So the current US President has decided, unilaterally, to rename another body of water. Clearly naming water is the most important thing for him to be doing at a time when the war against Iran he started with Israel is having a global impact. But that aside, I am intrigued that he considers renaming things to be significant as a way of showing how great America is and making a political point. I suppose we can be grateful he’s not naming them after himself (although he has tried to rename other things in his own honour).
The President wants the world to call the Gulf of Mexico the ‘Gulf of America’ and now he says Lake Ontario is to be known as ‘Lake America’. Never mind centuries of history, international conventions and the fact that other countries border these stretches of water. The President has decided and expects everyone else to fall into line. I wonder if anyone other than his supporters or those who are afraid of lawsuits who will do so.
‘But,’ I hear his supporters who may inadvertently stumble onto this blog say, ‘people rename places in the Bible a lot of times, and didn’t Jesus rename Simon? The President is just doing that.’
Well, let’s look at that, shall we? Names in the Bible mean something. The name usually reflects another word. It’s true that places are renamed in the Bible. For example, Jacob had an incredible encounter with God at a place that previously had been known as ‘Luz’. He renamed it ‘Bethel’ which means ‘House of God’.
Renaming places was to reflect a significant God-event that happened there and to remind people of those events, and to point people towards God. It was not done to aggrandise a nation or boost their collective ego.
It’s generally accepted that Simon becoming ‘Peter’ was Jesus’ way of marking him out as one who would become the leader of the church after his death, resurrection and ascension: “…on this rock I will build my church.” ‘Peter’ comes from the Greek word ‘petros’ which means ‘rock’ and is a translation from the Aramaic name ‘Cephas’ which means ‘stone’. Yet Simon-Peter was at times the least rock-like of his followers. He was impulsive, often putting his foot in it, and getting the wrong idea. I wonder whether there was a smirk on Jesus’ face as he called him ‘Rocky’. Whatever it was for, the name change wasn’t to show how great Jesus was and Peter would grow into it.
I wonder whether Jesus would want to change your name to reflect how he sees you. Words like ‘loved’, ‘chosen’, ‘gifted’ and ‘valued’ come to mind. We might be surprised by what he chose but I believe it would be affirming. It would probably not be ‘superstar’, ‘supreme leader’ or anything like that.
Jesus called his followers to a life of service and humility, not self-promotion and glory. He told people that true greatness is about serving other people not getting them to serve you. When two of his followers had ideas about having places of status in his kingdom and the rest took umbrage at it (perhaps miffed that they hadn’t thought of it themselves) “Jesus called them together and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles* lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.’” (Matthew 20:25-28)
It’s a critique of those who seek, use and abuse power. But Jesus went way further than he had before: using the example of slaves – the lowest of the low in that culture, almost seen as sub-human – to describe the humility, meekness, service, and self-sacrifice that God honours. If you doubt me, look again at the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12) in the light of Jesus’ words above.
Be blessed, be a blessing
*Gentiles was the word Jewish people used for non-Jewish people.
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