Understanding God: The God of New Identity
Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying: “As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. – Genesis 17:3-6
The attribute of God for our meditation today is His tendency to change the name of or ascribe a new identity to those with whom He has dealings in line with His plan for them. This is a practice that occurred a number of times in the Bible, but it began with Abram, whom God renamed Abraham.
After years of relationship between the two of them, God finally decided that He was ready to take Abram to the next level. For many years, Abram had been without a child, and when he eventually had his first child at the age of 86, it was an arrangement between him and his wife, as God was not involved in their design to have a child through the maidservant.
Therefore, when God was ready to fulfill His promise to Abram, the first thing He communicated to him was the new identity He was conferring on him. He changed his name from Abram, which means ‘a father,’ to Abraham, ‘a father of nations.’ The reason for this is that God, who knows the significance of names, wanted the new identity to sink into Abraham’s consciousness. By hearing himself being called and addressed as a father of nations, Abraham would naturally believe it, behave it, carry and comport himself in manners befitting his new identity.
There are a number of other individuals in the Bible whose identities God also changed based on His encounter with them, as well as His plan and purpose for their lives. He is a God who elevates the profiles of the people He chooses, and one of the ways He does that is by either giving them a new name or a new brand identity different from the ones they were hitherto known by or associated with.
He has not stopped doing this. He still changes people’s names and offers them a new brand identity to this day.
Selah!
Also read:
- Understanding God: He is Omnipotent
- Big Monster Feet
- The Benefits of Wisdom: Multiple Days
- What if…
- God Gave Me Faith To Believe
You can now partner with the Daily Dew Ministry by clicking here
