Names

If you're wondering why I have your Bible, it's because I got the wrong one from home and it's one for about 30 years ago, that I couldn't read, if I had a telescope. So I just grab one off the front Pew here, and I'm going to use it this morning and then I'll put it right back there. So if somebody needs it there or wants it, or been looking for it, that's great. There's a comic out there. His name is Henry Cho and he tells a story of when he was younger. He had a friend whose name was J, B, Jones, and the J. And the bee didn't stand for a name. It was just initials. So when it came time for the guys to get their driver's license, this friend really wanted, This to be done, right? People had messed up his name, his whole life it. So when he wrote on the application, he wanted to be, just exactly perfect. So he wrote Jay only be only Jones. You already know what this is going to do and he got a brand new drivers license back for Joan, Lee bone, Lee,

The hard part about it is that he is now that person to the state of Arkansas and every everything that comes to him or from the state government is got his driver's license name on it and he's apparently, he's tried for years to get it to change and you think of well it's just a name. But the chief tried flying, under a different name than is on your passport or various kinds of things. How, you know, that name can be pretty important? I had a teacher with Drake in the

I get there. He told the class if everybody did this finger that thing that their name would be mud and so I did it just to find out. It was he called me mud McElroy for the rest of the time that that I was in school there. The really scary part is you remember from childhood is when you came to the door and one of your parents said, Robert Bruce was like a little bit of a difficult time in the Bible. You don't see that happening but you do see situations where people are spoken to do with their name doubled. Moses Moses and there's several others that that it will look at this morning. And so it's not like God seems to say all this is your full name. This is what I'm going to use. But when were spoken to From heaven or from heavenly bodies and our names are used twice. In really, is a big deal to try to get our attention and to get our Focus. Irfan of Romeo and Juliet.

What's in a name? A rose by any other name would be a sweet but there's a lot by involving names. Unfortunately, I name Encompasses our entire reputation in the entire level of credibility. Somebody, here's your name, they not only think of who you are as an individual person. They think of what they know about you all they think of your credibility think of your past and into the future, any number of things. But our names don't just simply mean. Who we are? They reflect what we've done as well situations where people are called using name and it doubled fashion and talk about what that means to each of these three. And then to see if there are parallels in our own lives, Moses Moses was found in Exodus chapter 3, verse 4 And it's a cold, it really changes the direction of Moses life. Not until that time. And remember Moses is 80 at this point, and I would guess that to some degree of Moses would have been feeling like this was his last chapter or maybe he was closing out what he thought to be his last chapter and sometimes people say yeah. But there was a little bit different feeling about aging. Now then there was then, if you look at the Psalms 90:10, The writer there, says our days may come to seventy years or eighty if our strength indoors yet, the best of them are but trouble and sorrow and they quickly pass the Fly Away. Whose words are those? They're Moses. Moses write Psalm 90. And when he talks about this, 70 years is kind of what the the the standard is 80. If we were really strong but he's here an 80 year old man. What Moses doesn't know, when God calls him aside to talk to him from the burning bush, to give him new assignments to give a new responsibilities and Moses's. First inclination is to try to back away. I don't want to do that. Initially Moses doesn't get it but he has a third Act. and those important things that he's going to do in his life, Are contained in that third act. There's another 40 years coming. He's going to lead God's children out of Egypt in a huge comeback. Battle between God's Will, and God's plan and God's intervention, and what Pharaoh wants to have going on.

He understands that things just brought in from there. And I really think you would have been a most interesting interview, say what we did, you have any idea what was going to happen to his last 40 years as he sees edges on, it gets to be a little bit reluctant at least initially.

I think it's easy for us to start to say, well, this is what my life has been about. And we're far enough into it. I'm talking about we elderly folks. We're far enough into it that if somebody suggested suggest something new or different or New Challenger. Our first inclination is to say, you know, I would have been happy to do that for 2 years ago. But, you know, I can't do that right now in visual situations. There's no question about it, but it's hard for us to change.

I must have started out very, very excited about being God's leader. He took a little bit too far and had to run away. He's been hiding out as a shepherd. For these forty years and God comes through and says, I know you had a plan. I know you thought today was going to bring, I know you had an idea where tomorrow would be, but I'm changing the whole plan and you were going back to Egypt.

when God comes to us, when God calls our name, he's giving us opportunities to act all the things that he's shaped for us to do. Moses was hesitant as you know, but ultimately, he takes up the task, but God has given to him and he does this incredible work, a primarily making sure the Messiah comes to the entire world. The second one that I thought of was the two words, Martha Martha. Martha is hosting Jesus. The Messiah is coming to her house. So what does that mean? The waters. That it means that everything must be. Perfect. This is your opportunity. This is a chance to really impress somebody, this is a chance of doing, all right, she's wants to be the perfect Hostess and that would happen. If she could just get her sister lazy, sister to help her Tom Mary is sitting in there listening to Jesus. All and Martha goes in there and says her help me. And Jesus says, Martha Martha. And we don't have inflection from scripture, but I think it was a loving expression there. Just A little bit, slow down, sit down, and listen to what I'm talkin about. if you'll do that,

we are out of town to get caught up in that I want everything perfect and everything, right? and if you look back, I think for most people do find this true but times as you had the greatest opportunities to do things for God, usually, you are things that just Half of the spur of the moment is that person you come in contact with, it's that person that maybe you helped by the side of the road, is that person that you, they need any number of things perhaps whether that might be security or money, or, or a number of different ways to look at it and we have baseball and you know, this is my day and then God does hear this thing. I'd like for you to do for me. When right now. I wear like could you call me tomorrow or maybe put it next to my calendar and I'll try to take care of what I'm busy right now and if you had talked to Martha, I think she would have said my goal, my job is to glorify the Lord and I do that through being a perfect hostess. She and dad were talking different things. He wanted her to glorify Jesus, but he wanted her to glorify Jesus by learning and making people feel comfortable. It was more important than having the right. Utensils or even the items for the lunch.

The last one is a boy, his name is Samuel. And gods. His mother Hannah has brought him to the temple, to basically be a gift to the Lord and he's being raised there primarily by Eli. If we did what we find in first Samuel chapter 3. But if you remember that story one night somebody in the middle of the night, says Samuel. And David gets up, go talk to Eli. It wasn't me. How is the second time? It happens a third time. And then after the third time, Eli says, you know of Speak Lord your servant. and, Sure, nuff boy, goes back to bed and he hears, Samuel, Samuel, that emphasis is twice. And he says, Lord, here I am. And we see, I think we could take from this one. The fact that our purpose whether were 80 or whether we're whatever middle-aged perhaps Martin was or whether we're still a child growing into adolescence Godzilla's. My plan is to be your plan. And I wouldn't be able to bring to my instruments. I want to be able to bring him to my service. What the new Option, the new priority. The new mission is if you want to put it that way and I leave for people to be willing, you find a lot of folks that are Mary. You can look at Isaiah here, my Lord send me and over and over there. People who are willing to change their plans to reflect and fulfill God's plans.

In this in the case of the younger people there, they're laying out their whole life for God's will Mary certainly was and Samuel is certainly saying that as well, and I want to say something, just to the side here. I wish we gave more. Credit. To the young people who decide that they're going to work for God, they're going to be along to God early in their lives, and they do it. There are people in this audience who for years and years decades since their own adolescence. I've been building their lives around. What is God want me to do? Now, we need to accept that condition. That you understand that, sometimes they're going to be goals that you have and God has different goals. And we see if you making those changes and allowing for those differences and they smoke weed we just kind of somehow taken for granted, you know that they've always been a good person. Always been always been dependable and it's great to see that we really need to be knowledge that mourn. Our hearts. Thank you. Thank you for kids who very early on understood what they wanted to do in relation to you and how to connect to that and how to build their lives. Around that Central purpose.

In John chapter 10.

Verses 1 through 4. Jesus is talking about a shepherd.

Responded by place.

It would help if I was in John instead of Luke.

John 10:1, I tell you the truth. The man who does not enter the Sheep pen by the gate. But climbs in, by some other way, is a thief and Robber. The man who enters the gate is The Shepherd of a sheep, The Watchman opens, the gate for him, the Sheep, listen to his voice. He calls his own Sheep by name and he leaves them out. Now very possibly what Jesus is referring to here is some kind of communal.

Place don't know the right name for where you put the Sheep up, there could be multiple flocks of sheep. And that's the theory, and the way that you separated them quite simply was the shepherd would just call him by name. And they would follow him and some other Shepherd would call other sheet. They would follow him.

He knows, I mean,

You knows how to call us and want to call us and he knows what we're going to respond to and this passage makes it very very clear. But unless you're called by Jesus, that there's is a stranger who may be trying to take advantage of you. We've all had those discussions with our children.

A conclusion this morning. I'd like to remind you of a story out of here before I had the Bent over in Crescent and I was just leaving town heading south and I passed a highway patrolman. Minute. He saw me. He pulled off. Turn around Harry Kane, what did I do to saying license registration? He says, are you running microwave? Yes, I am. I am most happy to answer to that name, if he's that, are you Robert? Be back on the issue was we had been at the same place earlier in the day and he wanted to come in on some things. And it's so we had a very friendly discussion by the side of the road, but it was didn't go exactly. Like I wanted it to

God is the master of name changes. There's Simon who becomes Peter or Saul, who becomes Paul? If you look carefully at James and John, he referred to early as the sons of thunder. Dangerous course is going to die early but John into his life is going to become not the son of Thunder with the disciple of love. And when we look at ourselves, we look at the package package that's reference. When our name is use, their easily can be things where we think.

Or wish I had known that at all. I wish I had a chance to do that again. And why we don't have as many choices. As in terms of the consequences in this life, the spiritual consequences that god holds us guilty about are washed completely Away by the blood of Jesus Christ, your name. When the Book of Life is open, is has no red marks by God knows us, he wants things for us. He wants us to be happy. He wants us to have purpose. He wants us to fulfill the important things in our lives, and he gives us opportunities to listen to him, move us in a direction where that takes place. And the more we do that, then we belong to him. Would you play with me?

The God, our Father in heaven. We thank you that, you know what name? We thank you that you know so much about us. Father, we ask that. You continue to guide us and lead us, and uplifts, please forgive us. We make mistakes. We take the wrong path or we move in the wrong direction. Give us new opportunities as you do. And explain it was that you will father help us to listen. For our voice, listen, for our name, in your voice and for us to be ready to do, whatever it is, larger small. Now or maybe just for a day. But help us to be responsive to what you ask of us. We pray this true your son Jesus, amen.

We extend Jesus's invitation this morning and if you need to respond to that, we encourage you to do that. But we stand together.