What’s Your Name?

Do you like your name?

Unless you want to pay a few hundred dollars to have it legally changed, it is what it is.  You are kind of stuck with it.  This may be why I see parents from time to time struggling with what to name their upcoming child.  They want to give that child a name that they can, literally, live with.

God seems to care a lot about names.

John tells us in Revelation 13:8 that those of us who follow Christ have had our names written in the book of life since the foundation of the world.  He cares about our names, doesn’t He?

I read recently in Isaiah 40 that He even names the stars.  Everything has a name.

God is even in the name changing business.

He changed Abram’s name to Abraham.  Which one do you think was in the book of life from the foundation of the world?

He changed Jacob’s name to Israel.

Christ changed Simon’s name to Peter.

Barnabas wasn’t even Barnabas’ given name.  He was called by his characteristic, which was encouragement.  How about that?  How would you like to be such an encouragement in Christ that it becomes your name?

Basically it boils down to this.  If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away.  The new has come.

I think this includes our names.

Our names in Christ.

Have you ever thought that you might have another name that God has given you?  One that you don’t know yet?

140 Words (More or Less) About Your Christmas Past

It’s Twitterific Thursday, where I write a post in 140 words, more or less.  Today, I write about your Christmas past.

Perhaps you have something in your past that holds you back.  Something that you haven’t overcome.  Something that handicaps you.  I want to challenge you during this Christmas season to push through and beat it.  Why?  Because of the genealogy of Jesus.

Jacob was a cheat.

Judah slept with his daughter-in-law.

Rahab was prostitute.

Ruth was a Moabite.

David was an adulterer and murderer.

Solomon let his wives turn his heart from God.

Most of the kings that followed Solomon did evil in God’s sight.

That is Jesus’ past.  Those are his ancestors.  That is the line that he came through.

Oh yeah.  His mother, Mary,  became pregnant while betrothed to Joseph.  That wasn’t as accepted as it is today.

If you didn’t notice, this did not hold Christ back.  It didn’t keep him from achieving His mission.

Are you letting anything from your past hold you back? Why don’t you evaluate that this Christmas and find a way to overcome it?

Sister Wives, Mandrakes, And Sex And Sex And Sex And Sex

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It seems like most of my posts have been serious lately.  It’s Friday, so let’s take time for a bit of levity.  I started a 90 Day Bible reading plan this week.  I’ve cranked through Genesis the past few days and I have some questions.

Laban pulled the old switcheroo on Jacob.  It was his chance to unload his weak eyed daughter, Leah.  I guess he wasn’t having any luck marrying her off.

Why didn’t Rachel try to alert Jacob to the plan that Leah was going to replace her that wedding night?  Did she not have any idea?

Did Leah not talk when she went into Jacobs tent?  How did Jacob not know he was sleeping with the wrong sister?

I thought that Jacob really loved Rachel.  That’s what it says in the Rich Mullins song.  Jacob he loved Rachel.  Rachel, she loved him.  And Leah was just there for dramatic effect.  If he loved Rachel so much and worked another seven years for her, it sure didn’t stop him from producing seven kids in pretty quick fashion with Leah.

Rachel was barren for a time there.  She decided that Jacob should sleep with her handmaiden and produce her a child.  Jacob’s reaction?  “Ok!!!!”  This handmaiden quickly produced two sons.

Leah had stopped having kids for a while.  She saw what was going on with Rachel, Jacob and Bilhah, the handmaiden, and gave Jacob her handmaiden Zilpah to have some more kids.  Jacob’s reaction?  “Ok!!!”  She produced two kids.

Reuben, the firstborn, went out one day and found mandrakes in the filed.  He brought them to Leah.  Rachel wanted some.  Leah’s price?  Jacob had to sleep with her.  Jacob came home that night from working and Leah tells him that she has hired him for some mandrakes.  Jacob’s reaction?  “Ok!!!”  Another son comes along. (By the way, does this make Jacob the first male prostitute?)

Leah later has a daughter.  I’m not sure if that was the result of any mandrakes exchanging hands.

Finally, Rachel has a son.  Jacob has to be a tired, happy man by now.

After reaching Canaan, Rachel gives birth again.  Unfortunately, she passes away giving birth.

What did I learn from reading through this?  Sister wives don’t really work.  I’ll stick with my one wife.  I don’t really know what mandrakes are.  The world hasn’t really changed so much.  It’s still full of sex and sex and sex and sex.

What lessons have you learned from this particular episode in the Bible?