In Jesus' Name

Names are important. Peoples’ names, especially, are very important. Frederick Buechner has written a wide variety of books that are faith provoking. Thought provoking, yes, but even more importantly, faith provoking. One of my favorites is Wishful Thinking, A Theological ABC. It’s Buechner’s musings on a series of words—words from Abraham to anger to feet, grace, sermon, superstition, all the way to Zaccheus.

Listen to his entry for B-U-E-C-H-N-E-R. He writes: "It is my name. It is pronounced Beekner. If somebody mispronounces it in some foolish way, I have the feeling that what’s foolish is me. If somebody forgets it, I feel that it’s I who am forgotten. There’s something about it that embarrasses me in just the same way that there’s something about me that embarrasses me. I can’t imagine myself with any other name—Held, say, or Merrill, or Hlavacek. If my name were different, I would be different. When I tell somebody my name, I have given him a hold over me that he didn’t have before. If he calls it out, I stop, look, and listen whether I want to or not.

"In the Book of Exodus, God tells Moses that his name is Yahweh, and God hasn’t had a peaceful moment since."

Names are important. Buechner points out that when people know your name they have a power over you, whether you want them to or not. Even in ancient times that power was recognized and given mythical properties. Ancient people believed that if they knew a god’s true name, they had the power to make demands of that god. It was into that belief system that God told Moses God’s own name. God said to Moses, "I am Yahweh." For the early people of God, the Exodus story was the most important story about their relationship with God and their identity as the people of God. And that story began with God telling the people God’s name. God gave Moses and the people of God power. Power to know God. Power to address God personally. Power to get God’s attention and make demands. Buechner says that when someone calls your name you stop, look, and listen, no matter what. God said to the people, "I tell you my name. My name is Yahweh. When you call my name, I will stop, look and listen."

So you see the importance of the Third Commandment: "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain." It’s not about swearing. It’s about abuse of power—our abuse of the power that we have with God. A power God has freely given us. Every time we casually say, "Oh, my God!" God drops everything to stop, look and listen to us to find out what concern has led us to call upon God by name. We get God’s attention, whether our concern is a grave concern or a vain concern. There is great power in knowing another’s name. It is an incredible gift to have been given that power. It is a sin to abuse it.

Names. Stop and think for a moment how significant our names are in our own lives, both in everyday, concrete ways and in deeper, more symbolic ways. In a legal sense, a name is the key to all sorts of rights and privileges as a citizen and member of society. A name gives you access to education. Think of all the opportunities that are available to you because you have a name to sign up with—not just school, but Scouts, sports, a savings account, a driver’s license, a job application, a raffle ticket, a lot of raffle tickets, a credit application, a professional accreditation, social security, the privilege to vote. Even Abby-dog had to have her own name to get her registration papers. Our names give us a place in society. They give us important rights and opportunities. At least within the context of society, without a name we would not exist. So it is that we look upon an unmarked grave as such a profound tragedy. To have no name in death is almost not to have lived.

But names mean even more. Names are the coinage of relationships. Among friends, lovers, families. In addition to given names, members of clubs or athletic teams have nicknames for one another that strengthen the bonds between members of the group. Lovers have pet names that grow out of a relationship’s growing intimacy and help bind the relationship. Families have family names that connect individuals across the generations.

Yes, knowing another person’s name brings a certain power. But being the bearer of one’s own name brings with it the very essence, the power of life. Names carry our personality, our opportunities, our connections to one another, our hopes, and our responsibilities. No wonder identity theft is such a devastating crime. Identity theft. Just the concept is horrible. You’ve heard about it. By stealing mail or by fraud or by hacking into internet information criminals learn your name and enough about you to get credit cards, loans, documents in your name. And then they steal the money or the privileges or the opportunities that are rightly yours. They literally steal your good name. And everything that goes with that good name.

Jesus had a name, of course… a good name… a Holy Name, in fact. On Holy Name Day we celebrate the naming of Jesus. Just think about the identity, the life that came with that name… If our names bring us opportunities, relationships, privileges, a place in the world, just think what Jesus’ name brings. When Jesus died and rose again, he gave his name to us. We, who are so threatened by the idea that someone might steal our names from us, have been given Jesus’ own name as a gift. This isn’t like Moses learning Yahweh’s name so that he can call God by name. This is Jesus actually giving his name to us to have as our own, to bear, to share, to live. To live in Jesus’ name. That’s in this morning’s gospel: "Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and through believing we may have life in his name."

You may know that in some cultures, Hispanic for example, Jesús is a relatively common name. I’ve always felt a bit uncomfortable with that. How can a man be named Jesus? But maybe it’s good theology. In a way, all of us, women and men, who live in this Easter time, this resurrection world, bear the name Jesus. It has been given to us. Our lives can be lived in Jesus’ name, with Jesus’ identity.

Yes, to bear Jesus’name means we have been given eternal life beyond death. People named Jesus are given eternal life. But that’s almost the least of it. What does it mean to live now, today, in Jesus’ name, with Jesus’ identity? What does Jesus’ name bring to us? For one thing, Jesus’ name brings us into a family relationship with God the Father. People named Jesus are children of God. More generally, life in Jesus’ name means life that is lived in accordance with the being, character, and authority of the risen Christ, and life lived by the power of the risen Christ. Wow. It will take every bit of eternal life to figure out, to experience, what that really means. But a big part of what it means is living in the very midst of God’s overwhelming love. "As the Father has loved me, so I love you," Jesus says elsewhere in John’s gospel. To live in the name of Christ is to know the fullness of God’s love. In this morning's gospel, Jesus also says, "As the Father has sent me, so I send you."  To live in Jesus' name is to share and show forth the fullness of God’s love in the world. That is what people named Jesus do. Drawing upon the full power and compassion of God, we can and should to eat with sinners and tax collectors, heal lepers, forgive our enemies.  We can and should offer bread to the hungry, and give words of hope to the downcast, proclaim the presence of God in the world.

But mostly, to live in Jesus’ name is to live without anxiety or fear of loss, knowing that nothing can separate us from the love of God. Because, for people named Jesus, absolutely no matter what might ever happen, our names, our identities as beloved daughters and sons of God can never be taken away.

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