Isaiah 43:1
But now thus says the Lord,
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
I’ve read this verse countless times (one of my favorites!) without ever really paying attention to the preceding verses, even though but now begs us to consider what went on before now.
Before now, the people are described as robbed, plundered, trapped in holes, hidden in prisons, prey with no one to rescue, a spoil with no one to say, “Restore!” (Isaiah 42:22).
As if this weren’t bad enough, Isaiah believes it was the Lord who gave up Jacob to the spoiler and Israel to the robbers. The people sinned against the Lord, would not walk in the Lord’s ways, would not obey the Lord’s law...So he poured upon him the heat of his anger and the fury of war; it set him on fire all around, but he did not understand; it burned him, but he did not take it to heart (Isaiah 42:24-25).
But now…
God’s anger, apparently, isn’t getting through to Israel. God’s fury is burning Jacob, but not reaching his heart. So God pivots, changes tactics, speaks a word of incredible grace and mercy to the people God created and formed: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name, you are mine.
Jacob, I have called you by name.
Israel, I have called you by name.
Stacey, I have called you by name.
_____ (take a moment and insert your name here), I have called you by name.
I just spent more time than I could really afford wading through a scientific article about brain activation when hearing one’s own and other’s names.1
I am not a scientist, friends. I admire those who are. I was grateful when my internet searching led me to a summary of the research in simple words even I could understand. This is from an organization called NameCoach that helps all members of a school community build relationships and foster inclusion by making accurate name pronunciation available:
Subjects were exposed to the repeated sound of four different names–including their own–in random patterns…
They found that there is unique brain activation when a subject hears their own name. These patterns are similar to the patterns the brain exhibits during other self-representational behaviors. Hearing your own name causes your brain to react as if you’re engaging in the behaviors and thought patterns that serve as some of your core identity and personality markers.
In fact, this reaction is so powerful that similar patterns were observed in patients in a persistent vegetative state (PVS)…Patients in PVS are unable to move, speak, identify others, and in some cases, even open their eyes. Yet these same patients demonstrated brain activation upon hearing their names, even if only for a moment…
Our brains involuntarily respond to the sound of our own names, even in a state in which we are unable to respond to or act on anything else. What could be more powerful than that?!
Imagine…what is possible when names are used to encourage, stimulate, or support a student’s development! 2
Imagine what is possible when God calls you by name.
You are no longer trapped in shame; you are no longer laid bare by despair and defeat; you are no longer held captive by your past, no matter how much you were hurt, no matter how much hurt you caused others.
Restore! God doesn’t leave you to keep on being sin’s haul, sorrow’s stolen goods. God returns you to your rightful place. God carries you home, to the place you belong, to the love that will never let you go.
God calls you by name, so that even from the depths of persistent fear and regret, you know (in your brain and in your bones) you belong to God. You were created in love. You were formed for love. Nothing–nothing–can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus.
Come, Lord Jesus, come. Call us by name. Remind us who we are. Amen.
1 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1647299/
2 https://name-coach.com/blog/brain-name-brain-responds-sound-name/