The Happen Stance

How to Make Things Happen In Your Christian Life

K. Neill Foster

OUR WORLD IS ALWAYS IMPRESSED by big names. To be able to "drop" a big name is a status symbol among too many of us. Name-dropping may be nothing more than petty social manoeuvring, but it demonstrates a basic human belief: names are important. And so there is the rush to "drop" the big names. This chapter zeros in on the biggest name of all: the Lord Jesus Christ.

If the prime minister or president of a country were to summon someone, it is most certain the citizen would respond and be present at the appointed time.

Even if the appointment should be at a very inopportune time, the average citizen would nevertheless rearrange his affairs so as to be present when the leader of his country wishes.

Yet these same citizens would be very uncooperative indeed if an unknown Joe Blow should summon them for conversations in a far-off city.

The difference is a name. That is all. Names make the difference. Their importance cannot be overestimated especially in the kingdom of God.

In the Bible, names have tremendous significance. I would say that one who does not understand the significance of names cannot gain a basic understanding of the Scriptures.

In the spiritual warfare, in our struggles to win in the Christian life, "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runneth into it, and is safe" (Prov. 18:10). And not only is the name of our Lord a refuge and defense, it is also a weapon with devastating offensive power. The propitious use of the Lord's name makes things happen.

NAMES ARE SIGNIFICANT

In the Bible, other names also have significance. Adam and Eve are not just random phrases snatched out of the air to be used as labels on the first humans. Adam means "ruddy or red." And Eve means "life-giver." And so it goes, on through the pages of Holy Writ.

A good example of the significance of names is found in Judges 1:5-7. An obscure character named Adoni-bezek appears. His name means "lord of lightning." The Israelites caught him and cut off his thumbs and big toes.

Because his name suggests a relationship with Lucifer, who fell like "lightning" from heaven, I think it is a picture of the devil's defeat at the hands of Christians who take the offensive. Note that Adoni-bezek was defeated, not destroyed. The application is clear: Christians can wage a victorious warfare over Satan, the "lord of lightning"; they can get his thumbs and big toes, but God Almighty is the one who will finally send Satan to everlasting destruction.

Jacob's name, too, is especially significant. True to the meaning of his name, he was for years "the supplanter ." Then after an all-night encounter with the Lord, Jacob's character was changed. (How many times have we excused ourselves by saying, "I can't help this; it is just the way I am?") He became Israel, a prince with God.

To continue with references to names would fill this book and many others, but I believe you can see a principle established. Names are significant.

Our Lord, whose coming was prophesied in the Old Testament, was given a number of names before He was born, all of which describe in detail the character and ministry of the Savior. "And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace" (Isa. 9:6). In the New Testament our Savior is called a Lamb, the Lion of Judah, the Word, the Son of Man, the Son of God, and other names. Each one helps to describe the Lord Jesus Christ.

Another interesting and somewhat obscure sidelight in the Bible is that God's favor is attached to deeds done in the name of His followers. "He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no way lose his reward" (Matt. 10:41,42).

The name of a Christian disciple still has power. Since that is so, how much more power there is in the name of our Lord.

There are names, too, in the spirit world. The Holy Spirit has various names, none without significance. He is called the Comforter and the Spirit of Truth (John 14:16,17). Even the angels have names. Michael and Gabriel are two angels we know by name (Dan. 10:13, Luke 1:19). And Satan has other names, too. He is called the dragon, the serpent, and the devil (Rev. 20:2). The demons have names as well. Legion is the name of a demon referred to in the Bible (Luke 8:30) who apparently spoke for and represented several thousand associates. (A Roman legion was made up of 3,000 to 6,000 men.)

I do not think it appropriate to fill reams of paper with a discussion of demonic names, but sometimes a real key to deliverance of those subjected to the occult is to discover the names of the intruding spirits. Evil spirits seem to be weaker when their names are known. The names can be discovered in three ways: direct revelation by the Spirit of God through the gift of discerning of spirits; a keen observation of the symptoms and bondage of the victim (for example, a person addicted to adultery may have a demon of adultery, though not always); and confrontation and probing. If there is spirit-speaking through the victim of demonic invasion, startling results can often be produced by demanding the name of the offending power "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ."

UNBELIEVERS USE THE NAME

The name of Jesus Christ is very powerful. So powerful, in fact, that even unbelievers are able to use it effectively. Some will say, "Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? And in thy name cast out devils? And in thy name done many wonderful works?" (Matt. 7:22). But Jesus will say to them, "I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity" (Matt. 7:23).

There are dangers when unbelievers try to harness the awesome power of Jesus' name. The sons of Sceva had a battle on their hands when they attempted exorcism without real faith in Jesus Christ. They escaped naked and wounded. Seven men were overcome by one demonized man (Acts 19:13-17).

In this section, however, I wish to focus on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Our Savior deserves His full title. The more Christians learn about His name, the more inclined they are to use the full title.)

RESCUED INDIANS

"Jesus Christ's name saves from sin." These words are being written in the home of a missionary to the Cree Indians of Alberta. These people certainly need a Savior from sin. The night before last the missionary with whom I am staying had to take a wounded Indian to the hospital. Evidently his drunken brother had attacked him with an axe. At another of these same mission stations drunken Indians once fired a rifle shot through a group of children coming home from a youth meeting. They had been shooting before they saw the children. Fourteen shots in all were fired. No one was hit, but one shot whistled right past the group of children and smacked into the side of a forty-five gallon steel drum. Murder, adultery, drunkenness, and hate run riot in these parts.

But there is another side. Some of these Indians have been saved from sin. They are absolutely transformed, absolutely free. They used to do the same things their brothers do, but no more. Their bright eyes and radiant faces tell the story. Saved from sin by Jesus Christ! What a mighty name! "Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

EXPLOSIVE RESULTS

Jesus' name sets free from Satan, as we have already illustrated in this chapter. There is a reason why this is so. The name of Jesus Christ has lost none of its power. The authority and force of that name are undiminished. Centuries ago, Paul said, "I command thee, in the name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her" (Acts 16:18). The results were explosive then but are no less so today.

The name of Jesus also delivers from sickness. The man who was lame from birth was healed in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 3:16). It certainly was not a healing effected by the holiness or power of the disciples, though it did take place after Jesus Christ had ascended into heaven.

Peter and John were on the same footing we are. Bereft of the physical presence of Jesus, by faith they dared to say, "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk" (Acts 3:6). I cannot help believe that if we dared to believe more, if we listened more carefully to the Spirit of God, if we were less afraid of hucksters and charlatans, we would certainly discover Jesus' name has lost none of its healing power.

COLOMBIANS EXCEL

I enjoy Latin America and Colombia in particular. The Colombians are great believers. An evangelicalism without the preaching of divine healing is not likely to grow quickly there. The whole populace believes in the miraculous. And the faith of our brethren there has often shamed me.

I remember one time when a Colombian evangelist and I went to pray for a little grandmother who had been two years on her bed. I had no problem praying, but the Colombians excel in what comes next. They tell the sick to get up! And they do get up. Unfortunately, even after we had told the grandmother to rise and walk, she did not. And the next day, she did not want anyone to pray for her.

Later, after we had moved to the next campaign, a believer from the former town came to visit. I inquired about the abuelita. "Oh," he said, "she's walking allover." I was amazed but thrilled, too. I wish all our pastors in North America could take a course in divine healing in Latin America. These brethren have a lot to teach us, not the least of which is that Jesus' name delivers from sickness today!

LAY OFF THE NAME?

A fascinating study of the name of Jesus Christ occurs in Acts 4. Such was the apostolic use of Jesus Christ's name that the authorities realized that the remarkable healing of the lame man had been effected by the use of the name of Jesus Christ. The authorities did not forbid preaching. All they wanted was for the disciples to lay off the name! Of course, the disciples would not. Peter and John knew where the source of their authority and power lay. They responded by asking for more healings, signs and wonders, all in the name of the holy child Jesus (Acts 4:30). Later, the apostles were beaten (Acts 5:40) because they would not stop using the name!

I further believe the biblical method for the preaching of the gospel is the use of the name. Philip preached the name and the kingdom (Acts 8:12). Paul also made it clear that to preach the gospel, so far as he was concerned, was to name Christ (Rom. 15:20). Samaritan-style awakenings can still happen under the same style of preaching!

Jesus Himself hinges "the great commission" on His name. First, He told His disciples, "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel. . ." (Mark 16:15). Then he told them what would happen - " And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name they shall cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover" (vv. 17,18).⁸ All of this in His name.

Perhaps one of the reasons twentieth-century Christianity is so different from the first-century brand is our shrunken appreciation for the power and authority of Jesus' name.

Prayer, too, is linked to Christ's name. Jesus promised, "If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it" (John 14:14). He gave just one condition: His name.

LOST MEANING

Many of us have a habit of ending every prayer in Jesus' name, whether we are saying grace at the table or "Now I lay me down to sleep. . . ."

Jesus' name has become so familiar that it has lost its meaning. But Jesus' name in the Scriptures is linked to God's glory (John 14:13). Ordination into the Lord's work and fruitfulness are intended to result in the effective use of Jesus' name. "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain; that whatsoever ye shall ask of the father in my name, he may give it to you" (John 15:16). I cannot help but feel there are some unplumbed spiritual secrets about the use of Jesus' name in prayer.

INDISCRIMINATE PRAYING

I must conclude that those Christians in church history and in the present time who have gained great effectiveness in prayer have at the same time discovered at least a tiny part of the full force of Jesus' name. When a prayer can genuinely be offered "in Jesus' name," that prayer is going to be answered. What may we conclude about all our unanswered prayers, except that we are making indiscriminate use of the mightiest name in heaven and on earth? May God forgive us - and teach us.

The name of Jesus meant that He was to save His people from their sins (Matt. 1:21). The early disciples rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for Jesus' name (Acts 5:41). Jesus made it clear, "And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name, receiveth me" (Matt. 18:5). The name of "Jesus" focuses on His person.

And that is where this whole study leads us. To the Lord Jesus Christ, the person. His name is transcendent, "Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil. 2:9-11). Jesus' name implies the involvement of His person. That is why, when you properly use the name of the Lord Jesus Christ in spiritual warfare, the results are bound to be impressive.

Jesus Christ the Lord, the King of Kings, intervenes personally on your behalf. He commits all that He is, all that He has promised, to your struggle, your difficulty. His name, properly applied, unleashes a whole series of events. His name makes things happen!

Christian soldier, put on your armor! Take up His almighty name! The transcendent name of the Lord Jesus Christ has power forever.

Chapter 8