Recently, while praying with a friend on the telephone, she was ending the prayer and said" Lord, we pray in the name of Jehovah, Jah, Allah..."
I was shocked. I know we live in a politically correct society where people will not use Jesus in public, on Facebook, or just in case it offends someone else. But what about Jesus? Don't you think it's offensive to die for someone who is embarassed to use your name? God is such a generic term, Jesus sets believers apart from the world.
I did not know how to approach the situation at the time but decided to do a study in the Word about the name of Jesus.
Why do we use this name and what is the big deal? In short, because He told us to but there's more.
More than a song, there is truly something about the name of Jesus. The Bible says that there is no other name under heaven by which men must be saved (Acts 4:12). It also explains that "If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them, and they in God (1 John 4:15)."
One point I made to my good friend when we spoke again was that if I introduce myself as Christian, would I respond if she called me another name like Tiffany or Stephanie? Nothing wrong with these names, they're just not my name. So if I ignore anyone calling me by that name, they cannot be offended. See my point...
The Lord revealed himself through the Jewish people and gave us His name (The Father and Son are one (John 10:30). There are many, many names we know Him by so we have no excuse to add names He did not give us.
But in the new testament, when Christ was instructing His disciples how to get their prayers answered, He said this: "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son" John 14:13.
He went on in the Book of Phillipians 2:9-11 to say:
"Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
There is authority in the name of Jesus. Authority that cannot be found in the name God or anything else. This is why the enemy does not want this name used and why it is not politically-correct. This is why Christians MUST use this name!
Thoughts? Comments?
I am very interested to hear what you are thinking about this topic.
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