rejected by mankind.
But what people don’t realize is they are rejecting the very one where life is found. He’s the chief cornerstone. Christ not only gives life, He holds it all together! (Game Jenga – build a tower with pieces of wood, then remove piece by piece until it falls.) Christ is that piece that holds life together.
And when we come to Him accepting what He did for us, the bible says, “Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Jesus said, “All that come to Me I will in no wise cast them out.” He told us to “come to Him and He would give us rest.” God said, “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Paul said that according to the good pleasure of God’s will that we have been “accepted in the Beloved.” Now, let me say something here, you don’t have to worry about Jesus accepting you if you come to Him this morning. He’s waiting with open arms right now waiting for you to come to Him. Really that’s all you can do is come to Him, He’s already done everything else. The next move is yours!
There is acceptance in the name of Jesus. Not only is there acceptance, look at verse 12. In the name of Jesus there is,
4.Adequacy (Read verse 12)
Do you know why there’s no other name? Because there’s no other name! It’s that simple! In no other name is there salvation and life. In no other name is there healing and restoration. In no other name is there comfort, reconciliation, hope, forgiveness, strength, peace, protection, truth and about a million other things. His name is enough!
We don’t need the name of martyred saints or religious leaders or any other man or woman. The name of Jesus is adequate for all of our needs. It’s a special name!
Did you know that even the devil knows how special the name of Jesus is? Do you hear the name of Jesus used in a meaningless way maybe at work or at school or on TV? (Give examples)
Be careful how you use the name of Jesus.
Well, there’s something else that’s found in the name of Jesus. In the name of Jesus there is,
5.Amazement – Look at verse 13 (Read).
Now, what were Peter and John before they became disciples, remember? They were fishermen. They had never been to Bible College or seminary. But you know what? They were preaching and teaching like they had been there. Actually, when you look at it they were in school. They were in training with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. They had on the job training and many of you know that’s the best kind.
I think another thing that amazed everybody was that these former fishermen could even hold an audience with people. Have you ever talked to a bunch of fishermen? What do they talk about? They talk about fish. They talk about their boat. They talk about places to fish and where they’ve been fishing. But these guys were different! I guarantee you this, Peter and John weren’t talking about the one that got away. When you heard these guys preach I doubt if very many ever got away.
The main thing the people saw was that they had been with Jesus. Oh folks, what a thing to be known for! Can that be said of us today? Have you been with Jesus? People can tell you know, if you’ve been with Jesus. People at church, people at work, people at home can certainly tell because they see the real us, don’t they? But you know what, more importantly? You yourself know if you’ve been with Jesus or not. Do some self-examination this morning. Do you spend some time with Jesus everyday?
Well, there’s one more thing that I want to share that’s found in the name of Jesus and this is one of the most important. In the name of Jesus there is authority. In the name of Jesus there is ability. In the name of Jesus there is acceptance. In the name of Jesus there is adequacy. In the name of Jesus there is amazement. The final thing that I want to share with you about the name of Jesus is that in the name of Jesus there is,
6.Absolve
To be absolved means to be free from guilt or punishment. It means to acquit or pardon. Look at verse 14 (Read). They couldn’t say anything against them. To be in a right relationship with Jesus Christ means no one can say anything against you when it comes to sin. That’s because Jesus has taken care of that . That’s what it means to be justified – to be declared righteous in the eyes of God.
Well, what happened? Look down at verse 23 (Read). What happened? They let them go. Why? The only thing they were guilty of was sharing the name of Jesus with those in need. They were just doing what Jesus had told them to do in the Great Commission. They were taking a stand! Let me ask you something, folks, do you ever feel like the Lone Ranger when you’re trying to do the right thing? Gal. 6:9 says, “Let us not grow weary in well doing for in due time we shall reap if we faint not.”
Rom. 8:31 says, “If God is for us who can be against us.” Friend, if you’ve got Jesus on your side, you’ve got all you need!
(Every head bowed and every eye closed please)
What about your life this morning? Do you have a real living relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ? If not you can right here this morning. You can have every wrong you’ve ever done cleansed this morning. And you can leave here with a brand new start. Boy, doesn’t that sound good – a brand new start? The Bible says “if any man be in Christ he is a new creature, old things have passed away, behold all things are new.”
If you’re here today and you’ve never trusted Christ as you personal Savior but you want to, you may want to pray just a simple prayer like this and mean it with all your heart (Lead in prayer).
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