The Name Matters

I want to thank my good friend, Gene Morris, for sharing this article on his AMAZING website, Apostolic Realm.  Check it out!

The debate rages: does it really matter by which name you call God?

I mean, really—as long as you believe there IS some kind of benevolent, mystical, overseeing spirit, isn’t that the point?

(Obviously, those who discount the existence of such a thing have already said their ‘peace-out’. But this is for the rest of us.)

Let’s see. Does it matter to YOU what name I call you by? How’s about Shelly? Or Martha Sue? Or Francis? What about Douglas? Or Marmaduke? Would you like it if I called you something a little more eccentric? Like Cosmic Rock? Volcania? Appalachia? Maybe you’d prefer something more exotic. Sahara, perhaps? Or Himalayan Moonrise? Take your pick.

No? That’s not your name? But I’m still talking to YOU…so what does it matter what I call you?

As a teacher for almost 30 years, let me tell you—kids are VERY attached to their name. They get pretty wound up if you even pronounce it wrong! It doesn’t matter if their parents, in the intoxicating cloud of creativity that the whole process of birthing apparently brings, assigned them a completely new, previously unheard of name, made up of a swirling combination of the names of the two who gave them their DNA and whatever star they were born under. You say that name wrong, and YOU ARE GOING DOWN.

Me: “Shandalahikaya’arazaria Jones?”

Kid: “NO! Are you kidding? ALL THE CONSONANTS ARE SILENT! WHAT is wrong with you?”

(Please note: This is a dramatization. Not an actual kid name. Some of them are worse.)

Now, my point here is not to discredit the choices of parents selecting the perfect moniker for their children. It is to prove that people WANT to be known—for the most part—by their NAME. Even if later in life, they choose to undergo a legal name change, they CHOOSE the name they want to be called. No one else chooses it for them. (This is not the place to get into a discussion about things that happened at Ellis Island. I’m just saying.)

Do we really think God is any different? He has a NAME. And He is pretty particular about it.

Yes, I know that there are many names by which He was called all throughout the Old Testament, but they were primarily having to do with His attributes. Jehovah-Jireh: the Lord will provide. Jehovah-Rapha: the Lord that heals. Jehovah-Nissi: the Lord our banner. Jehovah-Shalom: the Lord our peace—and so on. But these, along with others, were simply manifestations and descriptions of a God who encompasses everything that is good, pure, holy, and true. He is all of these things, and so much more.

There are so many scriptures about the Name. Honestly, I’ve known the Name was important for some time, but this morning, I was reading about Solomon’s dedication of the temple he built in Jerusalem in 1 Kings 8. Read it! The account is powerful. We know that the reason he built the temple was because it was in the heart of his father, David. David felt guilty for living in a palace, when the tabernacle of the Lord was still housed in a tent. They were no longer nomads, as they had been when the tabernacle system of worship had been established through Moses. Thanks to David’s leadership, they were now an established and respected nation, and David rightly felt like the God who was responsible for all their blessings deserved to live in something better than a badger-skin temporary tent.

Though it was not for him to build, God honored David for having this desire in his heart. David collected every material possible, making it the work of his heir, Solomon, to bring about the vision for a true temple in Jerusalem.

And to what purpose was the house built? What was the temple for? For God to live in? How do you fit the omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient God of the universe, in His plurality of majesties into a relatively tiny building, constructed by human hands?

You don’t. And Solomon tells us what the house was meant to hold.

1 Kings 8:18-20 KJV

18 And the LORD said unto David my father, Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house unto MY NAME, thou didst well that it was in thine heart.

19 Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house unto MY NAME.

20 And the LORD hath performed his word that he spake, and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built an house for THE NAME of the LORD God of Israel.

Hmmmm…anybody grasp a theme here?

Anyone?

And lest you think that’s it, let me show you a little more.

1 Kings 8:26-29 KJV

26 And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my father.

27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens CANNOT contain thee; HOW MUCH LESS this house that I have builded?

28 Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to day:

29 That thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, MY NAME SHALL BE THERE: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which thy servant shall make toward this place.

His Name. He must think a lot of His Name, if He is determined to have it dwell in the House built for Him.

But wait! There’s more. Solomon’s prayer of dedication, continued:

1 Kings 8:41-43 KJV

41 Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name's sake;

42 (For they shall hear of THY GREAT NAME, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come and pray toward this house;

43 Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: THAT ALL PEOPLE OF THE EARTH may know THY NAME, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel; and that THEY MAY KNOW that this house, which I have builded, is called by THY NAME.

Okay, did anyone else catch that? It’s not just important for the children of Israel to know THIS NAME. ALL THE PEOPLES OF THE EARTH are supposed to know THE NAME! The SAME name, not whatever they want to call Him. HE wants them to know HIS NAME.

The problem is that, when WE start giving something a name, it’s all about what WE see. Be honest—you have names for all kinds of people that aren’t their real name. You identify those around you in your head by calling them by the attributes you see: Annoying, Irritating, Stupid, Arrogant, Self-Centered, Loving, Kind, Funny, Loyal, Two-Faced, Jerk, BFF.

That doesn’t necessarily mean that is WHO they are. First impressions are seldom completely correct. Often, upon better acquaintance, you discover more correct assessment reveals the names could be Shy, Insecure, Gentle, Intimidated, Tenacious, Wounded, Manipulative, etc.

We are seldom who we appear to be at first glance. Which means that, if WE assign a name to God based on our first impression or woeful lack of knowledge, we probably would be totally off-the-mark when it comes to giving Him a proper name. So often, we desperately try to put a label on things we really don’t understand. Naming things, in our limited, flawed human reasoning, helps us put things neatly in a box, so it can be explained. We don’t like not being able to explain things.

But like Solomon said in verse 27, "Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You." WHY do we think we can slap a label of OUR CHOOSING on a God that even heaven cannot contain?!?

The Name is EVERYTHING, friends. It’s not a side issue, a minor point of contention.

God raised His people up at times, not because they deserved it, but for the sake of His Name.

Ezekiel 36:19-23 KJV

19 And I scattered them among the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them.

20 And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned MY HOLY NAME, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.

21 But I HAD PITY FOR MINE HOLY NAME, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.

22 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, thus saith the Lord God; I DO NOT THIS for YOUR sakes, O house of Israel, BUT FOR MINE HOLY NAME'S SAKE, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.

23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.

And friends, this is why it said in the New Testament, in Colossians 3:17, "And whatever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father by Him."

What? Isn’t Jesus a different name?

Nope.

It literally means Jehovah-Savior, or Jehovah our Salvation. It is the complete fullness of all of the Old Testament names, culminating in one name. Peter understood this.

Acts 2:36-39 KJV

36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same JESUS, whom ye have crucified, both Lord AND Christ. 

(Yahweh AND Messiah. As they say in Psalms---Selah. Chew on that for a minute.)

37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and BE BAPTIZED EVERY ONE OF YOU IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, EVEN AS MANY AS THE LORD OUR GOD SHALL CALL.

Acts 4:8-12 KJV

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,

9 If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole;

10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that BY THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.

12 NEITHER IS THERE SALVATION IN ANY OTHER: for there is NONE OTHER NAME under heaven given among men, WHEREBY WE MUST BE SAVED.

So Peter was convinced that this was how it was done, and how the NAME was the most important part of it ALL. He was pretty exclusive in his views. That wasn’t very popular in the polytheistic climate of the Roman Empire, nor was it an easy pill for the Israelites to swallow, that they’d missed the Messiah they’d been waiting for.

Still not sure?

Acts 5:40-42 KJV

40 And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they COMMANDED that they SHOULD NOT SPEAK IN THE NAME OF JESUS, and let them go.

41 And they departed from the presence of the council, REJOICING THAT THEY WERE COUNTED WORTHY TO SUFFER SHAME FOR HIS NAME.

42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they CEASED NOT to teach and preach Jesus Christ.

It’s the Name that brings the power, folks. It’s the Name that terrifies the Enemy of our souls. It’s the Name that brings healing and release. It’s the Name that the disciples were willing to endure a beating for, and that they REJOICED to be identified with!

DON’T TELL ME THE NAME DOESN’T MATTER!!!!

I could go on and on—and if you’ve read this far, that is amazing! But I urge you to consider that you can’t call Him by any old name you want, and expect Him to show up. He’s not a puppy. He didn’t give YOU the right to name Him. He’s not your pet. He is the GOD who spoke the universe into existence. Can you match that? Have you got anything comparable on YOUR resume?

No? Alrighty then. So stop thinking that everyone is just okay being on their own path, and that ridiculous hell-inspired malarkey that “all roads lead to God.” No, they don’t. All roads DO lead to eternity, but that eternity is going to be very different, depending on the road you find yourself on when your numbered days are up.

And don’t come up with this philosophical nonsense about, “But what about the people in the deepest jungles of _______? Will God judge them? How unfair!”

I think my Jesus can handle that. After all, in Acts 8, when He saw an Ethiopian eunuch, traveling alone in a desolate wilderness with not another living being in sight, He snapped Philip up out of a huge Samarian revival, and deposited him in the desert within a stone’s throw of ONE searching man.

Acts 8:34-37 KJV

34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?

35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?

37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

It mattered. The NAME mattered. Who did Philip preach to him? Jesus.

That’s all I’m saying. And I don’t care if it isn’t popular, because usually, the truth ISN’T popular. But it is true, nonetheless.

Love y’all.