Sermon Text for November 17, 2013
"The Power, Protection, and Purpose of His Name" #81-11
Presented on The Lutheran Hour on November 17, 2013
By Rev. Gregory Seltz, Lutheran Hour Speaker
(What Does It Mean To Be Holy?)
Copyright 2013 Lutheran Hour Ministries
Text: John 17:6-12
Christ is risen, He is risen indeed and prayer in His Name bears the power of God for life and for salvation. Amen.
You can tell a lot about a person by their name.
It was some 50 years ago, on July 10, 1960, that a bouncing, blue-eyed, baby boy was born into the family of one Lawrence Paul and Sandra Arlene Seltz. He was a handsome lad, at least his mother thought so! And they proceeded to name him Gregory Paul.
Now this young man really didn't understand what that name would mean to him or even to others. You see, the name Gregory means "watchman," it is the same word for the work that a man named Ezekiel was to do; he was to be the "watchman, the pastor" of the people of Israel. And, of course, the name Paul is familiar to all Christians as the one who brought the Gospel to other cultures through his mission work.
Even at age 19, the boy had no real notion of the meaning of his name for his life. In fact, he dreamed of being a sports star or maybe having a good job in medical research, (he loved math and science). Be a pastor, an admirable job, but not even on his radar screen. It was as if the Lord in heaven was laughing a bit saying, "The boy doesn't even know his own name!"
You can tell a lot about a person by their name.
But, knowing one's first and middle name still doesn't say everything, does it? It may tell you about what the person does, or what kind of personality they might have, but if they really want to know you or to be known by you. Yes, it's the full name they give.
Gregory Paul Seltz, now there is family history there, there are values that are bigger than just one person there. Now I can find this person when I need to speak to them.
You can tell a lot about a person by their name.
Names tell us who we are, where we've come from. Names carry both the good and the bad of the past. Sometimes they open up the future for us, sometimes they close it. Above all, our names connect us to one another. They invite us to be open to being known, accountable, and connected. That's what a human name can do.
But in our lesson for today Jesus teaches us an even more valuable lesson. He teaches us the value of God's Name in our life. In fact, He is bold to say that only God's Name can give our names the value, the perspective, and righteousness that will last.
Jesus says, "When you pray, pray, 'Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.'"
So, what we're saying today is not so much "What's in your name;" today we're asking, "What's in a name, when we're talking about God's Name at your service, in your prayers."
God's Name is more than a moniker. It tells you who He is and what He's done for you.
In our lesson today, Jesus says that He came to make known the Father's Name and He did that by making His Name known and available to all for life and salvation.
I'm not sure what you think about God out there today, but let me say it clearly. God wants you to know Him. So many of us today believe that God is hiding out or remaining aloof from the things going on in this world. Nothing is more opposite the truth. Just look at God in action in the Bible in history from the very beginning.
In Genesis 3, it was God who came looking for Adam and Eve. At Christmas, 2,000 years ago, God became flesh. He came looking for you to save.
When you hear the Word of God, God is literally seeking to open your heart by the power of His Spirit-filled Word, so that you might believe in Him and receive His grace!
And one of the ways He comes to us very personally to each one of us, inviting us to really know Him is through His means of grace. The very words of the Bible, the gift of Baptism, it's all about the revealing and giving of His Name for us for our salvation!
If our full names tell us about our roots, our family tree, our family message, then God's Name laid down throughout history is shouting from heaven, who He is so that we might know Him and trust Him.
When Moses wanted to know who it was who sent him to Pharaoh, God says, "I Am sent you, My name is Yahweh, the One who Was, who Is, and Will Always Be."
When Jesus said, "Before Abraham was, I Am," it was God speaking loudly and clearly saying, "here I am for you."
And during the upcoming season of Advent and Christmas, we'll hear again and again the Names associated with Jesus the Messiah. He's the One who is called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
He's the One who is to be named Jesus because He will save His people from their sins.
He's the One of whom it is written "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12
God reveals His Name so that you can know Him personally.
But God also gives you His Name so that you can find Him; receive His forgiving power and grace. You see, God doesn't just want to be known in an abstract way. He wants to place His Name on you as a blessing.
The very word name in the Bible is packed with Spiritual power. When Jesus used the word in the presence of His disciples, He literally was delivering them a word that was full of His Spirit and His life. When two or three are gathered in His Name, He was saying that God was in their midst to bless. When God gave His Name to the ancient people of Israel, it was to establish His covenant of grace for them and through them for all. His Name saves! And, in Jewish tradition, when something happens to someone "in their name," there is a new communicated identity, a communicated rescue.
To understand just what Jesus is offering to you and me in the power of the Lord's Prayer is to understand the power of God's Name that is meant for you as a gift. To receive the Name of Jesus as your Lord and Savior is to receive His forgiveness, His life, His salvation as a gift. To be baptized in the Name of God, you are literally connected to the power of Christ's death and resurrection; you are named with the Name of the One who promised to save you and He delivered. In the Name of God, there is even God's promise of continued care. "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
You might say that God's Name provides you royal power, royal protection, and even royal purpose because, as a believer in Christ, you bear the Name of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.
Even in worldly terms, there is something powerful about being named with the name of a king, the name of a queen. Just think of the penetrating blessing of being royal; think of the influence of Queen Elizabeth, Prince Harry, Prince William, William and Kate. There's even protection and purpose in bearing an earthly royal name.
When Prince Harry of England began his military career, it was rumored that he would be deployed with his unit in Iraq. The plans proved true but had to be abandoned because the Prince might endanger his fellow soldiers. He was too high profile a target. Later that year, however, he was secretly deployed to Afghanistan to patrol hostile areas and help repel attacks of the Taliban.
Once it was revealed that he was in combat, the government quickly pulled Prince Harry from the front lines. His name not only commanded too much attention; his name demanded complete protection.
He and his brother, Prince William, would always bear the name that called for protection--the name of royalty. The same is true of the new prince, Prince George born to William and Catherine. A royal name receives royal protection.
The same is true for you and me today, even eternally, as children of God. By faith in Christ you bear His royal Name. Through His cross and grave, washed in the water of His baptism, in His Name, you now bear the name of the King, the true God. Nothing will separate you from His love. He will protect you with the gifts of forgiveness and eternal life. His Name will eradicate all the names the world tries to call you and all the harm Satan tries to bring your way. God keeps you in His Name. By faith He gives you royal protection.
When we pray "Our Father who art in heaven hallowed, holy be Your Name," our prayer is Lord, make it holy in my life. Unleash its power in my life.
In fact, you might say that when God's Name is laid on our life, when His Name lays claim on our life, it changes everything. Our lives now bear the purpose of living up to the name that we have received by grace.
Now, I'm not just Gregory Paul Seltz; I'm Greg Seltz, child of God, part of the family of Jesus Christ. As a believer in Jesus, you, too, bear His Name. You are His Son, His daughter. And that's why John reminds us in 1 John 3, "How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" (1 John 3:1 NIV)
To bear the family Name of Jesus, to pray "Holy Be Your Name," it's for your salvation and for the world's rescue. You bear that name so that others might hear of it and also be saved. So many people need to hear that they can be children of the King of Kings. When you bear His Name, you are praying that God's Holy Name prevail in your life. Yes, but also that it might powerfully work through your life so that others might know Him too.
When you bear His Name, it changes everything. Just think about how a changed name has made a difference even in human terms of some of these Hollywood greats. You may have never heard of Joseph Yule, Jr., but he changed his name to Mickey Rooney. Those who know the movies of Hollywood's heyday, they won't ever forget him. And what about Virginia McMath? She was given the name Ginger Rogers. Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, those are names that are synonymous with style and grace. But would you have remembered them if they were Virginia McMath and Frederick Austerlitz, That's Astaire's real name. And there are plenty more. Lauren Bacall was born as Betty Perske. Judy Garland was Frances Gumm. With a new name, each of their lives was changed.
Well that's what God wants for you today, my friend. Our names are temporal. Our names, while identifying us as unique individuals, people whom God loves, yes; but, without the gift of His Name, our names would be forever lost because of our sins, our brokenness, our shame. In Christ there is real forgiveness for real problems in His real present Name for you.
And even more, there is God's power in our new identities as children of God in Christ, bearers of His Name. He doesn't overwhelm our humanity, He transforms our uniqueness to be what we were meant to be all along; graced ones, abundant life ones, eternal sons and daughters of the King of Kings. Once you bear that Name, God's Name tells you who you are and what you can now aspire to be!
There are churches that celebrate this truth in the practice of Baptism. Your parents give you your given birth name; you are in fact, their child, a barrier of their name, rooting you in that family that goes back generations. But, these Christian, when they bring their children to Baptism or when they are baptized even as adults, knowing that God Himself is covering them with His Name in Baptism, they confer on the baptized one a name from the Bible, a baptismal name. That name they celebrate forever connects you to the One who baptized you, Jesus Christ. That name roots you, not just in a family that goes back generations. It roots you in a family that will live for eternity!
So what is your family name? As believers, we are Christ's people; sons and daughters of Jesus.
Gregory Paul Seltz, yes; brother of Yeshua, Son of Yahweh, by the power of His Spirit; what a blessing to be given His Name, His status, His grace, even His life as a gift.
And that's why Jesus tells us in this petition not to just say the Name of God, but to hold it sacred in our lives. It tells us where we stand with God. It tells us who we are and what we may now aspire to be. We get to live up to that Name in our prayers, in our lives, in our service of others in His Name.
There are times when living up to that Name requires great sacrifice. Almost every disciple gave his life to bear the Name of Christ publically so that people like you and me might hear His Name and believe. But, it's not always in the great sacrifices alone that we bear His Name for others. It is in the daily opportunities when we get a chance to love others just as Christ loves us.
I love the story about a college student name Bill. From what I know, this is a true story, but it could be something that happens in churches every Sunday around the country. Bill became a Christian while attending college. Across the street from the campus is a well-dressed, very conservative church. They want to develop a ministry to the students, but are not really sure how to go about it.
One day Bill decided to go there. He loved that they faithfully taught the whole Bible as God's Word, so he went. Now, he was a college student, and that Sunday he walked in with no shoes, jeans, his T-shirt, and wild hair.
The service had already started, so Bill starts down the aisle looking for a seat. The church is completely packed and he can't find a seat. Now people are really looking a bit uncomfortable, but no one says anything. Bill gets closer to the pulpit, and when he realizes there are no seats, he just squats down right on the carpet right up front. (Now this is perfectly acceptable behavior at a college fellowship, but this had never happened in this church before!)
By now the people are really uptight and the tension in the air is thick. It's about this time that the pastor realizes that from way at the back of the church, an elder is slowly making his way toward Bill. Now this elder, this leader of the church, is in his eighties, he has silver-gray hair, and he's wearing a three-piece suit; a godly man, very elegant, very dignified, very courtly. He walks with a cane and, as he starts walking toward this young man, everyone is saying to themselves that you can't blame him for what he's about to do.
How could you expect a man of his age and of his background to understand some college kid on the floor?
It took a long time for the elder to reach that young man. The whole church had grown utterly silent, utterly still, except for the clicking of the man's cane. All eyes are focused on him as he makes his way toward the young man. The minister can't even preach the sermon until the elder does what he has to do. And now they see this elderly man drop his cane on the floor. With great difficulty he lowers himself and sits down right next to Bill and worships with him so he won't feel alone.
Bearing the saving, blessing Name of Jesus, it means that each and everyday we get to strive to do the things that make our Father proud. We listen to His Word, we serve as He serves us, we value what He values and proclaim that we are His people for others.
Bear the Name proudly for the sake of others. Jesus says, "Holy Father, keep them in your name, the name which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name."
And Jesus says, "When you pray, say, "Our Father who art in heaven, your name is holy, make it holy among us in what we say and do."
In Jesus' Name. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for November 17, 2013
Topic: What Does It Mean To Be Holy?
ANNOUNCER: Now, Pastor Gregory Seltz responds to questions. I'm Mark Eischer. Today a listener asks, "The Bible speaks of holiness. What does it mean to be holy?"
SELTZ: That's a great question because holiness is very important in the Scripture, that's for sure. The Bible proclaims that God is holy. It says that His Name is holy. We hear about ground that is holy ground and special places that are holy. The Bible even calls God's people, holy people.
ANNOUNCER: And I think holy means "perfect," right?
SELTZ: It sure does, but there's even more to that, Mark. The word holy means to be set apart, to be treated with special care, to be singled out by God and called His own; so, holiness is not inherent in the person or object, but comes from the One who takes that person or object to Himself.
ANNOUNCER: So when God appears to Moses in the burning bush and He calls the ground holy, you're saying it's holy not because it was special ground, but because God had claimed it as His own.
SELTZ: That's right. The same, then, is true for the items in the tabernacle or the temple. When God took something or someone to Himself, the person or thing becomes holy. This has tremendous implications for our lives. In the Old Testament, God established His people as holy people. In other words, they were chosen and set apart by Him for His special saving work. They were to be a light to the nations, bearing witness to the wonderful salvation of God. This great purpose is captured in 1 Peter 2:9 when it says: "But you, you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."
ANNOUNCER: And when Christians are called saints, we're not referring there to their personal, inherent perfection, are we?
SELTZ: No, we're not. It's referring to God's redemption of them! We've been purchased by God with the blood of His Son, Jesus. He made us His own--His holy people. So, in the Bible we are called saints, not because we're so good, but because God is so good. He covers us with His holiness, His righteousness, and He treats us with special loving, saving care.
ANNOUNCER: Jesus even teaches us to pray about holiness in the Lord's Prayer, doesn't He?
SELTZ: He sure does. In fact, He teaches us to pray, "Our Father, holy or hallowed be thy name." We're asking that God's Name, which is holy, be kept holy among us. Of course, God is holy without our prayers, as Martin Luther explained in the Small Catechism, but we are asking that we give honor to His Name.
ANNOUNCER: And how do we do that?
SELTZ: That's a good Lutheran question, Mark! Because Martin Luther always asked, "What does this mean," and "How is this done." You're standing on the shoulders of giants!
ANNOUNCER: Kind of like that other great Lutheran question, "Where's the coffee?"
SELTZ: I don't want to go there. How do we keep His holy Name among us? Well, one way is to teach God's Word faithfully, as we refuse to compromise the truth of the Bible. That's a way our lives can honor God.
ANNOUNCER: So hallowing God's Name is about words and deeds.
SELTZ: That's right. We must safeguard the true and pure teachings of the Scriptures. It is essential that God's Word not be compromised. If it is, we compromise the message of salvation revealed in His Word. But we also need to live out those truths of the Scriptures for others. Martin Luther said that "God's name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity, and we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it." So, He then asks for protection against those who would profane God's Name and live contrary to it.
ANNOUNCER: As people who have been set apart by God, we are, then, really something special in God's eyes.
SELTZ: We sure are and that's what's so beautiful about the word holy. It's not a scary or intimidating word. It's a word that embraces us with the grace of God. It reveals the true God who is unique--who cannot be compared to human deities or philosophies. It shows us our God who is our Savior, not our taskmaster. And it bears testimony to the fact that we have been called God's very own; precious people, created, redeemed, made holy to bring the free gift of salvation in Jesus to the world.
ANNOUNCER: And the good news is that we have been set apart by God for eternal life and also to reflect the light of Christ to others around us! Thank you Pastor Seltz. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music Selections for this program:
"A Mighty Fortress" arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.
"Forth in Your Name, O Lord, I Go" by Charles Wesley & Barry Bobb, arr. Henry Gerike. Used by permission.
"Holy God, We Praise Your Name" From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)
"Lord, Keep Us Steadfast in Your Word" From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)
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