"I will give thanks to your name, O LORD, for it is good." (Psalm 54:6)

"And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

August 2, 2026
The Lord's Day

Dear friends,

This morning, before leaving for church worship, I was reading Psalm 54. King David wrote this while facing a hostile betrayal of him and his men to Saul's army. The people in question were "ruthless" and did not "set God before themselves" (v 3). In his prayer, David calls upon the Lord -- "save me by your name and vindicate me by your might." (v 1) David declares in this psalm that God hears, helps, upholds, judges, is faithful, and brings deliverance. And finally, David vows to "give thanks to your name, O LORD, for it is good." (v 6)

Throughout this short psalm, David progresses through three names for God: "God" [Elohim] (vv 1-4a); "Lord" [Adonai] (v 4b); and "LORD" [Yahweh] (v 6). Each has a meaning, and the last is the most specific, being a covenantal name. A name is used to describe and delineate personhood and character. A person's name can be synonymous with his reputation, his works and accomplishment. To have or to know a person's name becomes the way to enter a relationship. For David, at least in this psalm, God's name is seen in his power, character, covenantal faithfulness, and goodness. David's understanding of God was rooted in God's self-revelation to Israel through the patriarchs and in the Mosaic covenant. This was not true of his opponents.

The point is, the God of the Bible is not a generic god. He has a name. The God of the Bible is a specific God. His Son is a specific Person. (The singular use of "name" doesn't mean that only one name is used per person. Jesus also has the title of Lord, and position of Christ or Messiah, and Son of God, etc. But he's the same Person.)

Many times in my pastoral ministry, I've been called upon to lead in public prayer. I always pray "in Jesus' name." Now, that's not a magic formula, it's just the only way I know how to approach my Father in heaven. I was a rebel, lost in darkness and sin, redeemed by the death of Christ, and now brought into the Father's house as a beloved child. I am there because of Jesus. And so, when I pray, and especially when I pray in public, I want people to know that it's not because of my power or my authority or my holiness or my great faith or my anything that my prayer gets heard, but it's because I belong to Jesus that I can talk to God. (As you can guess, I haven't been invited to pray at many civic gatherings in recent years.)

When we come to the New Testament, things don't get any less specific: "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) Some people might read that verse and think how restrictive that is, but really, how wonderful it is that we are told who the one Person is who can really help us. I don't want a list of 40 people who might help me, I want to know who is the One who can in fact save me. What a blessing it is that we are given that name!

I find people don't usually get upset over generic "God talk". Most people are happy to have and hold harmless opinions. But to talk about the God of the Bible -- or to speak of Jesus as the Scriptures present him -- that's another matter entirely. As the religious authorities told Peter and John, "...they...charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus." (Acts 4:18) This pattern of opposition continues to this day around the world.

We should never be ashamed of his name. Many will say, "But we're all praying to the same God." I'm sorry, but no, we're not. The gods of the nations are not the same as the Father of our Lord Jesus. The gods of the cults, of Islam, of Hinduism, of eastern religions, of paganism -- they are different. Different names, different character, different nature, different work, different ways of salvation, different views of Jesus. They may "honor" Jesus as a prophet or an avatar or a holy man, but Christianity alone honors him rightly --

"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." (Philippians 2:9-11)

What a privilege we have been given to know that name, to call upon that name, and to join all redeemed creation in confessing Jesus Christ as Lord to the glory of God!

Sandy

Afterwords is an occasional newsletter on topics of interest to me (Sandy Young) since my retirement from full-time pastoral ministry. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.