Power In A Name
Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous.” Then Abram fell on his face; and God said to him, “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall be the ancestor of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor of a multitude of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your offspring after you throughout their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise to nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”
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Main Idea: Names are important. They help us identify objects, places, and people and the intangible elements of our world like philosophical ideas and emotions. These combinations of consonants and vowels also contain a vast amount of power that can sway public opinion, tear down or prop up, cover-up or reveal, and intimidate or instill hope. There is power in the names we use. During this time of Lent, what will we name as areas that need renewal, and how will we name ourselves as people who are claimed and sealed in the eternal covenant of God's love?
History of Names
Our Name - Do you know the history/meaning of your name?
Biblical Names - Contemporary naming schemes would make you think that there is little care about the names we use. One only has to look at the names given to celebrity babies. However, the ancient world and the biblical narratives placed significant importance on people and places' names. And in some cases, these changed over time to indicate a shift in status or mark an iconic life event.
Old Testament: Jacob (deceiver) -> Israel (God’s people) / Hosea (salvation) -> Joshua (The Lord is salvation) / Abram -> Abraham / Sarai -> Sarah
New Testament: Saul -> Paul
The covenant of God is unfolding and never ceasing. The sphere of God’s calling us by name continues to grow.
The Power of Naming
The words we use to associate with people, places, objects, and ideas help us to form a narrative that tells us how the world around us works. If we aren't careful, these grammatical markers can cause implicit bias, fear, hatred, malcontent, and even inflict physical harm.
Examples of Harmful Language (Internal and External): Thugs, Inner City, Radical Islam, An Illegal, and the myriad of other charged terminologies that have been directed at our Jewish neighbors, women, those in poverty and more.
When we use this type of rhetoric, we aren't living into the covenantal promises of God. We see throughout the overarching narrative of scripture that God called many to partake of the kin-dom-building work of the community. The story may have started highlighting the patriarchs of old, but God's voice calls out our names, names that reflect the diversity of genders, races, and creeds God welcomes.
The same is true, of course, and as easily as our naming can destroy, it can also heal and reassure us of God's love even if we think we aren't deserving of such love. In Tim Rice's writing for the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar, Judas voices his inner thoughts, "Does he [Jesus] love me too? Does he care for me?" Yes, Jesus cares for us; Jesus loves us. The God who breathed life into our very being gave us a name and even broke bread even with those who would betray him. As the name of God is written on our hearts, our names are written on God's heart as well. And it is agonizing when our malice taints those most sacred names.
God Transforming Call
We should know by now that God's transformational calling on our lives brings us into a deeper understanding of ourselves, our faith, and our relationship with one another. Yet, we refuse to name things either because of shame or fear of judgment from others. But we can't pretend that our struggles aren't there. We can't create a fantasy world where we believe that if we don't name the problem, it doesn't exist. That's not how the world works.
In our Lenten faith study, we talked about how refusing to name things can kill us inside and outside. That's where we need what Old Testament scholar Walter Brueggemann calls "honest talk with God." During this Lenten season, we need to have a sit down with God and have an honest talk. To put everything out there and say, "I know I'm imperfect, but I'm going to trust in your never-ending grace." If we sit down with God as individuals, as a church, and as a community, we'll find that when we name the things that have caused harm, we open up the avenue to restoration, justice, and reconciliation. But we have to name these things and trust that God will help us transform our hearts and minds.
Conclusion: What will your time of honest talk with God look like during this Lenten season? How will you live into and embrace the name of God that is written on your heart, and how will you strive to change the names you use that might do damage instead of kin-dom-building? There's power in a name. There's power in our ability to name things that need cleansing and purging. And that power comes from the name of God and Jesus Christ our Lord with the Holy Spirit. Amen.