All Saints Sunday: What's in a name?

In the United Methodist Church, All Saints' Day is celebrated on the first Sunday in November. It is held, not only to remember Saints, but also to remember all those that have died that were members of the local church congregation. All Saints' Day is the day Christians give thanks for all the good people God has placed in their lives, especially those who are already with God in heaven. It is also a day when Christians give thanks for the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives and in the lives of all people.

The origin of All Saints' Day cannot be traced with certainty, and it has been observed on various days in different places dating back as far as the 7th century. The feast of All Saints, on its current date, is traced to Pope Gregory III (731–741) in an oratory given in St. Peter's.

We refer to these people as saints not because people are special in and of themselves, but rather it is because they are ordinary, everyday people who allow the Holy Spirit to work through them doing the mighty deeds of the Lord. We are reminded by Martin Luther who writes, "the Holy Scriptures call Christians saints and the people of God. To forget that we are saints is to forget Christ and to forget our baptism."

All Saints then is a day for remembering and giving thanks. As we remember the good people we have known and give thanks for the unending goodness of God in our own lives. Why do we do this? Because it is good to remember and be reminded.

When your name is read years from now, what will people remember?

What’s in a name?

Without the telling of stories the meaning of names is forgotten. That’s the thing with names, with the passing of time names can become meaningless, but each name should be important. The thing that makes any list of names meaningful to us is our connection to the people on the list. No matter what list you read, you must have a connection to it in order to have the names mean something to you. The problem is that with the passing of time, names become unfamiliar or meaningless to us, but each name should be as important today as it was then. Because behind every name there is a story!

If you open your Bibles you will find a number of lists of names:

Genesis chapter 10 lists “The Table of Nations.”
Numbers chapter 1 gives us “The Census of the Nation.”
Numbers chapter 34 lists the “Inheritance of the Fathers.”
Matthew chapter 1 details the genealogy of Jesus and
Nehemiah chapter 3 details the builders of the wall:

Let’s start by looking at the last of these lists:

What’s in a name?

Apparently, not much anymore. It seems names lose their relevance over time and are no longer recognized by us or for that matter the computer. If you run spell check on the above text, there is not a name that gets by it. (80+ names)

This list of names that was once important, with time has become somewhat meaningless. After all, when it is all said and done who were these people and do their names matter? I believe that Nehemiah makes it clear in his writing that it was about the people (the names) and not the wall they were building. Remember that writing materials would be scarce and very costly. Some would think it a waste to record these names at all. Remember that God is not about the numbers or the buildings, but rather God is about the names because names represent people. The list recorded is not a list of the materials used (there are plenty of those), or the specific actions taken, or even the amount of work done. It is simply a record of the people that are now seemingly long forgotten.

I want to look at another list of names recorded in Matthew Chapter One. This list records the genealogy of Christ. It is the passing from one generation to the next of the family heritage, the family name. We often forget to tell the stories of each generation – the story of the passing of names. It is good to stop and remember and to tell the stories. It is also good to remember that we need to teach (and re-teach) each generation.
What’s in a name?
Jesus asked one simple question about a name, “Who do you say I am?” The answer that He sought was “Jesus Christ the living Son of God.” Those that respond with faith and believe are called by the name Christian, or follower of Christ.
God knows you by name. Your name matters to God.

I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels. Revelation 3:5b NIV

Nothing dirty or defiled will get into the City, and no one who defiles or deceives. Only those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life will get in. Revelation 21:27 The Message

God loves you just as you are not because of what you do and or have done, but just because you exist. It is your belief in Jesus that records your name in the book of life, a place that will allow your name to be recorded and read by God for all eternity.

What’s in a name?

Simply put - everything.