A nurse who worked with me would pleasantly call in patients by saying, “Mr._____, it’s checkup time!” Periodic checkups are good. As an Air Force physician taking care of combat pilots, I cared about all areas of their health—including their marriages.
One informative question I asked was, “What’s your first thought when you hear the name [his wife]?” His spontaneous feelings reflected his relationship, so I’d listen but mainly observe. There’s a one-of-a-kind look on a guy’s face when he hears the name of the woman he deeply loves. That look was a clue as to whether all was well.
It’s checkup time! Like in the clinic, honesty is essential. What’s your first thought upon hearing the name Jesus?
The Sweetest Name
There’s never been another name—alone—that carries so much power or elicits such emotional extremes. Thinking frequently on the Lord Jesus and speaking about Him are reinforcing actions in cultivating a close, affectionate relationship with Him. A Christian songwriter put to words the connection between love for Jesus and love for His name.
Jesus is the sweetest name I know,
And He’s just the same as His lovely name,
And that’s the reason why I love Him so;
Oh, Jesus is the sweetest name I know.1
How does that name resonate with you? Is there a stirring of warm affection for Jesus’ work and for Him personally?
Parents feel a swell of sweet emotion when they hear their child’s name. Likewise, Scripture affirms that the Father loves the Son and honors His name.
Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9–11)
Clearly, the Father delights in hearing His beloved Son’s name.
So, it must please the Father when He hears Christians take the name of His Son upon their lips not only for Jesus’ glory but also as an indicator that they identify with Him. That’s a powerful witness. Therefore, Christians should never miss an opportunity to lift high the name of Jesus.
Why am I writing about this? In my positions as ICR’s national representative and now president, I’ve visited hundreds of churches. In many cases, the name of Jesus has not been mentioned once by the leaders or members. His name was replaced by simply saying “God.” Is this an indicator of waning affection? A symptom of an underlying spiritual condition in today’s church? Is this an insignificant trend, or does the name of Jesus matter?
Others Watch and Listen to Those Who Deeply Love Jesus
Why credit Jesus whenever possible? A powerful influence that helped bring Jesus into my life was the routine conversations of Christians I knew. As a non-Christian teen, my observations of Christians in the 1970s were similar to those centuries earlier by Saul of Tarsus. Through interactions with people zealous for Christ, Saul (later renamed Paul) and I discovered that Jesus purposefully arranged for outspoken Christians to cross our paths.
Recall Paul’s testimony to King Agrippa. While he was on the road to Damascus, the Lord Jesus appeared to him, saying,
“I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you.” (Acts 26:16, emphasis added)
Jesus knew exactly what He purposed for Paul—and it didn’t begin on that road. Paul had seen the composed dedication of persecuted Christians like Stephen (Acts 7:55–60). That’s powerful no matter who sees it. Stephen’s words were as vital as his behavior. We can’t be a witness for Jesus unless we talk about Him and His work—not only in the gospel but as an active presence in our lives.
Let’s consider two life-changing observations that likely are not unique to me and then do an eye-opening Bible study. The goal is to enhance our collective testimony by crediting Jesus for His actions in our lives.
Observing Friends Talk Like Jesus Was Real
Many only know about Jesus as a Jewish teacher from 2,000 years ago. I was one of them. But sometime around ninth grade, I started taking note of passing comments from a few Christian classmates. I’d hear “Jesus answered my prayer,” “Jesus helped me,” or “Jesus opened a door.” Whenever one friend’s mom got distressed, she’d say, “Ohhh, sweet Jesus, please…”
These statements were foreign to me. I believed in God, but they weren’t talking about “God”; they were talking about Jesus. One high school friend, Gene Smith, always talked about Jesus like He was an ever-present companion. These casual references to Jesus became the first step on my path to salvation. Why? Because they got me wondering, Was Jesus really alive today? How come they talk about Him all the time? Can Jesus actually be involved with people?
So, when an acquaintance invited me to church, I wasn’t resistant. After a few months I asked Christ to forgive my sins and be my Savior and Lord. In 1979, about two years later, my wife, June, and I were off to Moody Bible Institute. My Old Testament survey teacher there, Mr. Clausen, was very Christlike. As a young Christian I greatly respected him. He, too, often spoke of Jesus as orchestrating his life.
Once after class I asked him why he referenced Jesus specifically. He showed me several Scriptures describing how Christians are part of Christ’s body. One was Ephesians 4:15–16, which says Christians should “grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body [is] joined” together. Then in 1 Corinthians 12:27, Paul forthrightly states, “Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” He reminded me that in Matthew 16:18 Jesus said, “I will build My church” (emphasis added). As a member of Christ’s body, Mr. Clausen knew that Jesus was directing his earthly affairs.
Mr. Clausen told me to remember two exceedingly important realities: (1) Jesus is and always will be head of His body and Lord of His church, and (2) when it comes to Jesus, there’s just “something about His name.” He explained that from his experience, speaking about Jesus as the intimate person He is was a credible witness all by itself, and the name of Jesus often elicits an emotional response.
The Lesson from Acts: Jesus’ Name Is Central to Everything
Is Mr. Claussen correct? Does the name of Jesus matter? A study through Acts 1–11 shows that the name of Jesus—not as a magic wand but as the symbol of His person and work—repeatedly stimulated four responses.
Response 1, Resistance: “We Command You Not to Teach in This Name”
It wasn’t enough that “Jesus of Nazareth” was “taken by lawless hands…crucified, and put to death” (Acts 2:22–23) by religious leaders, but the same were “greatly disturbed that [the apostles] taught the people and preached in Jesus” (4:2). To stop this message from spreading, the gathered leaders decided to “severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name. So they called [the apostles] and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus” (4:17–18).
But they kept teaching, so the council called for them again and told them, “Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this Man’s blood on us!” (5:28). And yet again, “when they had called for the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus” (5:40). Their rage was relentless, not against God but against the name of Jesus.
The religious and even secular establishment will rarely protest when we claim that God—a safe name that can broadly include many religions—works in our lives, or that we want to bring glory to “God.” But crediting “Jesus”? Well, that’s always another story.
Response 2, Salvation: “There Is No Other Name Under Heaven”
Peter recognized in his sermon at Pentecost that “this Jesus, whom you crucified, [is] both Lord and Christ,” and he called unbelievers to “repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (2:36, 38). Salvation is only in the name of Jesus, and there is not “salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (4:12).
The early believers proclaimed Jesus’ name, such as when “Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them” and “the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ” (8:5, 12). Later, he “opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus” to an Ethiopian eunuch (8:26-39). After Paul’s salvation, he “preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God” and always “spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus” (9:20, 29). And Peter said to Cornelius’ household, “To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins” (10:43).
Since salvation is “through His name” and there is “no other name,” the enemy will do all he can to silence mention of the saving name of Jesus.
Response 3, Power: “In the Name of Jesus Christ”
As a youngster, I’d say to my brother hiding behind our bedroom door, “Open up in the name of the law.” Later I learned that “in the name of” was an appeal or reference to authority. When Peter said to a lifelong paralyzed man, “Silver and gold I do not have, but…in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk” (3:6), he petitioned a real and unimaginably great power.
Upon examination by religious authorities, Peter candidly testified that the source of power was “His name” and that “faith in His name, has made this man strong” (3:16). Later he added, “Let it be known…to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth…this man stands here before you whole” (4:10).
What’s in Jesus’ name? The real authority of Jesus Himself. May we join in the same prayer of those early believers and call upon that power “through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus” (4:30).
Response 4, Union: “They Were Counted Worthy to Suffer Shame for His Name”
When two people strive together to make it through hard times, their cords of affection grow strong. When Stephen lay dying from being stoned, he said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” (7:59), and it seems that the Father has wisely ordained that our relationship to His beloved Son deepens when we share in His reproach. Like our Christian ancestors, may we never blush to take the name of Jesus.
Before his conversion, Saul was breathing out threats, seeking “to bind all who call on [Jesus’] name,” and then he “destroyed those who called on this name” (9:14, 21). We’ll face today’s Saul if we take Jesus’ name to our lips. Does Jesus care? A convicting truth was revealed to Saul on the road to Damascus when he discovered that it wasn’t only Christians he was terrorizing. Saul saw the Lord in a vision, and He said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” and then Saul learned that he, too, “must suffer for My name’s sake” (9:5, 16).
Just as “the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch” (11:26), all of us who are Christ’s today join that long line of faithful Christians who have borne His name from the beginning. We have the opportunity to follow the example of the very first believers who, after being threatened to “not speak in the name of Jesus” and then were beaten, departed “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ” (5:40–42).
Institutional and Personal Applications
Clearly, the name of Jesus is always provocative, influential, and powerful. Christians must never miss an opportunity to honor the name of Jesus. He truly is head of His body and Lord of His church. The Institute for Creation Research exists to support His church. The first tenet of ICR’s mission statement motivates us to give Jesus rightful credit by name for His work in creation as our way of lifting high His name. We’re honored that our scientific study of creation reveals Jesus’ incredible genius, unfathomable wisdom, and infinite power. These glorious attributes of Christ are intended to bring great confidence to Christians.
On a personal level, the name of Jesus does matter. What I saw in my childhood friends wasn’t just them speaking the name of Jesus but having a real relationship with Him. Mr. Clausen was deeply in love with Jesus. That relationship was naturally vocalized as these Christians spoke of Jesus, and it changed my life.
May we cultivate an affection for the Lord Jesus who can “sympathize with our weaknesses” (Hebrews 4:15) and is that ever-present “friend who sticks closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). We talk about the people we love. I love hearing the name “June” because it belongs to my precious wife. Similarly, a Christian brother, Frederick Whitfield, said that hearing the name Jesus “sounds like music in my ear, the sweetest name on earth. Oh, how I love Jesus.”2
What are your first thoughts when you hear the name Jesus? It always provokes an emotion—for there’s just something about that name.
Reference
- “Jesus Is The Sweetest Name I Know,” by Lela B. Long, 1924.
- Julian, J., ed. 1892. Dictionary of Hymnology. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. “There Is a Name I Love to Hear” by Frederick Whitfield (1829–1904) was published in 1855.
* Dr. Guliuzza is president of the Institute for Creation Research. He earned his doctor of medicine from the University of Minnesota, his master of public health from Harvard University, and received an honorary doctor of divinity from Southern California Seminary. He served in the U.S. Air Force as 28th Bomb Wing flight surgeon and chief of aerospace medicine. Dr. Guliuzza is also a registered professional engineer and holds a B.A. in theology from Moody Bible Institute.
