Names

Names A. God has an interest in names. 1. He names the stars. PSA 147:4; ISA 40:26. 2. His angels have distinct names. LUK 1:19; JUDE 1:9. 3. His children are known by name. EXO 33:17; JOH 10:3. a. God relates to us personally; we are not mere numbers to Him. b. Our names are in heaven in the book of life. LUK 10:20; HEB 12:23; REV 13:8. c. The Beast system is impersonal, numeric. REV 13:15-18; 15:2. d. In gospel respects, numbers take a backseat to names. 2CO 10:12; ACT 1:15. 4. He gave names of meaning to people. GEN 17:5; 32:28; MAT 1:21. 5. His Son has the highest name. PHIL 2:9-11; HEB 1:4; ISA 9:6. B. The Father and Christ both surnamed people. ISA 45:4; MAR 3:16-17. 1. surname: (v.) trans. To give an additional name, title, or epithet to (a person). a. with descriptive adj., n., or phr. 2. surname: (n.) A name, title, or epithet added to a person's name or names, esp. one derived from his birthplace or from some quality or achievement. 3. The Holy Spirit surnamed the church, “...the Israel of God” (GAL 6:16). 4. Those who believe in and are disciples of the Son of God are surnamed Christians. ACT 11:26; JAM 2:7. C. The Apostle Paul (“little”) had been formerly Saul (“desired”) and went from being a preferred golden-boy among the Pharisees to being “...less than the least of all saints...” (EPH 3:5). The pathway to heavenly exaltation is humility. 1PE 5:5-6. D. Paul commonly saluted the saints by name. ROM 16:1-23. 1. salute: trans. To accost or address with words expressive of good wishes, respect, or homage, esp. with some customary formula of that import; to greet in words. 2. They weren’t just notches in his gospel-gun, they were dear to him. 1TH 2:8; PHIL 4:1. 3. Among the godly, the feeling towards him was mutual. ACT 20:36-38. 4. Relationships are always best where there is mutual endearment and respect. PHIL 4:21-22. 5. Christ taught us to beware of vainglorious salutations and selective salutations. MAT 5:43-48; MAR 12:38-39. 6. Paul taught and showed this mind of Christ in rendering tribute and honor where it was due and desiring the conversion of all men. ROM 13:7; ACT 26:2, 25-29. 7. Paul was no misogynist: he commended faithful women by name. ROM 16:1-3, 6, 13; 2TI 1:5. E. An awful judgment of God is the termination of a name by the elimination of descendants or of favor. PSA 109:13. 1. For culminating sins, the name of God’s church changed from Jew to Christian. ISA 62:1-2; 65:14-15; ACT 11:26. 2. The whole church is named after Jesus Christ. EPH 3:14-15. 3. Overcomers are promised that their names will not be blotted out. REV 3:5. F. Consider the blessedness of the names in ROM 16:13; PHIL 4:3. 1. Wouldn’t it be great if the Holy Spirit wrote such promises for your name? Names 10-15-23 Page 1 of 2  2. He did. All true believers may be sure their names are in the book of life. JOH 5:24; 1JO 2:24-25. G. Consider the promise to the overcomer in REV 3:12. 1. He will become a monument of God's honor. Upon him will be written: a. the name of Christ's God. REV 14:1. b. the name of the new Jerusalem. PSA 48:1-2; 50:2. c. Christ's new name. REV 22:3-4. 2. Note that the overcomer is identified with the new Jerusalem from above, not the Jerusalem of earth. a. Those who only have identity with the earthly Jerusalem are not overcomers. They are in bondage. GAL 4:21-26. b. Liberation and victory are reserved for the true Jew: the believing child of grace of any nation, not for the pseudo-Jew. REV 3:9. 3. Some prophetic speculators have suggested that the mark of the beast will be a UPC symbol placed upon men by a great power. a. But the overcomer's natural identity is patently overwritten by the grace of the Greatest Power. 1JO 4:4. b. The overcomer bears the mark of God, Christ and heaven. No doubt as to whom he belongs, where he belongs, or what he's worth! Names 10-15-23 Page 2 of 2