Wanderman in the Wilderness

God's word applied in the world.

What’s in a name?

In one of those “real life is stranger than fiction” moments this week, Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook, is facing lawsuits by his own company for violating the terms of service for the social networking giant. The only problem?  “Zuckerberg” isn’t who he says he is; he is Rotem Guez. Guez is an Israeli citizen who changed his name to “Mark Zuckerberg” to avoid Facebook’s policies and to really annoy them beyond comprehension. Why? Guez is, what some might call, a “troll.” A “troll” is someone who posts inflammatory messages on the internet because anonymity allows them to say anything with impunity. Normally, so-called “trolls” are satisfied to annoy in anonymity. Guez/Zuckerberg has taken trolling to extremes. Despite lawsuits, he continues to defy Facebook’s threats by maintaining a page with the title “I’m Mark Zuckerberg,” pictures of himself, his personal documents, and newspaper articles.

So? What’s in a name? Everything! Jesus told His disciples that no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). How important is it to know the name of Christ? Peter reminded the religious leaders in Acts 4:12 “there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.” Jesus said that prayers “in His name,” would be heard (JN 16:23-24). Doing anything “in the name” of another is a phrase that implies, “by the authority” of an individual. It is as if that person were there doing it themselves. Sometimes our name is all we have – the things we say, the way we live, and who we are.

Jesus warned that there would be false prophets (Matthew 7:15-23; 24:11-28). There will be many who claim the name or authority of Jesus, but only Jesus had the authority to die for our sins. I don’t know how Zuckerberg’s case will end, but there is only one Jesus. Only those who call upon His name will be saved. Does that include you? Is your trust in something other than His word? If I can help, get in touch and let’s study what scripture says together.

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