The Only Name

“The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name.”- Zechariah 14:9

Let them praise the name of God—
it's the only Name worth praising. Psalm 148.13

Wow!

That's all I can say to this one man's prayer who was sold out FOR THE NAME of JESUS. Hear his prayer and may it shake your soul...

Vasile's Prayer
His name was Brother Vasile. He was a Romanian pastor. The government had closed churches and were arresting pastors left and right. Brother Vasile and his sweet wife held church meetings in their homes, knowing it would gain the attention of the oppressive government. Every single night, Vasile cried out to God saying, "God, if you know of some prisoner who needs my help, send me back to jail." **

I don't know about you, but this guy had the heart of Jesus Christ for the lost. His life was not his own. I think of Paul who said, "... I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace." (Acts 20:24)

Our Prayer
Lord Jesus, forgive me; forgive us, for considering our life and our eternal destiny as more important than others. Our life is nothing if Your Gospel is not everything. Send us; send me, to the lost."

I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." (Acts 21:13b)

"Here am I. Send me!" (Isaiah 6:8)

**Source: Extreme Devotion, Take the Extreme Challenge, page 10; The Voice of the Martyrs

His Name Is The Lord

“Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds — his name is the LORD— and rejoice before him. A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.”- Psalm 68:4-5

The life of a Christian

"Jesus told me to go. He never said I would come back. Isn't that the life of a Christian?"

-a Christian Evangelist, 70 years old

This is what Jesus said in Mark 8:35:

"For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me and for the gospel will save it."

Our best days

I just read a story about Christians who knew without a doubt they would be severely beaten because of their outspoken witness and worship for Jesus...but they did it anyway. They formed a circle...joining hand in hand and sang this hymn,

The best days of our life are the days when we can bear a cross.*

That day was the best day of their life.

May our best days come and may they come bearing a cross.

For the Name of Jesus Christ.

*Reference: Tortured for Christ by Pastor Richard Wurmbrand, page 126

Our life is secondary

Hudson Taylor

"China is not to be won for Christ by quiet, ease-loving men and women … The stamp of men and women we need is such as will put Jesus, China, [and] souls first and foremost in everything and at every time—even life itself must be secondary."

His Name Is Exalted

In that day you will say:

"Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name;
make known among the nations what he has done,
and proclaim that his name is exalted. ~ Isaiah 12:4 (NIV) ~

Majestic Name!

O Lord, our Lord, how MAJESTIC is Your NAME in all the earth! (Psalm 8:1,9)!
(emphasis mine)

For the Name! God's Majestic Name! Amen!

If ordained praise can come from the lips of children and infants, why not ours today! (Psalm 8:2)!

How can you praise God today?

For the Name! Part II

"--men who have risked their lives FOR THE NAME of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Acts 15:26;NIV)

What will you and I do "FOR THE NAME" of our Lord Jesus Christ today?

For the Name! Part I

"The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name." (Acts 5:41;NIV)

It's time...time to figure out what life is all about! Life is about the Name of Jesus Christ. It's not about your name...it's not about my name..it's not about "our" purpose in life or where we are going to live,etc. Yes, those things are important and yes, God the Father intimately cares for you and me and those things. However, before all of that, there was Christ...after all of that...Christ! Our lives are to be about the Name of Jesus!

Aside from Jesus, we have no purpose, no calling, no hope, no future. The apostles figured this out. So, they did not look for their purpose and go where the money was. They did not say, "God wants me to be happy so I must go where the bigger homes are". They went to where Jesus needed to be preached and suffered disgrace"for the Name".

The word "disgrace" comes from "dis"- meaning "opposite" and "grazia" meaning "grace". It is the "opposite of grace"...in other words, misfortune, out of favor. God would not call us to suffer "misfortune" would He? That's not American Christianity. Your right...it's not American Christianity; but it's what Jesus meant for Christianity! Jesus calls us to "suffer for the Name." That is our purpose in life! That is a call to rejoice!

The apostles "rejoiced" that they had been counted "worthy" of "suffering disgrace" for the Name of Jesus...let that soak in. Usually, we say, "It must be God's will because I get a bigger salary; I must be in the right ministry because everyone speaks well of me and I have a big office." The apostles were not spoken well of...they did not have a big office. Not that those things are bad, they can be a blessing from Jesus. But, that's not all God has called us to. We are called to suffer disgrace "for the Name."

The apostles did just that! They performed miraculous signs and wonders...taught in the Name of Jesus Christ and were thrown into prison. An angel of the Lord got 'em out of prison and told them, "Go, stand in the temple courts and tell the people the full message of this new life (Acts 5:20)."

Dude, they had just gotten thrown into prison for just that thing! Well, they spoke the Name of Jesus and did what the angel of the Lord said...guess what? They got flogged for it! That's when they said verse 41 above! First prison...then being beaten with a whip! Where were the free doughnuts?

Here is how you and I will know if we are "4 the Name" Christ followers: we will preach Jesus Name til we "suffer disgrace" for it. Then, WE'LL DO IT AGAIN! "For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ NOT ONLY TO BELIEVE on Him, but also to SUFFER for Him." (Philippians 1:29;Emphasis mine;NIV).

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:21;NIV)