What's In A Name?
Life After The Cross • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Alright, this week we are continuing our series / / Life After the Cross: lessons to learn between easter & pentecost.
And really, we could simply be asking the question, / / What does it mean to live the Christian life?
What changed from life before the cross, to life after the cross?
Everything has to shift. To continue living the way you did will yield the results you used to get, so what needs to change and what do you need to let go of so you can fully embrace this new life? And I mean that for the disciples 2000 years ago just as much as I do for us today. Even if you’ve been a Christian for years, I can almost guarantee there are things in your life that you would say, “Ya, probably don’t need that. But still holding on...”
I read a few weeks ago from a Bible Commentary on Matthew 5:17. This was where Jesus says, / / “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.” And the Life Application Commentary says on that scripture, / / The Old Testament law is not rescinded [canceled, or repealed] but now must be reinterpreted and reapplied in light of Jesus. God does not change his mind. Jesus’ coming had been part of God’s plan from Creation.
This is why I’ve said before, you have to read the Old Testament through the lens, or revelation of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 1:3 says, / / The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command.
The ESV says that / / [Jesus is] …the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature.
And I love how the Message translates this, / / This Son perfectly mirrors God, and is stamped with God’s nature. or the TPT, the exact expression of God’s true nature...
So, if we see the exact nature of God in the life, love, sacrifice, words, teachings and actions of Jesus Christ then we are not truly reading scripture if we don’t read it through that lens. And that means that our understanding of scripture must change. If you read the old testament without an understanding of the nature of God that has been expressed through Jesus Christ, then you will think there are two different Gods, an OT God of vengeance, and a NT God of grace, compassion, and love. But that is not the case. Just like this commentary says, we must reinterpret and reapply in light of Jesus.
So there’s this huge shift. These disciples understand this full well. I was thinking again, and I can’t encourage you enough. When you sit down to read the bible, ask God to reveal what is meant through scriptures. Luke says this twice in one chapter. First in Luke 24:27, where Jesus has suddenly appeared to two disciples on a journey leaving Jerusalem and walking to a town called Emmaus, they don’t recognize him and it says, / / Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. And then again later in the chapter in Luke 24:45, and this is after those two disciples have met up with the others, they are sharing their story, Jesus suddenly shows up to all of them in the room and it says, / / Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
I don’t know about you, but I don’t want MY understanding of scripture. I want a Luke 24 experience when I read the bible. that Jesus takes me through the scriptures and explains them to me, and that he opens my mind to understand them!
And just like the disciples that don’t quite understand what’s going on, the church has had through the last 2000 years these moments where we get off track, or we misinterpret scripture, or we misapply the meaning of scripture, and God gently brings us back to HIS understanding of it. Listen, / / we have to come to a place where we don’t just want what we think we want scripture to say. What do I mean by that?
People have been taking the word of God out of context since the beginning of time. It happened in the garden, “Did God really say???” And we have to be sure of what the bible DOES say and what God DOES say so that we don’t fall into those traps.
Because unfortunately, you can make the bible support pretty much any decision you want:
Slavery, sure, read it, it’s in there. The Bible even says slaves should stay subject to their masters.
Women and children being less than men… yup, you can find it. And if that’s what you want, you could use it that way too.
How about women preaching in church, or in leadership, or given a title, like pastor.... you can use the bible to put that one down too.
But here’s the thing, all of those are taken wildly out of context. And if you do not understand that the bible is the story of God but told by his children who are steeped in humanity, then you can misinterpret and misapply scripture. I am at a point in my life where I want scripture to define what I am meant to believe, not what I believe to define what scripture means.
Sorry, I know this may seem a bit off track, but I think it’s important for us to understand that the disciples had to go through the exact same process.
Remember - and I think I mentioned this a couple weeks ago, but the same disciples, James and John, that in Luke 9:54 ask Jesus if they should call fire down from heaven and destroy an entire town of people because they didn’t let Jesus come stay there....those are the same ones that Jesus is saying, “So, go start a church… not just A church, THE church, the entire Christian religion, you guys are going to get it off the ground, I trust you...”
How is that possible? Because reapplication and reinterpretation of scripture happened as they relied on the understanding and revelation of Jesus.
And I have talked about this before, that our ideas, our foundations, our belief systems and structures are formed through our life experiences, right? And often times we go through life believing a certain thing a certain way UNTIL a better understanding or interpretation of things is given to us, and then we choose to either continue believing a lie / misguided truth, OR apply this new understanding to our lives.
What we need to be careful to remember is that this is always, and entirely based on God’s interpretation and application of scripture expressed through the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ who is the exact representation of God. Not what culture or society says is now normal. There are things being declared as normal today that couldn’t be further from the truth, and I believe it grieves the heart of God when we take what we want to believe and say this is what God meant.
And let me just tell you, it happens on both sides of the aisle, so to speak. Reading the bible without our own bias is not an easy thing to do. Just ask James & John. They wanted to destroy people with fire while walking with Jesus...
So, we are looking at this crucial time between easter and pentecost where the disciples are getting their understanding adjusted and where Jesus is saying, “Look at this scripture, this is what it means, this is how it relates to me, don’t you realize, this was all pointing to me...” And we are leading toward the point where Jesus will no longer be with them and they will be on their own and doing this thing.
Last week we looked at / / the tension between believing in the finished work of Jesus Christ through the cross, and the reality that we don’t always see what we want to see accomplished in our lives.
How do we wrestle with that? How do we handle these things?
I’m reading this book right now and in it the author asks this very question. How do we live in the tension of learning to endure and patiently wait and sometimes even go through trial and sorrow, or as Paul says sometimes in scripture, to suffer, AND the other side of Jesus clearly saying, Ask anything in my name and you will receive it… knock and the door will be opened, seek and you will find, ask and it will be given… But what about when that doesn’t happen? Is it an us thing? Are we just lacking faith? Wow, that would be demoralizing, wouldn’t it? To live always question ourselves and our level of faith. Can we do away with that question?. I mean, Lazarus was dead, he had no faith. Jesus still raised him.
Yet, we know faith is crucially important. There are times Jesus commends faith, and there are times Jesus outright challenges people’s lack of faith. So, how do we live in this in between, so to speak? The author of this book said he had the opportunity to talk to Eugene Peterson, he’s the guy who did the Message translation of the bible. Talk about a work! So he asked him. How do I pray in faith and without a fear of being disappointed? If I’m simply afraid of being disappointed, then should I pray at all? But I also don’t want to be manufacturing a psychological state of certainty that I’m just calling faith… And Petersons response was this, “Be disappointed.” That was it. without placing demands on God or enslaving him to our own agenda, and without the frenzied fanatical cries toward heaven, simply risk disappointment! Pray for heaven to touch earth AND grieve because heaven is not earth.
Wow, talk about a tension to live in! But how real and how grounding is that? There’s something about that that just gives me such comfort. Honestly. To know that Jesus is capable. To know that Holy Spirit is present. To know that God is good, and yet to not approach him like a genie in a bottle and walk away disappointed when he doesn’t act in the way and manner that we think he should.
Lord, help us see the truth!
So, it’s with this thought that I want to jump into our topic for today. I want to ask the question, / / “What’s in a name?”
Of course, this question from Shakespeare’s famous Romeo & Juliet Act 2 Scene 2 Juliet in her frustration is saying, “Gosh, Romeo, if only you had a different name!” She says, “It is your name that is my enemy.” All of this because his last name, Montague, just isn’t special enough for them to be together. His family just doesn’t have the same status as her family. It’s a story told a million times over, isn’t it. And her point is. She’d give up her last name to be with him. And famously she says:
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other word would smell as sweet.”
Meaning, the name doesn’t matter, it’s the content of the thing that matters.
Well, she’s right. But only because she’s talking about humanity and creation. But when we start talking about what which was not created, that is entirely and wholly different.
And what she fails to define is that it is the name that carries the authority of the thing itself. By a name we know of what we speak. By the name of something we often define it. And there is one name that matters more than any other name. So, today I want to look at / / the authority of the name of Jesus.
Let’s start by reading a passage of scripture from the book of Philippians. Paul is encouraging the church here to learn to work together and look out for each other, but brings it all down to one thought, really. And I think this is important, just as important for us as it was for the early church. Again, we are in this series of looking at what needed to be learned between easter and pentecost, and what has to be established at the very beginning of the church is what foundation this church is built on.
If you’re reading along with our bible reading plan then this past week you would have read 1 Corinthians 3:11 which says, / / For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have - Jesus Christ.
This community of believers. The church. From day one up to today, centers around one thing as its primary focus and purpose, and that is Jesus Christ as our foundation. Yes, we do lots of things. We serve our community. We eat meals together. We come to church, and there is so much more we can and should do as a community together, but my first thought, or point this morning is simply this.
1. Jesus is the center of it all.
Anyone remember the old Vineyard song we used to sing, Be the Centre? It’s not that old. Late 90s. But, it was so simple, but man did we sing it often.
Jesus, be the centre. Be my source, be my light, Jesus
Jesus, be the centre. Be my hope, be my song, Jesus
Be the fire in my heart. Be the wind in these sails. Be the reason that I live. Jesus, Jesus.
Jesus, be my vision. Be my path, be my guide, Jesus.
That was it. Super simple, but sometimes it’s the simplest things we see that bring us back to center, isn’t it?
Another song we would sing, written around the same time, the late 90s. I’m coming back to the heart of worship, where it’s all about you, it’s all about you, Jesus.
Jesus is our foundation. He is the center. He is the purpose. Don’t ever lose sight of that. Not for our community, and not for your life. Make your life about Jesus Christ. Make Him the reason and the center of all that you do. / / Let your following of Jesus be what informs your decisions. Let your dedication to Him be the reason you do what you do. Always start there. Our life is to follow him. Everything else is secondary.
But I also want us to see that this is multi-faceted. Yes, I make Jesus the center of my life. But before I even do that. He is already the center. It is all about him. Saint Patrick, yes, of which we celebrate St. Patrick’s day, not just all about green beer, but actually all about Jesus. He wrote this, and it is absolutely beautiful. It’s part of a larger prayer, which is quite wonderful, but too long to fit in today, but listen to this part from the prayer of St. Patrick:
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
This heartfelt plea to have Jesus Christ be the center of it all. Everything I am, everything I do, and everything I experience.
So, Paul writing to the church in Philippi, needs them to understand this. All we do is to be centered around Jesus. It’s the same reason he said in 1 Corinthians 3 that Jesus is the foundation, because they were beginning to lose sight of that. So, let’s read Philippians 2:1-11 and see what Paul is saying here.
/ / Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.
Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.
You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.
Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
He starts with some obviously rhetorical questions, there is no need to answer them at all.
Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate?
He doesn’t wait for a response, he assumes the reader knows the answer. The answer is obvious. And if it isn’t, then fix yourself. The answer to every one of these questions is or should be YES. But he isn’t asking the question and then waiting for an answer. Like I said, it’s obvious, so he says, Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.
Starts right off the bat, Are these things true? Then live like it!
Don’t be selfish, but be humble.
Basically reminding them of the goal, to live and love like Christ - and to do that you must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. That’s the goal, right? Jesus said in John 13:34-35 I’m giving you a new commandment, love each other as I have loved you, in this the world will know that you are my disciples, that you love each other. But again, don’t ever forget the “AS I LOVE YOU” part. It starts with Jesus at the center. It starts with understanding his love, his sacrifice, his purpose for us. THEN we can turn and love him and those around us in the same way. But trying to love like Jesus does without first receiving Jesus love is like trying to go be a carpenter without ever having learned anything about carpentry. Sure, you might get it right once and a while by pure dumb luck, but the house ain’t gonna stand long term.
Jesus says in Matthew 7:24-27, / / Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock...
Then what’s Paul saying in 1 Corinthians? / / Christ is the foundation.
What’s he saying in Philippians? Make sure Christ is the center of it all. Adopt His attitude!
/ / 2. What’s in a name?
Then he gets to the real point, doesn’t he?
/ / Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth...
Now, we are really good at naming things these days. Every problem we have we put a name to it.
I would say Doctors love to diagnose, but I think society as a whole loves to diagnose these days. And we own it, so often like a badge of some weird honor. I’m ADHD.
I overheard a conversation between two kids a few weeks ago. One said, “I’m ADHD”, and the other said something like, “I am too”, and the first one piped up, “I’m MORE ADHD...”
Great.... you win?!?
Now, I’m not saying diagnosis is always bad. Usually can’t fix a problem if you don’t know there is one. And I’m not saying knowing what a problem is isn’t a good thing, it absolutely can be. But I’m tired of a world that is quicker to claim our problems and our issues than it is to claim healing and salvation through the name of Jesus Christ.
Now, we covered this last week. For whatever reason things don’t always turn out like we think they should. Some people are diagnosed with something and die with the thing, never having been healed - never having been delivered from it. I don’t know why. In the same way I can’t explain the miracle, I can’t explain when it doesn’t happen.
And I would suggest to you here that this, maybe not what Paul meant when he wrote it, but when I read, “take the attitude of Christ” I hear something in that.
I’m not a name it / claim it preacher. I’m not a “word of faith” if you speak it you can guarantee it. And I’ve spent time with people that can get bent out of shape by people talking about diagnosis. “No, don’t claim that. Don’t speak that over your life. You’re not sick, you’re healed...”
Except…I’m sick. And I don’t think I’m breaking my faith by that being identified.
Again, this is a tension we have to learn to walk in.
Remember I said earlier, Eugene Peterson’s advice to Brad was, Risk being disappointed.
In 2 Corinthians 12, when Paul talks about the thorn in his flesh and God’s strength being made perfect in weakness, he ends that thought with, / / “So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses...”
And if he simply just finished there, I would probably take issue with it. Because to simply boast in our weaknesses, or boast in our shortcomings, or “I’m more ADHD than you” is ridiculous, dare I say, childish. Right? I Don’t fault the kids for this conversation. It’s the world we’re living in that’s been impressed on them and it’s our job to teach them how to walk the line.
But listen to how Paul finishes that thought. / / So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, SO THAT the power of Christ can work through me. THAT IS WHY I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
And trust me. I get it. I’ve been in recovery meetings where I hear someone who has been sober for 30 years introduce themselves as an alcoholic or a drug addict, or a compulsive food addict, and it still sometimes breaks my brain.... I want to yell, “No you’re not. First of all, don’t claim that brother…second of all, you’ve been sober for 30 years, so clearly you aren’t!”
But one of the things I’ve come to realize is that those who are truly successful in recovery have learned to walk the fine line of tension between our humanity and His divinity. I’m not always made strong in myself, sometimes I remain weak so that in Him I experience His strength.
So, we ask the question, what’s in a name? I would say this. / / There’s power in a name.
And by that I mean, power to hold us in place negatively. Power to recognize our need for grace. And power to be set free by a name more powerful than the name trying to hold us down.
The name of Jesus has power because it is HIS name. And it’s not something we use like a wizard’s wand or a genie in a bottle. Step back, I’ve got the name of Jesus and I’m not afraid to use it.
No, in the same way Paul says every knee will bow.... we bow. We humble ourselves before Him.
I think reverence for His name gives you a greater understanding of using his name.
Let’s read a quick story from the book of Acts.
Acts 19:11-17, / / God gave Paul the power to perform unusual miracles. When handkerchiefs or aprons that had merely touch his skin were placed on sick people, they were healed of their diseases, and evil spirits were expelled.
A group of Jews was traveling from town to town casting out evil spirits. They tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus in their incantation, saying, “I command you in the name of Jesus, whom Paul preaches, to come out!” Seven sons of Sceva, a leading priest, were doing this. But one time when they tried it, the evil spirit replied, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but who are you?” Then the man with the evil spirit leaped on them, overpowered them, and attacked them with such violence that they fled from the house, naked and battered.
The story of what happened spread quickly all through Ephesus, to Jews and Greeks alike. A solemn fear descended on the city, and the name of the Lord Jesus was greatly honored.
Two thoughts from this story:
First, the name of Jesus isn’t a gun we keep on our side in a holster until we need it and want to use it.
Second, look at what it says, “A solemn fear descended on the city...”
This isn’t because people were afraid of the demons that didn’t respond to the name of Jesus. This isn’t a fear of evil. Or a fear of the bad. Listen, there are people today that are living in fear because it would appear we are living in “dark times”… Don’t let the darkness around you dictate the posture of your heart!
The bible says this in multiple places, but Proverbs 9:10 says, / / The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom… This fear is not being afraid but is this solemn fear the book of Acts is talking about. It’s an honor, a reverence, an understanding of the holiness of His name, which means, there is no name like the name of Jesus. There is no name greater than the name of Jesus. And we don’t use it like a tool or a weapon or a party trick… We give it a place of honor in our lives and in our hearts!
/ / More important than using the name of Jesus is following the one who holds the name, and when you do that, you will know when to use the name.
/ / 3. The name of Jesus saves
Maybe we should’ve started here, but this is the ultimate reality that I think the disciples of the early church needed to understand, and for us, probably now more than ever, this is the truth we need to live by and express in our lives.
There is no other name that saves.
Jesus said in John 14:6, / / “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”
To live in what these disciples were about to live in, this has to be more foundation-ally solid than anything else, because if there’s any other way, if there’s any other name that can save humanity, then why die for it? I think we covered that last week, right? These disciples, some of them died absolutely brutal deaths, and people don’t die for a lie, and they won’t die for something that isn’t worth dying for.
If there is another way to be saved, another way to get to heaven, and you say, “Hey, if you don’t deny Christ we’ll kill you...” And you’re like, “Ok, if Jesus was just option one, at least I can be a good human being and still get salvation, or I can call on some other name.... And at least this way I get to live and I have time to make up for it...”
No, there is no other name. And these disciples died clinging and holding on to that name, and because of that a mighty wave of salvation moved through the known world. A few who knew the truth impacted the many!
Soon after pentecost Peter and John, two of Jesus disciples, were on their way to the temple one day and saw a man who was asking for money. They didn’t have any money, and Peter says, which somewhere along the line someone made into a song… “Silver and gold have I none but such as I have I give thee, in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. He went walking and leaping and praising God....”
Well, this upset the religious leaders, they didn’t like that they were doing these things and preaching the way they were preaching, so they get arrested, and brought before the counsel of religious leaders and in Acts 4:8-12 it says, / / Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people, are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead. For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”
Peter makes a couple points in there, we won’t get into it all, but first, Again, confirming, / / we are healed by the name of Jesus. / / Second, we are saved by the name of Jesus. / / Third, those who are unwilling to see this as truth, will reject it. He makes reference to Psalm 118:22, and personalizes it to them, The original scripture says, / / The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone. The ESV translation of Acts 4:11 says, / / This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by YOU, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:23 (ESV), / / …we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews folly to Gentiles. The TPT says, / / The Jews stumble over him and the rest of the world sees him as foolishness.
We see that all over the place these days. It’s very difficult for people to accept that Jesus is the only way to salvation. Or, a lot of people don’t think they need salvation, but it’s offensive to them to think that they have to follow Jesus to get to a good afterlife, heaven. It’s offensive to people to hear that. How dare you say that someone else’s belief is wrong. Let me just settle that with a few simple statements.
/ / If there was another way to find salvation then Jesus wouldn’t have had to die.
/ / If salvations ONLY for the Jews, or a select group of people, then maybe there’s another way for the rest of the people...
But here is the truth...
/ / Jesus is the ONLY way to salvation and the salvation of Jesus Christ is for all of mankind because God is the creator of all mankind.
And I do not take pleasure in people being offended by this truth, but I do understand why people may feel that way. However, I take solace in this truth. Jesus said in John 16:8-11, / / And when [the Holy Spirit] comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgement. The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in me. Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more. Judgement will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged.
That is incredibly good news. So don’t see Jesus as being misunderstood or rejected by humanity as a final straw, but rather an opportunity for the Holy Spirit to do His work in them! Notice two things. Jesus doesn’t say it’s our job to convince or judge. And two, the Holy Spirit is here to open people’s hearts to the truth, not condemn them. When Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will convict the world of its sin, that word convict means to bring to the light, to expose. The Holy Spirit wants to expose in people’s hearts their rejection of Jesus Christ and show them that in their rejection they’ve missed the mark! Second, Righteousness is available! Paul says in Romans 5:17 that even though we are all sinful in our humanity, / / …even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. God WANTS to show people grace and give them righteousness. And that directly challenges how I have heard others read what Jesus says in John 16:8-11, when they read that the Holy Spirit will convict the world of the coming judgement. Some take that as God just can’t wait to come judge the world… but listen to the follow up in vs 11, / / Judgement will come because the ruler of this world has already been judged. Who’s getting judged? The ESV simply says it this way, / / ...concerning judgement, because the ruler of this world is judged.
We have to be careful not to simply preach judgement because we want to win people into the Kingdom by any means possible. Romans 2:4 says, / / Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his KINDNESS is intended to turn you from your sin? or other translations say, that / / ...it is God’s kindness that is meant to lead us to repentance.
So, Jesus is the only name that saves, and that’s not a bad thing, it’s a really wonderful thing.
/ / 4. How To Use His Name
…and consequently, how NOT to use his name...
So, to wrap things up this morning I want to go back to the story we read in Acts 19 and just reflect on this simple thought for a moment.
/ / If you want to use the name of Jesus, start by honoring the name of Jesus.
In our series last Summer on the Ten Commandments we looked at the second commandment in Exodus 20:7, / / You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God.
Although I’m a firm believer in not using any of God’s names as a curse word when we stub our toes, that’s not really what this is talking about. Yes, don’t use the Lord’s name as a swear word, but John Piper says that’s like taking this scripture in kindergarten and not advancing at all in our faith. To not use the Lord’s name in vain is much bigger than that. You can go to our website, or youtube and go back to July 24th, the sermon was titled Keep These Things Holy, but to summarize for today I’ll simply say this.
Name, although yes, it means name, the names we use or have for God, Yahweh, Jesus, Jehovah, etc.. the names of God, it also means reputation, fame, glory. It’s speaking of the character of God. Who God is. We can call it the reality of who He is.
So, what happens in the story we read in Acts 19 with these Jewish exorcists who are going around trying to use the name of Jesus as a weapon to cast out demons? They get beat up and lose their clothes and have to run away naked. Why? Because they’re misusing the name. They don’t understand or embody the character of God, and they aren’t giving that name, the character and fame or glory of God the reverence it deserves.
So again, I say this. If you you want to use the name of Jesus, start by honoring the name of Jesus.
With your life. With your prayer. With your worship.
In Revelation 19 John sees Jesus in a vision, riding a white horse as a victorious warrior and he says in vs 16, / / On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all Lords.
That is our Jesus. He is our king. And if we want to live in the power and fullness of the life of Jesus Christ after easter and pentecost and beyond we have to not just simply understand, but submit our lives to that.
Live by his name, his character, his fame, his glory. Commit your life to His ways. Then when you use his name it’s coming out of a place of relationship and understanding, not just a place of need or a misguided sense of power.
Because this is the truth - there is power in the name of Jesus. Jesus says in Mark 16, and this is the last thing Mark records him saying to the disciples before he ascends into heaven. So this is after he’s resurrected, spent 40 days with the disciples, and he’s about to leave. After telling them it’s their time to go preach the gospel, he says in Mark 16:17-18 (ESV), / / And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will...
cast out demons;
they will speak in new tongues;
they will pick up serpents with their hands;
and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them;
they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.
…in my name...
Again, leaving behind us the reasons why we don’t always see these things, will we do these two things to maybe, just maybe see more of it:
/ / Dedicate our lives to the name of Jesus. His character, his life, his teaching…to following him. Jesus said these things are available to all who believe. That word believe is more than just thought process, like, “I believe it to be true.” but it’s commit to, wholeheartedly.
/ / Risk disappointment, embrace faith, and declare the name of Jesus over our lives and the lives of those we come in contact with.
The name of Jesus Christ is mighty to save, to set free, to deliver and to heal… It’s not a power within itself, it’s not a genie in a bottle or an incantation, or some force we summon. It’s the name of our Lord Jesus Christ who is the very God who created the universe we are in, who knows us intimately and loves us beyond measure. He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords and because of who He is, his name is power!
So, we’re going to end a bit different this morning. We’re going to close out by singing I Speak Jesus. And I want you to embrace the words to this song as a prayer, and as a dedication.
Think of these two things as we sing this song. Jesus, I dedicate my life to your name, to who you are… to You! And I declare your name, that you are king of kings and lord of lords, that you are the true ruler of my life. I speak your name because I know it has power to save, to heal and to set free!