The Name of Jesus

Philippians 2:10
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.

There will come a day when the wheel of time we stop and ceases to turn, that Jesus will be all that remains. He who controls time and space will be sitting on the throne . He is the Lord of all, King of kings, His Name will be lifted up on high and all will recognize that He is God. All will worship Him, will see the folly of their way and the deception of Satan. The atheist, the agnostic, worshipers of false religions, and all who refuse to believe in Him will fall to their knees and confess that He and He alone is the only way to eternal life. Those who believe already have bowed their knees, kneeling at the foot of the cross, confessing their sinful state and asking Jesus to save them from eternal damnation.  Confessing the Name of Jesus and believing that He is God and the Savior of the world. The Christian has humbled himself before God can now approach the throne of God and speak Jesus to the Father. For in the Name of Jesus, all is well, and we can trust in His Name to do all things according to His will.

Do All in The Name of Jesus

Col 3:17 -And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus…

The life style of a Christian matters. The things you do and say each day reflect your character. The Character of a Christian is built on doing what is right. Keeping your word, doing acts of kindness to those around you, speaking words that uplift the human spirit, considering others before yourself, and many other ways that could be mention. Paul wraps it up in one sentence. Live your life every day to represent the name of Jesus. That is reason enough to be careful in the words we use to express our feelings, thoughts, and emotions. The world finds it acceptable to use profanity and other unclean words to express how they feel, but a Christian lives a higher standard. Their words are guarded by the Holy Spirit who leads them into righteousness, truth, and holy living. Learning to live in the name of Jesus is a daily walk and old habits may take time to break. Let us walk in the newness of life, and live our lives each day to bring glory to God and honor His Name.

Believing Without Confessing

John 12:42 Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:

Believing without confessing. Such were many of the religious rulers in Jesus’s day. They could not deny the power of God. Pride blinded their eyes in taking the next step to confess His Name and follow Him. They took upon themselves all the rituals of a religion, having a form of godliness, but denying the true power of God. Why? Because they feared what others may think. They feared for their reputation and standing in the religious order of their sect. Many today, believe that Jesus is the Son of God. They go to church, follow many of the teachings of Jesus (The Word of God), but stop short of confessing that Jesus is Lord of their lives and proclaiming that He is the only way to the Father. They desire the approval of man, more than the approval of God. They still live in darkness, and their eyes have yet to be open to see the kingdom of God. Most of us who live in America, don’t face physical persecution for our faith, but we face the pressure of being reticule, rejected, and mocked for confessing that Jesus is the only name under heaven to obtain eternal life. Believing is good, but not good enough. “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

Pay It Forward

Matt. 25:40 Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

In American, there are many people who are willing to give their resources when tragedy hits. Hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and a number of unfortunate events. In general, people don’t like to see people suffer, knowing that life’s circumstances could turn on them. I believe God is pleased when people are willing to reach out and help when these things happen. The teaching of Jesus, take this a step further. Willingness to give one self is more that just dropping money in the plate for the starving children in the world. The concept of “paying it forward” is based in part from the words of Christ. It is not just a one time act of giving, but a life style of sacrifice. Looking for opportunities to lift the burden, reaching out to those less fortunate. Showing acts of kindness done in the name of Jesus. We live in a selfish world, where taking care of self is promoted. Living a life pleasing to God and having JOY in life means to put Jesus first, Others second, and You last. In everything you do, do to the glory of God. 

Fix Our Heart On God

Psalm 57:5,7 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth… My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

Many people are fixed on the things of this world. Fixed on this temporal life. Pleasure, power, or personal gain occupied our time and attention from the time we wake till the time we lay our heads on our pillow. On the other spectrum, there are those that are fixed on their problems, trails and disappointments in life. Life is not fair, and their heart is fixed with bitterness toward all that seem to have it better and ultimately toward God. Life happens, and it is not always fair, but what is fair is that we all have a choice to fix our heart on Jesus, and lift up our heart in praise. Exalt the Name of Jesus. “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a Name which is above every name” Where our treasures, so is our heart. Who do you treasure in life? Fixed your heart on God and praise Him for all He has done.

Bow The Knee

Phil 2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

Many see Christianity as an arrogant religion. Those who claim the Name of Christ proclaim that Jesus is the only way to have have eternal life, in other words, get to heaven. Such teaching flies in the face of those that think that there are many ways to have eternal life after death. That the path to heaven is made possible by having faith in what you believe, and to follow its teachings. Jesus, says, “I am the way, the truth, and life, and no mans comes to the Father except through me.” This declaration of Christ has portrayed the followers of Christ as bigots. Not willing to accept or tolerant the belief that obtaining eternal can be achieve by other means other than through Christ. It is the foundation truth of Christianity that Jesus is God, who came in the flesh and dwelt among us. He being fully God and fully man died for the sins of humanity that we might have access to the Father. I stand not in judgement of others who claim otherwise, but to believe in Jesus, is to believe that what He is is truth. Ultimately, every religion will bow the knee and acknowledge that He is Lord, and the only way to have eternal life. 

In The Name of Jesus

John 16:23 “Verily, verily I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in My name, He will give it to you.”-

“In Jesus Name we pray” is often quoted at the end of a prayer request. Praying in Jesus Name is not some formula that guarantees that a request will be granted. It is easy to take this passage of scripture and insist that God grant our request just because we ask in Jesus Name. The Father desires to give us what we need, but He also knows what is good for us. The Father is not a “Santa Claus” that will give us all of our whims and fleshly desires. He will give us what we need to make us more like him. If we ask Him to give us of His Spirit, He will gladly pour it out to those who have surrendered their lives to Him. His Spirit will not be poured out to those who continue in their sin and desire only power to enhance their ego. Praying in Jesus Name is to recognized that He is Lord of our life and His desire is our desire. When we pray, we want the will of God to be done, and if we pray for the will of God, we can pray in Jesus Name and be confident that He will answer prayer. 

Do it for Jesus

Col 3:17 “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father by Him.”- 

It is not what we do that counts, but why we do it. No matter the deed and no matter how insignificant it may seem, if it is done out of a heart of mercy and kindness, then God is pleased. The acts that we do may not be seen of men and acknowledge, but God sees them and He will shower His blessings. Such is the life of a true believer. He will access what he does in light of what God desires. It is important that we examine our life to make sure that “whatsoever” we do in life that it will honor Christ and meet with His approval.