It is funny how the Lord works, I have three longer blogs I have started sitting in my edit posts as drafts and every time I go to write them, I end up writing on something else. But if you know me well enough, you know my mind is always thinking, I am always pondering and mulling over something. I want to know, I want to desire, I want to intercede. As I was waking up this morning, I desired to finish a couple of those blogs, but I felt the Lord's prompting to write on another subject, one that has been brought up in conversations lately....the power we have when we call upon Jesus, the power we have in His name.
A name, there is something powerful in calling someone by name. Parents spend hours and money searching for the perfect name for their child. They ask others' opinions, they read through the 1000000 Name Book, they look at street signs and city sites, all in search of the name their child will be given. Teachers will all say, if they are honest, there are names they will give to their children and names they would never give to their children based on memories of students with those names. In the Word, names were just as important. When Saul was converted on the road to Damascus, the Lord said he would now be called "Paul." When Jesus called Simon, He said to him he would now be called "Cephas" or "Peter." The angel announced to Mary that the baby born in a manger would be called "Jesus." And Even in the Old Testament, names held power and identity. Daniel's name was changed to "Belteshazzar" by the king. Names, they hold identity, be it through our culture, our family, or our memories. But what about the name of Jesus? What about the power that comes just through speaking His name?
As Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray, He began the prayer "Our Father, Who are in heaven, HALLOWED be Thy name..." Automatically, from the beginning of this prayer, we see the awesomeness, the reverence, the power we have in calling on the name of Jesus. To Moses, He said, tell them "I Am" has sent you to free My people. Power, reverence, awesomeness, we have it, as believers, we have the ability to call on His name and at His name even the demons tremble and fall, at His name mountains can be moved and waters recede. When we pray in Christ's name, there is a power behind it. It says, we believe He can do what He says He can do, that He is Who He says He is. When I pray and call on His name, it means I will do and I will say that which You have called me. There is a power when we speak His name, when we intercede and call on Him we are saying we believe You are the Sovereign Lord, the only Lord, and You are stronger than anything and anyone. We are even commanded to not take His name in vain and saying His name as part of a cultural cursing is not the only way to use His name in vain. How dare we even think of uttering His name with a deceitful and impure heart and motive. How dare we vainly use His name for our own agenda and purposes. When we are calling Him by name be it by Abba, Father, Creator, Lover of My Soul, Yahweh, Saviour, Provider, Healer, Jesus, Lord, Christ, Immanuel, Messiah, I Am....whatever name, we are saying the name of the Only God worthy of all power, all praise, and all glory.
When we pray, when we are talking about Jesus, when we are saying His name, may we all realize the power in His name, may we approach His name with reverence, with awe, and may we realize that the same power given to His disciples and followers has been given to us through the Holy Spirit, that if we have the faith of a mustard seed, that if we realize the power we have in calling on His name, we too can do miracles, we too can see prayers answered, we too can feel the peace and comfort that only He can give. In Christ's name....Amen!
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