I know a man who held an executive position in a Fortune 500 company. He was highly paid in cash and benefits, but he started requiring kickbacks from companies that did business with his company. He then created a dummy account that filtered some of that money for his personal use. These amounts were miniscule compared to what he was paid, but he somehow felt it was worth the risk. When his scheme was discovered, he lost his high-paying job, and his name become a byword for dishonesty, though he still declares his innocence. Not only did he lose his job, but his administrative assistant lost hers too. She may have been taken in by his explanation of the dummy account, but the rules were laid out very clearly, and she was an accessory.

This man did not rightly represent the company he worked for. He also did not value his family name, which his children have and live in the shadow of his actions. I often wonder how they are accepted by others who recognize the name. Do they immediately come under suspicion? Does he have a father, mother and siblings who are painfully embarrassed by what he has done to the family name?

As Christians we each carry the name of Christ, our older Brother, and of our Father in heaven. Are we careful not to shame them? God loves us no matter what, just as a parent loves his child, but we need to ask ourselves if we love Him enough to honor the name He has bestowed on us.

A friend once told me nothing was required from us but to acknowledge the name of Jesus and the sacrifice He made for us. She felt it was devaluing Jesus to say anything else was required. Can we continue as we were before and still say we are Christian? The rules are laid out very clearly. Are we walking as Christ walked?

Many are suspicious of Christianity because of the way some misrepresent it. Just as this man lost his standing in the company he worked for, God also will not allow anyone to be in His Kingdom who does not represent His values or brings dishonor on His name.

Christ does not give us license to do as we please. He said He always did His Father's will. The Father requires that we show love toward Him and toward our fellow man. If you say you can continue in the same actions He condemns because He will love you anyway, you are not rightly representing the name.

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven" (Matthew 7:21).

Our time is now to show our Father in heaven whether we truly love Him and properly represent His holy name. No amount of human reasoning and declaring of our innocence will change the result in the end. As citizens of a heavenly Kingdom, we are required to act as responsible citizens now.

"For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ" (Philippians 3:20).

"Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" (1 John 3:1).

There is great value in the name, and He does not take lightly calling us His sons. In turn, we need always to treat the name the Father has placed on us with reverent respect.

If we have been unclear about the requirements, it is not too late to study and show ourselves approved. When we turn from our ways and seek His will, He is quick to forgive.