By Han Lei
Over the last two millennia, Christians have been praying, preaching, curing sicknesses, and driving out demons all in the name of the Lord Jesus with the firm belief that He is our sole Savior, we can only be saved through Jesus’ name, and that the name of the Lord Jesus will remain forever unchanged. Just as it is written: “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), and “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Hebrews 13:8). That’s what I always thought, too. But a few days ago, while doing my devotionals I saw this in the Book of Revelation: “Him that overcomes will I make a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, which is new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God: and I will write on him My new name. He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Revelation 3:12–13). I was suddenly drawn in by the two words “new name” and I turned it over and over in my mind. “Could it be that the Lord Jesus really will take on a new name when He returns in the last days? That can’t be, can it? But it’s very clearly stated in the Scripture that God will have a new name and that anyone who has an ear will know, will be able to hear what the Spirit says to the churches. What does this really mean?” Feeling both perplexed and amazed, I read that passage again and thought it over carefully. That’s exactly it! I saw that’s exactly what is written in the Scripture; this came from God’s own mouth. I thought to myself, “According to this, when the Lord Jesus returns in the last days He really will adopt a new name! But in the Book of Hebrews it is written that the name of the Lord Jesus is immutable, so how could this prophecy in the Book of Revelation say that it is going to change? What’s going on with this?” I simply couldn’t make heads or tails of it. I sought out the pastors and elders to consult with them and looked into a number of relevant gospel books, but I still couldn’t find an answer. In the midst of my confusion, I learned that my old friend, Wang Zhong, had just come back from a missionary trip. I felt so excited, because Brother Wang has always had a very pure understanding, and he’s a thoughtful, insightful person. We had discussed the Bible on many occasions and I always gained clarity on the Scripture we sought and fellowshiped on together. I figured he might have some insight on this topic, so I paid him a visit as soon as I could.
