Naming names - this is God's way to convey His
infinite knowledge.

The angels of God, have each a specific name.
Even the horses of the Apocalypse
are individually named.

Through all His dealings with mankind,
God had His names for every single person.
He named children in the womb.
He changed names as a reward and
for the expansion of the person.
    
He called Abram - meaning Father,
Abraham - meaning Father of nations.
An exaggeration of the man, by a name
that promised and
required a miracle!

God has your human name and then
He has your miracle-name.
Sarai changed to Sarah, "princess" and mother
of nations and kings . . .
before it was so.

God names what He sees, not what is . . . .

As it is written: "I have made you a father of many nations."
{Gen. 17:5} He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed -
the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.
Rom. 4:17 NIV
    
Jacob, "supplanter," struggled with
God in a long dark time of wrestling.
In his desperate grip on God,
the very-human-Jacob begged for
a real blessing, a spiritual blessing . . .
the thing he had destroyed his family to
obtain but which had eluded him in his awful exile.

Though he had maneuvered his riches of life:
wives, children, flocks and wealth,
he had lost the blessing of God's presence -
that presence his forefathers had enjoyed,
that which is only given to the honest, repentant person.

This spiritual blessing - at last - he wanted
more than any other blessing he had
wrung out for himself,

but only God could give God to Jacob.
    
God replied, "What is your name?" (Gen. 32:27-30)
Admit your identity to me, the sin exposed
by your title. Own up to your name:
"deceiver" and I will transform you,
I will give you a new name.

A question to which Jacob replied without
excuse or embellishment . . . "Jacob."

"Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel,
for you have struggled with God and with men,
and have prevailed."

Israel - "Prince with God." And so he became . . . .   

God bestows names as a prophecy.
"You shall call his name John."

God named His own Son through Gabriel's message:
"You shall call His name Jesus for
He will save His people from their sins."
Matt. 1:21
Jesus, named by His Father, "He will save."

Yet many names this Son carried. No one name could
contain Him, describe Him, identify Him!

Immanuel - God with us. (Matt. 1:23)
The Word  (John 1:1)
Light of the World
Son of God
Son of Man 
Lord and  (John 13:13)
Teacher
I AM
The Door
The Shepherd
The Way, the Truth, the Life
The Resurrection
Rabbi, prophet, priest and King
The Christ
Lamb of God
Lion of Judah
The Bread of Life
Living Bread
King of the Jews
King of Kings
Wisdom  (Prov. 8)
Righteousness  (I Cor. 30).

Wonderful counselor,
Mighty God,
Eternal Father,
Prince of Peace   (Isa 9:6)

Alpha and Omega,
who is and who was and who is to come,
The Almighty.  (Rev. 1:8)

His name - Jesus Christ (He saves us)
is the summation of what He does and
all these titles of His description
are revealing pictures of . . .
WHO He is.

The name is the who and the what.

Join all the glorious names
Of wisdom, love and power,
That ever mortals knew,
That angels ever bore:
All are too poor to speak His worth,
Too poor to set my Saviour forth.
by Isaac Watts (1707)

Copyright © 2001 Martha Blaney Kilpatrick