I sat absolutely astounded as I listened to my friend talking about John the apostle, the one who is know as ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved’ or ‘Beloved of God’.
It was as if the light had suddenly come on for me. I had unexpectedly discovered a deeper truth.
John is the author of the book of John, otherwise known as ‘The Gospel according to John’, and this is the only book in the bible where he is referred to as ‘the disciple whom Jesus loved’.
If you think about it, it actually sounds a little conceited. As if he is claiming to be a favorite!
And funnily enough this is why I have always related to John – because I always thought of myself as the ‘the one that Jesus loves’. Like I shared a special relationship with Him.
But God doesn’t have favorites. He doesn’t love any one more than the other. And he doesn’t love us more when we are good and less when we are not. God simply LOVES. That is what he does.
With ALL that is within Him – He loves!
And that there, was my great revelation! John didn’t think that he was more loved by God than the other disciples. He just got it – more than any of the other disciples. He really GOT Gods love. It was so real and so tangible to him. It re-defined who he was in the world. It redefined who he was in Christ.
HE WAS LOVED!
And that was the banner he chose to wear over his whole life. He was so convinced of this, that he re-named himself ‘Beloved of God’.
There is so much in a name. Our name becomes a representation of who we are. Our name establishes who we are to our family, our friends, our boss, our children and our church. And our reputation is recalled by the speaking of our name.
God placed tremendous significance on names and their meanings. Adam, was the very first name that God gave and it means “One formed of the earth”. Adam was given the great honor of naming all the animals and he was given the privilege of naming his wife, Eve. We all give special nicknames to the ones we love, to accentuate our feelings for that person.
God chose Yeshua to be the name for His son. In Hebrew, the name Jesus or “Yeshua” means SALVATION.
Before the birth of Christ, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and he had a very specific message.
Matthew 1:21
21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus,[a] for he will save his people from their sins.” New Living Translation (NLT)
God chose the name Jesus because it directly described the life purpose for His son. He said “call his name JESUS (salvation) for he will save his people from their sins.”
God often re-named people in the bible when they re-purposed their lives for Him.
But God didn’t re-name John. He didn’t say to John “You are the one that I love”.
John re-named himself because the he had the revelation that God loved him.
Just as God loves each one of us.
He Loves us!
I pray that as you read this, you will have that revelation of his love for yourself too! You are loved by God!
YOU are loved by God!
You are LOVED by God!
Take it. Own it. Place it as a banner over your life. You are loved by God!
1 John 4:9-11
9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10 This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
11 Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.
New Living Translation (NLT)