Names and titles are peculiar. They can be both valuable and worthless – timeless and fleeting. My own last name carries both good and bad baggage depending on who has your ear. And most of us have served under leaders whose only authority came from title.

In Acts 22, Paul was about to be publicly beaten right up until the point he revealed himself as a Roman citizen. In that instant, all bets were off. Once they found out to whom he belonged, everything changed.

When we accept Jesus, we take on His name. And it would be an understatement to say the name of Jesus carries weight.

¹⁷ The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” Luke 10:17 ESV

Even the enemies of Jesus recognized His authority. It’s easy for me to forget whose I am. But if we belong to Jesus, we no longer need to operate out of our own authority. Like receiving a referral for a job from someone who has established credibility, we have been spoken for by the Name Of All Names.