Little Penny told her mother one evening that she had learned a new prayer in Sunday school.
She wanted to say it instead of her usual “ Now I lay me down to sleep”. Her mother agreed but was surprised, when Penny began
“Our Father who art in heaven, hello, what be thy name?”.
God might well ask you a similar question: My child sitting in this hall, hello, what be thy name?”
God wants to encourage us at this time. He is a God of LOVE - He is a God of judgement –
He is a God of covenant –
To God names are important -
"Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent; his glory [is] above the earth and heaven." Psa 148:13
Throughout Scripture God reveals Himself to us through His names.
El Shaddai (el shad-di’)
All-Sufficient One, Lord God Almighty
El Elyon (el el-yone’)
The Most High God
Adonai (ad-o-noy’)
Lord, Master
Yahweh or Jehovah (yah-weh)
Lord, Jehovah
Jehovah Nissi (yeh-ho-vaw’ nis-see’)
The Lord My Banner, The Lord my Miracle
Jehovah-Raah (yeh-ho-vaw’ raw-aw’)
The Lord My Shepherd
Jehovah-Rapha (yeh-ho-vaw’ raw-faw’)
The Lord that Heals
Jehovah Shammah (yeh-ho-vaw’ shawm’-maw)
The Lord Is There
Jehovah Tsidkenu (yeh-ho-vaw’ tsid-kay’-noo)
The Lord our Righteousness
Jehovah Mekoddishkem (yeh-ho-vaw’ M-qadash)
The Lord who Sanctifies You, The Lord Who makes Holy
El Olam (el o-lawm’)
The Everlasting God, The God of Eternity, The God of the Universe, The God of Ancient Days
Elohim (el-o-heem’)
God, Judge, Creator
Qanna (kan-naw’)
Jealous, Zealous
Jehovah Jireh (yeh-ho-vaw’ yir-eh’)
The Lord will Provide
Jehovah-Shalom (yeh-ho-vaw’ shaw-lome’)
The Lord is Peace
Jehovah Sabaoth (yeh-ho-vaw’ se ba’t)
The Lord of Hosts, The Lord of Powers The Lord of Armies
God wants you to think about your name. Not so much the name on your birth certificate or drivers license- but the name by which you know yourself.
In the bible names are important & mean something. God changed the names of various people to better describe who HE intended them to be.
Abraham – Sarah – Israel – Peter are some examples
Even Jesus was divinely assigned His name.
Matt 1:21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins."
You bear several names that describe you. These names you have either placed on yourself or you have accepted them from somebody else. I would say that there is a 99.9% chance that each of these names is a negative or derogatory one. They serve as labels for your basic self concept of who you are.
There are 3 areas I want to cover today.
1. A name to describe your most basic instinct.
2. A name to describe your present condition or state of mind
3. A name to describe your relationship with God
In each of these areas God wants you to have a GOOD name.
If your present name (how you see yourself) is a bad or negative name God wants to change it.
Let’s look at these 3 areas this morning.
1. A name to describe your most basic nature.
Sinner – sinner - sinner
Many of us have sinned so much and been confronted with it so often, we wear that name as our badge. We are stuck with it – and we don’t realize God has changed our name to something better.
We need to realise that that’s the past – that’s the old man.
Let’s look at Ephesians Chap 2 v 4 again.
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
We have not deserved God’s favour – we have sinned against Him –
We had the name sinner for a reason – we deserved it
However, God totally accepts us –not by who we are – but who Jesus is.
And God accepts us totally through the merits of Him – Jesus.
It’s not our righteousness it’s His ( Jesus’) righteousness
When we by faith accepted Christ as our personal Lord and saviour, we became more than sinners saved by grace – that’s what we were – but now we have a new name, because God didn’t just forgive us, He made us new creatures ( we need a new name – new creature – new name) and adopted us into His family ( again we need a new name – new family new name)
Let’s go to my favourite book & chapter Romans 8 v 15 - 17
For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, "Abba, Father." 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.
I remember a story of a young lady – whose father nicknamed her “fats”
Why because she was very overweight
This name concentrated on just one undesirable trait of this girl – one alone.
But this girl was much more than that.
It was a negative trait & caused her to think of herself negatively.
When we accept Christ as our Lord and Saviour – then we can change our name from sinner to saint.
Romans 5 v 8 & 9
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. 10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.
We have been justified (as if we had never sinned) by the death of Jesus Christ who died for us.
1 Corinthians 6 v 11
And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.
Note the use of the word “were” here – past tense.
We are to exchange our old self image for a new one – sinner to saint.
Romans 3: 23 - 26 says
But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, 22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all *and on all who believe. For there is no difference; 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, 26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
Romans 3: 12
They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
We all know that man was a sinner – But we need to understand that as far as God was concerned
MAN WAS A SINNER WORTH SAVING
Question – What do sinners do? – they sin
As long as you wear the name sinner – you will have a lot of trouble with sin.
As a saint you will find it more appropriate to live Godly in Christ Jesus.
Listen to what David said in 1 Samuel 24 v 13
As the proverb of the ancients says, ’Wickedness proceeds from the wicked.’ But my hand shall not be against you.
David cut off Saul’s coat tail, but spared his life.
He said he was not going to do evil just because others did.
David didn’t see himself as an evildoer – so it wasn’t for him to do evil deeds.
2. A name to describe your present condition or state of mind
As I mentioned last week, there are some people going through some hard times at present and if this is you, then maybe you weren’t here last week and haven’t heard of the new credit card issued by the “Bank of God”.
But we have to understand that as Christians we are not exempt from stuff happening – if your car breaks down – that doesn’t mean God is angry at you. It just means the darn car has broken down.
It’s called life - people.
So sometimes during this hard stuff we adopt a name for ourselves.
In the bible the story of Naomi who after a rough 10 years in Moab – where her husband and both her son’s died ( that’s’ pretty rough) – she was depressed about life (understandable).
Naomi said – “don’t call me or why call me Naomi ( which means pleasant)
Call me ( Mara) which means bitter. – So she acted accordingly – bitter.
In times of difficulty, like Naomi we tend to let the circumstances shape our mental picture of what or who we and we impose or take on unbecoming names on ourselves.
Names like – bitter – despairing – envious – unbelieving – angry – it goes on and on negative words to describe ourselves and our circumstances.
Many wear the name – guilty because of losing a struggle with the power of sin.
We call ourselves inadequate or powerless – even Paul lived by that name for a while: He called himself wretched.
Romans 7: 18, 19 & 24
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.
O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
If you are currently living with a name unbecoming your status as an adopted son or daughter of the most high God then take hope and by faith adopt a new & better name.
Instead of bitter – use the word better
Instead of despairing – use the word determined
Envious – use the word challenged
Change unbelieving to hope etc etc.
Your difficulties are not forever
They don’t have to cause you to change your name from pleasant to bitter
That name doesn’t fit you any more.
3. A Name to Describe your relationship with God.
We must get our image of ourselves from God.
We must see ourselves in the true mirror of His Word rather than in the distorted mirrors of the world’s feedback.
Ever been in one of those crazy mirror places – where some make you fat – some skinny but all are distorted view of ourselves.
that’s how some of you see yourselves
The cracked mirror – people think that they and the cracked mirror are the same
WE MUST GET GODS IMAGE OF US.
John 3: 1
Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know *us, because it did not know Him.
God calls us a child of God – His child
Are you carrying around demeaning names from your past
Replace them with the name God bestows upon you.
The Word of God and the Spirit of God testify together - you are called a child of God.
So what’s the name to best describe your relationship with God.
You are His child – an heir – Jesus’ brother.
Derek prince all his life believed in the power of proclamation
Proclaim it today – I am a child of God
God says it - I receive it - that settles it
