Name the Name

 

32 Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.

33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.

     Matthew 10:32-33 (NKJV)

Christians who hold a Biblical worldview these days are often called deniers.  For example, we’re referred to as science deniers because we believe in creation rather than evolution. We also may be called deniers of other things that don’t go along with the world’s humanistic, godless agenda.  Such labels should not worry or distract us.  Instead, we should be concerned that we are not deniers of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

There can be outright denial, as Peter did three times.  Although the Lord was gracious to forgive and restore Peter after he repented, the experience was bitter for Peter.  Apparently, Peter’s denial was due to pressure and fear that if he were associated with Jesus, he too might have been arrested.  We must not let pressure and fear does not cause us to deny the Lord—either by express denial or even perhaps indirectly by avoiding the name Jesus. 

 

It can be confrontational to say Jesus because He is a “stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” (1 Peter 2:8, NKJV)  Yet “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12, NKJV)  And no one comes to the Father except by Jesus. (John 14:6)  This exclusivity is offensive to some, but that must not deter us.  We must point people to Christ, not just God.  That’s not to say we can never use the name God or Lord, but we should be careful and examine our motives if we're avoiding the name of Jesus. 

 

In these "perilous times" we must not be ashamed to stand for Christ, we must not be afraid to name the name of Jesus, regardless of the cost to us.