The name

What is it about a name that makes it so special to us? I began thinking about this after talking to a teenager as we stood outside her church in Black River, Jamaica, one Sunday morning. She asked, “Would you mention my name in Our Daily Bread?” I asked her if she had a story to tell, and she said, “No, just mention my name.”

As I thought about her request — and her name — I wondered why her parents named her “Joyeth.” Seeing the happy nature of her personality led me to conclude that if their rationale was to urge her along toward “joy” in her life, they had succeeded.

Most parents have that choice when a new baby is coming. But one baby received His name in a far different way. It wasn’t His parents’ choice that led to His moniker, and His wasn’t a name given to coax Him toward a personality trait. I’m speaking of the One whose name was provided by an angel who told His parents to “call His name JESUS” (Matt. 1:21). Why? “For He will save His people from their sins.”

No wonder His is the name above all names (Phil. 2:9). It’s a name that reveals His purpose — to provide salvation from the penalty of our sins. Jesus is indeed the name worth mentioning.                    – Dave Branon

The name above all other names

Is Jesus Christ the Lord;

He came to save us from our sins

So we could be restored. —Sper

Read: Matthew 1:18-25

Jesus: His name and His mission

are one and the same.

The Bible in one year:

• 1 Kings 14-16