Matthew 28:18-20
From the creation of all things to the last verse of Revelation, the Bible is all about God bringing sinners back into the image-bearing family of the Triune God. And it would take a name that is “above all names,” the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to get er done.
In the last verses of Matthew, the Gospel comes to its climax in these verses of the great commission. It is here in theses few verses that the resurrected Jesus Christ gives the disciples theses momentous words:” GO therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.” (The Holy Triune God) What Jesus says in this text is the key to understanding all of Scripture. In this one verse we see the full scope of the history of redemption. And it all happens in one history-altering cosmic event: being baptized into God’s name, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Let me put it another way. All the rising and falling of entire empires and nations recorded in the Bible: all of the judgements, blessings, and characters in the Bible from Adam to John the Baptist, and especially pertaining to Christ’s life, death, and resurrection: even two thousand years of church history, really comes down to this one stunning point in what Jesus is saying “the Holy Triune God putting sinners into his name as people are baptized into his name, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with water and the Word.” The whole drama of Scripture and world history climaxes in God giving all baptized Believers new names. Psalm 8:1 says, “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” And it is in his NAME that we are baptized into. That is a big deal being baptized into one name of God the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. This may come as a surprise because names our cheap in our culture. Names really have no meaning in our modern mindset. My wife and I named our three children after cites we likes. Garrett Indiana, Austin Texas, and Savanah Georgia. Nothing special. Some Children today are named after cars, stars, and bars. So, what is the big deal about God dispensing his name with water and the word? Jesus announces that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him. And what did Jesus want to do with this Authority? He wants us to make disciples with new names, with new identities. God is in the business of name giving.
Names in the Old Testament included reputation, and character. A person’s very life was inseparable from their name. Names carried an inestimable value because one’s name was one’s life. In the culture of the first century “to cut off a name” was the same thing as cutting off the person himself. People didn’t need last names because first name said it all.
In the first century Jewish culture a name was synonymous with the very person himself or herself. Your name was who you were and what you are.
One Jewish proverb says, “take my name and you take me.” Solomon in Proverbs writes, “ A good name is rather to be chosen than to have great riches.” And” A good name is better than precious ointment.” In 2 Chronicles Solomon builds the Temple for the name of God because this is the place where God would dwell. Solomon says, “This house I have built is called by your name.”
One of God’s name was Elohim, meaning might or all powerful one but when God enters into a covenant relationship with man through Moses God’s name becomes Yahweh or I was, I am, and will be. Man forsook the name Yahweh and man gave God another name, an alien name, an unholy name. Sinful man chased after unholy gods, even unknown gods. Man became vassals of unholy gods when man renamed himself as god. Man wanted control. Man became a God onto himself. God, you do your thing, and I will do my thing. Man made himself into his own image and all kinds of images became gods.
Adam and eve sinned because they wanted to be like God. They were exiled into loneliness, into namelessness, separated from God. Being nameless is to be cut off from God, being nameless means, we are enemies of God, being nameless means, we are cursed, being nameless means, we are counted as dead in our trespasses and sins as Ephesians 2 tell. We were not created to be alone, to be nameless, to be lonely ones. Loneliness is brokenness, it is separation from God and with each other. Man became a nameless nomad alienated from God, now incapable of bearing God’s image, because of sin. Man, today is constantly looking for new names, any name that would bring him or her purpose, meaning, and joy but the gods of men never last. All man-made gods end up in a grave of dust.
Since man lost his name God from the very beginning has been working toward receiving a name to man but unfortunately natural man will have nothing to do with God. Man by his very nature, from the moment of birth refuses to be renamed by God. Still, still, God’s gracious plan and actions is to rename a people unto himself, sinners long alienated from his holy presence.
The renaming began with Abram, who became Abraham in Gods gracious covenant. Jacob became Israel, “ prince of God.” David became King David. You see by re-naming us: God remakes us and God restores us. After Saul was baptized, he became Paul meaning small or humble. Simon became Peter, meaning rock. Gods real desire is to rename all sinners. Listen to the words of Isaiah.
“ I will give in my house and within my walls
A monument and a name
Better than sons and daughters.
I will give them an everlasting name
That shall not be cut off .”
And again, in Isaiah 62:2
“ The nations shall see your righteousness,
And all the kings your glory,
And you shall be called by a new name
That the mouth of the LORD will give.”
The Gospels record the following, “You shall call his name Jesus for he will save his people from their sins.” Jeremiah (meaning the Lord exalts.) names Jesus “The Lord is our righteousness.” Matthew used the name Emmanuel which means God with us. Jesus is the one who bears the name and image of God, Jesus is the one who possesses all authority from heaven to bestow and confirm his name and upon all nations in baptism into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
God compassion is not only to save broken people, forgiving sins, Jesus wants to restore nameless lonely people, unnamed people, into image-bearers of the true God and all this is accomplished in baptism. Jesus reveals the Name of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the miraculous rite of Holy Baptism where sins are washed away. In baptism God destroys our old name, our old life, our old Adam, our old reputation, God drowns all your sins just as he did to the armies of the Pharoah in the Red Sea, just as he saved Noah and his entire family from a world of sedition on floods of waters, so he saves us by water and the Word of promise. We now walk as baptized believers in this world wearing a new family name like an unremovable jersey. “ For as many of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ”.
2 Kinds 13:20-21 So Elisha dies, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. And as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.
Compare to Romans 6:4
We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Yes, but always wants to get in the way of the gospel. Then the yes but is usually followed up with a you must.
“ Yes, but you must live a life of obedience dedicating yourself to God. Yes, but you must repent and leave your life of sin behind and get right with God. Yes, but you must keep in step with the Spirit never using the Gospel as an excuse for living a life of sin. The moment you add a “ yes but and you must”, the Gospel it is no longer the Gospel. (Galatians, are you happy the Gospel was preached to you. Yes but, you must be circumcised, dietary laws, you must keep the 100 commandments.)
(Father, Wife.) We like to control the way people love us. ) And he said, “The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will, to see the Righteous One and to hear a voice from his mouth: for you will be a witness for him to everyone of what you have seen and heard. And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and was away your sins, calling on his name.’