(Third part)
Memory verse (Luk1: 59-63) “ So it was, on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. His mother answered and said, No; he shall be called John. But they said to her, There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name. So they made signs to his father—what he would have him called. And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, His name is John.”
A name is what people call you on a daily basis. And when you study the Bible, you’ll discover that a name is vital element in defining what a person is. A name is more than a label on your head. A name is more than what people call you. A name defines your identity. In the Hebrew traditions, names have meanings, and this is true in all cultures of the world. The meaning of the name goes far in defining what you will be in life. Jacob means a surplanter, or one who cheats. Jacob of the Bible did exactly this. He was a perfect conman.
But he said: “ Your brother came with deceit and has taken away your blessing ” And Esau said: “ Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing! ” And he said: Have you not reserved a blessing for me? Esau said of His brother, that he is rightly named. His behaviors confirm his name. In other words, he is what people call him or named him. Some parents make great mistakes in naming their children. And Satan is crafty; in many cultures the father of the child does not have the right to give names to their own children it’s done by the elders in the family, clan. You can see what was happening to John the Baptist, when it came to naming him; other family elders came with their names. The mother had a name from God but they could not accept it until they consulted the father, because the name had been given by God. Many people’s lives have been messed up by the names they gave them. Jacob was paralyzed by a wrong name, when God met him in his mercy; the first thing God had to do to deliver him was to change his name. He gave him a new name Israel, and his destiny was changed. Find out the meaning of the names your family and the society calls you and cut off your life every wrong name and ask God to give your right name.
Tomorrow we will continue this teaching.
