Crosswalk the Devotional - July 19, 2010

July 19, 2010

What's in a Name?
by Laura MacCorkle, Crosswalk.com Senior Entertainment Editor

To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.
Revelation 2:17, NIV

Growing up, I always wished for a "kinder, gentler" name.

With a last name like "MacCorkle," I'm sure you can imagine the kind of variations on a theme that I encountered during my formative years: MacDorkle, MacSnorkle, MacaDoodle, MacCorky-Snork.  And so on.

I didn't want to stand out and just wanted to blend in and have a "normal" name like everyone else. I remember thinking "Foster" or "Graham" or "Smith" might be nice and less conspicuous names. But, as I would later realize, changing your name is no easy task.  It becomes a legal issue, whether you go to court to have it changed or (for the female set) whether or not you get married and take your husband's last name.

In the Bible, sometimes it took supernatural intervention to change names: Abram to Abraham, Simon to Peter and Jacob to Israel. ...

That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of Jabbok. After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak."

But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."

The man asked him, "What is your name?" 

"Jacob," he answered.

Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome."

Jacob said, "Please tell me your name."

But he replied, "Why do you ask my name?" Then he blessed him there.

So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."

- Genesis 32:22-30, NIV

Jacob's name change to Israel signified a turning point in his life. A spiritual crossroads. After wrestling with God, he had a new identity (and a new purpose) going forward. His name meant "prince with God," and his descendants were known as Israelites or descendants of Israel. 

While I was wishing for a different last name as a child, I didn't realize that I, too, had already undergone a name change. It happened when I was three years old and accepted Christ into my heart. At that point, I became known as a Christian. A child of God. An heir to the Kingdom. A member of a royal family and priesthood. And a descendant of Israel (Ephesians 3:6).

What about you? If you have not asked Christ to come into your life, are you ready for a new name today? Click here for help in taking this important step. 

And if you already have become a Christian, what does your new name in Christ mean to you? 

Intersecting Faith & Life: Whether you have just become a Christian or have walked with the Lord for quite a while, you have a new name in Christ. Reflect on what your name-your identity as a believer-means to you. Does it define who you are? Why or why not?

Further Reading:

Isaiah 62:2, NIV
1 Peter 2:9, NIV
Revelation 3:5, NIV