Called For Greater

I want to say greetings to everyone and thank you for joining us today. God has truly been good to us and we are forever thankful to him for his many blessings. We appreciate you joining Tonya Hunter-Hurst Ministries for this broadcast, I am Elder Roger Cooper and I bring you greetings on behalf of the ministry. I want us to jump quickly into the Word of God on this morning, for truly their is a word.

Read: Genesis 17:1-8

Genesis 17:1–8 KJV 1900

And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

Subject: Called for Greater & Prayer

What we see her in this text, a very familiar passage of scripture, is the beginning of a long relationship between Abraham and God the Father. Up until this point, Abram had followed God’s Word and will, offering up his obedience in return for God’s favor and blessings. This relationship is very one-sided as Abram had done very little during this time in direct service or reverence towards God. Not to say that Abram was ungrateful, quite the contrary, but the reality is that Abram had done very little to that point in honor and reverence to God, even if only because few opportunities had arisen to do so. Nevertheless, we see three major things take place in this text, which we will dissect later on but it does leave me with one burning question.

Introduction

What is in a name?

The tradition of naming people dates back so long that their is no way to trace it as names pre-date most forms of language.

Both written and spoken

We do know that, on a fundamental level, names were created to distinguish people from one-another as a matter of necessity.

Furthermore we know that as societies grew larger and more complicated, so to did the names associated with them.

At first names were often associated with physical descriptors but over time more complex names were created to separate people

Names such as William, Paul, or whatever name you may choose were created to identify individuals, in much the same way as words identify objects.

Then as the population grew, additional names were adopted to separate these individuals.

These names were often connected to your family, and often this was done through profession or appearance;

William the Butcher or Paul the Redhead...

Over time, these secondary names were adopted as what we now call surnames (Last names) which created family trees and lineage.

Seeing as these developments took place early in human society, most societies (though not all) were patriachal and names were passed down from fathers.

As such, in many areas, your surname was usually associated with the name of your father.

And of course, if a man’s last name was Smith, it was a good chance he was the descendant of blacksmiths and likely was one himself.

This is especially true in Biblical societies which functioned on caste systems wherein you were often relegated to a class of people and were unable to remove yourself from your socially imposed standing/ or role.

That said, whatever name you had, originally, the name had no other meaning but that which was conferred at the point the name was given (blacksmith, carpenter, or whatever)but.... over time additional meaning may have been adopted depending on the character of a person and their family.

This additional meaning could pass through generations and would eventually come to replace the original meaning of the word.

Instead of Smith referring to a profession, it may simply refer to strong people who always work hard and were perhaps good with their hands...

Eventually, each name adopted its own meaning within a language through generations of interpretation and people watching and people began adopting and conferring names based on meaning of the name rather than simply based on profession or appearance.

This is the point when a person’s name became a tool that parents, and society, had to influence the lives of children and society around them.

People are able to use names as a tool to steer the lives of people and events that may normally be beyond the sphere of their influence.

This is why parents spend hours, days, weeks, and sometimes months debating names for their children, because the influence they may have over their entire lives.

Possibly naming them after historical figures who may be a guiding light for their life and lead them to greatness.

Or discounting names of controversial people to prevent them being ridiculed or blackballed in our society.

Or even more, that is why people who do not like you take so much time to call you out of your name and try separating you from your name because it serves as a primary source of your identity.

This leads me back to my original question and I think we can all appreciate it that much more...

What is in a name?

Genesis: 17:1-8

Here in our text, we see that Abram has an experience with God that truly shows us the power in a name. Abraham’s story is a testament to all of us of God’s grace and mercy and it shows us that in spite of all that is going on around us, many of still have the power and the ability to go forth in our calling.

We see three main actions take place in the text;

A covenant is made between Abram and God

Abram, in obedience and submission, submits to the covenant before he knows the conditions...

God is ready to make you promises, and in some cases already has, and its up to you to surrender to his will and promise

Abram accepts the covenant and in so doing, sets himself and his progeny up FOREVER… without even knowing.

Many of us want God’s blessings and anointing but under our own set of terms and conditions...

We want to be in a happy marriage but ignore the one person God sent for you,

We want good kids but do not raise them up with a knowledge of God

We want more money but don’t want the job God blessed you with

We want our churches to do more but we will not answer our own calling

In many cases, God has set the answer directly in front of us and we make choices to ignore and overrule the very thing we prayed to him for.

God is waiting for your submission so he can work miracles and blessings in your life… He is waiting but you have to answer because you are Called for Greater.

Next, we see that God changes his name to Abraham

Ultimately Abraham’s name mattered little for the purposes of fulfilling the promises/ or covenant… But as a sign of the covenant, God changes his name.

What does his name mean?

Abram (his original name)- means “Exalted Father”

Abraham (his new name)- means “Father of Many Nations”

What I love about these meanings is that Abraham was called exalted father, when he had no children.

We know this because until Hagar gave birth to Ishmael he remained childless and it was several years before Abraham would have the child that God intended for him to have.

Abram was not even at the point where he lived up to his first calling, then God elevated his calling to something altogether better.

Many of us are waiting on God to fulfil stuff that people spoke over you and you expect God to finish work he never started but God is waiting on you to answer your call for greater so he can move you from one place to another.

See, many times God will move you from place to place before you feel like you are ready, if it is in his plan...

God is ready to make a prophet out of you but you think you have to master preacher...

He wants to give you a promotion but you are too worried about mastering the job you are in...

God wants to put you in a home and you are worried about your credit for an apartment...

You have to stop limiting yourself to what you THINK your name is… to what you think your anointing is… to what who you think you are and simply allow God to guide you into your calling… because you are Called for Greater.

Finally, in the text we see that God speaks blessings over him as Abraham and his descendants

God’s final action is to speak blessings over Abraham and his seed as part of the covenant.

When you walk with God and allow him to guide your actions, he will bless you with abundance and greatness that goes far beyond your ability to imagine or even ask for...

We have to get to the point where we allow ourselves to step over into what God has ordained and appointed for us… We cannot continunally subject ourselves to the thoughts of others or even ourselves, concerning what God has planned for us. Because God has something for you and me that goes far beyond that which even you can think for yourself.

We spend so much time giving people too much power over our own affairs and future by letting them limit us to their ideas and notions about what our name, our calling, and our anointing is… So I submit to you the declaration that you are called for Greater.

You are Called for Greater than your circumstances. Greater than your situation. Greater than your problems… You are called for greater.

Conclusion

I am drawing to my close, but I want you to remember (If you hear nothing else) that NAMES HAVE POWER;

Some people would have you to believe you are too old to step into your blessing.

Some people would have you to believe you are too young to answer your call.

Some would say you lack the wisdom.

Others would say you lack the mobility.

Some would say you lack the intelligence.

Others say you do not have the credit.

Some may say you do not come from the right heritage.

And you know what, those naysayers may be right.

But when you find yourself struggling with naysayers… remember the journey of Abraham...

Abraham started his journey as an exalted father with no children and before he could meet that expectation God himself called him to be a father of many nations. And yet, no matter what he did Abraham depended and relied on God to get him to his calling.

Abraham tried his best to make even his first name come to pass and when he realized he could not do God’s work by man’s hands he got to the point where he stopped relying on himself and he quit waiting on other people to do it and instead turned it over to God.

You have to get to the point that you let GOD set the pace for you to get to your calling.

Otherwise, you will find yourself handicapped by a name that you cannot live up to on your own...

Remember, there are some things God has put inside of you and it will not come forward until God calls it out of you.

But their are also somethings tha God will do through your life but it will not happen in your life.

Abraham lived long enough to see himself become (In many ways) an exalted father but he never actually lived long enough to see himself as a father of many nations.

Some things that you see for yourself may not be intended for you but may be laid up for the use and enjoyment of those who will come after you because God has placed an anointing on your life to go beyond your limitations.

You cannot continually put yourself in a box only to act and do within your power but through and by the power of the spirit, you can exert power far beyond what you or anyone else dreamed for you.

Look at Abraham… God anointed Abraham such that his name and his promise outlived his entire lifetime...

We have to get beyond the mindset of only here and now and think about our future generations...

We have to create generational wealth, education, health, and peace.

We cannot continually leave our children to deal with the problems of their forefathers.

We leave more problems than we do solutions.

Let my charge to you not be about a personal call to greater.... but let it be a call to greater for you and for all your future generations.

The Church is supposed to be a beacon for those in the world who feel they have missed their calling and are dreaming for something greater. You are that beacon. I am that beacon. We are that beacon…

As I draw to my close, I want to take one moment to read Matthew 1:1 as we reflect on God’s promises concerning us and the Call he has placed on each of our lives to do and be greater...

Read: Matthew 1:1

Matthew 1:1 KJV 1900

The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

I want you to know that you are not only Called for Greater, but God himself has appointed this time for you to continue in your assignment. God has ordained you as an heir to his promise, that you might inherit and bestow the great and wonderful blessings he has for his people through Abraham and by extension of Christ’s sacrifice. Christ died for you, that you might have life and have it more abundantly. He died that you could ascend to higher heights and dive to deeper depths. Christ died because the love of the Father concerning you.

And he died because you were Called for Greater… I pray you go something out of the message and it is my hope and wish that God continues to bless and keep you. Let us have a word of prayer before we depart from this moment.

Prayer