“Mom! Mom!” One of our eleven-year-old boys was running to me excitedly, hardly able to contain himself.
“I have a new name!” he said as he grinned from ear to ear. “It’s Fin!” he exclaimed.
“Fin?” I asked.
“Yes, Fin! My helmet has a FIN on it, so they are calling me Fin!” And off he scootered, exceedingly happy that he now had a new name. Names are important business!
My oldest son, when he was four and we had just brought the twins home from the hospital, singlehandedly decided that their names would not be Jason and Jaxon, but rather, Coco and Winston. We never really found out the reason behind why he felt it necessary to change their names, but names are important!
As every new parent or new pet owner knows, choosing a name is a challenge – and a gift! For some it is a daunting, yet fun-filled task. For others, names are chosen years before and then, after much waiting, bestowed. Names are important.
Names help define who we are and to whom we belong. They make us unique and yet known to those with whom we have contact. In the Bible, God named people (Adam), and he re-named them as well (Abram to Abraham, Sarai to Sarah, Saul to Paul, etc.). God had plans that would be carried out under their new identity. God (showing ownership) also named the light Day and the darkness Night (Gen. 1:5). God went on to name Heaven, Sky, Earth, Seas and Stars (Genesis 1, Psalm 147:4, Isaiah 40:26). God gave Adam authority to name the animals and to even name Eve. The importance of naming should be taken seriously. Names are important.
God puts so much importance on names, that he has promised to give us a white stone with a new name written on it when we get to heaven.
To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna,
and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that
no one knows except the one who receives it. (Revelation 2:17b)
Whether or not the name will be our own name is debated, but the picture of a loving, intimate Father, perhaps at some point long ago, mulling over the perfect name for each of his children, is not lost. What a sweet Daddy, Abba, Father! Perhaps he had chosen the name for his only Son, Jesus, in the same way. After all, his name is the Name which is above every name. In heaven, the mouth of the Lord will designate a name no one knows but you who receives it. But wait, there’s more –
The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God.
Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God,
and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem,
which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. (Revelation 3:12)
Not only will we be given our new, individual, unique, and beautiful new name that no one knows but us, Jesus says he will write on us God’s name, the city of God’s name (the new Jerusalem), and his very own name. And, with the loving kindness, his hesed, that he continually shows us, we can be confident that his naming will be perfect, unlike these human examples:
“Talula Does the Hula from Hawaii” – a person in New Zealand is the proud owner of that name. And, in a rather dubious attempt for fame, a mother named her young daughter a name which has over 1,000 letters. The mom got her fame in the Guinness Book of World Records, but the daughter?…..hmmm….. Names are important.
Being known by our names can bring great comfort and feelings of belonging. When Mary Magdalene was at Jesus’ tomb wondering where his body went, Jesus called her by name. How precious that sound must have been to Mary’s ears and to her heart. Hearing her name called by her beloved Teacher was important.
Names in the Bible are often based on character. Our new name will likely be based upon our then sanctified and changed selves only available because of what Jesus has done for us (1 Corinthians. 15:51). Won’t it be exciting to learn our new names?! To hear them uttered by our King?! But the best moment of all is when we will all bow at the wonderful name of Jesus! Names are so important!
Melinda and her family moved to Colorado in 2016 after spending several years travelling the country by RV, relocating as necessary for her husband’s employment. Melinda uses her B.S. and M.B.S. Biblical Studies degrees to bless others through writing and teaching. At Faith, Melinda is active on the writing team and in women’s ministries. She homeschools her boys and works part-time as an optician. She and her husband Jeff became grandparents for the first time last year.