A New Name

"No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations...As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah." Genesis 17:5,15

A New Name
By Rev. William Dohle

One of the joys of parenting happened before our children were even before. Sitting with the possibilities and promises of a new life, my wife and I experienced the joy of naming.

For our first born it was easy. He was named after his two grandfathers. My father being William and Jenny's father being Douglas.

Our middle son, Matthew, got his name almost by accident. We had decided to give him my grandfather's name, Albert, as his middle name, but were torn between Matthew and Timothy for his first name. When we saw him that first morning, though, Matthew made his own name known.

Lynne's name too has quite a history. Our daughter's first name is hyphonated, Lynne-Estelle, a combination of Jenny's middle name and her mother's middle name. Lynne's middle name, Shirley, was Jenny's mother's first name.

Thus our children got the names they carry today.

In the Bible, God doesn't name anyone...until he gets to Abraham. All the animals in the Bible are named by Adam. Even Adam's wife is named by Adam. All the children gather their names from various places, but all are named by their parents.

Then we get to Abram. He named "Abram" by his father. Abram, though, doesn't really fit especially at first when he and his wife, Sarai, are childless. God changes Abram's name, making it even more ridiculous. For Abram's name becomes Abraham, which means "father of many." God changes Sarai's name too. Sarai to Sarah. "A princess" by meaning married to the "Father of many" with only one slave woman's child in their family.

But names mean something...especially for God. God doesn't change names lightly. In fact, in Genesis he changes only three people's names. Abraham...Sarah...and...Jacob(who God calls "Israel") and only after all three of them wrestled with God. This name-change is because of the new covenant between Abraham and God, sealed in circumcision, which binds God to his word and compels God to fulfill the promises he made to Abraham and his family.

Scripture tells us that, not only does God know our name, but he has given us a new name in the waters of baptism. The name of "Child of God." We are born children of the world. In baptism, we are reborn children of God. In the waters of baptism we are adopted into God's family and given a new surname. That name, Child of God, is something we seldom use. Nor do we ever refer to it in public. But it is this name, this part of ourselves, that is forever written in the Lamb's book of Life. It is with this designation, Child of God, that we gain our inheritance among the saints. It is this part of our name that will rise with us on the last day and live with us in God's New Creation.

You are a Child of God, living in the world, even now. And as a Child of God, you have a promise to live out. God has promised you the world. Christ has promised you an inheritance. The Spirit has promised you his presence. Use them! Claim them! Do not forget this hidden part of yourself. Instead be a Christian person out in the world. A Christian worker. A Christian spouse. Be the child of God that you have been named and take your place alongside Abraham and Sarah who believed God and whose faith made them righteous.

Heavenly Father, I am your child. You adopted me, claimed me, and made me your own. I am yours forever. Help me live life, not as a Child of the world, but as your precious Child, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.