A New Name

Thank you once again, Mr. Emery. My wife reminded me that we are planning to have graduation snacks in between, so let's just plan for 12-15. And I'll try to wrap up early so we have time in between to be able to do that, which means I better check my clock and see where I'm starting at and adjust accordingly. All right. Perfect! Brother, I'd like to begin today by asking all of you a quick question. What's your name mean? What does your name mean?

I would venture a guess most of you probably have some sort of an understanding as to the meaning of your name. Whether or not, you know, it may be German or Chilean or Irish or whatever it might be as a backdrop. You might even know your parents' reason for choosing it. You may have some sort of an idea as to why your parents chose this specific name for you. For example, why you're a Cody and not a Tim or a Franz. You know, why you're a whatever as opposed to something else. Maybe you're named after a grandfather or a grandmother. Maybe you're named after a beloved aunt or uncle. Perhaps even your own father or mother. My wife's family has a tradition, at least on one side, to which there are multiple generations of Frank Robinson. A number of you know Mr. Frank Robinson, Tim's dad. But Tim's brother is also a Frank Robinson, and his son is also a Frank Robinson, who goes by Dwayne. Because there are already too many Franks in the family overall. But names are important. It's one of the very first things that someone learns about you. It's one of the very first things that you lead with. Typically, it's the introduction of your name and what you're called. It's something that you'll ultimately carry around with you for your entire life. Now, as such, that means, as parents, we don't necessarily enter into the naming of our children lightly. We research, we consider the meaning of the name to ensure that it fits. We toss around ideas, we make our selections carefully, and we do everything that we can to fit that name to that child. I don't know how many of you have ever met somebody, and when you're done meeting them, you're like, I didn't think that guy was a Dave. He just doesn't look like a Dave. Or he doesn't look like a Jim. Or whatever it might be. Sometimes you have those situations. Some of you that have named your children, and remember naming your children, you might look back on that naming process with fondness. Others of you might look back on it with a degree of trepidation, depending on your personal individual experience. Sometimes the names just take care of itself. You already had a name in mind. The Baby Name Book happens to open to the perfect page, and it's done. I know for our circumstance, it was a little bit more of a challenge. Shannon and I, I think, had very different ideas of what we wanted to name our children. I think Shannon had a book called 35,987 Baby Names. It's this thick, the print's this small, and it's just name after name after name. She would go through it at night and sit and make a list of about 15. The next day, I'd look at it and go, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope. Then I'd do the same thing, and she'd go, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope. It was one of those things that was a little bit challenging to find a name combination that fit the kid, and that both my wife and I were comfortable with. Some of you already know this. My dad wanted to name me Bud.

That is not a joke at all. He literally wanted to name me Bud. Bud Light. Bud Light. My mom understandably said, that ain't going to happen. He said, that is not going to happen. And you might think, well, he wanted to name me after a beard. That wasn't the case. Actually, a very good mentor of his, who practically raised him, was named Bud Dishnu. And he lived down in Scottsdale, Arizona, where my dad lived at that time.

And so he wanted to name me after Bud, but my mom very quickly said, that's the name on the side of a beer can. We're not naming our kid Bud Light. So my mom won the debate, and I ended up Ben. When my wife and I chose the name for our eldest son, we decided to name him Aiden. Now, we chose that name because Aiden meant little fire or fiery spirit. See, when Aiden was in the womb, when Aiden was very little and he was a tiny little baby in the womb, he was a kicker. When I would lean over and speak to him, he'd kick me in the face.

Shannon did anything! She moved, she twisted, he'd kick her. That was just what he did. She made a comment at one point after what she described felt like a World Cup match, just went after another kick, kick, kick, kick, kick. She said, wow, he is feisty. Well, he is just feisty. The kid just likes to kick. Well, we're looking through the baby book, and we come across Aiden.

Aiden means little fire or fiery spirit. We both looked at each other and we said, there it is. We found it. It fit. It just seemed right. Now, both for other kids, we chose their names for very specific reasons, too. Their names represented specific moments in our lives. They represented time and place. They represented hopes and dreams that we had for our kids. So, as parents, when we name our children, the names that we select for our kids, they're deeply, deeply personal. They're deeply personal. Your name is not accidental. Your name is not an accident. Your name is purposeful. It has meaning. It's important. That point was driven home for me within the last few years on a trip that we took to Nigeria. And I'd like to share just a little bit of that experience with you to help kind of set the stage today for the direction that we're heading. The title for the sermon today is A New Name. The title for the sermon is A New Name. And in the summer of 2018, my brother-in-law Carl and I had a chance to travel to Lagos, Nigeria in support of the United Youth Camp Program there in Lagos. And it wasn't the first time to West Africa for either of us. It was Carl's first time in Nigeria, which is a very different experience than Ghana. But it was the very first time that I had traveled to West Africa without my senior pastor. So it was just me this time. As you might remember, Mr. Moody's wife Darla had been diagnosed with cancer and was unable to go.

And so for the very first time, I'm traveling to Nigeria, and I am the guy, quote-unquote. And Carl and I are both there together as we're going through that. So the pastoral responsibilities at that point fell onto my shoulders, which for me at that time was a very new experience. Typically, when we arrange our schedule, we go to Nigeria, we plan for a day that is just kind Votes a day after we land. Because the flight is a 12-hour flight. It's usually a pretty long drive to get from the airport to the house. And so when it's all said and done, we're looking at a long, long travel day. And not to mention, you go get on the plane, and it's 11 o'clock at night. You wake up in the morning at what feels like morning, and it's already afternoon. Your clocks are just all messed up. So we usually plan for an opportunity to have a break, but this year we didn't really have that opportunity. In 2018, we didn't have that chance, because what ended up happening was, Dari packed Carl and I and a few of the other brethren into a van. And he drove us out to a section of Lagos that I'd never been to before. And in fact, Dari had told us he'd never taken any of the American ministry to this part of Lagos. Had a moment of wondering what that meant, exactly. But it was quite the drive, and I see now why he didn't go out that far. It was out on the outskirts of Lagos. Lagos is a city of 23 million, and it's a city that just sprawls. I mean, if you can imagine, 23 million people packed into a single space. They don't go up in Africa very frequently, because the foundations of the buildings struggle in that kind of climate. Concrete and things rot out pretty quick in that area. And so they don't typically go up, they go out. And so 23 million people, it's a very large, very sprawling city. But we packed all of us into the Toyota, and we were headed out to go visit a couple of brethren that lived out on the outskirts of Lagos. The brethren were Olofemi Akinfilarin and his wife, Abiseti. And eight days prior to our trip, Olofemi and his wife gave birth to a son. They gave birth to a son. And as we drove to their home, we learned that in addition to going out and visiting with them, we had a really interesting opportunity to experience a very special ceremony to the people that are Yoruban in Nigeria. The Yoruba are one of the larger ethnic groups in Nigeria. They make up actually the largest majority of the population there in Lagos, as well as in that kind of southwestern part of Nigeria. Carl and I were there, kind of sticking out like a sore thumb, so to speak, in this family gathering. And Carl nodding his head, remembering the degree of slight awkwardness in that one. We didn't speak Yoruba. Everybody else did. Thankfully, everybody else mostly spoke English, but honestly, some of them rarely used it as far out on the outskirts as they were in Lagos. And so, conversing with individuals were a little bit of a challenge. And Carl and I are sitting there. One of these things is not like the other. Let's just put it that way. And so, we're invited into this very special, very intimate ceremony in this family's life. What happens in the Yoruba culture is they have a ceremony that is performed on the eighth day of the child's life.

On the eighth day of the child's life, that child receives his name. The ceremony is called Aiso Omo Luroku, and ultimately, prior to this eight days when this name is received, only the parents know the name of the child. They have not revealed it to anyone. They haven't told anyone else in the family what the name of this child is going to be. They haven't spoken it in the child's presence.

So, even if the kid could remember, he wouldn't know his name anyway. Obviously, that young, you're not going to remember any of that. But what's fascinating about that—I don't know, there's an eighth-day fascination in that for me from a standpoint of Jewish culture and how the name is acknowledged. You think of the account of John. On the eighth day, he received the name. They asked the parents, what are the names going to be for John the Baptist? But not only that, you have the circumcision and other things. There are some interesting parallels there to me, but I'll save that for another day.

Most of the names in the Yoruban culture—and it's changing slightly as modernization occurs—but the Yoruban culture frequently, in their names, honor God. Very similar to how the Israelites would name with Yah in their name in some way or another to kind of connect God into that name. Well, you do the same thing in Yoruban. Oluwah is the word in Yoruba for God.

So the Oluw prefix in a name in Nigeria is an acknowledgment of God's providence and God's blessing. Dari, his full name, is Oluwadamilare, or we call him Dari, because that's a mouthful. But it means God has vindicated me. Olufemi means God loves me. Oluw is that little piece of the name that indicates God.

So Carl and I, we enter this compound. We feel a little bit out of places. We've been invited to this very intimate ceremony. We sit down among the aunts and the uncles and the grandparents and cousins and nieces and nephews. The number of women are cooking back on gas cookstoves because this day is also a big feast. We have a chance to eat and enjoy one another's company. Dari conducted the ceremony, and as the visiting pastor, I was asked to pray a prayer of blessing over the child, similar to what we would do here in the U.S. during the blessing of little children. During the ceremony, the family praised God. They sang praises to him. They thanked him for the blessing of the child, for the child's health, for his protection, for the protection of the parents. In Nigeria, infant mortality is huge. It occurs very frequently. For wisdom in raising him, and they asked ultimately for him to be pointed to God and to develop a relationship with God. Thankfully, Dari and some of the others were translating for us as some of these things were happening, so he at least had some kind of an idea of what was being done. But the family waited with absolute eager anticipation as to the revealing of the child's name. Now, one of the things that's interesting about Nigeria, and it makes it a real challenge to go to that particular area, is that most Nigerian children have more than one name. And it makes it really challenging when they get introduced to you by one name, and then you hear them referred to with another name, and then another name. But most Nigerian children have three or four names. They have their official name, which is the name that their parents have chosen. That's their legal name. The grandparents have a name that they use to refer to the child, specifically. That's the name the grandparents use to refer to him by. Sometimes the aunts and the uncles will choose specific names for the child as well. And then every Nigerian kid has a Christianized name, quote-unquote, that is easier to pronounce than the rest. And so that is the one that serves for most visitors, etc. When the name was finally revealed, Oluwasha'e is the child's name, or we call him Michael, the family rejoiced and they praised God. Oluwasha'e means God made this, or God has done this.

So, Femi and Avocerae, when they thought about, in the eight days between his birth and the revealing of his name, when they thought about how they were going to honor God with the name of their child, they concluded that this was God's blessing, that God made this, that God did this. It was Oluwasha'e. And so that was the name that they chose. It wasn't an accident. It wasn't something that they randomly picked out of a Nigerian baby book. They specifically honored him, God, with that name. They spent eight days contemplating it, thinking about it, determining how they could acknowledge God with the name of their child. And again, for eight days, even Oluwasha'e, even Michael, didn't know his name. Interestingly enough, this last February, when... last February, you know, the February in 2020, when Paul and I visited, Michael's two and a half, running all over the place, just absolute ball of energy and doing great. You know, doing wonderfully. It was really, really nice to see him again, and have the opportunity to look at him and go, that was the little baby that we were there for, you know, two years ago. So, let's go over to Isaiah 62 to go ahead and get started today. Isaiah 62... Isaiah 62 is one of those passages that is millennial in scope. It's one of those passages that deals with a coming time that we look forward to with great anticipation. Coming time of the millennium.

Looks forward to a time in which Christ returns with his reward, and when Christ returns with his work before him. Just as real quick, I did bring a little printout picture. I'll go ahead and put this back on the announcement page, as it shows kind of the family all gathered together here at this naming ceremony, and see if you can look for the two generally awkward Americans in the photo. See if you can find us in that particular photo. I'll put that back on the announcement table so you guys can check it out. Little Michael's in that photo with his mom, Abisareh, and you can take a look at that after services. Isaiah 62, we'll go ahead and pick it up in verse 1. It says, For Zion's sake I will not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation is a lamp that burns. It says, The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. It says, You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord will name. You shall also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no longer be termed forsaken, nor shall your land any more be termed desolate, but you shall be called Hephizba and your land Beulah. Notice two names we don't hear all that much anymore. But Hephizba and Beulah. For the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married. For as a young man marries a virgin, so shall your sons marry you. And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you. Verse 6, he says, I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem. They shall never hold your peace day or night. You who make mention of the Lord do not keep silent. Give him no rest until he establishes, until he makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth. The Lord is sworn by his right hand and by the arm of his strength. Surely I will no longer give your grain as food for your enemies. The sons of the foreigner shall not drink your new wine. For which you have labored, for those who gathered it shall eat it and praise the Lord. Those who have brought it together shall drink it in my holy courts. Go through, he says, go through the gates. Prepare the way for the people, build up, build up the highway. Take out the stones, lift up a banner for the peoples. Indeed, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the world, Say to the daughter of Zion, Surely your salvation is coming. Behold, his reward is with him and his work before him. And they shall call them the holy people, the redeemed of the Lord, and you shall be called sought out, a city that is not forsaken.

This particular passage in Isaiah 62 describes the restorative work of the coming kingdom of God. It talks about the return of Christ. It describes the gathering together of the remnant of God. And tucked into that statement, referring to the remnant of God, is that God's people, those whom he has called, whom he works with, who we might say the Israel of God, that they will receive a new name.

That they will receive a new name that is uttered by the mouth of God himself. And that is a name that is unknown to us at this time. It's unknown up to the point that that name is revealed. But brethren, you will be called individually, too. Not just as a whole, but you will be called individually, too, by a new name. Now, that's not something that's unheard of. That's not something unheard of in Scripture. You know, God is a loving Father.

God understands us better than we know ourselves. God has called us. God provides for us. He's given us opportunities. He's given us blessings. He's given us tests and trials at times that we have to undergo and we have to work through. And God works with us according to His calling and according to His purposes for our life. Once again, keep in mind, we mentioned this to begin with. Names are important.

Names have meaning. And in some circumstances, we see in Scripture that God ordains the name directly. There are times in which God says, Your child will be named this. Period. End of sentence. That is the name that your child will be known by. Anybody name their kids as a result of that? Yeah, me either. You know, I did not have God come to me and say, Your second child shall be known. No, that was not the case.

But there are times in which God has done that in Scripture, where God has come to the parents of that child and said, This is the name that your child will be. We see that in the example of Isaac. We see that in the example of Isaac, that through the name, or through the actions of Sarah, so to speak, and Abraham's response to the news, that God said, This is going to be the name of your son.

We see it in the book of Luke, when we talk about John the Baptist, and John the Baptist's birth, and the declaration that God made through the angel Gabriel. Let's actually turn over and visit that. Let's go to Luke 1. Luke 1, and we'll take a look at this particular account when we talk about the naming of John the Baptist. Luke 1, we know there's some special circumstances that surround John the Baptist's birth.

John was one who was prophesied to come and lay the way, so to speak, or paved the way for the Messiah, that he is someone that would set the pathways and provide the foundation, so to speak, for Christ's coming and Christ's ministry. Luke 1, we'll go ahead and pick it up in verse 5. Once again, we see that there is very special circumstances around this particular name. Luke 1 and verse 5 says, There was in the days of Herod the king of Judea a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. And we've talked about this before, how this must have been a very challenging scenario for Elizabeth. You know, these are both individuals who had been faithful their entire lives. These are individuals who had served God exceedingly, with Zacharias in the temple, and Elizabeth, of course, as a dutiful and respectful and righteous wife as well.

They had both kept God's commandments. They had both lived. In fact, it says right here, they were both righteous before God, walking in all of His commandments. But yet she was barren. She had not had a child. And so it must have been a very challenging thing to be dealing with, and a very challenging thing to go through, and to reach this point where you're getting so advanced in your years, that now suddenly, that's not even by human reckoning an option anymore.

You know, to the point where you could now not have a child going forward, and the people, as they talked, and as they noticed, and, well, what did she do wrong? Why isn't she able to have a child? So, verse 7 says, they had no child because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years.

So it was that while he, Zacharias, here, was serving as priests before God, in the order of his division, an opportunity that doesn't come all that often, according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And so he's stepping into the presence of God in this capacity. You know, at least in that belief, we know that there was not a situation of God's glory in that particular temple at that time, in the second temple.

But he was stepping before where the Jews felt was the most important location in the temple. So it was that while he was serving—sorry, I went too far up—the whole, according to the whole multitude of the people, sorry, was praying outside at the hour of incense. Verse 11, I think I would be too, because you entered alone, and now suddenly somebody else is in there with you. And if you have a moment of like, wait a second, what exactly is going on here?

Right? You have that moment of like a question of, did he sneak in behind me? Because he's not supposed to be in here.

Well, it says here, So God sends an angel to meet with Zacharias at the temple, and forms him that he'll be a father. Don't imagine that many of you received your news that you were going to be a father in such a shocking fashion. It may have still been shocking, but not in this fashion. But the reaction, ultimately, is one where he listens to this particular angel. The angel goes on to explain that they were to name him John, which means God's gift. And Zacharias ultimately questions the angel as to the veracity of his claim. The angel identifies himself as Gabriel, and basically tells Zacharias, listen, I stand in the presence of God, and as a result of this, we're going to do something special here. You're going to be mute until the child's birth.

Skip down just a little bit. A number of months go by. Elizabeth comes to term and brings forth John, also known as John the Baptist, or John the Baptizer. Some refer to him as. But if you'd skip down to verse 57 of Luke 1, we'll go ahead and pick it up. Luke 57, or sorry, Luke 1, verse 57, says, Now Elizabeth's full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son. When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, in other words, the woman whose womb was barren has now had a child, that is an incredible mercy of God. They came, it says, and they praised God. They came and they enjoyed rejoicing alongside her. Verse 59, it says, So it was on the eighth day that they came to circumcise the child, and notice, we mentioned this earlier, and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. So there's a naming that's going on generally at this time as well.

So ordinarily in Jewish culture, again, at this point in time, there was a tendency to name a child in accordance with the father, or to name the child in accordance with someone else in the family's ancestry. But in this case, Elizabeth threw him a curve ball. Verse 60, she said, No, he should be called John. And notice their response. Verse 61, they said to her, There's no one among your relatives who is called by this name.

And so they said, look, let's check with the dad, because, I mean, come on here. I don't know what this woman's talking about, but let's check with dad. So they look over to John, and they make signs to him, it says. So it kind of insinuates that maybe he was also deafened at this time. It's not 100% certain, but it seems interesting. Says they made signs to his father what he would have him called, and he asked for a writing tablet, wrote, saying his name is John. His name is John. It says, and they all marveled. And then notice what it says. Immediately, his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, praising God. So he fulfilled the dictate that he had been given by Gabriel. The child's name was John. Again, the name was important. It meant something. He was to be God's gift. He was to be God's gift. Not just to Elizabeth and John, but to the whole entire world, as John went forth in the purpose in which he was called. As John went forth to fulfill the mission that God had given him, to pave the way for the Messiah. John's name, John, gift of God, or God's gift, his name was ordained by God. God knows the plans that he has for his people. God knows the thoughts and the desires of their hearts. And so much so, in fact, that there have been times as God has worked with people that he found it necessary and appropriate to change their names as a result of a change in purpose, or a change in character, or a new direction, or a new phase in life. One of those examples is Genesis 17. Let's go ahead and turn over there. Genesis 17. We'll take a look at the example of Abram.

Genesis 17. We'll go ahead and pick it up in verse 1.

Genesis 17, verse 1 says, When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, I am Almighty God, walk before me, and be blameless. He says, And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly. He says, I will multiply you exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face, verse 3, and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.

Abram's purpose has now shifted. It has changed. He will now be a father of many nations. And so God says, No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham. For I have made you a father of many nations. A father of many nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you.

And I will establish my covenant between me and you, and your descendants after you, and their generations, for an everlasting covenant to be God to you, and your descendants after you. God told Abram, No longer shall your name be called Abram. Which meant, at the time, high father. He says, But because of my plan for you, because I plan to make your descendants like the sand of the sea, like the stars in the sky, I am naming you Abraham, because you will be a father of many nations.

Abram's purpose changed. God's plan moved forward. God entered into covenant with Abraham, and his name was ultimately changed. Sarah had a similar situation occur just a little later in Genesis 17. Skip down to verse 15 of Genesis 17, verse 15. It says, Then God said to Abraham, As for Sarai, your wife, You shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.

And I will bless her, and I will give you a son by her, And then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations. Kings of people shall be from her. God tells Abraham, Not only have I given you a new name, I am giving Sarai a new name as well. Going forward from that point, she would no longer be known as Sarai. She would be known as Sarah, which means princess. God promised Sarai a child. He promised that she would bear a son in her advanced years, similar to Elizabeth's situation. But in doing so, he changed Sarai's purpose.

She would carry a son now, the son of promise, by whom the promises of Abraham would be delivered. She was to become a mother of nations. She was to become a mother of kings. Her purpose changed. Her character changed. She became something more than she was before, becoming instead what God intended her to be, what he had called her to become.

And as a result, God changed her name. Let's take a look at one more example. Genesis 32. Genesis 32, just a few pages over here. We'll take a look at the example of Jacob. We know the story of Jacob as he inherited the blessing from his father, how he obtained it. We know he traveled from Laban's home to meet with Esau, and in the process of that traveling, and in the process of going from Laban's home to meet with Esau, along the way he encountered the Word in the form of a man.

And ultimately he engaged with him, and he wrestled him until dawn. Genesis 32. Genesis 32 and verse 22. And he arose that night, and he took his two wives, his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and he crossed over the ford of Jabach. He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had.

Verse 24. Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when he saw that he did not prevail against him, he touched the socket of his hip, and the socket of Jacob's hip was out of joint as he wrestled with him. And he said, Let me go, for the day breaks.

But he said, I will not let you go unless you bless me. Verse 27. What was in that blessing? So he said to him, What is your name? He said, Jacob. And he said, Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel. Why? For you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed. And then verse 29. Jacob ultimately asks, Tell me your name, I pray. And he said, Why is it that you ask about my name? And he blessed him there. Blessed him there. That location Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.

God tells Jacob, You will no longer be called Jacob. But you will be called Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men, and you have prevailed. Once again, God's plan moved forward. God's plan moved forward, and now Jacob was operating from the purposes with which God had called him. Jacob had stepped into his role. His character had changed his tenacity, his unwillingness to let go, and to continue to wrestle and continue to fight despite the pain, despite all of the things that were going on.

When you look at Jacob's character arc in Scripture, he became a very different person after this event. A very different person. He was changed. He was changed. God later confirms his covenant with Israel. He illustrates the blessings that God had promised to Abraham, and God's purpose for Jacob was fulfilled. And he changed his name appropriately. So, brethren, the question I have for you today is, what about us? What about us? What about those of us who are called today? You know, when we're changed, and we become what God has intended us to become fully, we've become sons and daughters in his family, what about us?

You know, as we drove back through the streets of Lagos after that ceremony, I couldn't help but think about what we had just experienced, and ultimately the symbolism of what God is doing with the here and the now, with respect to his kingdom. You know, in the book of 2 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul reflects on the very temporary nature of this life.

And we know the Apostle Paul was a tentmaker, and one of the things I just, again, got back from this conference this week, the conference the entirety of the three days was on the Apostle Paul and the Roman world in which the Apostle Paul lived, and connecting aspects of what the Apostle Paul said to aspects of Roman culture that he was addressing and bringing up.

Different things that you might not recognize necessarily, and I didn't in many cases, with some of the different things that he experienced just living in and around Rome. It was very profitable in that regard. One of the things we know about the Apostle Paul is that he was a tentmaker. He understood the concept of tents. He understood the concept of temporary dwellings, so to speak. 2 Corinthians 5, we'll go ahead and pick it up in verse 1, he kind of connects this concept of this life, this physical nature in which we find ourselves with a tent.

With a tent. 2 Corinthians 5, I'm in 1 Corinthians. That's not going to help. 1 Corinthians 5 is a very different story. 2 Corinthians 5, verse 1, says, For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, that we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation, which is from heaven, talking and speaking here of the eternal life that God promises us. If indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. He says, verse 4, For we who are in this tent, we groan, we are being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed.

He says, further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now he who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the spirit, this down payment of God's spirit at baptism, as a guarantee, as an earnest payment, so to speak. You know, it's the easiest analogy to consider. You go to buy a house today, what do you do? You put down earnest. You say, I am committed to purchasing this. In other words, I am committed to seeing this through to the end.

I'm not planning to walk out after I put down earnest money. And God, in many ways, is committing to seeing this through to the end with that spirit as a guarantee. He says, so we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord. And we groan in this life. You know, this life is a temporary state of being. We feel the aches and the pains of this physicality. Many of you may recognize and identify with that all too well.

You know, the snap crackles and pops that the body now does that it didn't used to do. But all those snap crackle pops, and we yearn in some ways for a body that doesn't do that anymore. A body who can keep up with all the things that we mentally want to be able to go and do. I had a conversation with a gentleman one time, and I think I brought this up before. We were doing a service project down in Roseburg at one of the brethren's homes.

And we were wood cutting. And this guy had spent years in the woods as a forester. Years! Years and years and years. I mean, this is like second nature.

And he just struggled. He was in his 80s, and he was so upset. We drove him home, and he was just sullen. And we were trying to talk and trying to cheer him up, and he had just made the point. He said, I used to be able to do this.

And he goes, I can't now. I just can't anymore.

And he was struggling to not be able to deal with that. And he was really having a hard time. And it's one of those deals where he was so kind of really upset by it. But we were telling him, it was so nice to have you out here with us, because you knew what needed to be done. You understood that aspect of it, and were able to direct more fully than say, any of us, we don't know what we're doing. We just got a chainsaw, and there's wood, so we're cutting it. I mean, we're not quite sure what's happening with regards to falling trees and other things. But that was his knowledge base. That's what he knew, and was able to kind of help out with. But we have bodies that snap, crackle, and pop. And we desire this transportation, or transportation, transformation to spirit beings. We desire this full realization of the Gospel. We desire this full realization of God's Spirit that's been given to us as down payment, and this opportunity that we have for eternal life.

Someday, this earthly tent is going to collapse. Someday, this earthly tent is going to collapse. It is no longer functional, and it will be destroyed. We go to camp in Nigeria. We camp out on the beach. And Dari is really good about picking up quality things. So he has REI tents shipped over from the U.S.

Often we take multiple suitcases with us and ship a bunch of things over. And he has these massive kingdom tents, and I think he chose them on purpose because of the name and the illustrations. But they're basically a giant wind tunnel. These big old long semi-circular things, and they look like a Twinkie, basically for lack of a better description. But they sleep 15. I mean, if you stack people in like cordwood, which we do at camp.

And they're held up by these aluminum poles that are incredibly powerful, and they work very well. But as time goes on, Nigeria is really, really hard on things. We often get a lot of rain. We often get a lot of wind while we're there. And one night Franklin and Carl and I are sleeping in this tent, and we had one of our poles go. We had one of our poles snap. And the whole front corner of the tent comes down because no longer is that pole supporting the rest of it.

You know, one of these days, brethren, I, Benjamin Light, will cease to exist. I will die. My tent, this earthly tabernacle, will be destroyed. And at the appointed time, I will be resurrected, or I will be transformed to a spirit being and put, able to be now at that point, put on this heavenly habitation, so to speak, that Paul's talking about, that all of us are awaiting. And when that happens, I, we, you, will receive a new name.

We'll receive a name that the Father knows, a name that has not yet been revealed to us, a name that's not been revealed to anyone, because we have changed. Because our character is different, just like Abraham, just like Sarah, just like Israel. We will have become something more. We will have become what God had intended us to be. We will become what God has intended us to be. And when that happens, He will bestow upon us a new name. The Apostle Paul talks about the anticipation of this time. Let's turn over to Romans 8. Romans 8, there is an eager anticipation for this revealing.

There is an eager anticipation for this revealing, and it's not just us that awaited. Romans 8, talking about this time and this revealing of the sons and daughters of God, Romans 8 and verse 19 says, for the earnest expectation of the creation, the whole creation, the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly awaits for the revealing of the sons of God. And the daughters of God, too, we recognize that's not a male-only thing here. But of the children of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope. Because the creation itself will also be delivered from the bondage.

It will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know, just like Paul was talking about with regards to the tent, we know the whole creation groans and labors. It groans and labors this time with birth pangs, together until now.

Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. The redemption of our body. Just like the family that we were gathered with under that little tent on the outskirts of Lagos, eagerly awaited the revelation of the name of their new addition to that family. That whole creation awaits the revealing of the sons of God.

It awaits a time in which the sons of God are revealed. When God's family is set, the adoption is fully realized. These physical bodies are redeemed. We all eagerly await for that time. You know, we come together each year to rehearse these things throughout the plan of God as we go through the Holy Days of God. But, brethren, there's something that we need to be doing in the meantime. There's something we need to be doing in the meantime while we're here and while we're awaiting this time.

There's something that is so incredibly important that if we don't do it, we could well miss out on the kingdom itself. Let's go over to Revelation 2. Revelation 2. We're going to break into here the message to the church in Pergamos. Again, this church we're going to be looking at today in the Bible study after services. Revelation 2.

And we'll go ahead and pick it up in verse 17. Revelation 2 and verse 17. We're breaking into the context here of the overall letter to the seven churches. Revelation 2 and verse 17. And we're breaking into again the letter here to the church in Pergamos. Revelation 2 and verse 17.

We see instructions here overall to the seven churches of Asia Minor. And again, we've talked about how this represents attitudes, how it represents potentially errors of the church, physical church locations. But every single one of these churches, remember, they had a message that was recorded very specifically for them. Very specifically for them at that time. And then at the bottom of each of those messages we have a statement. To him who overcomes, dot, dot, dot. And there's incredible promises that are included in that.

We've been going through and looking at some of those in the studies. For example, they'd be given the right to eat from the tree of life. They would not be hurt by the second death. They would receive the hidden manna to eat. They would receive power over the nations. They would be clothed in white. They wouldn't have their names blotted out of the book of life.

They would become pillars in the temple of God. And the list goes on. There are some incredible promises to those that overcome in the book of Revelation. But in the culmination of the message to the church in Pergamos, we see a reference to a new name that is given to him who receives it. A new name that is given to him who receives it. Revelation 2, verse 17.

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone. And on the stone, a new name that is written, which no one knows except him who receives it. Once again, the word that's used for overcome here is nikau.

It's defined as winning in the face of obstacles, being the victor, conquering, overcoming, prevailing. It's a verb, and it's a verb that is used in the present tense, which implies not overcome as in the past tense, but overcoming. Consistently overcoming, actively overcoming, repenting of their sin, yielding themselves to God. Are these individuals perfect? No, they are not. But they are working to improve.

It says these individuals that are overcoming will receive a new name. And it says that that new name will not be known to anyone but the one who receives it, and of course God, who gave it.

Your name is not going to be the same as the person next to you. Your name is not going to be the same as your spouse. This name is an individual name.

This is not the name of God that will be written on the overcomers that is detailed in Revelation 3, verse 12. Revelation 3 and verse 12, we'll just briefly look at that. Revelation 3 and verse 12, here, writing to the church in Philadelphia, says, He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God, and I will write on him my new name.

That right there is a name that is the same from person to person to person. That's not a unique name that no one else knows. That is a name from person to person to person that is the same. This name in Revelation 2, verse 17, it's individual. It's unique. It's not going to be known to anyone but yourself. And, of course, God. It's likely, do we know for sure? No, but it's likely that it's based on you. It's based on your characteristics. It's based on your character. It's based on your purpose. It's reflective of God's will in your life. Maybe, maybe it's based on the trials that you've experienced, the trials that you've lived through, based on what God knows and feels about you and the relationship that you and he have.

Brethren, what will your name be? What will your name be? What do you want it to be? What would you like to be known by? In the lives of Abraham and of Sarah and of Jacob and of others, their names were reflective of the events they experienced. Abraham's purpose changed. He became a father of many nations. Sarai's purpose changed. She became a mother of kings and of many nations.

Jacob's purpose changed. He became Israel. Others, such as John, such as Isaac, well, their names weren't necessarily so much dependent upon their individual circumstances in that regard. God simply declared their name as a result of what their purpose would be in that life. But right here to the church in Pergamos, we see a message that says to those that are overcoming, those that are repenting of the sins in their lives, those that are yielding to God in everything, will be given a white stone and on that white stone a new name that no one knows except him who receives it. To me, that sounds incredibly personal. That sounds like a name that has come from your life experiences, that has come from your innermost thoughts that you have shared with God in prayer, the manner in which you live your life, the relationship that you have built with God.

What I can generally assure you is that it's not a canned name out of a baby book that three million other people in the world have. It is known to you and to your God. It is unique, like a thumbprint.

When I was in grade school, I was one of three bens in my classroom, and all of us were obnoxious. My wife actually has a theory about people named Ben that were all a little bit obnoxious. And you know what? I think she's probably right, because all three of those bens in that class were absolutely obnoxious, myself included.

I think Aiden, when he was in school, I think he was probably one of two or three in his class that were named Aiden, and I think probably one of eight or nine in his school that were also named Aiden. It turned out Aiden was a very popular set of names that couple of years in 2006-78. But this name is not a name that three million other people in the world are going to have. This is not Jim. This is not Bob. This is not Dave. This is something unique, like a thumbprint. Brethren, what will it be? What do you want it to be? Because the reality is, while we're still here in this physical tent, while we're still here breathing breath, there is opportunity to build that relationship.

There's opportunity to make that happen. Hope you all have a wonderful Sabbath. Hope we're able to stick around and hang out for the Bible study today as well. I'll go ahead and put this picture on the back. I got an 11.28, two-minute song, and we're good on time. Have a wonderful Sabbath.