What’s In A Name? April 30, 2007
Posted by joshspiers in And He Shall Be Called....add a comment
A few days ago in this post I wrote about how I plan to spend some time studying the Names of Christ this summer, in an effort to get to know Him better. Before I start getting into the Names of Christ, I thought it would be good to explain a little bit more about why I decided to study His Names.
As I mentioned in my previous post, the reason that I am doing this is to get to know the Christ behind all the theology. But some might be wondering why I choose to do this by studying His Names and titles. After all, a Name is just an identifier, right?
Well, that’s the way that it is today, but that’s not the way that it was in biblical times. Today we use names for identification and nothing more. For instance, my name is Joshua Spiers, and people call me Josh or Joshua. If I am in a place where there are several Joshua’s, then people might call me Spiers, or Joshua Spiers. If things got really confusing then people could identify me by my full name: Joshua Michael Spiers.
Today parents pick names for their children that have meaning to the parents, but those names ultimately serve only as a way of identifying the person. Many people probably could not even tell you the meaning of their names.
But in Bible times it was very different. A name wasn’t meant to just to identify you, it was meant to tell other people something about you. In other words, your name said something about the type of person that you were. This wasn’t always the case, of course, but it was very common.
For instance, Jacob’s name literally means “heel grabber” [1]. He was named this because he was holding onto his twin brother’s heel when he was born (Gen. 25:26). In another Bible passage a man’s name is Nabal, which means “fool” [2]. Once again, people’s names didn’t always represent who they were, but the practice was very common. The point is that names meant something in Biblical times; a name was more than a way of identifying a person, it was a way of finding out something about them. This practice was so important that Nelson’s Illustrated Manner’s and Customs of the Bible (an excellent book about biblical cultures) says, “Jewish people believed that they must first know a person’s name before they could know the person themselves” [3].
So let me ask this question: If a person’s name was so important in ancient times, then how much more important was the name of a god? If ancient cultures believed that a person’s name said something about who they were, then wouldn’t they believe the same thing about the names of their gods? Interestingly enough, archaeology confirms that this is exactly the case. One study Bible says that “In ancient times a ‘name’ represented the actual nature or essence or power of the person or god that it designated” [4]. Catch that? People believed that knowing the name of a god told you something about that god’s power.
So it’s obvious from all of this that a name carried extreme importance in biblical times–especially when it was the name of a god. This explains the exchange between Moses and God in front of the burning bush (Ex. 3:1-22). When God told Moses to go to Egypt and demand the emancipation of the Israelites, one of the questions that Moses asked God was: “I will tell the people of Israel that the God their ancestors worshiped has sent me to them….But what should I say, if they ask me your name?” (13 CEV). In other words, Moses wanted to know the Name of God. Judaism was not a formal religion yet, so Moses only knew Jehovah as someone Who his ancestors worshiped. Moses wanted to know Jehovah personally, so He asked for His Name! God’s response was very important. He replied, “I am the eternal God….So tell them that the LORD, whose name is ‘I Am,’ has sent you….This is my name forever, and it is the name that people must use from now on” (14 CEV).
It is obvious that this exchange was of supreme importance. God revealed Himself in a very personal way to Moses, and He did so by giving Moses His Name. The Name was never meant to simply identify God (although it served that function as well), but the Name that God gave Moses was designed to identify who God was, and to say something about Him.
Now that I’ve explained all of this it might make more sense why I have decided to get to know Christ better this summer by taking the time to study His Names. The most important Name is, of course, “Jesus,” which basically means “Salvation of Yahweh [Jehovah]” [5]. However there are hundreds of other Names that describe Jesus as well.
The first name that I am studying is from Rev. 3:14. In this passage Jesus calls Himself “the Amen.” The next post that I make about the Names of Christ will be looking at this Name and talking a little bit about what it means.
(Rev 3:14 CEV) This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Laodicea: I am the one called Amen! I am the faithful and true witness and the source of God’s creation. Listen to what I say.
References:
- J.I. Packer, Merrill Chapin Tenney and William White, Nelson’s Illustrated Manners and Customs of the Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995). 446.
- Earl D. Radmacher, Ronald Barclay Allen and H. Wayne House, Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary (Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1999). 1 Ki 18:22-23.
- J.I. Packer, Merrill Chapin Tenney and William White, Nelson’s Illustrated Manners and Customs of the Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995). 446.
- The Open Bible : New King James Version, electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1998, c1997). Ge 1:1.
- J.I. Packer, Merrill Chapin Tenney and William White, Nelson’s Illustrated Manners and Customs of the Bible (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997, c1995). 446.
Every Little Thing’s Gonna Be Alright April 27, 2007
Posted by joshspiers in Thoughts.1 comment so far
Anyone who reads my blogs knows that Delirious? is one of my favorite bands. This morning I was listening to one of their songs titled “Every Little Thing (Is Gonna Be Alright),” and I started thinking about the words. More specifically, I started thinking about the word little.
As Christians we usually understand that “God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them” (Rom. 8:28). The problem is that we all too often think of this in a big scale. At least I do. What I mean is that I often trust God to handle the big issues; the major things. When a car breaks down and I am left without transportation, I trust God to work the situation out for the best. When a disease flares up or an unexpected bill arrives in the mail, I trust that God will sort everything out for the best. But as I was listening to the song “Every Little Thing” this morning I started to think about how God wants to take care of the little things in our lives–not just the big things.
As I started to meditate on this I was reminded of the Scripture passage in Matthew 6:25-31 where Jesus says:
“So I tell you, don’t worry about everyday life–whether you have enough food, drink, and clothes. Doesn’t life consist of more than food and clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because your heavenly Father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are. Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not. “And why worry about your clothes? Look at the lilies and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won’t he more surely care for you? You have so little faith! “So don’t worry about having enough food or drink or clothing. Why be like the pagans who are so deeply concerned about these things? Your heavenly Father already knows all your needs, and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern. “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (NLT).
I think that the point Jesus is making is obvious: He cares about taking care of the little things in our lives. He came to not just give us life, but to give it to us “in all its fullness” (John 10:10).
I just find it so awe-inspring that the God of the entire universe–the Creator and sustainer of all things–cares enough about us that He is willing to take care of us “from day to day.” In another place Jesus said that He sees every time that a sparrow falls to the ground, and that we are much more important to Him than the sparrows (Mat. 10:29-31). The implication here is clear: God cares about every detail of our lives!
There is one more point that I should make before I complete this post, though. Jesus did come to give us life “in all its fullness,” but we humans often look for fulfillment in the wrong places. Many people read about the fulfillment that Christ offers, and they begin to ask God for the things that they think will fulfill them. Some people ask for things, others for relationships, others for money, etc. There is nothing wrong with any of these things, but it is crucial that we remember that things will never bring fulfillment. The only thing that will bring true fulfillment is a relationship with Christ. That is why Jesus said, “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and [God] will give you everything you need” (Mat. 6:33).
For many years I made the mistake of seeking fulfillment in the wrong places. I was not living a bad lifestyle, but I was living with the mindset that a different job would bring fulfillment, or a relationship, or friends, or a better vehicle, etc. Again, none of that is bad. As a matter of fact, many of those things were designed by God to contribute to our fulfillment and happiness. The mistake is to think that those things on their own can bring us fulfillment and contentment. It took me years to finally understand that fulfillment only comes through Christ. He understands what we need, and when we make Him and His kingdom our #1 priority then He takes care of everything else, for He cares about every little thing.
When Theology Becomes Practical April 26, 2007
Posted by joshspiers in And He Shall Be Called..., Thoughts.add a comment
I returned to school as a psychology major in February 2006. Since I was going to a Christian university I had to take a lot of theology electives. As many of my friends know, I fell in love with my theology courses and formally switched from psychology to theology this summer.
The upshot of this is that I have been taking theology courses (or courses closely related to theology) non-stop since February 2006. I love the courses, but sometimes it’s easy to fall so in love with the different philosophies and concepts that we fall out of love with the One Who we are studying for.
I have done school for 14 months straight (except for a brief break around Christmas time) and I must say that I have loved my classes. One thing that I have not loved, though, is how much my classes have cut into my personal devotion time. Sure, my classes are teaching me about God, but I’ve never yet seen a debate on Calvinism versus Arminianism help a person when they’re hurting. This isn’t to say that theology is bad–there’s a place for all of that stuff–I’m just saying that theology is worthless if it’s not practical.
As this semester was winding down I was thinking about all of this, and I decided that this summer I want to take some time to get to better know the God behind all the theology. I was trying to think of a good way to do this when I happened to glance out my bedroom door and noticed a poster I have hanging in my hallway. It is called, “And He Shall Be Called…”, and it lists some of the Names and titles of Christ. And that gave me a great idea: Why not get to know Christ by studying His Names and titles?
There are hundreds of Names and titles of Christ spread throughout Scripture, and they were placed there so that we can get to know the God that we serve. (It might disturb some that I use the terms “God” and “Christ” interchangeably, but the author of Hebrews wrote that Jesus is “the exact representation of [God's] nature” (Heb. 1:3). In other words, if you want to get to know God, then get to know Jesus).
So throughout the rest of the summer I’m going to spend some time blogging about the Names and titles of Christ. I won’t blog every day, and I won’t blog about every single one, but as I find something interesting I’m going to try to take the time to share it.
The name that I am studying right now is simply “Amen,” and it is a name that Jesus called Himself in Rev. 3:14. I’m going to blog about that soon. For now, you might want to read up on it yourself, for it is a beautiful Scripture.
(Rev 3:14 CEV)
This is what you must write to the angel of the church in Laodicea: I am the one called Amen! I am the faithful and true witness and the source of God’s creation. Listen to what I say.
Also, here’s a link to 177 Names and Titles of Christ that I found on the Internet today. If you take the time to read through it then you might find out that God is more poetic than most people give Him credit for 
God bless!
Why is this night different from every other night? April 4, 2007
Posted by joshspiers in Thoughts.1 comment so far
Tonight I had an interesting experience. One of the families in my church hosted a traditional Passover dinner. The family is not Jewish, but they wanted to host the dinner to show people how the Passover in the Old Testament relates to Jesus Christ in the New Testament.
Most of you reading this blog may be familiar with the Passover, but for those of you who aren’t I will give a brief explanation. When Moses went to Egypt and demanded that they free the Israelites from slavery, the pharaoh would not do it. So God cause 10 separate plagues to come upon the Egyptians. None of the first 9 would cause the pharaoh to let the Israelites go free, so the 10th plague was the worst. In this plague God commanded an angel to go through the nation of Egypt and kill the firstborn male child in every house.
Of course, God wanted to spare the Israelites from this plague of death, so He gave them some special commands. He told them to kill a lamb and smear its blood on the doorposts of their houses. When the angel of death saw the blood it would pass by that house and not kill anyone inside of it. What God wanted to show the Israelites (and us today) is that sin is punishable by death, and that “no sins can be forgiven unless blood is offered” (Heb. 9:22).
This is all very important to us Christians, because we believe that Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice for sin. When John the Baptist saw Jesus he said, “There is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world!” (John 1:29). We believe that when Jesus’ blood was shed that He gave us the opportunity to have our sins taken away by placing our faith in Him.
Going back to the Passover dinner, now, there are several questions that Jewish fathers ask their children during the course of the meal. These questions don’t come out of the Bible, they are just tradition. One of the questions is this:
“Why is this night different from every other night?”
The answer that the child gives is:
“Because once we were slaves…and we are slaves no longer.”
This is very important to the Jews, because it represents their freedom from slavery in Egypt. It’s also important to us Christians, because it represents are freedom from slavery to sin and death.
Our Scriptures say that “the payment for sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). They also say that everyone has sinned (Rom. 3:23). We believe that when Jesus came to earth and died He paid the price for our sin. Now if a person places their faith in Him (Rom. 10:9-11) then that person can be saved from the payment for sin and they can experience eternal life.
I was thinking about all of this when I was eating the Passover meal. I was also thinking about how the Scriptures call Jesus the “Sunrise from on high” (Luke 1:78). I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a sunrise, but it is a beautiful thing to experience. I remember that one time I went up to the top of Cadillac Mountain in Maine for sunrise. It’s the first place in the United States to see the sun rise. I remember the experience of seeing the sun come up over the horizon, and how everything turned from gray to beautiful light.
And that’s the way that the Scriptures describe Jesus. Except, of course, they’re talking about a spiritual sunrise, not an earthly one.
So when I was eating the Passover dinner and the question was read–”Why is this night different from every other night?”–and the answer was read–”Because once we were slaves, and we are slaves no longer”–I thought of it in the context of being free from the power of death.
Some people view Christ as a good moral teacher, others as a prophet, and others as a philosopher or spiritual guide. But I view Christ as so much more than that. He’s not just a prophet, teacher, or guide to me. He is God become flesh (Mat. 1:23).
I view Him as the “Sunrise from on high” because He has done so much in my life. He’s not just something or someone that I choose to believe in. No, He has done great things in my life. He’s never turned water into wine for me (then again, I’ve never asked Him to), but I have seen His hand all throughout my life. I have had prayers answered, been healed of sickness, and become such a better person through following Christ.
I guess tonight I could ask a question kind of like the one asked during the Passover dinner, but slightly different. I could ask:
“What makes Christianity so different?”
After all, many other religions make the claims that Christianity makes. Many other religions claim to have the ultimate revelation of truth. Some claim that their religion is the only way to God (like Christianity does) and others claim that all religions are like different paths that take us to the same place (many Eastern religions teach this). So what makes Christianity different?
Well, there are lots of things that make Christianity different. There are lots of reasons that I am a Christian. Let’s just say that I am a Christian because I believe Christianity to be true, I do not believe that Christianity is true because I am a Christian.
In other words, I’m not a Christian because I was raised Christian, or because I was raised southern, middle-class white American, and going to church on Sunday is just what I do. No, I am a Christian because I have examined the evidence and I believe that Christianity is true. I do not believe that Christ is just a path to God, I believe that He is the path to God.
Of course, some might read this blog and disagree with me. That’s fine, I respect other people’s views (anyone who knows me well knows that I don’t attack people over their views). However, if you’re reading this and you disagree with me that Christianity is the only path to God, then I offer you this challenge: Examine the evidence for yourself and show me why I’m wrong!
I don’t offer that challenge because I like to debate. I offer that challenge because if I’m wrong then I want to know. After all, we’re talking about a subject with eternal consequences here! If I’m wrong then I want to know, and I would hope that anyone reading this blog would feel the same way, no matter what their religion is.
If you are interested in finding out what makes Christianity different than other religions, and why I am a Christian, then I can offer a couple of places to start searching.
First, you can ask me . I’ll always be happy to tell you.
Another thing that you can do is check out these two Web sites:
Dr. Gary Habermas was raised in a Christian family, and he is a Christian again now, but he was a skeptic for over 10 years. He examined different world religions searching for truth. Christianity was eventually the religion that He returned to, because He was convinced from the evidence that it was true.
Lee Strobel was an atheist for most of his life. He eventually set out to research Christianity, and he ended up becoming a Christian.
I picked these two Web sites for a couple of reasons. First, both of these men were skeptics and/or atheists for much of their life. They are Christians now because they are convinced that Christianity is true. Also, they both have a lot of free resources available on their Web sites. They both have some excellent videos that you can watch for free.
Lee Strobel also wrote three very famous books: The Case for Christ, The Case for Faith, and The Case for a Creator. If you live here in Spartanburg then you can find all three of these books in the local Spartanburg county library.
If you’re going to start researching Christianity, then I recommend going to the two Web sites that I’ve listed above and watching some of their videos on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It’s a great place to start…especially since it’s Easter time! Another reason why it’s a good place to start is because if the resurrection is true then it says a lot for Christianity, because no man can rise from the dead on his own. If the resurrection is false, then even the Bible says that Christianity is “worthless” (1 Cor. 15:17)!
Well, it’s past my bed time, so I guess I’ll go ahead and post this blog. Whatever your religious beliefs, I hope that this blog has given you, the reader, something to think about! God bless you all, and have a happy Easter!
