What’s In a Name
When I was pregnant, my husband and I labored to find names that we felt would fit our children’s personalities. If you are a parent, you can imagine the many baby books we looked at. And sure enough, the names we gave them fit their personalities perfectly. Of course, I would be amiss if I did not tell you we prayed to move in the right direction.
All through scripture names that were given to children had specific meaning. However, some names were changed, and it had to do with God’s call on their lives. For example, Abram (‘exalted father’) was changed to Abraham (‘father of many nations’), and Sarai (‘she that strives’) was changed to Sarah (‘princess of the multitude’).
Another example of a name change was that of Saul of Tarsus to Apostle Paul. Saul is a Hebrew name that means to ask or beg for. He was a respected scholar of the scriptures, so when he asked for something, he usually got it. He slaughtered Christians wherever he found them; however, God had other plans for Saul. On the road to Damascus to persecute believers, he had a dramatic encounter with Jesus. This resulted in his name change to the Greek, Paul, which means humble.
Through his conversion of Christ, the Apostle Paul effectively preached, taught, and established many churches. He also wrote two-thirds of the New Testament. The Apostle Paul was the earliest and most influential interpreter of Christ's message and one of the first Christian missionaries. He was called to bring the Gospel to the Gentles, incorporating Jews and Gentiles with the message of salvation.
I bring up what’s in a name because every Christ-follower is called Christian.
The disciples were called ‘followers of the Way’ because they were followers of Christ, who is HIMSELF the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). They were first called Christians at Antioch in Acts 11:26.
The term ‘Christian’ has so much power and authority in it. Being called a Christian also comes with a great price tag. “Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and Him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other.” (2 Cor 5:17-18 Message Bible)
My name is Gail which means ‘Father’s Joy.’ Have I always accepted that fact? NO. We listen to the voice of the enemy about ourselves, and we judge who we are by our mistakes and by people’s opinion of us! The only real truth is God’s truth which is the WORD of GOD. No matter what happens in our lives His love for us never changes. When the enemy comes to attack our mind, we can stop him in his tracks and remind him of who we are in Christ.
The Word of God is all you need to identify yourself, so anchor yourself in His Word. “But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you - from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.”
(1 Peter 2:9-10 Message Bible)
All through scripture names that were given to children had specific meaning. However, some names were changed, and it had to do with God’s call on their lives. For example, Abram (‘exalted father’) was changed to Abraham (‘father of many nations’), and Sarai (‘she that strives’) was changed to Sarah (‘princess of the multitude’).
Another example of a name change was that of Saul of Tarsus to Apostle Paul. Saul is a Hebrew name that means to ask or beg for. He was a respected scholar of the scriptures, so when he asked for something, he usually got it. He slaughtered Christians wherever he found them; however, God had other plans for Saul. On the road to Damascus to persecute believers, he had a dramatic encounter with Jesus. This resulted in his name change to the Greek, Paul, which means humble.
Through his conversion of Christ, the Apostle Paul effectively preached, taught, and established many churches. He also wrote two-thirds of the New Testament. The Apostle Paul was the earliest and most influential interpreter of Christ's message and one of the first Christian missionaries. He was called to bring the Gospel to the Gentles, incorporating Jews and Gentiles with the message of salvation.
I bring up what’s in a name because every Christ-follower is called Christian.
The disciples were called ‘followers of the Way’ because they were followers of Christ, who is HIMSELF the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). They were first called Christians at Antioch in Acts 11:26.
The term ‘Christian’ has so much power and authority in it. Being called a Christian also comes with a great price tag. “Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and Him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other.” (2 Cor 5:17-18 Message Bible)
My name is Gail which means ‘Father’s Joy.’ Have I always accepted that fact? NO. We listen to the voice of the enemy about ourselves, and we judge who we are by our mistakes and by people’s opinion of us! The only real truth is God’s truth which is the WORD of GOD. No matter what happens in our lives His love for us never changes. When the enemy comes to attack our mind, we can stop him in his tracks and remind him of who we are in Christ.
The Word of God is all you need to identify yourself, so anchor yourself in His Word. “But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you - from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.”
(1 Peter 2:9-10 Message Bible)