Called By Name

 January 16, 2022

“You shall be called by a new name, Which the mouth of the Lord will name. You shall also be a crown of glory In the hand of the Lord, And a royal diadem In the hand of your God…For the Lord delights in you.” —Isaiah 62:2-4 

Preachers like to talk about being called into ministry. I remember being interviewed by the Board of Ordained Ministry when I was pursuing ordination in the United Methodist Church, and being asked about my calling. It wasn’t a thunderbolt experience, but I just knew from the time I was 14 that I was to be in some sort of Christian work. I thought it would be in foreign missions, but God had other plans, which is another (long) story in itself.

At the interview, the pastors who were examining me for some reason never asked me about my views on baptism (I grew up in an independent Baptist church and sort of slid into Methodism by the back door). What is really amazing is that I was never asked about my church membership, and to this day, I am the only United Methodist pastor I know of who has never been a member of a local church. Anywhere. That would never fly today. Even today, my membership is in the Annual Conference, not the local church. I’m in a similar situation to the Roman Catholic priest who never being married, counsels couples on marital matters. I have received many people into membership in a local church, but have never experienced it myself.

During my ordination interview, someone commented that I was calmer than the others they had interviewed that day. “Why is this,” he queried. 

My response? “I know I am called into ministry. I just don’t know where. You know your system; it’s your job to find out if I fit. If not, I’ll just go elsewhere.”

Today’s lectionary text comes from Isaiah 62, in which Isaiah tells Israel that they will be called by a new name. That intrigues me. Have you ever called out to someone only to discover that the person you hailed wasn’t who you thought it was? You wondered why they didn’t answer until he or she turned around and you realized it wasn’t your friend. They didn’t recognize the name, but only responded to the shout. 

What if God called you by a new name, and you failed to recognize it? He would call and call, and you’d be oblivious to it because you didn’t recognize the new name he had given you. I suspect that happens more often than we realize. We’re so used to the old names we go by that when God calls out our new name, we don’t recognize it as belonging to us. We’re used to names like “failure,” “dumb,” “cheater,” “insecure,” “gossip,” “guilty.” The list goes on, but you get the idea. 

So when God calls out our new name, it goes right over our heads. And what is the new name he whispers in our ear? “Crowned with Glory,” “Royalty,” “Beloved,” “Forgiven,” “Courageous,” “Holy and Righteous.” There are more, but do you see what I mean? When was the last time you answered to God speaking your new name? When will you stop answering to the old names this world has given you? Your name is your identity, and in Christ that has changed, for “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away. Behold, all things are become new.” —2 Corinthians 5:17