FamilyLife Today® Podcast

There’s Power in the Name

with Dennis Rainey | December 6, 2013
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What's in a name? When the name is that of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ, the name means a lot! Dennis Rainey continues exploring the meaning behind the many names, particularly the royal names, of Christ.

  • Show Notes

  • About the Host

  • About the Guest

  • What's in a name? When the name is that of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ, the name means a lot! Dennis Rainey continues exploring the meaning behind the many names, particularly the royal names, of Christ.

  • Dave and Ann Wilson

    Dave and Ann Wilson are hosts of FamilyLife Today®, FamilyLife’s nationally-syndicated radio program. Dave and Ann have been married for more than 38 years and have spent the last 33 teaching and mentoring couples and parents across the country. They have been featured speakers at FamilyLife’s Weekend to Remember® marriage getaway since 1993 and have also hosted their own marriage conferences across the country. Cofounders of Kensington Church—a national, multicampus church that hosts more than 14,000 visitors every weekend—the Wilsons are the creative force behind DVD teaching series Rock Your Marriage and The Survival Guide To Parenting, as well as authors of the recently released book Vertical Marriage (Zondervan, 2019). Dave is a graduate of the International School of Theology, where he received a Master of Divinity degree. A Ball State University Hall of Fame quarterback, Dave served the Detroit Lions as chaplain for 33 years. Ann attended the University of Kentucky. She has been active alongside Dave in ministry as a speaker, writer, small-group leader, and mentor to countless wives of professional athletes. The Wilsons live in the Detroit area. They have three grown sons, CJ, Austin, and Cody, three daughters-in-law, and a growing number of grandchildren.

Dennis Rainey continues exploring the meaning behind the many names, particularly the royal names, of Christ.

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There’s Power in the Name

With Dennis Rainey
|
December 06, 2013
| Download Transcript PDF

Bob: When we sing the familiar church hymn, Crown Him with Many Crowns, we are really singing that Jesus is the King of kings. Here’s Dennis Rainey.

Dennis: A crown is a symbol of sovereignty—of rule. “Jesus,” it is said, “has many crowns.” Look at what it says there—“many diadems.” Now, a diadem is a crown. So, when we see this picture of Jesus the King, on a white horse—I don’t know how it will be—but His head will be covered over with crowns, declaring: “The KING OF KINGS.”

Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Friday, December 6th. Our host is the President of FamilyLife®, Dennis Rainey, and I’m Bob Lepine. The Christmas season is a time to celebrate the birth of the One who is the King of all kings. We’ll talk about that today. Stay tuned.

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And welcome to FamilyLife Today. Thanks for joining us on the Friday edition. You know, most people, who go to work, have somebody they report to. They’ve got a boss. They’ve got shareholders. They’ve got a board of directors. But—maybe, it’s a bank they report to, right at the end of the month. But there are some high-powered folks—who think, “I don’t report to anybody but me. It’s just me that I report to.”


Dennis: Well, frankly, we are born that way, Bob. [Laughter]

Bob: It’s true.

Dennis: I know you can’t remember back to when you were a toddler—well, maybe you probably can.

Bob: I can pull it off.

Dennis: But nobody had to train me to think this way.

Bob: To be selfish?

Dennis: This is the way we are born on this planet. We are born to think about:

2:00

 

“I am god. I am in charge. Step back because I’m going to rule.”

Bob: The truth is everybody reports to somebody. Even kings have a King they report to; don’t they?

Dennis: They do. And you’re going to hear a message today—actually, Part Two of a message I gave to the staff, earlier this fall—when we spent a day off-site—and we spent a day of prayer. We had over 350 people, who joined with us. We fed some homeless people. We prayed, throughout the day, for various needs of staff members here, and needs of folks who donate to the ministry, and really for our impact of our ministry.

Bob: In the midst of that, you spent a little time reminding us who it was we were talking to in our prayer. We talk to the King of kings; don’t we?

Dennis: And I think we’ve heard that phrase from the Scriptures; but you know, it’s only mentioned a couple of times in the Bible—King of kings / Lord of lords. The reason I was speaking about that is because Barbara told me to. [Laughter]

3:00

That’s not—that’s not really the truth.

Bob: It’s pretty close to true.

Dennis: No, it’s—she created a new set of Adorenaments® this year. Some of you got last year’s set, which are out again this year—the Christmas names of Christ.

Bob: These are ornaments—that you can hang on your Christmas tree—that proclaim who Jesus is.

Dennis: Yes. This year, she’s created crowns—each of these unique seven crowns has a different name.

Bob: Right.

Dennis: King of kings, Lord of lords, Son of David, Lion of Judah. I think this may be the best that she’s ever created yet because they are magnificent crowns that declare who Jesus Christ is. It gives us a chance, here at Christmas, to truly celebrate the real reason for Christmas.

Bob: Our listeners ought to look at these to see what they look like. They really are beautiful. You can go to FamilyLifeToday.com to get a glimpse of the Adorenaments that Barbara has created.

4:00

And just before we hear you talking about Jesus as King of kings, if our listeners do go to FamilyLifeToday.com and look at Barbara’s Adorenaments, you wouldn’t mind if they clicked the button that says, “I CARE,” and made a donation while they were there; would you?

Dennis: You know, I’m glad you put it like that Bob. I really like to ask the listeners to go do that because we need your help.

Here’s what we do, here on FamilyLife Today—and you know, if you’ve listened to our broadcast any number of times—we provide practical, biblical help for you, and your marriage, and your family. We also provide you with tools, where you can help other people. We are all about coming alongside you and helping you be successful in your relationship with God, your spouse, and your family, and impacting other people.

And if you agree with that mission—you’ve benefitted from what we’ve taught, here on FamilyLife Today, and you count it a privilege of joining with us—then, right now, would be very timely because we’ve had some friends—they’ve said: “You know what? We want to establish a matching fund.” In fact, this year, Bob, they’ve gone an extra mile that we’ve never, ever had—I don’t think—in the history of our ministry.

5:00

Bob: No, that’s true. These folks have come along and said, “If your listeners will make a donation, for every dollar they donate, we’ll donate three dollars.” So, a listener gives a $100 donation—we get a $400 benefit from that. Somebody gives a $20 donation—it’s an $80 benefit to FamilyLife Today.

Now, there’s a cap on this. It’s $500,000. To get to $500,000 dollars, we need to hear from as many listeners as possible. We need to ask them to be as generous as possible—keeping in mind—that every dollar you donate, three dollars get added to that total.

Dennis: These families really want to make sure that FamilyLife Today stands strong and keeps on coming to you. So, why don’t you pick up a phone, or go online, and join with us and say: “You know what? I agree with what you, and Barbara, and Bob have been doing, here on FamilyLife Today, for now more than 21 years. We want to keep you going strong across this country,”?

Bob: You can call 1-800-FL-TODAY to make a donation—1-800-FL-TODAY.

6:00

Or go, online, at FamilyLifeToday.com. Click the button that says, “I CARE,” to make an online donation.


Dennis: And I want to say, “Thanks,” to those of you who have given in the past. Thank you for doing that. I just want you to know I’m grateful for you standing with us. We need you to do that. Now, I want you to just kind of sit back and listen to the conclusion of a two-part message I gave to our staff about one of the royal names of Christ—that Barbara features in her set of Adorenaments this year—the King of kings.

Bob: And keep this in mind the next time you are talking to God. This is who you are talking to.

[Recorded Message]

Dennis: He is the sovereign King of kings. In fact, it refers to that in First Timothy, Chapter 6, verse 15—where it’s one of the only two other places, other than Revelation 19, where Jesus is called King of kings and Lord of lords—“many diadems.”

7:00

Think back with me: “When Jesus came the first time, what was His crown?”—a crown of thorns. This time, He is ruling King, Lord of all—the sovereign King. I’m telling you—this is going to be a great day.

Then, it says something fascinating here. It says, “His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on His head are many crowns; and He has a name written that no one knows but Himself.” Isn’t that interesting?—“a name that no one knows but Himself.”

8:00

Now, it’s at this point that I’m going to reach in and pull out what Barbara has been creating—and just remind you of some of the names we do know of Jesus—His royal names. She’s created them: King of Israel—a different crown for this one: Prince of princes. I like this one: The Almighty.

Here’s one that declares His lineage—His royal lineage—that He could have the thrown: Son of David. And I pause, as I thought about this: “You know, God could have redeemed us however He wanted to redeem us; but He chose to set up a system to communicate, in a language we could understand, where there are kings who inherit the throne. He was related to David—all the way forward, traced in Scripture, with royalty established, by God, in His blood.”

9:00

I really like this one: Lion of Judah. Then, finally, the two that we are talking about here—King of kings and Lord of lords. As Barbara writes in her book, these two go together—King of kings / Lord of lords.

But here, in this verse—look at it. It says, “He has a name that no one knows but Himself.” It’s a mystery that I think will be revealed some day—maybe, not.

Now, there has always been a thing about God’s name. Remember the name, YAHWEH?

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The Hebrews were not allowed to write it on paper. This thing about the name is powerful because, in the Old Testament times, to name someone—either by giving birth to them or to name them—meant to have control or power over them—or even to meet someone and to name them meant that you had some kind of power to name their name.

But think about this for a moment: There has never been a time when Jesus did not have a name. So, He could never be named. This is a name He has always had before time came into being. No one named Jesus. There was no one to name Him. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—He was always there.

11:00

How important is this name? Wow! Hang on to this. Keep your place in the passage and turn to Philippians, Chapter 2. You know this passage; but now, as you think about this name, think of this—Philippians, Chapter 2, verse 5. Think about our royal King:

Have this mind among yourselves which is also in Christ Jesus, who though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,”—He knew He was the King, but what did He do?—“but He made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant,”—a slave—

12:00

“being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

When Barbara started creating these Adorenaments—to call attention to the names of Christ—I really thought she was onto something. Having studied and looked at these names of Christ, I now know she is onto something that the church must embrace. It must revisit who it is who is our King of kings and Lord of lords.

13:00

Back to Revelation 19—you’ll notice there it says, “The name that is written that no one knows but Himself.” It does not say, here, where the name is written. Later on, we find out where the King of kings and Lord of lords is written; but we don’t know where this name is written. But in the context of this passage, could it be that the name is written in the many crowns that are on the King’s head? Could it be that the diadems on His head—the many crowns—spell out a name we have never heard?—total speculation—but it’s in the same sentence as the diadems.

14:00

Verse 13: “He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood.” Scholars are divided about this. Many think the blood here is a reference to His blood that He shed on behalf of our sins. Others believe this blood is the blood splattered from His enemies. It could be both. Think about this King, coming in a royal robe, dipped in blood. Whether it is His own or His enemies—He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. Think back to the first time the King came. What robe was He given?—

15:00

a robe by the soldiers who mocked Him, “King of the Jews.” There will not be any mocking this time. He is come—the King has come.


The first time, He came as the slain one—one who gave His life for others. Now, He comes as the slayer. The first time, He came, He came to redeem. This time, He comes to earth to judge—a righteous King who judges.

Next, we find the second name in the passage that is mentioned about Jesus. It says in the last half of the verse, “And the name by which He is called is The Word of God.” Leave your fingers there. Flip over to Isaiah and look at this—Isaiah, Chapter 11,

16:00

verses 3 and 4. This is speaking about the Messiah—the whole passage here about the rule, the justice, and the safety of the Messiah.

Verses 3 and 4—it says, “And His delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what His eye sees, or decide disputes by what His ears hear; but with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth; and with the breath of His lips, He shall kill the wicked.” Wow! What a picture.

[Revelation 19] Verse 14 explains the armies of heaven. It says, “And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following Him on white horses.”

17:00

Do you get this scene? The curtains are pulled back. The King is on a white horse. That’s got to be an unbelievable horse; and behind him, is not one army but armies—better than any scene from any movie that has ever been concocted out of Hollywood. This is the real deal. Who are the armies? We’re not told; but it’s likely they are angels and saints of old, coming to do battle, with the King of kings. When Jesus came the first time, what did He have?—12 disciples. This time, He comes with saints—saints of old—and angels.

18:00

Well, verse 16: “On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, ‘KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.’”

Turn back with me, just a couple of pages, to Revelation, Chapter 17, verse 14. “They will make war on the lands”—speaking of the beast—“and the Lamb will conquer them for He is the Lord of lords and King of kings. And those with Him are called chosen and faithful.”

In First Timothy, Chapter 6—you can grab this one real quick. This is the only other time this passage is mentioned in the Scriptures. First Timothy 6—it says, “Until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ”—verse 15—

19:00

“which He will display at the proper time—He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords; who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, who no one has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion forever!”—King of kings—the rightful heir of all creation.

The first time He came, the world practically ignored Him. It didn’t recognize Him as the King of kings. This time, they will recognize Him. The first time He came, He wasn’t given a throne. He was given a cross. He was crucified. This time, He will take over; and He will return to His seat on the throne.


Barbara points out, in her book, that these two terms—

20:00

King of kings and Lord of lords—are seen together in Scripture. There is a reason. We need both—both a King and a Lord—to rule and to care.

[Studio]

Bob: Well, we’ve been listening today to Part Two of a message from Dennis Rainey about Jesus our King of kings. I heard somebody say one time that: “Most of us do not really believe that we are as sinful as we are, and most of us really don’t believe that God is as great as He is.” I think they are right.

Dennis: Yes. And I think we need to be reminded of who He is. It’s why I really like what Barbara has done in creating these royal names of Christ.

Bob: These are ornaments—that you can hang on your Christmas tree—that proclaim who Jesus is.

Dennis: And Bob, she did this because she wants families, for generations, to celebrate Him. Every one of these names has a significance, going back to Scripture, that really unpacks the—

21:00

in this case, as we’ve just been listening to—the Sovereign ruler of all of creation. He is the King of kings—

Bob: Right.

Dennis: —and I just mentioned, He is also Lord of lords. He cares about us, and wants to care for our needs, and be near us.

I’ve seen her speak about this. Audiences, sometimes, applaud when she talks about recapturing Christmas around the person of Jesus Christ. We all feel—in our chest, we want to do that—but we don’t know how. What she is giving families are practical ways—in this case, seven practical ways of hanging the names of Christ—His royal names—on a tree to declare who He is—not only to your own family—but to everybody who comes in your home.

I’ve had some interesting stories, already, of people who’ve talked about folks coming into their homes and seeing a Christmas tree decorated that, literally, shares Jesus Christ with your guests.

22:00

Bob: Well, and our listeners really should go to FamilyLifeToday.com to see these ornaments because we can talk about them on the radio; but until you see what they look like and see how they would look on your tree, you can’t really get the full picture. So, again, go to FamilyLifeToday.com. Click on the link for Adorenaments and see what Barbara has been working on.

You can order online from us at FamilyLifeToday.com. Not only do we have the royal names of Christ, but we also have the set of seven Adorenaments that Barbara created for last Christmas—Jesus’ Christmas names. Again, go to FamilyLifeToday.com to order the Adorenaments. Or call 1-800-FL-TODAY, 1-800-358-6329. That’s 1-800- “F” as in family, “L” as in life, and then, the word, “TODAY”. Ask about the Adorenaments when you get in touch with us. We’ll make arrangements to get Adorenaments sent out to you.

And don’t forget—when you get in touch with us, please consider making a yearend contribution to support FamilyLife Today.

23:00

Dennis mentioned, earlier in today’s program, the matching-gift opportunity that has been made available to us, here at FamilyLife. Every donation we receive here, in the month of December, is going to be matched three-to-one. That means, if you make a donation of $10, we get $40-worth of value from that donation, thanks to some generous friends who have agreed to do that for us here, this month.

So, would you consider going online at FamilyLifeToday.com and click the button that says, “I CARE”? Be as generous as you can possibly be in making a donation. Know that your donation is going to be worth four times as much as you originally gave—again, thanks to this matching-gift opportunity. You can also make a donation by phone. Our toll-free number is 1-800-FL-TODAY. And if you’d prefer to write a check, and mail it to us, you can do that, as well. Mail it to FamilyLife Today at P O Box 7111, Little Rock, AR. And our zip code is 72223.

24:00

And of course, we’d love to have you jot a note and include that, as well. We always look forward to hearing from you and appreciate your comments about the ministry of FamilyLife Today.

And with that, we’ve got to wrap things up for this week. Thanks for being with us. Hope you and your family can worship together this weekend. I hope you can join us back on Monday when we’re going to talk about some of the best-known Christmas hymns and Christmas traditions—and, again, talk about how the Christmas season can be more meaningful in your home.

I want to thank our engineer today, Keith Lynch, and our entire broadcast production team. On behalf of our host, Dennis Rainey, I’m Bob Lepine. We will see you back Monday for another edition of FamilyLife Today.

FamilyLife Today is a production of FamilyLife of Little Rock, Arkansas. Help for today. Hope for tomorrow.

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