Today I read and listened once again to the blessing God told Aaron and his sons to give to His people. Any time I give a Benediction for a gathering of God's people I am drawn first to this passage, because it is the first of its kind, and a direct quote from the Lord. If I were to put it in my own words it would be something like this...
May God give you everything good, and cause you to live securely and confidently in Him. May He shine down His radiance upon you and may you bask in His good favor. May He turn His face toward you - near you, as a dad to his daughter or as a friend to a friend - and may His near presence in your life bring you peace.God's "original lyrics" are recorded in Numbers 6:23-26 (NIV)
But I nver noticed what came after that...
"So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them."
Numbers 6:27 (NIV)
We Christians regard every believer as a priest. We represent Christ to one another, to our family members, and to the world around us. We can put God's name on people!
How can I put God's name on people? By blessing them and by being a blessing! Do I have to say this blessing in order to put God's name on people? Well, no, I don't have to. Although, to my friends who would argue that words aren't necessary, I offer this caution: we are in a changing society that doesn't always remember that God is the supreme motivator of goodness. Sometimes, and more and more in our culture, you need to give credit to Whom credit is due.
There is a dark side to this - religion can put its name on people, and we can put our name on people. This can be for good or ill, intentionally or unintentionally. But often people confuse religion's name or our name with God's Name. If a person suffered a negative experience, it's hard to not associate that with God. If someone experienced something positive but one of our personalities got in the way and then we let them down later, that causes frustration and disenchantment. But I don't want to be about the dark side - I want to focus on the light today!
Doing good to others in Jesus' Name, saying to people, "I am praying for you," and actually praying for them, expressing generosity, and in a genuine way saying, "May the Lord bless you today," these are all ways to put God's name on people.
As I look for ways to bless others and be a blessing to them, and as I do what I find to do, I am putting God's name on them. What a privilege and what an opportunity!
Lord, help me to grow in my understanding of what it means to put Your name on people. Help me to be a blessing and to bless others with my words and my actions. Let me follow more closely the pattern of Jesus Christ, Your greatest blessing to me. In His Name I pray. Amen.
