Let us for a few moments let us consider our need to have clear and undistorted vision as we live, move and breathe in this life that we would correctly see and understand what is in a name.
In our daily lives we often meet someone new and ask, “What is your name?” It establishes a personal contact as well as offers us the opportunity to share the importance of their name in our lives.
Our heavenly Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit know us be name, never call us by the wrong name, and call us individually and personally by name. God reveals His name to us:
- in Holy Scripture;
- is the only name in which humanity will find salvation, refuge, strength and peace;
- that we would know who to thank and praise for every good thing in our lives, every mercy we receive, and the provision of work for our hands and minds.
God’s name is holy and reveals His person: love and righteousness. God’s name is holy in and of itself yet Jesus encourages us to cry out to our heavenly Father as His beloved children in prayer and praise without the constrain of time, space and location. God knows when we:
- ponder His name;
- form our prayers in Jesus’ name;
- when we give voice to our needs and wants;
- when we give voice to the needs and wants of others;
- hear the prayers to God offered by our brothers and sisters in Christ.
It is good that we remember we are never out of the presence of our loving and righteous God. He stands with us and our brothers and sisters in Christ:
- knowing our thoughts, motivations and intentions;
- supporting our every need of body and spirit;
- hearing our words of
- comfort and condemnation,
- thankfulness and thanklessness,
- praise and profanity;
- and honor, love and trust as well as distain, hatred and unbelief
- uttered in His name.
God freely absolves us for the sake of Jesus when we confess our sins and He cleanses us from all unrighteousness, proving His name is trustworthy and true. He is grieved when we refuse to call upon His name for strength, wisdom and love when we find it difficult or impossible to forgive our neighbor. He is offended when we cloak our bad intentions and actions with His name, wearing it like we wear a sports jersey of a famous or our favorite athlete. God longs to hear our voices lift up His name as our only hope for true, abundant and eternal love, forgiveness, peace, comfort, joy and fellowship. God rejoices when we forgive others in His name and receive forgiveness of others in Jesus name. God’s peace rests on you and me, His dear children, when we seek peace and unity in His name. God is glorified when we live our lives according to His word and refuse and rebuke fleshly interpretations and teachings of God.
By the power of the Holy Spirit, may we this day and every day until Jesus comes again:
- remember God placed His holy name on us in our baptism.
- live every second of the day lovingly, humbly and selflessly bearing His name as we love our neighbor through our vocations.
- Joyfully acknowledge God has placed His holy name upon our brothers and sisters in Christ.
- Willfully and willingly proclaim the Gospel to those who sit in the darkness of sin and the shadow of death that God would place His life-giving name upon them in Holy Baptism.
Amen and Amen.
