A Good Name

December 9, 2019

A Good Name

A good name is better than precious ointment,

    and the day of death, than the day of birth.

Ecclesiastes 7:1 (NRSV)

Traditionally, at the time of baptism the minister would ask, “What name is given to this child (person)?” For many centuries, the first name was chosen from the Bible, and from this practice it became commonplace to refer to a person’s first name as their Christian name. This practice held true well into the twentieth century. This tradition points to the importance names have in the Bible. In today’s culture, a good name refers to a person’s reputation, and the NLT Bible even translates verse one as, “A good reputation is more valuable than costly perfume.” However, the author of Ecclesiastes has much more in mind than a person’s reputation. Reputation is what other people think of you. By using the phrase, “A good name is better. . .” the author is referring to the person’s true character as known to God. Certainly a person with God-honoring character is more comforted by God’s acceptance than by precious ointment. So also the day of death is better than the day of birth for those of Godly character because “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful ones” (Psalm 116:15 NRSV).

The author of Ecclesiastes was a master of one-liners. You can glean through his writing and make placards for everyday of the month from his tidbits of wisdom for good living. But some of his phrases have the power to arrest you and give pause for serious reflection. Such is the power of verse one. In my journey through this Advent Season, my thoughts turn to the return of Christ. How will he find my name? Not my reputation, not the opinions of others, but how will he find my name, my Godly character? This question leads to the most compelling crossroad for those seeking to be fully-devoted followers of Jesus. Yes, we are saved by grace through faith, and it is by grace we are held secure in God’s hands. But how has God’s grace changed my life? How has God’s grace formed a good name, the name of Jesus within me?

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

• Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

• The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.