WHAT IS YOUR NAME? November 2018
Mark 5:1-9 (NKJV)
Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. 2 And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 3 who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, 4 because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him. 5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. 7 And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.” 8 For He said to him, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit!” 9 Then He asked him, “What is your name?” And he answered, saying, “My name is Legion; for we are many.”
What’s in a name? Is it character; projection; identity; destiny? In the Bible, we are told of many given names and their meaning.
Moses: Drawn from the Water
Abraham: Father of Nations
Elijah: My God is Yahweh
Samuel: Asked of God
Given the background stories of each of those people, their name was appropriately designated by projection.
In Mark 5, we read of a man who lived in the cemetery. He could not be controlled, even with chains. Everyone was afraid of his erratic behavior. He resorted to dwelling among the dead, where he was not in danger from his neighbors. Seemingly he was content to be free from the demands of society. In this, his own world, he could self-destruct with no annoyance from the authorities. He also worshipped whenever and however he chose.
Worship, in its true sense, embodies adoration, submission, exaltation and divine connection. Worshiping God focuses on Jesus, Son of the Most High God. The power of worship takes us into the realm of experiencing God at work in a tangible way. It helps us to focus on His magnificence, authority and majesty, while diminishing what we see.
The demoniac among the tombs could not adore Jesus because he was not in his right mind. That which possessed him, allowed him to go through the motions with “lip service”, however this flip-side became evident when he said that Jesus had come to torment him. He felt free in that he could not be restricted, yet he was dissatisfied. His daily routine was to cry, cut himself, and climb mountains. Then Jesus came. The amazing thing is that he recognized Jesus from a distance. The One who could bring him liberty, has a powerful name. James 2: 19 tells us that demons believe and tremble. Yet, we, at times, forget the vast power that the Name, JESUS, conveys. The man was about to experience a new normal and so he became fearful. To him, Jesus barged in on his sufficiency.
When our lifestyle is interrupted with anything that does not conform to our mold, we become disgruntled and uncomfortable. Change causes panic, and we forget Philippians 4:6. Fear intrudes on our comfort zone, and anxiety takes preeminence. Our expectations seem to be threatened so we adorn ourselves with a form of godliness, while denying its power (II Timothy 3:5-7). If our relationship with Christ is not in sync with the Holy Spirit, we can do nothing else but think that God is out to “get us”. Subconsciously, our lives ask questions that are like the demoniac’s concern: Why are You allowing this to happen to me? What have I done to deserve this? This thing, as it were, is tormenting me.
Jesus allowed the man to say his piece and then He addressed that which had him in bondage. Our name can either make us hopeful or restrict us so that what God wants to do is camouflaged. We may see only a silhouette of God’s plan for us, but when we face and address the disguises, God’s big picture is revealed. He permits things that help us to recognize our weakness and insufficiency.
We are not given the name of the possessed man. Jesus speaks to the unclean spirit and asked, “What is your name?” Did Jesus not know the demons? Yes, He did, but they had to identify themselves as such. They spoke of themselves based on their quantity. They said, “Legion, for we are many.” Can we identify ourselves based on our revealed quality?
If we characterize our name, we can speak to ourselves, in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. We are called:
1. Trees of Righteousness, the planting of the Lord (Isaiah 61: 2-4). Consider who has planted us and produce fruits that glorify Him. Those who are planted by God shall flourish, according to Psalm 92:13. That is a promise and God keeps His word. Our fruits will be replicas of us, therefore we desire to live by God’s principles, rooted and secured in Him.
2. Redeemed of the Lord: (Isaiah 51:11). Whereas we were stolen by sin, Jesus shed His precious blood and bought us back to enjoy fellowship with him. Now we are twice owned and walk in the light of our Master. Obedience will help us to exude grace wherever we are.
3. Hephzibah: The Lord’s Delight (Isaiah 62:4). Just imagine! The Maker, Creator of the universe, delights, brags on us and proclaims that we are adorned in Him. He seeks to be no place else than to dwell in our praises. Think of a child with some toys. There is one toy that, regardless of its condition, that’s the one that he gravitates toward, at every playtime. Above all, He desires to be with us and work through us. We cannot disappoint Him.
4. Chosen (1Peter 2:9) We are not forsaken. Of all the choices God could have made, he selected us as special in His sight. Regardless of how we feel or are made to feel, God chooses our brokenness as a means of expressing His power and favor. Chosen does not always mean pleasantries, but, will, without a doubt, always result in things working together for our good.
5. Beloved: (1 John 3:2) Ponder on the One who loves us. We are His and He is ours. What an amazing feeling! That One has great, marvelous, excellent things in store. Because we are His cherished possession, we can access His storehouse, confidently. When we communicate with the Lover of our soul, His heart speaks to us in terms of endearment.
What’s in a name? We are NOT named: “Poor Me”; “Broke”; “Dumb”; “A Failure”; NOR “Coming to Nothing.” Seasons come and go and when we go through states in life, those states do not define who we are. We should never name ourselves according to our state of being. We are hopeful and call ourselves the way God calls us… Righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21), Healed (Isaiah 53:5), Children (Romans 8:17), Blessed (Deuteronomy 28: 6), Light (Matthew 5:14), Ambassadors (2 Corinthians5:20). Can we be true to our God-given names? God’s grace will enable us to project the identity that reflects His intended character for us.
RESOLUTION: From this day forward, be it resolved that, I will answer to no other name than that, that Jesus calls me. He takes me through the process to produce fruit and guides me to divine destiny for confirmation of character.
Dr. O. A. James