Life Ministries

“A New Name”

2 Peter 3:3-14   
Revelation 2:17

    Everything about the Christian life is new. And, today we are going to explore one of the promises given in John’s revelation to the churches. If you look at the letters to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3 you soon discover that there are several promises given to those who “overcome.” Listen as I repeat those rewards;

“To him who overcomes; I give the right to eat from the tree of life which is in the paradise of God” ( If you have read the Book of Genesis, you know that the right to eat from the tree of life was taken away because of Adams sin.)
“To him who overcomes I will give authority over the nations;
“I will give him the morning star; “
“He will not be hurt by the second death, but will receive the crown of life; “
“They will walk with Jesus, dressed in white, and their names will never be erased from the Book of Life”; These are some powerful things to think about!
“To him who overcomes, I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, and I will write on him my new name, And, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne…let him who has an ear, hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Have you ever looked up the meaning of your name?
    There is one that I purposely left out, because it is what I want to focus on this morning. It is the scripture we read concerning the “white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.”
    Have you ever wished you had a different name?  Usually, when we are young, many of us don’t like our name. As you get older, your name kind of grows on you. My first name is Alfred which means; “Counselor, Peaceful Ruler, and the shortened version “Fred” means “Elf!”…My dad was always called Al…I had a friend whose name was Al…But, for some reason it was weird when people called me Al…I prefer Fred. My wife’s name “Judy” means “One who takes care of Fred”…Come on, that was funny! I once had another friend whose name was Francis…It’s not easy growing up with a name like Francis…It’s kind of like the “boy named Sue!” Most people called him by his nickname - “Fritz.” It’s amazing how most people fit their name and their name fits them.
    2 Cor. 5:17 says “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: Old things have passed away; behold, all things become new.” We will even have a new name. The Bible says that someday we will have a new glorified body, and Jesus will give us a new name. Now, let me first state the fact that I have no idea whatsoever what that means!  But, I do believe I have some pretty viable theories that may partly satisfy our curiosity concerning this “new name.”
    First of all, I think our new name will reflect our position as a child of God. You see, when a child gets adopted, they get a new name. The Bible tells us that when we accept Christ we become adopted sons and daughters of God. And, it could be that when we get to heaven, that adoption will be complete and we will get a new name.
    On several occasions God changed the names of certain people. Some had their names changed for other reasons…For example, the King of Egypt also changed Joseph’s name to Zaph-nath-Pa-a-neah ( And I thought Alfred was bad!)  Nebuchadnezzar changed Daniel’s name to Belt-esh-a-zaar and there were three others; Hann-ah, Mish-a-el, and Azar-i-ah who became known as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Each name change had a particular meaning… The meaning of names was very important back then.
    When God changed a name, He usually had a reason. One day God told Abram that he was going to change his name. Now, Abram meant “exalted father” and Abram probably thought that it was O.K. to change his name because he wasn’t a father at all. But, God gave him the name Abraham which means “Father of multitudes!” God had a good reason as well as a life lesson in store for Abraham.
    Then came Jacob. His name meant “trickster.” He tricked his brother into giving up his birthright for a bowl of chili. He tricked his father into giving him his final blessing. He lived with his Uncle Laban for 20 years, and during that time, they tried to out trick each other! But, God had something else planned for Jacob, who was used to making his own plans and doing things his own way; And God changed his name to “Israel”, which meant “the prince and power of God.” Jacob fathered many sons, who are to this day known as the “Children of Israel” not Children of Jacob, but rather, the 12 Tribes of Israel.
    Paul, of course, before he was saved was known as Saul. It was Saul who persecuted the church, killing and imprisoning Christians. Saul was his Jewish name. God gave him the name Paul, a Hebrew name. Saul was feared and respected by the Jewish leaders. Saul was a man of influence and power. Ironically, the name Paul means “small” or “little”…Now that’s humbling!
    Our scripture says; “I will give him a white stone with a new name on it, known only to him who receives it”…Stones were used in that day for several things:
(1.) They were used as a symbol of “aquittal”. When someone was aquitted of a crime, they were given a white stone with an inscription on it.  I think the white stone represents the “aquittal” from all our sins by the blood of Christ. 
(2.) It was a symbol of “admittance.” This refers back to times when a person desired to be a part of a certain organization or group of some kind. The members would cast stones into a basket…white for acceptance, and black for not accepted. I think the white stone represents our final acceptance into the family of God… making us heirs of God and Co-heirs with Christ.
(3^rd.) It was a promise of intimacy. When a man and a woman get married, he gives her a rock! The woman receives a new name…That name comes with a promise… an oath… I think the white stone is a symbol of promise…a symbol that God keeps His promise!
    There is one more thing as it concerns admittance. If we live a life worthy of Jesus, the white stone will be one of the rewards we receive. I also believe that when it is time, we will be presented that white stone, with our new name on it, at the banquet hall and we will be admitted to the marriage feast of the Lamb. It is described in Revelation 19 - and in verse 9 it says; “Then the angel said to me, “Write; Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb.”
   Do you have your new name on a rock yet?  Ask Jesus to come into your heart and cleanse you, and forgive you, and give you newness of life…And behold, all things will become new!
May God Bless this new year 2013!