The New Name

"And he brought him to Iesoun, And when Iesoun beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, a stone."  John 1:42

We are invited by these words to step into the mystery of God's ways with the called ones.  Andrew is used by God in a decisive providential event.  Andrew is to bring his brother Simon to the Iesous.  Andrew's words to Simon are startling and provocative.  "We have found the Messiah...the Christos."

Of course, Simon is smitten by curiosity. Deep within himself Simon is guided by a powerful telic motive that compels him to go and see for himself what Andrew has announced.  Both of them are caught up in prophetic reality.  But this event will go deeper still.  A unique destiny will be appointed to Simon.  Heretofore, he had been a fisherman.  He had invested his life in an honorable profession.  He did not know that he had lived completely outside of his true destiny.  His life was shadowy and without substantive import.

Simon is brought to Iesoun by Andrew.  Simon will be given incontrovertible empirical evidence of his brother's words.  God is at work through human agency to fulfill His Word and the vessel he uses is Simon's own genetic kin. Simon will come to know a relationship  that is deeper than human blood lines.  This is his destiny, and later, much later after he has seen himself, he will embrace. the frailty and weakness that is his intrinsic legacy and come to depend solely on the power of God. 

The call of the Iesoun is to the life of deep commitment.  The new name identifies the new reality.  Simon is addressed at the edge of his present status as Simon son of Jona.  The old name that identifies him with the old milieu is recognized and set aside.   The old name cannot possible contain what is to be.  In this encounter Simon is renamed Kephas or rock.

The door is opened into the new reality for Simon.  The old things are passed away.  His experiences with the Iesous will teach him the meaning of this new life.  God moved from the present tense "thou art" to the "thou shalt be" future perfect.  His new identity, that is, who he really is will appear to him in due time. 

God took his time in shaping Kephas as He takes his time in shaping you and me.  God has given you a new name.  Have you accepted your calling?      

For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please visit his website.