Articles
Misused Scripture: "Our New Name"
We Christians love us some fulfilled prophecy. It is compelling and awe-inspiring when unimagi-nable future events transpire precisely as they were foretold long before. These have been very impactful in convincing many of the truth. But, consider the negative impact on faith and credi-bility if we misapply the details and attempt to force interpretations that aren’t supported by the text. In John 21:23, some disciples tried to make a prophecy out of what Jesus had said to John, saying that he would not die. It says they went out among the brethren saying these things. No such prophecy had been uttered by Jesus, but imagine the impact on brethren and unbelievers when the day came that John did die.
I have heard for years and seen apologetic mate-rial printed arguing that the Holy Spirit foretold the use of the name “Christian” which ultimately is said to have come to pass in Acts 11:26. Isaiah 62:2 is cited to prove that God promised a “new name for His people, and that “Christian” is it. Some have included this argument in their list of identifying characteristics of the true church...that we are to be called “Christians” and not by some mere mortal denominational found-er. I also oppose such, but not because of Is. 62!
What does it say? The Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. You shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord will name. (62:2—NKJV)
The fact of the matter is, we are called by many names in Scripture: we are “disciples” in Acts 20:7, “saints” in 1 Cor. 1:2, “Christians” in Acts 11:26, “beloved of God” in Rom. 1:7, “brethren” in 1 Cor. 15:6, “sons, children, and heirs of God” in Rom. 8:14; 1 Jn. 3:1; and Rom. 8:17. We are a “royal priest-hood” in 1 Pet. 2:9. How would we go about choosing which one of these was the extra special new name? Anticipating the response, men such as Leroy Brownlow (Why I’m a Member of the Church of Christ) would argue (according to Isaiah 62): “They were not to be given this new name until after the Gentiles had been converted and seen the righteousness of God.” In short he says: This happened with Cornelius in Acts 10, and almost im-mediately afterwards we find the name “Christian” (11:26). He then writes: “If this is not the new name that was to be given by Jehovah, then tell us what is, please.” Think about it, that’s not a very compelling position, is it? It sounds to me like this is just a best guess.
My question is, what wording in Isaiah 62:2 shows these promises are to be understood as unfolding sequentially, as in: “not until after the Gentiles were converted?” If we try to force our conclusion about Acts 11:26 into a sequential interpretation of Isaiah’s prophecy, then what will we do with the very next verse: (62:3)—”You shall also be a crown of glory and royal diadem in the Lord’s hand.” To be consistent, we would have to say that this would happen after God had assigned our new name in Acts 11:26. But, were believers before the conversion of the Gentiles not a crown of glory to the LORD? Makes no sense! If the LORD intended to convey a se-quence of events, He has the vocabulary to do so (as in Daniel 9:26).
Another problem with the conclusion is that it ignores the immediate con-text of the original prophecy which Isaiah spoke. Since bro. Brownlow asked so nicely for someone to ’please’ tell us what the new name was which Jehovah would give, I will do so, being uniquely qualified to do so, because I’ve read the rest of Isaiah 62. Isaiah stated in the same chapter...
“You shall no longer be termed Forsaken, Nor shall your land any more be termed Desolate; But you shall be called Hephzibah, and your land Beulah; For the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married (Is. 62:4).
Likewise in verse 12: “And they shall call them The Holy People, the Redeemed of the Lord; and you shall be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsak-en. (See also Isaiah 56:5 & 65:15).
All of these designations can be found for God’s people in the New Testa-ment, especially in 1 Peter. In 1 Peter 1:18-19 we are the redeemed of the Lord by the precious blood of Christ. In 2:9, we are the holy people of God, who had been forsaken, but now have received mercy from the Lord (v. 10). You want to read about God seeking us out, take a look at John 10:16. Each time we find these names in Scripture we should thank God for His fulfill-ment of His promise through His prophet Isaiah.
Some point to the Greek word for “called” in Acts 11:26 (transliterated it would be: chrematizo) and argue that the word denotes a divine calling or appointment (of the tern ‘Christian’). I’m no language scholar, but I have been warned by those who are that any doctrine which can only be substan-tiated by turning to Greek definitions is not very solid. In my own search, it does seem that the majority of this usages of this Greek word do concern things which God has spoken, although not exclusively. Hebrews 12:25 uses the word with reference to Moses who spoke on earth in contrast to God who speaks from Heaven.
Historians are divided on the issue of whether “Christian” was at first used derisively and then adopted by believers, or God-appointed. An excerpt un-der “Neronian Persecutions” from McClintock and Strong’s Encyclopedia reads: “The emperor himself took up the public rumor, and acted upon it as a verity. "He inflicted," says Tacitus, "the most exquisite tortures on those men, who, under the vulgar appellation of Christians, were already branded with deserved infamy..."
According to this reference work, the term “Christian” was a “vulgar appella-tion (name). It certainly fits with common practice that one’s enemies would create a derisive pseudonym. We still do that. And, it wouldn’t be the first time that God used something true spoken by infidels and made it come true in His own glorious way (Jn. 11:50). It is not unlike God turning into a blessing the things that Balaam spoke concerning Israel (Neh. 13:2). Bottom line is, we just don’t know for sure.
