PSALM 147:4 – He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.

THEME OF THE DAY. GOD AND NAMES. My dog is a very reliable alarm clock. Every morning, yes, every morning, Jake makes his way to find me with a wagging tail, and a look that says, “Hey, what are you waiting on. Time to get up. We have places to go.” It is normally around 4:30 a.m. Yesterday, it was 4:28 a.m., and it never works telling him, “Jake, its 4:30. It’s still dark. Let’s wait a little while.” It really isn’t a big deal as I am an early riser so, up and about I was, and we hit the street around 4:45. The open door met us with a crisp and quiet morning. It was also very dark with few lights anywhere. Except in the sky. As Jake stopped to follow his nose, I looked to the sky. The star-lit night was amazing. So many twinkling objects; so many glistening stars. The view of these “diamonds” in the sky on the backdrop of a dark clear sky overwhelmed me with the magnitude of God’s power. I stared into the sky and said, “You spoke those into being. Wow!” And then it was like a clear response came back to my heart, not a whisper, not audible nor some mystical vision, but scriptural. It was as though the Lord followed my sense of awe with the words, “And I also named each one.”

In today’s scripture, the Psalmist affirms this detailed and magnificent display of God’s power, diversity, creativity, and personality. The next opportunity to come your way, go and observe a star-filled sky and worship such a God who made them and gave each one a name. It will humble and draw you near to the God who is near. But there is something far more exhilarating to the soul when it comes to God and names. This something far more produces awe, thanksgiving, and leaves one longing to love this personal God more and more. It is found in these words from Jesus – “To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out” (John 10:3).

God calls His people by name. Yes, fellow Christian – our names. Christianity is all about personal relationships. We are saved by the work of One who has a name – Jesus. We are told early in the book of Acts of this truth – “And 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). And how are we assured we have this salvation by faith in the Name above all Names? The book of life. What is in this book of life? Names. Our names. The names of believers – “Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women, who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life” (Philippians 4:3).

But there is something else about God and names. We bear His name. By being Christians, we bear the name of Christ. And this has put us in a position of representing Him. People will not see a literal Christ yet. They will see Him through us who bear His name and that means we guard His name by how we live. The Apostle Paul asked the Philippians to pray for him that he would be a worthy witness for Christ while languishing in prison. He wrote, “For I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death” (Philippians 1:19-20). To honor Christ is to honor His name. Bearing Christ’s name demands we bear it well before a watching world.

Names matter to God. He reveals His character through His names. He also identifies us by name. May we learn to praise and honor Him for being such a personal God.

PRAYER: “Father, I praise You for being a personal God who knows and loves me by my name.”

QUOTE: “Names matter to God. They define His character and reveal His personal dealing with His children.”