We're going out of 1 Samuel chapter
18, but I'd like to read a passage of scripture from the Song of
Solomon first. Right before Isaiah, Song of
Solomon. Verse one. The song of songs, which is Solomon's. Now this is the request of the
church. Let him kiss me with the kisses
of his mouth. For thy love is better than wine. Because of the savor of thy good
ointments, thy name, this is what I want to emphasize, Thy
name is as ointment poured forth. Therefore, do the virgins love
thee. Now turn to first Samuel chapter
18, verse 30. Then the princes of the Philistines
went forth, and it came to pass after they went forth that David
behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul, so
that his name, the name of David, was much set by. And my marginal reading says
precious. His name was precious to all
the people. Let's pray together. Lord, we ask in Christ's name
that by your spirit, his name might be set forth as ointment
and that you'd give us thy spirit to smell the sweet savor of his
name. Lord, grant us a time of worship. May we be enabled to worship
him and to sit at his feet and to hear his word. May your gospel
be preached in the power of your spirit. for the Lord's sake. Lord, we confess our sins, they're
ever before us, we pray for forgiveness and cleansing. Lord, accept our thanksgiving,
we're so very grateful for the salvation that's in your son,
for his name, and that we're saved for his name's sake. Lord,
may his name be much set by, even now, by everyone listening.
For Christ's sake, in his name we pray, amen. His name, this is all I want
to deal with, His name was much set by, was very precious. I love the way that sounds. His name is everything to the
believer, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. How precious is
His name. I love the proverb, the name
of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run into it for
safety, for security, for a hiding place, and they are safe. His name is all in our salvation. We're saved wholly for his name's
sake. Paul quoted Joel when he said, whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord shall be saved. The psalmist said, save
me, O God, by thy name. Now, when we talk about the name
of Christ, we're not talking about some kind of formula. You
hear religious people say, in thy name, we make this claim,
and we make this. I'm not talking about a religious
formula. In Jesus' name, now, like it's some kind of formula,
now God's obligated to hear it because of this name we mentioned.
The name of Christ represents the person behind the name. I, my name is Todd Norbert. I'm
a particular person. If you know me, you don't think
of somebody else. You think of that person behind that name,
Christ Jesus, the person behind his name. You see, he himself,
his person is our message. Paul said, we preach Christ crucified
unto the Jews. This message of Christ crucified
is a stumbling block to the Greeks' foolishness, but unto us which
are being saved. Christ, His name, the power of
God, and the wisdom of God. What a name! Christ, the very
power of God, His name is the power of God unto salvation.
His name is the wisdom of God. How wise God is that He has made
a way to be just, and yet justify somebody as unjust as me, and
remain completely consistent with His justice. Oh, how we
admire the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. In John chapter 5, verse
39, we read where our Lord said, you search the scriptures, and
in them you think you have eternal life. And they are they. which
testify of me." Every one of them. You know, every doctrine
of scripture is only understood in light of his name, of his
person. Take the glorious truth regarding God electing a people
before time began. Well, we were chosen in him.
That's how you understand election. We're chosen in him. Redemption,
having my sins paid for, redeemed by his blood. Justification. We're justified
by His righteousness, even the act of receiving Him. If I'm
saved, I receive the Lord Jesus Christ. But John tells us this,
to as many as received Him, to them gave He the power to become
the sons of God, even to them which believe on His name. Salvation for His name's sake
were kept by His power, were preserved in Christ Jesus, were
accepted in the Beloved. Indeed, His name is much set
by the believer. Don't you love His name? I love
the name Jesus. Thou shalt call His name Jesus,
for He shall save His people from their sins. What a name!
Now in the Old Testament, His name is called El. It means the
mighty one. Elohim is the creator. El Shaddai means God Almighty. Adonai means Lord. Jehovah, the
self-existent one. I am that I am. That's Jehovah.
I am that I am. And you think of the preciousness
of his name to the believer as Jehovah. He's called Jehovah
Rahoy, the Lord, my shepherd. What a blessed thing it is to
have him as my shepherd. I shall not want, I've got an
almighty shepherd. He can't lose one of his sheep.
He can't do it. Oh, how he knows how to feed
and protect and keep his sheep. He's called Jehovah Nisi, the
Lord, our banner, the Lord, our message. He's called Jehovah
Jireh, the Lord will provide. All that God requires of me,
He provides for me. That's not just talking about
material provision, although He does, but He provides for
me everything that God requires of me. He provides for me righteousness
and holiness. Everything God requires, He provides. Jehovah Jireh, the Lord that
provides. What about this name, Jehovah Tzadkinyu? The Lord,
our righteousness, my personal righteousness before God is nothing
less than the obedience, the personal righteousness of Jesus
Christ. Is that great or what? Jehovah Sidkenu, the Lord, our
righteousness. He's called Jehovah Rapha. I
am the Lord that healeth thee and how sick I am and I need
him to heal me continually over and over again. Jehovah Shalom,
the Lord, our peace. Jehovah Shama, the Lord's present. You know, I always have his presence,
whether I feel it or not. Sometimes I don't feel it. Sometimes
I don't feel his presence at all. And I feel like I'm totally
alone. But you know, even when I feel that way, I have it because
he is the Lord is present. Yes. His name is much set by
it. His name is much set by an Israel.
I think this is interesting in Exodus 34 verse 14. It says his
name is jealous. His name. This is his name. His
name is jealous. I think this is so glorious regarding
his name. And the third commandment in
the Ten Commandments is with regard to not taking his name
in vain. His name is so glorious that
it's a sin punishable by eternal hell to take his name in vain. That's how awesome and glorious
he is. That one of the commandments
is regarding taking his name in vain. Don't anybody use his
name in a vain, light way? irreverential way. Don't do that. Don't say, Oh God, or don't say
Lord. He's the Lord. He's the Lord. Don't take his name in vain. That's how glorious he is. Listen to this, Romans 9, 17,
this is why he does everything he does. Even for this same purpose,
have I raised thee up, he said to Pharaoh, that my name might
be declared throughout all the earth. That I might show my power
in thee and show my name throughout all the earth. His name, the
name of the Lord Jesus Christ, is the Word of God. I love his
name like that, don't you? His name is the Word of God.
Now, whatever's in my heart and mind comes out in my words. Christ
Jesus is the very Word of God. What's in his heart and what
his mind when it comes out, it's the Word of God, the Lord Jesus
Christ. Holy and reverend is his name. Yes, his name is much said by
it. He's the son. He's the only begotten
son. He was and is the soul being. The soul being. the only representative
of the being and character of the one who sent him. Now, you
can't compare God to anybody. Jesus Christ is God. You can't
say, well, God's like this. Can't do it. But regarding the
Lord Jesus Christ, in him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead
in a body. All that God is is contained
in the body. of the Lord Jesus Christ. He
possesses every attribute of Godhood, and salvation is wholly
100% for His name's sake. Listen to what the Father said
to the Son. This is what the Father said to the Son. The Father
said to the Son, Thy throne, O God, is forever. A scepter of righteousness is
the scepter of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness
and hated iniquity. Therefore, God, even thy God,
hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows."
Yes, his name is much set by so that we don't hear anything
else, do we? Paul said, I determined not to
know anything among you. I don't even want to hear anything.
I'm not going to talk about anything save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Yes, His name is much set by. He's the Son of God. He's the
Son of the Highest. Isaiah 9, 6 says, His name shall
be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God. The everlasting
father, the prince of peace. How can the son be called the
everlasting father? I don't know. But he is. That's how glorious he is. God manifest in the flesh, the
Lord of glory, the way, the truth. The life. He's the way to God.
He is the truth. He's my life before God. He's
him that liveth. Why seek ye him that liveth among
the dead? He's life. Somebody says Jesus
is alive and well. That's akin to blasphemy. He's
not alive. He is life. He's him that liveth. Why seek ye him that liveth among
the dead? He's called the brightness of
God's glory. and the express image of his
person. He's the image of the invisible
God. He's the son of man. He's the
son of David. He's the son of Mary. He's the
son of God. Now, is it any wonder that his
name is much set by? He's the seed. He's, when the
angels said, appeared to Mary, they said, that holy thing, like,
what are we going to call him? He's so glorious, that holy thing,
which is born of thee, shall be called the son of God. What a name. He's the lamb. He's always been the lamb, the
lamb slain from the foundation of the world that has something
to do with his office as the savior of sinners. Before there
was ever a sinner, there was a savior. He's the lamb that
was slain having been slain from the very foundation of the world. He's the bridegroom. He's the
vine who said without me, severed from me, you can do what? Nothing. Nothing. He's the bread from heaven. He's
the light of the world. I love that passage of scripture
when that woman taken in adultery in the very act, there was no,
no issue regarding her guilt. And he looked at that woman and
said, woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned
thee? She said, no man, Lord. He said,
neither do I condemn thee. Go and sin no more. He's the
light as to how that can be. How is it that I can be guilty
and the holy God say, you're not condemned? Because there's
nothing to be laid to my charge because of what he did for me
when he took upon my sins. He's the light of the world.
He's my rock. He's my foundation. He's the
living stone. These are all names he has in
the scriptures. He's the elect cornerstone. He's
the headstone. He's the rock of offense. You
know, men are offended by him. That's okay, isn't it? I'm not
offended by his grace. I'm not offended in him. Yes,
his name is much set by, he's the alpha and the omega. He's
the beginning of my salvation. It came for His sake and He's
the end too. And everything in between. He's the first and the
last. He's the beginning and the end.
He's the intercessor. Hebrews 7.25. I know I'm rattling
off like a machine gun with all these names of Christ. I hope
you can take them in. But He's the great intercessor.
Wherefore He is able to save them to the uttermost that come
to God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for
them." You see, right now, there's a man in glory representing me
before the Father. And that's why he's able to save
me to the uttermost. He's the advocate. John said,
these things write I unto you that you sin not. Oh, sin's such
a hateful thing. These things write I unto you
that you sin not. But if any man sin, and that
if is quite often translated when, when you do, we have an
advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. When I
sin, when do I not sin? When I see him, I have this advocate
with the father. What a lawyer he is. He makes all of his clients plead
guilty and causes them all to be justified. There's no lawyer
like this, is there? We have an advocate with the
father. He's the mediator. There's one
God and one mediator between God and men, the man, Christ
Jesus. The only way I can come into
the Father's presence is as my mediator brings me into his presence. He's the surety. He's the surety. Now, he stood as the surety of
every believer before time began. And he said to his father the
same thing that Paul said to Philemon, you remember that runaway
slave, Onesimus, that had belonged to Philemon, he ran away, and
somehow he came into contact with Paul in Rome, and he heard
the gospel. And Paul's writing back to Philemon
concerning this man, Onesimus, this runaway slave, and he says
this. He says regarding Onesimus, and
this is what the Lord Jesus Christ says regarding every believer
as their surety. If you count therefore me as
a partner, this is what Christ says to his father. And he does.
If you count me, therefore, as a partner. equal to God. That's
who Christ is. That's what they got mad at.
They said, you're a man and you've made yourself equal to God. Yeah,
he is. He's equal to God because he is God. That's who he is.
He says to his father, if thou count me therefore a partner,
receive him, this runaway slave, as myself. As myself. If he hath wronged
thee or oweth thee aught, put that on my account. I'll repay
it." Now, what a glorious thing to have this one as your surety,
who stands responsible for you. Completely, all the responsibility,
all that God requires of you, He looks to Christ for. He's
the surety of the better testament, according to Hebrews chapter
7. He's the gift of God, called the unspeakable gift. He is thy
salvation. He's the Redeemer. He is the
blessed of the blessedness of the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the
faithful witness. The only one you're going to
really hear the truth from is the faithful witness. You know,
one of the reasons I believe the Bible is the word of God,
because it faithfully tells me what I really am, who I really
am. Nobody else does. He does. He does. He's the faithful
and true witness. He's the resurrection. The resurrection
is not an event. He is the resurrection. He's
the head. He's the captain of our salvation. He's the author and the finisher
of our faith. What a precious thing it is to
have faith. to believe the gospel, to be able to hear. Where'd that
come from? He's the author of it. And if you continue to believe,
there's one reason. He's the finisher of it. He's
the perfecter of it. He's the Lord. I love his name,
the Lord. He said, you call me master and
Lord, you say, well. For so I am. I can't stand to
hear people flippantly talk about Jesus this, Jesus that. You know,
the disciples, not one time when they were speaking to him did
they ever say, Jesus, I want you to do this. No, he's the
Lord. He's the Lord of lords. He's the Lord over all. He's
the Lord of lords and king of kings. He's the Lord. Yes, his name is much set by
to this extent. Paul said in Colossians chapter
three, verse 11, Christ is all. He's all to God. He's all in
the scriptures. And he's all to every believer.
He is all my salvation and all my desire. He is the brother
born for adversity. He is the friend that loveth
at all times. He's the friend of publicans
and sinners. What a name! Truly His name is
much said by you. Don't you love His name as the
friend of publicans and sinners? I'm so thankful He's the sinner's
friend. He who is altogether lovely is my portion. He's called Emmanuel, which being
interpreted is God with us. Not God against us, but God with
us. us. Thou shalt call his name
Jesus, Savior, for he shall save his people from their sins. That's
what I need. I need to save from my sins.
I need a Savior. He said, whatsoever you ask in
my name, that I will We dare not ask anything apart from his
name, do we? But in his name, we come with boldness. Whatsoever
you ask in my name, that will I do that the father might be
glorified in the son. The psalmist said his name shall
endure forever. Now turn with me to Acts chapter
three. There isn't a more glorious subject than his name. Surely
his name is much set by with believers. Don't you love his
name? All his name means? Now that's chapter three. Now Peter and John went up together
into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour,
and a certain man lame from his mother's womb. Now that is so
significant. That's me and you. Lame, unable
to walk in the commandments of God. We were born that way. Born
that way, from our mother's womb. He was carried, whom they laid
daily at the gate of the temple, which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered
into the temple. Who, seeing Peter and John about
to go into the temple, asked an alms. And Peter, fastening
his eyes upon him with John, said, look on us. And he gave
heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them. He
thought they were going to give him some money. Then Peter said, silver and gold
have I none. But such as I have, I give thee.
Now look what he says next. In the name of Jesus Christ of
Nazareth, rise up and walk. And he took him by the right
hand and lifted him up and immediately his feet and ankle bones received
strength. And he leaping up, stood and
walked and entered with him into the temple, walking and leaping
and praising God. See, that's the way the Lord
heals. He wasn't limping around and no, all of a sudden he had
received full strength. Verse 9, And all the people saw
him walking and praising God, and they knew that it was he
which set for alms at the beautiful gate of the temple. And they
were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto
him. And as the lame man which was healed hailed Peter and John,
and all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is
called Solomon's Greatly Wandering. And when Peter saw it, he answered
the people, You men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? Or why
look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness
we made this man to walk? The God of Abraham, and of Isaac,
and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified His Son,
Jesus, whom you delivered up, and denied Him in the presence
of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. But you denied
the Holy One, and the just, and desired a murder to be granted
unto you, and killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised
from the dead, whereof we are witnesses, and His name Through
faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom you see and
know. Yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect
soundness in the presence of you all. Now they ended up being
arrested for this. You probably know the story, but look in chapter
four, verse seven. And when, when they had set them
in the midst, they asked by what power or by what name have you
done this? Then Peter, filled with the Holy
Ghost, said to them, you rulers of the people and elders of Israel,
if we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent
man, by what means he's made whole, be it known unto you and
to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jehovah, the God of glory, the God of
the Old Testament, He would have been saying something true, wouldn't
he, if he would have said that. By the name of God, he's made
whole. And they would have said, okay, amen. He would have been
saying something true, but he would have compromised the very
gospel if he would have done that. What did he say? Be it known unto you and to all
the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
whom you crucified, the one you just put to death, whom God raised
from the dead. Even by him does this man stand
here before you whole. This is the stone which was set
at naught of you builders, which has become the head of the corner.
Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none
other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be
saved." What a name. What a name! Everybody represented
by that name must, did you get that word? Must be saved. Yes, His name is much set by
to this extent. His name is everything in my
salvation. He gets all the glory. None goes
to me. And we all love it that way.
Turn to Philippians chapter 2. Truly, I repeat, His name is
much set by. Verse 5, Let this mind be in
you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form
of God, All that God is. What's God look like? Jesus Christ.
All you're ever going to see of God is Jesus Christ. Isn't
that glorious? All you'll ever see of God is
Jesus Christ the Lord. He's in the form of God. And
he thought it not robbery. He thought it not a thing to
be grasped for, to be equal with God. Now if I said I'm equal
with God, throw tomatoes at me. Any man say, I mean, but this
man is equal with God. He is God. He's all that God
is. But what did he do? Verse seven,
he made himself of no reputation. He took upon him the form of
a servant, was made in the likeness of men, and being found in fashion
as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death,
even the death of the cross. 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,
things in earth, things under the earth, and that every tongue
should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the
Father. Don't you love the way His Father
has determined that every knee is going to bow to His name?
Now you can bow to His name now. If you don't want to do it now,
you're going to may do then. Because every knee is going to
bow to that I turn back to our original text,
1 Samuel chapter 18. His name, last phrase of verse
30, His name was much set by and Saul spake to Jonathan his
son and to all of his servants that they should kill David.
That's when he quit having his secret agenda. When Christ's
name was all exalted, that's when he said to everybody, kill
David. That's what we're gonna pick
up with next week, Saul's enmity toward David. When he saw his
name exalted, he wanted everybody to put David out of business.
That's what we'll pick up next week.